The Best LED Light bulb
As much as we would love to hord incandescent bulbs we know that the incandescent era has come to an end. LED’s really are the way to go, and for good reason… you don’t need to feel bad when you accidently leave them on all night! Really though, while there is still a lot of room for improvement (we are looking at you christmas lights) they have come a long way over the last decade.
TLDR
LED Bulb: GE Relax 60 W Equivalent Dimmable Soft White
LED Smart Bulb: Philips Hue A19 Smart Bulb
Picture Light Bulb: LiteHistory Dimmable 5” T10 LED Bulbs
Recessed Can Light: CREE 6” LED Retrofit
We recently did a Reel about LED lights and while it was fun it was also a bit misleading. The truth is, there is no BEST LED bulb, because it really depends on application. In this blog post we are going to cover which bulb we use where. What you will not find in this guide: bulbs that turn different colors, sorry.
// FAQ: When discussing dimmable lights, quality of the bulb matters, but the quality of the dimmer switch is just as important. We will add a couple of our favorites at the end.
// Super Fun: This chart is something that I would commit to memory, its that fun.
Dorks looking directly at light bulbs - not advised.
Watt Are You Talking About?!
Lighting Definitions
// Wattage: LED light bulbs use significantly less energy than traditional incandescent bulbs. While a traditional incandescent bulb may use 60 watts, an LED bulb can provide the same amount of light using just 9 watts. When choosing an LED bulb, it's important to look at the wattage of the bulb to ensure it will provide the amount of light you need.
// Lumens: This is probably the best way to measure “brightness”. While wattage is a good start - it may differ based on the bulbs efficiency and therefore is not the best measurement. The higher the Lumen, the brighter the bulb.
// Color Temperature: LED light bulbs come in a range of color temperatures, from warm white to cool white. The color temperature of a bulb is measured in Kelvins (K) and can affect the overall look and feel of a room. Warmer colors (2700K - 3000K) are best for cozy and intimate spaces, while cooler colors (5000K - 6500K) are better for the operating room.
// Color Rendering Index (CRI)(Advanced): This index measures the ability of a light source to reveal colors of objects in contrast to a natural light source, such as the sun filtering in through your windows. Put another way, it’s the measurement of light in relation to how it affects the appearance of color. This range can also depend on the “temperature” of the light. The scale is 0-100 where Excellent is 90-100, Good is 60-85, and Poor is 0-55.
// Renovation Husband’s Confidence Level (RHC): We made this up for this blog post. LEDs is an ever changing environment and our confidence in the “best bulb” changes by category.
// Dimmability: Not all LED light bulbs are dimmable, so it's important to check before making a purchase if you plan on using them with a dimmer switch. If you do decide to go for dimmable LED bulbs, check that they are compatible with your existing dimmer switch.
// Shape and Size: LED light bulbs come in a variety of shapes and sizes, including traditional A-shape, candle shape, and even globe shape. It's important to choose the right shape and size to ensure a good fit in your fixtures. You can find all of the shapes here.
// Quality and Brand: As with any product, it's important to choose a high-quality LED light bulb from a reputable brand. Low-quality bulbs may not last as long or provide the same level of light, so it's worth investing in a good quality bulb.
Milk Glass Shades
This may feel like a funny place to start but when we took inventory of the various types of lights we have in our home this is the most common. We struggled for a long time finding the correct LED bulb because the milk glass does something funny to the quality - and we often reverted back to incandescent. This changed however when we found the CREE bulb that inspired our most recent Instagram Reel.
Best Milk Glass Bulb
CREE A19 LED Bulb
10 Watts / 60 Watt Equivalent
Warm White 2700K at 815 Lumens / CRI 90
RHC: HIGH
Picture LightS
Picture lights are the prettiest, weirdly expensive, and deserve the correct bulb(s). All kinds of light fixtures fall into this category including our built-in fixtures (pictured below), single picture lights, piano lights… really anything with a long skinny bulb (T10).
