LED lights are a popular choice for homeowners looking to enhance their space with both functional and decorative lighting. With a wide variety of styles, sizes, brightness levels, and color options available, LED strip lights offer flexibility for nearly any room. Whether you’re hoping to create a cozy ambiance in your bedroom, highlight art in your living room, or add a splash of color behind your TV or under kitchen cabinets, there’s an LED solution to fit your needs.
The team at This Old House researched the most popular LED strip lights available on Amazon. We considered factors like ease of installation, light quality, durability, smart features, and customer reviews to narrow down the top choices. Here are our five top recommendations for LED strip lights.
Compare Top LED Lights
| Product | Length | Number of Lights | Power Source | Connectivity |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Govee LED Strip LightsCheck Price | 32.8 feet | 300 | Corded electric | WiFi |
DAYBETTER LED Strip LightsCheck Price | 100 feet | 540 | Corded electric | Bluetooth |
Tenmiro LED Strip LightsCheck Price | 65.6 feet | 300 | Corded electric | Remote controlled |
PANGTON VILLA LED Strip LightsCheck Price | 6.56 feet | 60 | Connected via USB | Remote controlled |
Kontrol Freek Gaming Lights LED Strip LightsCheck Price | 9 feet | Not listed | Connected via USB | Remote controlled |
Best Features
Govee LED Strip Lights
These LED lights work with Amazon Alexa, Google Home, iPhones, and other smart home devices for easy voice control and app control. Along with setting the color, timer, and other functions, you can also have the lights and your music sync up together, and it can even display multiple colors at once.
Pros and Cons of Govee LED Strip Lights
- Can display multiple colors at once
- Comes with a controller that’s located on the power cord
- Includes a UL-certified adapter
- Does not have a cuttable design
- Can be difficult to install around corners
What People Are Saying About The Govee LED Strip Lights
Those who liked these lights claimed that they were simple to install, offered bright lighting, and had an easy-to-use controller. However, those who didn’t like them said that they didn’t properly sync with smart devices and that they had poor adhesion.
Best Length
DAYBETTER LED Strip Lights
These LED lights come with a sensitive, built-in microphone to sync to your music. You can easily adjust it via the smartphone app or remote. They also come with two rolls that are each 50 feet long, allowing you to light two medium-sized rooms or one large room.
Pros and Cons of DAYBETTER LED Strip Lights
- Is also available in a 50-foot length
- Can connect to your phone via a smartphone app
- Can sync to your music
- Customers have to connect two strips together
- Has a short power cord
What People Are Saying About The DAYBETTER LED Strip Lights
Customers who were satisfied with these LED lights said that they had strong adhesion and were easy to set up. However, those who were dissatisfied with them said that the strips broke easily if they weren’t handled with care and that the remote sometimes didn’t work properly.
Most Customizable
Tenmiro LED Strip Lights
Featuring adjustable brightness levels and eight lighting modes, these LED lights allow you to customize your lighting experience. They also have a cuttable design with the ability to be linked with other lights. These lights also come with pin connectors, solderless connectors, and adhesive hooks.
Pros and Cons of Tenmiro LED Strip Lights
- Included remote control comes with 44 keys
- With over 65 feet of length, is ideal for medium and large spaces
- Includes adhesive hooks
- Doesn’t come in other size options
- Can’t connect to smart devices
What People Are Saying About The Tenmiro LED Strip Lights
Reviewers who left satisfactory reviews for these lights liked that they offered multiple color, mode, and brightness settings and that they could be peeled off and restuck in a new location. Those who left unsatisfactory reviews claimed that these lights didn’t connect to each other properly and that they sometimes stopped working after minimal use.
Best For TV Lighting
PANGTON VILLA LED Strip Lights
For customers looking to enhance their TV-watching experience, these LED lights may be the perfect choice. These lights come with 16 color options and eight brightness settings and work on TVs that are between 40 and 60 inches in size, and they are powered by the USB port on your TV.
Pros and Cons of PANGTON VILLA LED Strip Lights
- Comes with a 24-key remote
- Includes easy-to-install double-sided tape
- Comes in two different lengths
- Is shorter than many other LED strip light options
- The adhesive backing isn’t strong
What People Are Saying About The PANGTON VILLA LED Strip Lights
Customers who were pleased with these LED lights said that they were easy to assemble, provided long-lasting lighting, and offered a range of color options. However, dissatisfied customers said that they didn’t provide satisfactory brightness and that they were made from cheap materials.
