If you want to grow plants indoors, keeping them alive and healthy without the natural sunlight they thrive on can be challenging.
You’ll need to think about giving them just the right amount of moisture so they are hydrated without becoming waterlogged, and you’ll need to pay plenty of time and attention to the pots and soil you use.
All of these elements and more make growing plants indoors a rewarding hobby, and it’s also a wonderful way to add some color and natural beauty to your home.
But the most crucial thing of all is to introduce a substitute for the natural light you’ll be missing out on. This is easily achievable with the best grow lights.
Now, if you don’t have any idea what you’re looking for when comparing grow lights, you’re in luck. We do, and we’ve broken it down into plain English for you.
So, before whipping out your credit card, focus on the following pointers when comparing the best grow lights:
- Coverage area required: The most critical element of your buying decision hinges on how many plants and herbs you want to grow. If you are planning to try growing a small herb garden, or you have a few potted plants in mind, a small light or lamp will suffice. If you are planning a more ambitious indoor garden, though, look for large grow lights, especially those you can daisy chain together to meet all your coverage needs
- Type of grow lights: You can find many different types of grow lights. Traditional lights come with fluorescent bulbs. These are powerful, but they use a lot of electricity, and they don’t last very long either. LED bulbs, on the other hand, are rated for up to 50,000 hours of use. They also use much less electricity than fluorescent bulbs, while kicking out a great deal of brightness. You can find hanging grow lights, standalone grow lights, and complete indoor garden systems
- Wattage: While wattage is not the most vital metric when you’re growing indoor plants, you should look for lighting that offers you 32 watts for every square foot of garden
Keep these simple pointers uppermost in mind on the buying trail and you should have no problem finding the best grow lights for your indoor garden.
I. The 15 Best Grow Lights
1. Our #1 Pick: Roleadro LED Grow Light
Features
- Color: Blue and red
- Light source: LED
- Dimensions: 10.87 x 10.87 x 0.55 inches
Next in line is an LED grow light solution from one of the most reputable brands in this vertical, Roleadro.
This stack of LEDs delivers red and blue light, but there is a yellow variant available if this better fits your needs.
Wattage is not the most salient metric with LEDs, but if you’re looking for that information, these bulbs are rated at 75 watts. As with all LEDs, you’ll get much more brightness than an equivalent fluorescent bulb can deliver, and you’ll also use less energy and get a much lengthier lifespan from your LEDs than from conventional lighting.
The red and blue lighting will help promote growth in your indoor plants, allowing them to flourish even without the benefit of natural sunlight.
The warranty is lengthy, but we found some gripes from users concerning issues related to this warranty, so do your due diligence here.
Overall build quality is impressive, with aluminum and brushed steel giving you an indoor grow light solution that’s built to stay the distance.
While this grow light is versatile enough for a range of applications, it comes into its own if you’re growing succulents or delicate tropical plants.
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2. Feit Electric LED Grow Tube
Features
- Color: Blue and red
- Light source: LED
- Dimensions: 23.3 x 4.9 x 1.73 inches
Feit make some great LED grow light solutions, including this dual strip of full spectrum LEDs. What do you get for your money here, then?
Well, this fixture measures 24 inches across, and ensures your indoor plants get more of the red and blue light they need, rather than only regular white light. You’ll find blue light encourages vegetative growth, generating tall and leafy plants. Red light, by contrast, promotes flowering, budding, and fruiting.
The LEDs are houses inside rugged polycarbonate, and you’ll get a long 5-foot cable, giving you plenty of flexibility when it comes to installation. Setting these lights up couldn’t be simpler, and you won’t need an special DIY skills or tools either.
Fully certified and compliant with all relevant safety standards, you can add these lights to your indoor garden without any niggling concerns.
The lights may be powerful, but they give off very little heat. This means no more scorched leaves, and reduced running costs for an all-round winner. As with all LED lights, you can expect anything up to 50,000 hours of use from this grow light before you need to replace it.
With the exception of some isolated issues with quality control, there’s very little else to knock about this strong contender for the best grow lights up for grabs.
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3. GE Grow Light
Features
- Color: Full spectrum
- Light source: LED
- Dimensions: 4.06 x 4.06 x 5.94 inches
We have another full spectrum grow light up next, this time from the huge multinational GE. How does this light stack up, then?
Firstly, these bulbs are available individually, so this is not the most economical solution if you plan to grow a sprawling indoor garden. For anyone looking to grow a few herbs, or some small potted plants, though, the compact nature of this bulb is ideal.