David affectionately calls these “fish tank bulbs”… IYKYK.
We recently converted these to LED because this type of incandescent bulb fails frequently… and these fixtures have 4 each. We tried a couple of options but are confident we found the best - and we haven’t had to swap them once!
PICTURE LIGHT BEST BULB
LiteHistory Dimmable 5” T10 LED Bulbs
4 Watts / 40 Watt Equivalent
Warm White 2200K at 250 Lumens / CRI 90
RHC: VERY HIGH
Lamps
This category can be challenging because “lamps” can be quite a broad category. For us lamps add auxiliary lighting but are never considered a primary light source on their own. Meaning - we may have a collection of lamps in a room for mood lighting.
Best Lamp Bulb
Philips Hue A19 Smart Bulb
75 Watt Equivalent
Warm White 2700K at 1100 Lumen
RHC: HIGH
Recessed Cans
When we moved into our house (and had no money) we bought a recessed can multipack at Costco and quickly remembered that you get what you pay for. The lights flickered when dimmed, they burned out frequently, and the light quality was terrible.
Fast forward a couple of years and we found a solution. Each unit was a bit pricier so we did one room at a time and eventually updated every light in the house.
One important feature of this light, other than quality, is that the light source itself is recessed, not flush with the ceiling, and it makes a big difference.
Best Recessed Can Light
CREE 6” LED Retrofit
11 Watts / 75 Watt Equivalent
Warm White 2700k at 825 Lumens / CRI 90
RHC: VERY HIGH
Landscape Lighting
We can’t forget about the great outdoors. There are a few options for landscape lighting, many of which we find to be FAR too expensive. We installed our low-voltage system years ago, and have expanded it multiple times, with no issues at all. The system plugs into an outlet and you just bury the wire anywhere you want - it is super simple.
Best Landscape Lighting
Hampton Bay Low-Voltage 120-Watt Landscape Transformer
Low-Voltage 20W Flood Lights (we tried 60W and they were too bright)
Low-Voltage Black Integrated LED Deck Light - Long (used on our backyard retaining walls)
Low-Voltage Black Integrated LED Deck Light - Short (used on our backyard retaining wall steps)
Low-Voltage Black Integrated LED Deck Light - Medium (used on the deck steps)
RHC: VERY HIGH
Low Voltage LED Light
(Used in the light string draped on fence and down light fixtures)
4 Watts / 40 Watt Equivalent
Warm White 3000k at 400 Lumens / CRI N/A
RHC: VERY HIGH
Christmas Lights
Bonus category! Now while we have not found a good alternative to incandescent string lights we have found the best alternative to our window lights and the benefits are amazing: they have a warm amber glow, they don’t flicker, they stay cool against window treatments, and we have never had one break when dropped!
// FAQ: We use corded window lights because we don’t want to change batteries and we don’t find the battery operated ones to be bright enough.
Best Christmas LED Bulbs
DORESshop C7 Mini Candelabra LED Bulb
2 Watts / 20 Watt Equivalent
Warm White 2700k at 150 Lumens / CRI N/A
RHC: VERY HIGH
New Ideal Window Candle Lights
Corded with built in timer - 8 hours on / 16 hours off
RHC: High
Dimmer Switches
As mentioned previously, dimmable LEDs are only as good as their switch. Using a quality switch will make all of the difference. Remember that you should only use dimmable switches with regular light bulbs - not smart bulbs. Keep your smart bulbs on dumb switches!
We have tried a few of these in our day, and while there are cheaper ones coming out everyday, we can only really stand behind a couple. The Leviton app, arrange of color options, low profile appearance, and dimming quality make it our number one dimmer.
Best Smart Switch
Final Thoughts
At the end of the day, lighting is a personal preference and, like most things, you should do what makes you happy. We would argue that it’s impossible to be happy living under 5000k but nonetheless it is technically possible.
So go ahead and light up your world.
