Quick Answer: The best 72-inch electric fireplace overall is the Touchstone Sideline Elite 72” (around $1,599, sale from $2,399), a WiFi-enabled recessed unit with a 68”x14⅜” flame-viewing area and the same 1,500W/5,118 BTU rating (400 sq ft) as Touchstone’s smaller models. For the most realistic flame at true scale, the Dimplex IgniteXL 74” (around $3,699.99) steps up to a hardwireable 240V option rated 2,500W/8,530 BTU, per Dimplex’s spec sheet. Budget-conscious buyers can get the same 72-inch width from the Real Flame Corretto 72” (around $861.90) or the Mystflame 72” (around $639.99) for roughly a third the price of the Touchstone pick.
A 72-inch electric fireplace is sized for a genuinely large wall — a big-screen media wall, a great room, or a two-story fireplace feature — where a standard 50-inch or 60-inch unit would look undersized. The width jump matters mostly for looks and TV pairing, though, not heat: as our sizing guide covers, nearly every plug-in electric fireplace tops out at the same 1,500W a standard outlet allows, regardless of how wide the glass runs. Here’s what we’d actually put on a 72-inch wall in 2026.
Top 72-inch picks compared
| Model | Width | Heat | Best for | Price | Rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Touchstone Sideline Elite 72" | 71¾" | 1,500W / 5,118 BTU | Best overall | ~$1,599 | ★★★★★ |
| Dimplex IgniteXL 74" | 74¼" | 1,500W–2,500W / up to 8,530 BTU | Most realistic | ~$3,699.99 | ★★★★★ |
| Real Flame Corretto 72" | 72" | 1,400W / 4,700 BTU | Best value | ~$861.90 | ★★★★☆ |
| Mystflame 72" | 72" | 750W/1,500W | Best budget | ~$639.99 | ★★★½☆ |
1. Touchstone Sideline Elite 72” — Best Overall
Touchstone Sideline Elite 72" Recessed Electric Fireplace (80038)
- 68" x 14⅜" edgeless flame-viewing area, per Touchstone's own product listing — the widest continuous glass front in this guide short of the Dimplex.
- WiFi-enabled with Alexa/Google Home control, 6 flame colors and 10 media bed colors, two heat settings (750W/1,500W) with a 68–88°F thermostat.
- Recesses flush into a 2x6 framed wall or mounts on the surface with the included bracket; plug-in or hardwire.
The Sideline Elite 72” scales up everything we already like about Touchstone’s smaller Sideline Elite (our best wall mount top pick) without changing the recipe — same frameless glass, same smart-home control, same 400 sq ft heat rating, just a much wider viewing area for a big media wall. A recessed 72-inch unit is heavy and awkward to carry solo — a free 30-day Amazon Prime trial gets it delivered in two days so you can schedule the install and a second pair of hands for the same weekend.
2. Dimplex IgniteXL 74” — Most Realistic
Dimplex IgniteXL 74" Built-In Linear Electric Fireplace (XLF74)
- Rated 1,500W/4,400 BTU on a standard 120V circuit, or 2,500W/8,530 BTU if hardwired to 240V — the only unit in this guide that can roughly double its heat output, per Dimplex's spec sheet.
- Same multi-layer LED flame technology as the 50" IgniteXL featured in our best electric fireplace pillar guide, at true large-wall scale.
- Rough opening is 74⅝"W x 16"H x 5½"D — check this against your framed cavity, not just the fireplace's own outer dimensions, per our dimensions guide.
At more than double the Touchstone pick’s price, the IgniteXL 74” is for buyers who’ve already decided realism matters more than budget — the same reasoning that makes the smaller IgniteXL our top realism pick sitewide. The 240V hardwire option is a genuine functional advantage here, not just a spec-sheet number: it’s the only way in this guide to get more than 1,500W of supplemental heat from a single unit.
3. Real Flame Corretto 72” — Best Value
Real Flame Corretto 72" Wall-Hung Electric Fireplace
- 120V/11.7A plug-in, full 72" width, at roughly half the Touchstone Sideline Elite's price.
- Real Flame's product page rates this unit for spaces "up to 1,000 sq ft" — noticeably higher than the ~400 sq ft this site's other 1,500W-class picks are rated for on a similar wattage, so treat that figure as an optimistic ceiling rather than a guarantee, especially in an open-concept great room.
- 83 lbs — plan for two people to hang it, same as the recessed picks above.
Real Flame already earns a spot on this site in our best electric fireplace TV stand guide, and the Corretto 72” is a reasonable step up to full wall-mount scale from the same brand — good glass quality and finish for the price, just size the heat claim with a healthy dose of skepticism.
4. Mystflame 72” — Best Budget
Mystflame 72" Recessed / Wall-Mount Electric Fireplace
- Cheapest full-72-inch option we found — roughly a third of the Touchstone Sideline Elite's price for the same nominal width.
- Multiple Mystflame 72" listings exist across Amazon with different feature sets (WiFi vs. non-WiFi, remote vs. touch-screen), and pricing on those listings ranges from roughly $575 to $800 — confirm the specific listing's wattage and control features before ordering, since they're not identical SKUs under one name.
- Recessed or surface wall-mounted, log-and-crystal media bed, remote and touch-screen control on most listings.
Mystflame doesn’t have the brand track record of Touchstone or Dimplex, but for a full 72-inch flame display at this price, it’s the pick if the budget simply doesn’t stretch to $1,599 — just verify the exact listing’s spec sheet, since “Mystflame 72-inch” covers more than one configuration.
Buying a 72-inch electric fireplace: what actually matters
- Confirm your rough-opening depth before ordering a recessed unit — depth ranges from 5¼” (Real Flame Corretto) to 5⅞” (Dimplex IgniteXL) among these picks, all shallow enough for a standard 2x6 stud wall, per our dimensions guide.
- Don’t assume wider means hotter — three of these four picks are capped at the same 1,500W/~400 sq ft ceiling as this site’s 50-inch and 60-inch units; only the hardwired 240V Dimplex option breaks that ceiling.
- Match the width to your TV, not just your wall — a 72-inch fireplace looks best under a 75-85” screen; a smaller TV on a fireplace this wide can look visually lopsided.
- Get help lifting it — every unit in this guide weighs well over 50 lbs; plan for a second person on install day, and see our installation cost guide if you’re hiring it out.
The bottom line
For most large-wall installs, the Touchstone Sideline Elite 72” is the smart buy — full smart-home control, a proven brand, and the same reliable 400 sq ft heat rating as this site’s other top picks. Step up to the Dimplex IgniteXL 74” if realism and hardwireable heat output matter more than price, or go with the Real Flame Corretto or Mystflame if you just need the width filled on a budget. At this price tier, timing the purchase matters — see our Black Friday deals guide for when hardwired premium units like the IgniteXL actually see their biggest markdowns.