The LED bulb gives off a balanced and full spectrum of light, making it suitable for use with just about any indoor plants.
While the light may appear white to the naked eye, the red and blue lighting makes it a neat fit for herbs, leafy greens, peppers, cucumbers, and tomatoes, so you’ll have all bases covered in your indoor garden.
As with all LED lighting, you’ll get a highly energy-efficient lighting solution, giving off a great deal of energy but with super-low running costs due to the efficiency of the bulbs.
We found several complaints from users about the pronounced buzzing noise this bulb gives off, so if small noises like this disturb you, you should consider some of the other lighting solutions we review above and below.
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4. SPIDER FARMER Grow Light
Features- Color: Full spectrum
- Light source: LED
- Dimensions: 11.8 x 10.5 x 2.3 inches
More and more people are embracing LED grow lights for the efficiency and savings they deliver. How does this set of full-spectrum lights from SPIDER FARMER stand and fall, then?
Rated at just 100 watts, don’t let this fool you. Due to the array of LED diodes in this set-up, you’ll find you can grow a variety of plants, achieving impressive yields, even if you’re growing indoors.
These lights can cover veg over an area of 3 x 3 feet, or plants over an area of 2 x 2 feet, giving you robust coverage for a small set-up.
Unlike many cheap grow lights, the overall feel and construction of this unit is solid. This is an uprated model delivering even greater energy efficiency, so you’ll not only generate big yields, but you’ll do so without paying a fortune in electricity.
These lights are not only remarkably easy to use, but they also run without kicking out too much noise.
You’ll benefit from a 3-year after-service period if you invest in these grow lights. The manufacturer can connect you with an appropriate local maintenance center if you run into any issues with your set-up during this period. That said, we also encountered a handful of complaints about unresponsive customer care, so pack plenty of patience.
Overall, these value-packed LED grow lights are well worth considering if you’re looking to bring on a small indoor garden.
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5. LBW Grow Light with Stand
Features
- Color: Full spectrum
- Light source: LED
- Dimensions: 15.75 x 7.8 x 7.8 inches
Next up comes another smaller set-up, this time featuring a highly adjustable tripod.
The first thing you’ll need to do is choose which configuration of these lights makes the smoothest fit. You can pick up this single head model, a single head light with a timer, or a two-head light with a timer.
All variants of the grow light feature ultra-bright and highly energy-efficient LEDs. You’ll benefit from a full spectrum of lighting here, making the lights suitable for all growth stages from seedling to vegetative flowering.
Unlike some grow lights, this set-up is straightforward to install right out the box. Screw the tripod, light, and gooseneck into place and you’re good to go.
The guarantee is reasonably robust, covering you for a year after purchase. You’ll also get a one-month grace period during which you can get a refund or replacement if you’re not totally happy with your purchase.
For anyone looking to grow potted plants – particularly larger and taller species – these grow lights allow you to achieve maximum yield without running up your electricity bill. Ideal for all stages of growth and built to stay the distance, the lights are also quite keenly priced.
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6. Aspect LED Grow Light
Features
- Color: Warm white spectrum
- Light source: LED
- Dimensions: 3.57 x 3.57 x 5 inches
Anyone hunting for one of the best grow lights with white light should consider this great option from Aspect.
This is a corded electric set-up, with a lengthy 15-foot cable allowing you plenty of leeway with installation.
Inside the retro shade, you’ll find an innovative LED bulb, so you get vintage styling paired with modern technology at its finest.
You’ll have a great deal of choice when it comes to stocking your indoor garden, too. From herbs and leafy greens through to a full spread of plants and potted plants, imagination is your only limitation.
Included in the package is the light itself along with hardware and a simple outlet timer, giving you everything you need to get going out the box.
If you’re new to grow lights, the instructions issues with this model are crisp and clear, making it a beginner-friendly choice and one of the best grow lights at your disposal.
This light manages to give you aesthetics combined with functionality, something that very few lights in this market segment can manage. Whether you have a modern or more traditional design scheme at home, you’ll find this lighting set meshes well and blends in rather than standing out.
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7. TORCHSTAR Indoor Led Grow Garden
Features- Color: White
- Light source: LED
- Dimensions: 19.89 x 2.2 x 14 inches
TORCHSTAR delivers a comprehensive and complete grow garden here, perfect for beginners who want everything in one package.
