The Short Version
Medical Saunas, part of the Santa Clarita, CA-based Medical Breakthrough family of companies, builds its full-spectrum infrared and traditional saunas around a “designed by doctors” story: a decade of development with input from roughly 48 physicians, pain specialists, and cardiologists, sold direct-to-consumer with some of the lowest entry prices in the premium sauna category and a dedicated commercial-sauna line for spas and gyms.
Sun Home Saunas, a newer San Diego company founded by Tyler Fish and Adam Fischer, has built its reputation on third-party validation — an A+ BBB accreditation, an Inc. 5000 ranking, and published independent lab testing for EMF and VOC emissions — sold across a wider range of premium-tier models with red light therapy and outdoor-specific construction. For most everyday buyers who want a full-body infrared sauna at a genuinely lower price point, with a commercial option if they need one, Medical Saunas is the more accessible pick — though Sun Home has real, verifiable advantages on independent safety testing and warranty length that matter to buyers who want that paper trail before they spend five figures.
| Category | Medical Saunas | Sun Home Saunas |
|---|---|---|
| Company | Medical Breakthrough (also sells massage chairs), Santa Clarita, CA | Fish & Fischer LLC dba Sun Home Saunas, San Diego, CA |
| Product range | Full-spectrum infrared (Medical 3–7 Plus), Traditional, Outdoor, Commercial, Custom, Cold Plunge | Full-spectrum infrared (Equinox), far-infrared (Solstice), red light + infrared (Eclipse, Pod), outdoor infrared (Luminar), traditional outdoor (Solaris), Cold Plunge, infrared blankets, red light devices |
| Positioning | “Designed by 48 doctors”; only lists health benefits it says are backed by documented research; built and assembled at its own LA factory | Premium wellness brand; leads with independently published EMF/VOC lab testing and editorial hands-on reviews rather than a doctor-development narrative |
| Sales model | Direct-to-consumer online, phone sales line, countdown-timer discount pricing shown on every product page | Direct-to-consumer online, more modest and stable promotional discounts (roughly 5–6% off list rather than 50%+) |
| Commercial/B2B line | Dedicated Commercial Spa line (4–6 person, reinforced construction) plus bulk business/government rates | Primarily residential; no dedicated commercial product line found on-site |
Pricing: What You’ll Actually Pay
Both brands list a “regular” price and a lower current price on every product page, so the numbers below reflect the current listed sale price at the time of writing, not the crossed-out reference price.
| Tier | Medical Saunas | Sun Home Saunas |
|---|---|---|
| Entry / 1-person | Medical 3™ — 1 person, 6 heaters, hemlock wood — $3,499 (listed retail $7,999) | Solstice™ — far-infrared, kiln-dried eucalyptus — from $4,999 |
| Full-spectrum, 3–4 person | Medical 6™ — 3–4 person, 11 heaters, hemlock wood — $9,399 (listed retail $21,999) | Eclipse™ 4-Person — full-spectrum infrared + integrated red light therapy, cedar — $12,999 (list $13,599) |
| Outdoor | Outdoor/Nature Saunas collection — pricing gated behind product pages we couldn’t fully price at time of writing; confirm current pricing directly with Medical Saunas | Luminar™ 2-Person — aerospace aluminum, no cover needed — $10,999 (list $11,599) |
| Warranty | Flat 3-year warranty across every model, included free | Limited Lifetime warranty on Eclipse, Luminar, and Pod; 7-year residential warranty on cabinetry/heaters (3 years on controls) for Equinox and Solstice; 3 years on Solaris and cold plunges |
At the entry tier, Medical Saunas is meaningfully cheaper — $3,499 versus Sun Home’s $4,999 starting price — even though the two aren’t a perfect match (Medical 3 is strictly 1-person; Solstice’s lineup runs 1 to 4 people depending on configuration). At the 3–4 person full-spectrum tier, Medical 6 is also the lower price, though part of that $3,600 gap is explained by the Eclipse’s built-in red light therapy panels, a feature Medical Saunas’ spec sheet doesn’t list on any model. One thing worth flagging honestly: Medical Saunas’ “56–57% off” pricing and countdown timer are a permanent fixture of its product pages rather than a limited-time event, which is a common tactic in direct-response ecommerce — it’s worth asking whether the crossed-out “retail” price is one anyone actually pays, rather than treating the percentage-off number as the real story. Sun Home’s discounts, by contrast, run in the more modest 5–6% range, which reads as more standard promotional pricing.
