Smart lights are not just a way to add extra convenience to illuminating interior and exterior spaces. They're an opportunity to reduce energy consumption and create a personalized ambiance.

UPDATE: 10/12/2023

We've reviewed our recommendations and have updated our picks for the best overall, best smart bulb, and best smart light strip you can buy.

What To Look For in a Smart Light in 2023

The hunt for the best smart light can be complicated. Not only are there different smart lights for different uses, but there's also an abundance of brands and varieties lining the shelves. So, how do you know what to look for to ensure you're choosing the best light for your home lighting? There are a few things to look at, but most importantly, you need to know what kind of smart light solution you need.

Are you illuminating a pathway, or need to start replacing your interior bulbs? Is it Christmas, and you're tired of wrestling with burnt-out strands, or do you need a strip of lights as an accent under your kitchen cabinets? Once you determine the purpose, you can navigate to different categories, which include whole-home smart light systems, individual smart bulbs, smart light strips, outdoor and weather-resistant smart lights, and Christmas smart lights.

No matter what you're shopping for, though, you want to pay attention to three key elements. First, does the light need a hub, or is it Bluetooth-compatible? You may want a full system that runs entirely off your Wi-Fi, which may require a separate pricey hub, or you can use a Bluetooth-only bulb.

The latter may be cheaper, but you can only control the bulb when you're near it. Additionally, a hub or Wi-Fi-enabled bulb can connect with other branded smart home devices for full-home automation.

Second, look at the lumens, or the number that measures the quantity of visible light. A base figure to remember is 800 lumens, the brightness of a 60-watt incandescent bulb. Smart lights are typically dimmable, but you want the base lumens to be high enough to produce a bright enough light for your space.

Finally, you need to think of whether you want a standard white bulb or something multi-colored. This isn't as important of a criterion, primarily because colored bulbs almost always have a warm and cool white option. Still, there may be a price disparity between all-white and multi-colored bulbs that could sway your decision-making if you're not interested in colorful displays or customizable scenes.

Keeping all of this in mind, here are our top picks for the best smart lights.

How Did We Research
Models Evaluated	Hours Researched	Reviews Analyzed
15	5	10

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Best Smart Light Overall: GE CYNC Smart LED Bulbs

In a market dominated by Phillips Hue, Govee, and TP-Link, the choice of the GE CYNC Smart Bulb as our top pick might seem odd. But there are several good reasons why we think these bulbs stand out, not the least being their excellent build quality and reasonable price.

The GE bulbs don't require a hub, which can be a major plus for many users. Smart bulbs are often one of the first ways people dip their toes into the world of smart home tech, at a time when a hub is perhaps not required. If you decide more control is needed in your smart home setup at a later date, the newer GE bulbs are fully compatible with Matter hubs.

Controlling the GE smart bulbs can be done through their redesigned and much-improved app, or you can use voice commands by connecting to Alexa or Google Assistant. Unlike older GE smart bulbs, you can connect to those voice assistants straight out of the box rather than through a separate smart plug, which is a definite improvement.

You also have some extra control methods available in the optional motion sensor, dimmer switch, or GE remote, making these some of the most adaptable smart bulbs on the market. Another significant plus point of the GE smart bulbs is that you can control them via Bluetooth or Wi-Fi. This isn't unique to these bulbs, but the alternative control option is a handy backup if your Wi-Fi service goes down.

There are a couple of different versions of the GE bulb available, including full multicolor, soft white, and tunable white. All are available in a variety of form factors as well, like recessed spotlight bulbs. There is also a Dynamic Color version, which can be set to change color based on the music played in the room.

If you don't require a smart home hub from the get-go, the GE CYNC Smart Bulbs are a high-quality and reliable way to add smart lighting to your home.

Best Smart Light Platform: Philips Hue Starter Kit

If you plan on making your home really smart, rather than just adding a few smart light bulbs, a hub system is the way to go. Significant benefits come with using a hub, ranging from less strain on your Wi-Fi network to the relative ease with which additional smart home devices can be added and controlled.