Best For Gaming
Kontrol Freek Gaming Lights LED Strip Lights
These LED lights attach to consoles, PCs, TVs, and monitors. They feature a USB-powered in-line controller that allows for customization over the light’s color, lighting effect, brightness, and speed, with 20 different colors and effects and eight brightness and speed levels.
Pros and Cons of Kontrol Freek Gaming Lights LED Strip Lights
- Has a 3M adhesive backing for installation
- The light-emitting diodes produce little heat
- Works with TVs, consoles, or PCs
- Can be difficult to understand what functions each button performs
- Doesn’t come with a remote control
What People Are Saying About The Kontrol Freek Gaming Lights LED Strip Lights
Happy customers liked these lights’ strong adhesion, quick installation, and customization options. Those who left negative reviews said that the strip sometimes came with defective lights and that the adhesive was difficult to remove.
Buyer’s Guide
Here are some of the most important factors to consider when deciding which LED lights are best for you.
Location
Determine where in your home you want to put LED lights. Some lights are specifically designed for certain purposes, such as providing TV backlight or backlighting for gaming equipment. Choose the style of lights that’s best suited for your application.
Colors
Most LED strip lights offer many color options, allowing you for color-changing between red, green, blue (often shorthanded to RGB), and other colors so you can adjust the color temperature depending on your mood. Others have multicolor options so you can display more than one color at a time. White LED lights are also a popular option.
Brightness
The brightness of LED lights is typically measured in lumens, with standard-density lights producing an average of 540 lumens per meter and high-density lights producing an average of 1,080 lumens per meter. If you want to ensure that your LED lights brighten your entire room, make sure you look for types that have a high luminosity. Some lights also offer adjustable brightness if you want more light while you’re reading or a more dimmable light while watching TV.
Modes
In addition to preset brightness and color options, some LED lights come with other modes, such as fading and strobing.
Length
LED strip lights come in different sizes that range from a few feet long to over 100 feet long. If you want to light an entire room, choose a longer strip. However, if you’re only lighting a small area, such as the backside of a TV, choose a shorter strip.
Control
All LED lights come with a controller that’s either attached to the strip’s power cord or separate from the power supply. Some smart LED strip lights also use Wi-Fi or Bluetooth to connect to iPhones, Google assistants, Amazon Alexa, and other smart devices, providing you with more ways to control your lights.
Unique Ways to Use LED Lights In Your Home
LED lights have a wide range of applications since they are easy to install almost anywhere. Here are some suggestions for how to use LED lights in your home:
- Provide accent lighting to your staircase by adding lights to the steps or railing
- Use LED lights to brighten up corners of your living room and add ambiance
- Make your entryway more inviting by lining it with LED lights
- Set up lights underneath kitchen cabinets to help you see better
- Light the underside of shelves, bookcases, or cabinets for some extra flair
- Install some mood lighting in a movie or TV room to enhance the experience
- Create a night-sky aesthetic for your kids in their bedroom by setting up lights on the ceiling
- Make your bathroom more relaxing by adding lights to the shower, sink, and around the toilet
- Set up lights around a vanity mirror to see how your outfit looks in different lighting
- Add a unique glow to your furniture by installing lights around your couch and tables
- Enhance any photographs or prints by creating an LED light border around them
- Brighten up your garage or basement with LED lights to help liven up the space
- Add lights to your dresser drawers to help you quickly find the items you’re looking for when you need them
Frequently Asked Questions
What are LED lights?
“LED” stands for “Light Emitting Diode.” LED bulbs are small lighting fixtures that fit into electrical circuits. Unlike traditional incandescent bulbs, they don’t have a filament that wears out or gets hot. LED bulbs can be found in a range of household products, such as Christmas lights, flashlights, alarm clocks, and watches.
How much electricity do LED lights use?
Traditional light bulbs take about 60 wattage of electricity to light a room, while LED lights can produce the same amount of light using about 10 watts. This makes them more energy-efficient.
How long can LED strip lights last?
LED lights typically have a long life even at a high brightness level. Most LED lights have a life expectancy of around 50,000 hours, which is over five years if you’re running them 24 hours a day.
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