Construction, Safety Testing, and Track Record
Medical Saunas builds its cabinets from natural hemlock, which the company says hardens and becomes more durable with age, and assembles every unit at its Los Angeles factory. Its core claim — that the line was developed over 10 years with input from about 48 doctors, pain specialists, and cardiologists — is stated on nearly every product page but is self-reported; we found no independent, doctor-authored source verifying the number or the specific doctors involved. The saunas’ preheat claim (roughly 40 minutes versus a stated 90-minute-to-2-hour industry average) is likewise a company-stated figure we could not independently verify against Sun Home’s models, which don’t prominently publish a comparable preheat spec.
Sun Home builds primarily from Canadian red cedar and eucalyptus and, on its higher-end lines, uses a magnetic panel system (Magne-Seal™) designed for full disassembly and reassembly if you move. Where Sun Home pulls ahead on documentation: its EMF output has been independently tested at 0.5 milligauss by Vitatech Electromagnetics, and its VOC emissions tested at 27 µg/m³ by VERT Environmental, an AIHA-accredited lab, using EPA Method TO-15 — both named, checkable third-party sources. We found no equivalent independently published EMF or VOC testing on Medical Saunas’ site. Sun Home also holds an A+ BBB accreditation (confirmed directly on bbb.org) with a 4.87/5 rating across 67 reviews, and appears on the 2025 Inc. 5000 list of fastest-growing private companies; Medical Saunas doesn’t have an equivalent BBB profile under its own name that we could locate (a related entity, “Medical Breakthrough Massage Chairs,” has an unaccredited BBB profile for a different product line). Worth noting for balance: Sun Home’s own BBB complaint page also shows real customer disputes on file, including a delayed-refund complaint over a broken sauna and one complainant alleging duplicate reviews appeared on Sun Home’s site — the BBB profile shows the company responding to complaints, but it isn’t a spotless record.
On customer reviews, Medical Saunas holds a “4.7–4.8 out of 5” rating on Trustpilot from a relatively small base of around 40 reviews at the time of writing; several reviewers specifically praised the company’s installation crews and phone support. Sun Home’s Trustpilot and BBB-reported ratings are similarly strong (4.87/5 across 67 BBB-tracked reviews) on a modestly larger sample. Neither sample size is large enough to be statistically definitive, so treat both as directional rather than conclusive.
One further nuance worth flagging: Medical Saunas’ product pages embed YouTube clips of Dr. Oz, Dr. Mercola, and other physicians discussing the general health benefits of sauna therapy. These appear to be general educational content about heat therapy rather than endorsements of Medical Saunas’ specific products — we found no verified statement from those individuals naming or endorsing Medical Saunas by brand.
| Buyer Profile | Better Fit | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Wants the lowest entry price for a 1-person sauna | Medical Saunas | Medical 3 at $3,499 undercuts Sun Home’s cheapest listed model (Solstice, from $4,999) by roughly $1,500 |
| Buying for a gym, spa, or commercial facility | Medical Saunas | Medical Saunas sells a dedicated Commercial Spa line and offers bulk business/government pricing; we found no equivalent commercial product line on Sun Home’s site |
| Wants independently published EMF and VOC safety data before buying | Sun Home Saunas | Sun Home publishes named third-party lab results (Vitatech for EMF, VERT Environmental for VOCs); we found no equivalent independent testing published by Medical Saunas |
| Wants the longest warranty coverage | Sun Home Saunas | Limited Lifetime warranty on Eclipse/Luminar/Pod versus Medical Saunas’ flat 3-year warranty across its entire lineup |
| Wants a sauna that disassembles cleanly for a future move | Either | Medical Saunas lists “clasp-together assembly” as a standard feature across its line, and Sun Home’s magnetic Magne-Seal system is designed for full disassembly with warranty continuing after a move — both address this, just with different hardware |
Where Medical Saunas Pulls Ahead
A meaningfully lower entry price
At $3,499 for the 1-person Medical 3, Medical Saunas undercuts Sun Home’s cheapest listed sauna by about $1,500 — a real difference for a first-time buyer testing whether a home sauna fits into their routine before spending more.
