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LED strip lights use energy-efficient and long-lasting LED bulbs to bring creative and decorative lighting to any room. While most strip lights are thought of as a colorful way to decorate a space, they can also be a viable option for bringing accent lighting to commercial buildings and residential homes.
Since the LED light market is saturated with products, the This Old House Reviews Team researched the best LED strip lights on Amazon to help you make the right purchase for your home. Here are our top five picks.
Compare Top LED Strip Lights
Product | Number of Spools | Length | Available Settings | Control Options |
---|---|---|---|---|
MINGER LED Strip Lights | 2 | 65.6 feet | Color, brightness, and mode settings | Remote control |
Govee LED Strip Lights | 1 | 16.4 feet | Color, brightness, and mode settings | Remote control |
HRDJ LED Strip Lights | 4 | 200 feet | Music sync, color, brightness, and mode settings | Remote control and compatible smartphone app |
Govee Smart LED Strip Lights | 2 | 32.8 feet | Music sync, color, brightness, and mode settings | Remote control, compatible smartphone app, and voice assistant |
Lepro LED Strip Lights | 2 | 32.8 feet | Color, brightness, and mode settings | Remote control |
Product | Number of Spools | Length | Available Settings | Control Options |
Best Basic Option: MINGER LED Strip Lights
Key Features
- Two spools
- 65.6 feet long total
- Color, brightness, and mode settings with an included remote control
What Customers Are Saying
Positive reviews highlighted the intense brightness, easy installation, and large color range that these LED strip lights had. Negative reviews criticized these LED strip lights for falling off of walls because their adhesive backing wasn’t sticky enough.
Best For Small Spaces: Govee LED Strip Lights
Key Features
- One spool
- 16.4 feet long total
- Color, brightness, and mode settings with an included remote control
What Customers Are Saying
Happy reviewers praised this LED strip light for creating decorative backlighting around their TV and for offering a massive range of brightness and color options. Other reviews noted that the strip lasted for years. While customers appreciated the thick coating, they said that it made cutting the strip to size difficult. Other unhappy reviewers stated that they didn’t realize their purchase came without connectors.
Best For Large Areas: HRDJ LED Strip Lights
Key Features
- Multiple spools
- 200 feet long total
- Music sync, color, brightness, and mode settings with an included remote control and compatible app
What Customers Are Saying
Customers appreciated that these smart LED strip lights installed easily and adhered well to their walls. Many customers also highlighted their brightness, mode, and color features. Negative reviews criticized these lights for not working with Bluetooth.
Best Voice-Controlled Lights: Govee Smart LED Strip Lights
Key Features
- Two spools
- 32.8 feet long total
- Music sync, color, brightness, and mode settings with an included remote control, compatible app, and voice assistant
What Customers Are Saying
Happy customers praised these smart LED strip lights for being easy to install, creating mood lighting in a matter of minutes. They also noted that they didn’t have to download software to use the lights, which many comparable models require. On the other hand, unhappy customers said that the two strips struggled to stay in sync and connected to Wi-Fi and Bluetooth.
Best Accessories: Lepro LED Strip Lights
These two strips make up a color-, mode-, and brightness-adjustable device that adds flair to any setting. Giving you everything you need to install and use the two 16.4-foot strips, your purchase includes 12 adhesive clips, a remote control, and two plugs. The back of the strips is also sticky to pair with the clips for double adhesion.
Key Features
- Two spools
- 32.8 feet long total
- Color, brightness, and mode settings with an included remote control
What Customers Are Saying
Many customers praised these LED strip lights for being bright and offering fun lighting effects. Reviewers continually noted that they were easy to install and use. Unsatisfied customers had issues with the bulbs, with some of them blinking and some not working at all.
Buyer’s Guide
To help you make an informed purchasing decision, here are five important factors to consider when you’re selecting LED strip lights.
Length
Keep in mind the layout and size of the space where you’ll be installing the LED strip lights. If you’re lining the ceiling of a large room with lighting, select one or more strips with enough length to cover the perimeter. If you need lighting around a small cabinet, desk, or TV stand, a shorter strip light is a better fit.
Most strip lights measure either 16.4, 32.8, or 65.6 feet. The manufacturer sometimes gives you a single spool or splits this length between multiple spools. Many strip lights are also cuttable if one of these lengths doesn’t fit your needs exactly.
Control
You can control an LED strip light in a variety of ways, including with a remote control, voice assistant, control box, and mobile app. Most strip lights come with a remote control and control box, but if you’re looking for added convenience, you can purchase a smart voice- or app-controlled model.
Color
Most LED strip lights emit a variety of colors, with some offering set choices and others offering customizable ones. If you’re looking for a specific color, select a smart LED strip light that has a color wheel on its compatible app to create your own color. However, if you’re only looking for a few color options, you can save money by purchasing a strip with pre-set colors.
Brightness
The brightness of LED bulbs is measured in lumens, which is the amount of generated light. The higher the lumens, the more light that’s generated. Generally, LED strip lights offer several brightness levels to create the mood you’re looking for.
Mode
On the same remote, box, or app you control the other settings, you can also usually customize the lighting mode. This is useful if you want to create a fun party atmosphere with flashing, fading, or otherwise changing lights.
Frequently Asked Questions
How long do LED strip lights last?
On average, most LED light bulbs last between 35,000 and 50,000 hours, giving them a lifespan of around four to six years.
Are LED strip lights bad for my eyes?
Overexposure to the blue light that strip lights emit can disrupt your sleep cycle. In extreme cases, it can damage your eyes.
Do LED strip lights raise my electric bill?
Like many lights, the frequency at which you use your LED strip lights affects the amount they add to your monthly electric bill. With that being said, LED light bulbs are much more energy-efficient than incandescent bulbs, so using them only costs you a marginal amount.
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This Old House has empowered homeowners for more than four decades with top-notch home improvement content in the form of television programs, print media, and digital content on its website and social media platforms. The This Old House Reviews Team focuses on creating in-depth product and service review content to help inform your purchasing decision for just about any item or resource that you might need for your home. The This Old House Reviews Team has written over 1,000 reviews on products in the home space, from cordless drills to kitchen trash cans, lawn mowers, and dining room decorations.
We recommend products in each review using an intensive research process, spending hours combing through the best available models on Amazon. For a product to make our list of top picks, it must hold a solid sales record on Amazon, have consistently positive customer reviews, and offer unique features, among other factors. After narrowing down our list of recommendations, we conduct additional research and sometimes in-person testing to ensure that the products meet our standards. Once we conclude the research phase, we craft a well-rounded, user-friendly article that includes our recommended products and additional information to help homeowners like you make the right purchase.
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