Each indoor grown garden benefits from 21 LED bulbs baked in. Kicking out 4000 kelvins of cool white light, you’ll help all your indoor plants to achieve their full potential, even if they can’t get natural sunlight.
Not only does the white light help a wide range of plants to grow, but the brightness of these LEDs also serves to highlight your indoor garden wonderfully.
The default setting for the timer is 16 hours on and 8 hours off. This replicates the light cycle plants get in the wild.
Installation couldn’t be easier, and you won’t need a toolkit or screws either. Once you’ve got this thing in place, you can start growing all the herbs and plants you fancy, even if you have limited space indoors.
Almost all user reviews of this grow light are positive, but we can’t say the same for quality control. Several consumers report receiving broken packages, so we would suggest you check your delivery closely until these quality controls concerns are ironed out.
For any beginners to indoor gardens looking to get up and running in an instant, this is one of the best grow lights out there.
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8. AeroGarden Harvest Elite
Features
- Color: White, blue, and red
- Light source: LED
- Dimensions: 6.25 x 10.5 x 17.4 inches
As we reach the midway point of our search for the best grow lights, AeroGarden delivers the Harvest Elite. This is a complete grow system giving you everything you need and nothing you don’t.
Of the two options at your disposal, this is the base stainless steel model, and it costs far less than you might imagine, despite the robust build quality and impressive performance.
This stainless steel unit looks best with modern design schemes, and it would make a great addition to a loft or condo.
You get enough space inside this thing for six plants to grow at one time.
Included with purchase is a seed kit offering the following seed pods:
- Thai basil
- Mint
- Thyme
- Dill
- Parsley
- Basil
All you need is some organic Miracle Gro plant food, and you’ll have all you need to get your herbs through the season and onto your plate.
The full spectrum LEDs are rated at 20 watts, and designed to give your herbs all they need to flourish.
So, if you’ve ever watched cookery programs wishing you had a herb garden to pluck sprigs from as you rustle up a new recipe, you can have one even if you live in an apartment.
Most of user reviews sing the praises of this grow light, although a handful of disgruntled customers complain about customer service issues, so buyer beware.
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9. VIVOSUN Grow Lights
Features
- Color: Blue
- Light source: LED
- Dimensions: 23.82 x 7.87 x 2.36 inches
VIVOSUN is a highly reputable brand in the LED light space, so how do these grow lights shape up?
Firstly, you can choose from multiple configurations, each providing you with a different number and different length of lighting tubes.
This iteration bundles a pair of 2-foot tubes giving you 2000 lumens of light from each of the tubes, ample to bring on an abundant indoor garden without spending a fortune.
Running costs could be lower, though. Energy-efficient LEDs use far less electricity than these fluorescent bulbs. That said, you can expect the lights to last in excess of 20,000 hours, making for an all-round value-packed package, even if you don’t get the lifespan you would get with LED lights.
The fixtures are guaranteed for 2 years, and the lights for 1 year, in line with the expected lifespan outlined above.
As you can see, while these grow lights are not without their flaws, they show that you can choose grow lights that are not LED and still end up with an effective solution for your home garden. Just be prepared to dig a bit deeper for running costs, and expect the lights to give up the ghost before comparable LED lights. While we can’t say these are the best grow lights out there, they are still well worth popping on your shortlist as an alternative to LEDs.
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10. EXLENVCE Indoor LED Grow Lights
Features
- Color: Full spectrum
- Light source: LED
- Dimensions: 2.8 x 8.2 x 15.8 inches
EXLENVCE throw some great indoor grow lights into the ring here, so how do they shape up?
Firstly, these lights are best if you have a more ambitious indoor garden in mind. Whatever the nature of your crop, investing in this line of daisy-chainable lighting will give you a robust lighting solution to suit.
Each of the panels contains multiple LEDs, each bulb containing 3 x 5-watt chips. The result is a total output of 1200 watts, but drawing down far less electricity than you would using traditional bulbs.
As with all the best LED grow lights, you can expect up to 50,000 hours of use from these panels, giving you outstanding value for money, as long as you put the lights to good use, of course.
Each of the light panels gives you enough coverage for 4 x 4 feet of indoor garden, more than enough for most reasonable purposes. As mentioned, though, you can connect multiple lights together in a daisy chain if you have more ambitious gardening requirements.
The nature of this lighting allows for the plants to vegetate and bloom at the same time, making for a highly efficient approach to indoor gardening.