While a hubless system is cheaper and perfectly fine if you only plan on adding smart lighting in a few rooms, you'll miss out on some powerful integrations. And this is why the Philips Hue Starter Kit earns the vote for the best smart light platform.

Though it's a little inconvenient having to hardwire the Hue Hub to your modem or Wi-Fi router (meaning any Internet outage will leave you without access to your light's features), the smart light starter kit opens the door for a bounty of options should you decide to expand into other lights and automation.

For example, an entire scene can be set with this starter kit, a Philips Hue light strip, and Spotify for lights that move to the music. That scene can also be controlled via Alexa, Google Assistant, and Apple HomeKit, which is surprisingly absent in many smart lights. While the hub does simplify the connection process, the reliance on Wi-Fi can lead to infrequently unstable connections.

The lights themselves offer a vibrant 1,100 lumens, which some may find a little too bright. Thankfully, each bulb can be individually dimmed and changed to one of over 16 million colors. Some colors stand out better than others, but the spectrum as a whole is rich and deep.

The Philips Hue Starter Kit is a fantastic launching point for any home or office converting to smart lighting. And although it may seem expensive, if you're set on making your home as smart as possible, it will serve as an excellent base for creating something far more elaborate.

Best Smart Light Bulb: Kasa Smart Light Bulb

If you don't want the extra setup complication and cost of using a smart home hub, such as the one required for Phillips Hue lights, your options for smart bulbs significantly increase. Several brands have really upped their game and made it much easier to use smart bulbs without a hub if, for example, you only need a smart bulb in one room. Our favorite of these is the Kasa Smart Bulb from TP-Link.

As smart bulbs have become more popular, the features they offer have homogenized to the point that it can be hard to pick between them. Choosing often comes down to the details, such as build quality and lifespan, and in these regards, the Kasa smart bulbs are up there with the best.

Capable of producing 16 million colors, as well as tunable whites from warm to cool, these bulbs are suitable for almost any room. They are available in 800 or 1000-lumen brightness, approximately equal to 60W and 80W, respectively. If that sounds too high, the bulbs can be dimmed all the way down to 1% brightness.

The Kasa Smart app for iOS and Android is easy to use and makes the task of controlling multiple bulbs in different rooms easy. Of course, you can also use voice commands with Alexa or Google Assistant. There's no Apple HomeKit support, but you can add the Kasa bulbs to Samsung SmartThings if you already use that to control other smart home gadgets.

The app also allows you to monitor the energy being used by the bulbs and create timers and schedules to ensure you aren't wasting any. The final thing to consider is the two-year warranty offered by TP-Link, which is better than most and should give you peace of mind that you won't need to buy new bulbs every six months.

Best Smart Light Strip: Govee 65.6 ft RGBIC LED Light Strip

Govee has been steadily building a name for itself in the smart lighting space, producing products that are thoughtfully designed, well made, and that work brilliantly. The Govee RGBIC LED Light Strip is yet another example of this, offering up some very cool features at a very reasonable price.

The first thing to mention is RGBIC, which is a system that uses an independent controller chip for each section of the light strip. That means that the strip can display multiple colors along its length at the same time in an almost inexhaustible range of combinations. That allows you to easily segment the lighting in the room without having to join several light strips together.

That's one thing that RGBIC light strips don't allow, cutting and joining with pin connectors, so you'll need to be pretty accurate in your measurements to ensure enough length to cover the lighting run. Because of this limitation, Govee has produced a wide range of lengths, from 16ft to an impressive 100ft.

The light strip can either be controlled from the Govee app for iOS or Android, which is easy to use once you grow accustomed to the plethora of options, or with voice commands through Alexa or Google Assistant. You can match colors to music or other audio in the room with Dynamic mode, while Scenes provide preset color combinations for different moods. If you can't find a preset you like, the DIY mode lets you completely customize the lighting and save the theme for future use.

There are cheaper light strips available, particularly for shorter lengths, but if you want the fine control over lighting that RGBIC offers, combined with excellent features, voice control, and a well-designed app, this one is hard to beat.