A dedicated commercial line
Medical Saunas sells purpose-built commercial-grade spas (reinforced 2×4 framing, taller cabinets, heavy-duty hardware) and offers bulk pricing for businesses and government buyers — a product category we didn’t find an equivalent for on Sun Home’s site.
Faster claimed preheat time
Medical Saunas states its Rapid Internal Heating System™ reaches full temperature in about 40 minutes, versus a stated industry average of 90 minutes to 2 hours. This is a company-stated figure we couldn’t independently verify or directly compare against Sun Home’s published specs, but it’s a concrete, checkable claim rather than vague marketing language.
To Be Fair to Sun Home Saunas
Sun Home’s strongest case is its paper trail: an A+ BBB accreditation confirmed directly on bbb.org, published third-party lab results for EMF and VOC emissions from named, accredited testing firms, an Inc. 5000 ranking, and hands-on reviews from more than half a dozen independent publications including Fortune, Forbes, and Garage Gym Reviews. For a buyer who wants to independently verify safety and legitimacy claims before spending five figures on a premium model, rather than relying on a brand’s own marketing copy, Sun Home currently makes that easier to do than Medical Saunas does.
Where They’re Actually Similar
Both companies sell full-spectrum infrared saunas built from real hardwood (hemlock for Medical Saunas, cedar and eucalyptus for Sun Home), both sell direct-to-consumer rather than through big-box retail, both offer modular assembly systems designed for a home installation without a contractor crew, and both require a dedicated electrical circuit rather than a standard household outlet on their larger models. Neither company published a documented product recall in the sources we checked. This is a comparison between two direct-to-consumer premium sauna brands — not a premium-versus-budget comparison — and the price gap between comparable tiers, while real, is smaller than the headline “56% off” discounts on Medical Saunas’ site might suggest.
FAQ
Do I need special electrical work to install either sauna?
Likely yes for anything beyond the smallest 1-person models. Medical Saunas’ larger units require a 120V/35A or 220V/30A circuit; Sun Home’s larger units require a dedicated 20A or 30A circuit. Both companies recommend a licensed electrician for anything above a standard 120V/15A household outlet — confirm the exact requirement for your specific model with the manufacturer before you buy.
Which brand is actually cheaper?
At comparable entry tiers, Medical Saunas is cheaper. At the 3–4 person full-spectrum tier the price gap narrows once you account for the red light therapy hardware bundled into Sun Home’s comparable model. Ask each company for a same-capacity, same-feature quote before deciding.
Is the “48 doctors” claim independently verified?
We couldn’t verify it independently — it’s a company-stated figure repeated across Medical Saunas’ marketing pages. If a specific doctor’s endorsement matters to your decision, ask Medical Saunas directly for named references.
Does either brand offer financing?
Both mention financing options on their sites. Confirm current terms, APR, and credit requirements directly with each company, since financing terms change frequently and neither site published enough detail for us to compare responsibly.
Bottom Line
For a budget-conscious buyer who wants a full-body infrared sauna at the lowest realistic entry price, or a business buyer who needs a commercial-grade unit, Medical Saunas is the more practical choice — its entry pricing is genuinely lower and its commercial line fills a gap Sun Home doesn’t cover.
The narrow case where Sun Home still wins: a buyer who wants independently published safety testing, a verifiable BBB accreditation, and the longest possible warranty before committing several thousand dollars, and who is willing to pay a premium — particularly at the mid and outdoor tiers — to get that documentation up front.
Ready to compare models with Medical Saunas?
See current pricing across the full Medical Saunas lineup, from the 1-person Medical 3 to commercial-grade spas, all backed by a 3-year warranty.
Visit Medical SaunasSources: MedicalSaunas.com (product, pricing, and specification pages as listed at time of writing); SunHomeSaunas.com (product, pricing, and company pages, including its published buying-guide and trust-page content); the Better Business Bureau profiles for Sun Home Saunas and for Medical Breakthrough Massage Chairs; Trustpilot reviews for medicalsaunas.com; and independent coverage including Haven of Heat’s Sun Home Saunas review. Pricing, promotions, warranty terms, and specifications are set by each company and subject to change; confirm current details directly with Medical Saunas or Sun Home Saunas before purchasing. This page reflects independent research and is not medical advice — consult a physician before starting regular sauna or cold-plunge use, particularly if you are pregnant, have a cardiovascular condition, or take medication that affects heat or cold tolerance.