While this lighting setup is inappropriate for small indoor gardens with just a few plants, for wider-reaching gardens, you can’t go wrong and you’re getting some of the best grow lights in a glutted space.
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11. SANSI Grow Light Bulb
Features
- Color: Daylight white
- Light source: LED
- Dimensions: 5.16 x 5.16 x 6.65 inches
As we inch to the end of our collection of the best grow lights, we have something much smaller and more manageable than the sprawling setup above.
This single LED bulb is rated at 36 watts. Don’t be fooled by the wattage, though. With LEDs, you get much more efficiency, not to mention much more energy-efficiency. Despite the modest wattage, this light kicks out comparable brightness to a 400-watt incandescent bulb.
The energy-saving bulb works especially well for seedlings, so you can bring on an indoor garden from scratch with confidence.
The design of the bulbs enhances the way light is used, and also ensures that your plants benefit from more secondary light.
The light kicked out is similar to natural light, so you’ll be giving your plants indoors almost as good as the real thing.
With a ceramic heat sink in place of the more traditional aluminum, you get a grow light that’s precision-engineered and built for any indoor garden.
As long as you don’t mind digging deep for this grow light, you should get plenty of use from it, and it will help you to bring out the very best in a variety of indoor plants.
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12. Hydrofarm Agrobrite Grow Light System
Features
- Color: White
- Light source: Fluorescent
- Dimensions: 48.25 x 28 x 4.25 inches
As we near the end of our grow light reviews, we have another fluorescent option for anyone not sold on the idea of LED lighting.
With fluorescent lighting, you take a hit in terms of lifespan, and you’ll also pay more in running costs than if you opted for LEDs. What do you get in return, though?
Well, this complete lighting system consists of 8 tubes, each 4 foot long, giving you more than enough coverage for the most substantial indoor garden.
A 10-foot power cable means you will have plenty of leeway when it comes to installation.
Choose to hang this light one of the following three ways:
- Horizontal
- Vertical
- Overhead
The light tubes gives out white light, a multipurpose option for indoor gardens, but limited for bringing on seedlings.
T5 tubes are capable of producing double the light output of most fluorescent system, proving that you can find a worthwhile alternative to LED grow lights, even if these dominate the market.
Overall build quality is rock-solid. Once you have these grow lights set up, you should get several years of use from them.
As an added kicker, these lights are daisy-chainable, so you can customize lighting to suit even the largest indoor garden.
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13. Click and Grow Smart Garden
Features
- Color: White
- Light source: LED
- Dimensions: 9 x 4.9 x 12.5 inches
If you want a ready-made indoor garden, the Click and Grow Store is loaded with options like this simple Smart Garden. How does it stand and fall, then?
Well, this is a pod-based systems allowing you to grow a choice of over 50 different plants, even if you have a notoriously black thumb.
All you need to do is drop your chosen pod inside this box, and the seedless plant pods let you grow a huge choice of herbs to liven up all your recipes. Some of the available pods include:
- Chili peppers
- Lavender
- Basil
- Cilantro
- Thyme
- Wild strawberries
That’s just the tip of the iceberg, with over 40 more tempting options compatible with this system.
Whether you have a window planter or you want to hang this grow system on the wall, you can get a fantastic herb garden with very limited space, and no knowledge of gardening required. What are you waiting for?
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14. Hydrofarm Agrobrite 2-Tube Fixture with Lamps
Features
- Color: White
- Light source: Fluorescent
- Dimensions: 50.4 x 4.06 x 9.65 inches
Next up comes another great grow light, this time from the highly reputable Hydrofarm Store.
There are several configurations available with this lighting system. In this iteration, you get a pair of 4-foot tubes, giving you more than enough coverage for most indoor gardens.
If this coverage is insufficient for a more ambitious project you have in mind, you can string multiple lights together in a daisy chain to achieve your goals.
The fluoro lights are rated at up to 10,000 lumens of brightness, so whatever you’re growing, you can ratchet up the light on-demand.
Chooser whether to hang these grow lights vertically or horizontally, depending on your growing setup.
Overall build quality is extremely impressive, with the rugged steel housing encasing the lights built to withstand plenty of punishment, as well as very high temperatures. This steel is powder-coated for a sleek finish.
The corded lights come with a 10-foot cable, so you shouldn’t be struggling for room when you’re installing these lights, even if you need to stretch a little to reach a power outlet.