Best Outdoor Smart Light: Govee Outdoor Ground Lights

Spruce up your outdoor space with these glowing multipurpose outdoor lights. Govee's Outdoor Ground Lights are a unique way to bring illumination and color to your front or back yard. Individual lights can be staked into the ground along sidewalks, patios, and driveways to create a safer walking path. Each light is separated by 1.6 feet of cord and covers approximately 24 feet of ground.

The total length of the strand is 36 feet, but there's a 12.5-foot space between the first light and the adapter. While that sounds like a lot of wasted space, the gap serves two purposes. First, it accommodates outdoor spaces where outlets are farther from the intended path. Second, though the lights are weatherproof, the adapter is not and should not be placed anywhere that may get wet, including dewy grass.

Though each bulb is only 80 lumens, that's more than enough considering the purpose of these multicolor ground lights. They aren't bright enough to annoy neighbors while remaining visible in the dead of night. And even if they are too bright, there's a dimmer built into Govee's dedicated app.

The app is both a strong and weak point with all Govee products. While there's a lot to tinker with to create scenes and set individual colors for each ground light, it can be a bit much at first. Once you get the hang of it, you'll have access to a music sync mode for dancing lights, a timer, and more colors than you'll ever need. If you have other Govee lights, the app is where you'll link everything together for visual spectacles.

If you're using the Govee Outdoor Ground Lights as pathway lights, the time function in the Govee app will be invaluable as you can set a weekly schedule to offset the lack of a motion sensor.

Best Smart Christmas Lights: Twinkly Strings Generation II

There was a time when holiday lights were a single stretch of green cord and shimmering lights. Smart home automation changed everything, giving us Twinkly Strings, a strand of indoor and outdoor Christmas lights that can do virtually anything.

Twinkly Strings goes above and beyond traditional Christmas lights. Each fully controllable strand is mappable via the Twinkly app for a light show that fits your holiday aesthetic. It's a lot of tech for a strand of Christmas lights, so Twinkly's impressive smart lights won't be for everyone. In fact, if you don't use the many features and capabilities, you're not going to get the most out of your purchase.

Though the longest strand is over 150 feet long, it would have been nice to connect them end-to-end. You may run into issues if you're trying to run Twinkly outside, as each strand requires its outlet. Since the adapter is at the center of the strand, it's even more complicated to run multiple cords.

When you get it working, though, you're in for a treat. Twinkly Strings is arguably the most unique set of Christmas lights, and the capabilities, from creating custom graphics to orchestrating entire light shows, lend to a vibrant holiday display.

FAQ

Are smart lights energy efficient?

Smart lights are typically LEDs, which use less energy than traditional light bulbs. Additionally, smart lights can be programmed to turn on and off at specific times during the day. This cuts down on wasted energy and ensures each bulb is used only when needed. Wi-Fi-enabled lights can also be turned off via smartphone should one be accidentally left on. For maximum energy efficiency, look for the ENERGY STAR logo.

Do smart lights use electricity when turned off?

Like most electronics, smart lights use less energy when turned off. The amount used is so minuscule that it is likely not going to reflect on an energy bill. To prevent continued use of electricity, the smart light would need to be unplugged or removed from the fixture entirely.

Do smart lights burn out?

Smart lights burn out over time, but how long they last will depend on the quality of the light and how often they're used. Unlike traditional bulbs, which burn out instantly when the filament becomes overstressed after prolonged use, smart lights slowly fade and become dimmer.

About how long do smart lights last?

The average lifespan of a third-generation Philips Hue bulb is up to 25,000 hours, or over 1,041 days if left on for 24 hours straight. When everyday use is factored in, a smart light could last anywhere from 15 to 25 years.

Can you use smart light bulbs in ceiling fans?

Smart light bulbs can be used in ceiling fans, but the type of fan and size of the bulb may make them incompatible. Additionally, if the ceiling fan doubles as a dimmer, the bulb may not work properly due to a limited power supply.