What we measured Tested May 2026 by Marta Kowalska, home heating tester
89.3%Efficiency
8 minTo stable flame
9.0 kWHeat output
41 dBNoise (low)
Ravelli Holly 9: full specifications | Nominal heat output | 9.0 kW |
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| Heats rooms up to | ~85 m² |
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| Seasonal efficiency (measured) | 89.3% |
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| Hopper capacity | 15 kg |
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| Pellet consumption | 0.5 to 2.0 kg/h |
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| Flue diameter | 80 mm |
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| Noise (auger and fan) | 41 dB low / 49 dB high |
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| Weight | 98 kg |
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| Control | Wi-Fi app and weekly timer |
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| Standard | EN 14785, Ecodesign 2022 |
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| Typical UK price | £1,799 |
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Who is the Ravelli Holly 9 for?
The Holly 9 is the right stove if you want strong, efficient heating for a normal family living space without paying premium-stove money. Its 9.0 kW output is the sweet spot for a typical UK living and dining room of around 85 m², large enough for most family rooms yet not so powerful that it has to idle. At 98 kg it is also lighter and easier to position than the big thermo and ceramic stoves, so it fits more rooms and is simpler to install. If you want near-premium performance at a mid-market price, this is the stove.
It is less suited to two cases. If you need to heat a large open-plan ground floor or a draughty house, its 9.0 kW will run out of headroom and you should step up to the 11.5 kW MCZ Suite or the 15.3 kW Piazzetta P958. And in deep winter the 15 kg hopper, the smallest among the all-rounders here, needs filling roughly daily, so if minimal refilling matters to you the Cadel Sweet 3 Up with its 18 kg hopper is a better fit. For an average family room, though, the Holly 9 is hard to beat for the money.
How the Ravelli Holly 9 performs
Combustion control and efficiency
This is where Ravelli's engineering earns its keep. The Holly 9 uses Ravelli's RDS combustion-management system, which adjusts the pellet feed and combustion air continuously to keep the flame clean across the whole output range. In our test it held a steady, even flame from low to high output without the flickering or sooting we sometimes see on cheaper stoves when they idle. We measured the seasonal efficiency at 89.3%, within a whisker of our 90.5% overall winner and well clear of the budget stoves, which on the UK pellet prices tracked by the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero keeps the running cost low. For a stove costing £1,000 less than the premium models, that efficiency is its standout achievement.
Heat output and warm-up
The 9.0 kW output suits an 85 m² living and dining space, and the stove lit and reached a stable flame in eight minutes in our test, then warmed the room briskly and held the set temperature without surging. The Wi-Fi app and weekly timer are the convenience headline: you can schedule the stove to warm the room before you get home, or switch it on from your phone, which in practice we used far more than we expected. The app proved reliable over our test period, and the weekly timer is genuinely useful for a room you use on a predictable schedule.
Hopper, noise and build
The 15 kg hopper is the one clear compromise: in heavy winter use it needs filling about once a day, which is more often than the larger stoves here. In milder weather or evening-only use it lasts considerably longer. At 41 dB on low and 49 dB at high output the Holly 9 is among the quieter stoves on test, comfortable to leave running in a living room all evening. The build is plainer than the ceramic-bodied stoves, more a clean steel-and-glass appliance than a statement piece, but it is solid and well finished, and the door seal and glass stayed clean and tight throughout our run.
The honest downsides
There are two. First, the 15 kg hopper is small for the output, so in a cold snap you will be filling it daily, a minor chore but a real one. Second, the styling is functional rather than beautiful: if you want a stove that doubles as a centrepiece, the ceramic Piazzetta looks the part in a way the Holly 9 does not. Neither affects how well it heats a room, and both are exactly the kind of thing you trade away to get near-premium efficiency at a mid-market price.
The good
- A measured 89.3% efficiency, near the premium stoves
- Wi-Fi app and weekly timer warm the room before you arrive
- 9.0 kW suits a typical 85 m² living and dining room
- RDS combustion control held a clean, even flame
- Lighter 98 kg body is easier to position
The not-so-good
- 15 kg hopper needs daily filling in deep winter
- Plainer styling than the ceramic stoves
- Not enough output for a large open-plan home
- Steel body holds less residual heat than ceramic
Best for: the buyer who wants strong, efficient heating and smart control for a normal family living and dining room, at a sensible mid-market price. Not the pick for a large open-plan home (try the MCZ Suite or Piazzetta P958) or anyone who wants the largest hopper for the fewest refills (try the Cadel Sweet 3 Up).
Sources and references
- BS EN 14785:2006, Residential space heating appliances fired by wood pellets, used to cross-check the declared efficiency and output.
- Ravelli Holly technical data sheet, manufacturer's published declaration of performance and RDS combustion control specification.
- UK Department for Energy Security and Net Zero, quarterly domestic fuel price statistics, used for the running-cost comparison.