If you have a large indoor grow of any description, the scale and performance of these lights make them a wonderful addition to your setup. For anyone looking to grow a handful of herbs and plants indoors, lighting of this intensity is overall. If you have the need, this is one of the best grow lights out there, and if you need something smaller, we have plenty of suitable options above.
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15. Agrobrite Standing Plant Lamp
Features
- Color: White
- Light source: LED
- Dimensions: 24.02 x 10.63 x 5.12 inches
Last but not least in our roundup of the best grow lights comes from the Agrobrite stable in the form of this standing plant lamp.
While many of the systems we review above are suitable for the most ambitious of indoor grows, this simple lamp is ideal for anyone looking to grow a few plants or a modest indoor herb garden. When you have smaller projects, the last thing you need is blaring lights.
Where many grow lights are purely functional, this LED gives you sleek, clean lines as well as the performance you’re looking for in a light designed for indoor plants. If the standing lamp doesn’t fit with your décor, there is also a desktop version of this LED available. And, if LED doesn’t fit the bill, you could opt for a CFL version of the desktop lamp. This is not available with the exclusively-LED standing lamp.
The LED bulb delivers bright white light that’s reasonably close to natural light, allowing a wide range of indoor plants to flower and bloom. You may need to invest in some full spectrum light for bringing on seedlings, but this white LED should be a smooth fit for all other growing stages.
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II. FAQs
1) What are the main uses for grow lights?
Grow lights have many different use cases. For any areas with limited natural light, or no sunlight at all, artificial grow lights are a must. You can even use these lights in windowless rooms. If you need to bring on seedlings, grow lights also work very well for propagation, providing your seedlings with the hours of light and warmth that is otherwise tough to deliver inside most homes. Anyone looking to grow fresh herbs and veggies indoors needs grow lights. You can build up a robust herb garden with very little effort or investment. You’ll then have ongoing access to fresh produce that hasn’t been laced with pesticide.
2) Is it essential to use LED grow lights?
While LED lights are a relatively recent innovation, they have penetrated the market so fully that most of the grow lights you’ll find today feature LED bulbs. That said, you can still find both fluorescent and incandescent bulbs, so you have plenty of options. What you should look for, regardless of the type of bulb, is full spectrum light. This will produce waves of both red and blue light, as well as the normal white light you get from grow lights.
3) How long do I need to run my grow lights for each day?
When you’re growing plants indoors, you’re looking to closely replicate the natural sunlight and light cycles the plants would be exposed to outdoors. This means a grow light typically runs for anywhere from 8 to 16 hours a day, depending on your needs and where you live, as well as the time of year and the type of plant. Plants getting some natural sunlight – those in front of a south-facing window, for instance – will not need too much artificial light. Those getting no natural light at all will likely need the grow light running for the full 16 hours. As with all stages of growing plants indoors, you’ll need to experiment when you first start out.
4) How far should I place my lights from my plants?
Grow lights should be positioned a minimum of 2 feet away from plants to avoid any issues with overheating, although the recommended distance will depend on the wattage, as well as the light wavelengths in question. LEDs and fluorescent lights can be positioned closer to plants than incandescent bulbs.
5) What are the best lights for growing seedlings?
Full spectrum light is ideal for fresh seedlings and young plants. This gives the plants wavelengths of both blue and red light. You can use all types of lighting, from LED and fluoro lights to cheaper tube lighting. Make sure your lighting is 6 inches from the foliage for best results.
6) What are the best grow lights for flowering plants?
If you want to encourage your plants to flower and bear fruit indoors, you’ll need to give them some red light waves. Most lights designated grow lights will offer at least some light waves in this spectrum. If you need to grow plants native to hot and dry climates – cactus, geranium, citrus, and rosemary, for example – you can find high-output LEDs boasting twice the brightness of a regular grow light.
III. Conclusion
Anyone who arrived here at Wild River Country today unsure about why to invest in grow lights should now have plenty of applications in mind, from bringing on seedlings and growing herbs, to growing a complete indoor garden with plants livening up the atmosphere.
If you stick with any of the grow lights we review today, you can proceed with your eyes wide open and a clear understanding of where they stand and fall. We have included many different types of lights in a variety of sizes so there’s something for everyone.
We have a busy content calendar for the coming months, with the holiday season already on the horizon. Pop back soon for more informative guides and plenty of gift ideas. Bookmark our blog before you go and we’ll see you soon!