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 1. Home
 2. Smart Home


THE BEST SMART LIGHTS IN 2024

Best Picks
By Anthony Spadafora, Hunter Fenollol
last updated September 27, 2024

These are the best smart light bulbs, light strips, and more

 * 
 * 
 * 
 * 
 * 
 * 
 * 

When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate
commission. Here’s how it works.


(Image credit: Future)


The best smart lights are an affordable and easy way to make your living space
more comfortable and convenient. You can use advanced voice and smart home app
controls to operate these lights from anywhere or set a schedule. Multicolor
lights even display different hues and effects to transform the aesthetic of any
space. For example, you can use the best outdoor smart lights to illuminate your
property in a holiday glow or change a smart light strip's color to set the mood
for a party.



Smart lighting comes in a variety of different shapes, sizes, and colors which
means there’s a lot you’ll need to consider before you buy. For instance, what
type of smart light would be best suited for your particular home? Do you want
smart lights that connect locally via Bluetooth or would you rather have them
connected to a smart home hub? Keep in mind that while their LEDs are a bit
pricier upfront, they're cheaper over time compared to power-hungry halogen and
incandescent bulbs.



We’ve tried out and tested a wide selection of smart lights and bulbs to help
you find the best options to upgrade your smart home. Read on to see our top
picks.

1. Philips Hue White And Color Ambiance
View at EURONICS DE
View at OTTO DE
View at Amazon



Best smart light bulb starter kit

Works with: Alexa, Google Assistant, HomeKit
Hub Required: Yes
Lifetime: 25,000 hours

+ Easy setup and intuitive app
+ Extensive third-party integrations
+ Stunning color effects
- Expensive

The Philips Hue White and Color Ambiance Starter Kit is available with two or
four dimmable colored bulbs and a hub. It's super simple to setup, easy to use
and reliable. You can also use the Hue Sync app to sync your lights with music
or even videos and games on your computer.

Read our full Philips Hue White and Color Ambiance Starter Kit review.



2. Wyze Bulb

Best cheap smart light bulb

Works with: Alexa, Google Assistant
Hub Required: No
Lifetime: 25,000 hours

+ Tunable white
+ Works with Alexa and Google Assistant
- Doesn't work with HomeKit

Smart lights can be expensive but the Wyze Bulb is perfect for those on a
budget. You can control these affordable lights and any other Wyze products you
own right from the Wyze app which also lets you create schedules based on a
specific time. Wyze's Vacation mode turns the Wyze Bulb on and off randomly. 

Read our full Wyze Bulb review.



3. LIFX SuperColor Outdoor String Lights

Best smart string lights

Works with: Alexa, Google Assistant, HomeKit, Matter
Hub Required: No
Lifetime: 25,000 hours

+ Super easy setup without hub
+ OLED-like vibrant colors
+ Durable weatherproof construction
- Limited to 2.4GHz Wi-Fi only

LIFX's LED weatherproof string light bulbs are the most vibrant we've tested
yet. That's thanks to their extreme brightness levels and ability to blend
colors across three different zones. This forms each hue using different shades
for richer, more punchy colors than the competition. For example, our tester
could clearly distinguish between a hot or neon pink. In addition to tight
controls and scheduling within the LIFX app, these string lights work with all
the major smart home platforms. This includes Google Home, Apple HomeKit, Amazon
Alexa, and Matter.



4. Sengled Smart LED with Motion Sensor

Best smart outdoor floodlight with a motion sensor built-in

Works with: Alexa, Google Assistant, SmartThings, IFTTT
Hub Required: Yes
Lifetime: 25,000 hours

+ Built-in motion sensor
+ Integrated daylight sensor
+Weatherproof
- No HomeKit support

With the Sengled Smart LED with Motion Sensor, you're not just limited to using
your smart lights indoors. This smart outdoor floodlight can crank out over
1,000 lumens and it also has a motion sensor built in. However, you will need to
purchase a Sengled Smart Hub or another compatible smart home hub to control it.



5. Ring Solar Pathlight

Best smart light for getting you to your door

Works with: Alexa, Google Assistant, IFTTT
Hub Required: Yes
Lifetime: One year

+ Nice design
+ Built-in motion sensors
+ Can be linked to other ring products
- Pricey

The Ring Solar Pathlight can be used to illuminate the walk from your driveway
to your door when it's dark. This smart light integrates seamlessly with Ring's
other device like the new Ring Battery Doorbell Plus  and the Ring Alarm system.
In the Ring app, you can toggle the light and motion detection on and off.

Read our full Ring Solar Pathlight review.



6. Govee Permanent Outdoor Lights Pro
View at GOVEE
View at GOVEE
View at GOVEE



Best permanent outdoor smart lights

Works with: Alexa, Google Assistant, HomeKit
Hub Required: No
Lifetime: 50,000 hours

+ Easy installation
+ Feature-packed app for lots of customization options
+ Durable, weatherproof construction to withstand the elements
- Expensive

At $399, these are some of the most expensive holiday lights you'll put up.
However, this one-and-done setup is worth the cost since you can adjust colors
to give your home's exterior some pop all year round. Plus you can set the LEDs
to basic warm or cool white to serve as standard downlights to give your home
some extra security and visibility in the yard.

Read our full Govee Outdoor Permanent Lights Pro review.



Load the next 5 products...

7. Lifx Mini

Best smart light bulb for smaller fixtures

Works with: Alexa, Google Assistant, HomeKit
Hub Required: No
Lifetime: 200,000 hours

+ Bright
+ Advanced automation options
+No hub needed
- Expensive

If have smaller fixtures, the Lifx Mini is the best choice but not just because
it's more compact than the competition. Lifx's app has a great set of features
and effects, like a a candle flicker and a strobe, and can sync up to your music
or other sounds nearby. As Lifx's smart bulbs connect directly to Wi-Fi, there's
no hub needed.

Read our full Lifx Mini review.



8. Govee Star Light

View at GOVEE
View at GOVEE
View at Alternate DE



Best smart star light projector

Works with: Alexa, Google Assistant, Matter
Hub Required: No

+ Realistic dynamic lighting effects with bold colors
+ Deep customization from ripple speed to star size
+ Advanced smart home features and schedule integrations
+ Built-in Bluetooth speaker and white noise machine
- Physical buttons are flat and difficult to tell apart by feel or sight

The Govee Star Light is a smart, projection lighting system that splashes your
rooms in customizable colors and effects. Its advanced galaxy patterns produce
realistic auroras and stars which can be tuned to your liking from movement
speed to size. Govee's projector excels at producing vivid colors that coat your
walls and ceiling without breaking the bank.

Read our full Govee Star Light review.



9. Philips Hue White and Color Ambiance Lightstrip
View at OTTO DE
View at tink DE
View at Alternate DE



Best smart lightstrip

Works with: Alexa, Google Assistant, HomeKit
Hub Required: Yes
Lifetime: 20,000 hours

+ Trimmable
+ Flexible
+ Accommodates 40 inch extensions
- Pricey

The Philips Hue Lightstrip is an 80-inch lightstrip that can display millions of
colors while adding a fun accent to cabinets, TVs or other furniture. You can
also trim the Philips Hue Lightstrip to fit your needs and extend it by up to 40
inches with an optional extension. Adhesive backing makes it easy to stick to a
wall or other surface.



10. Govee LED Light Strips
View at GOVEE
View at GOVEE
View at Alternate DE



Best inexpensive smart light strip

Works with: Alexa, Google Assistant
Hub Required: No
Lifetime: 5 years

+ Low cost
+ Cool music sync feature
+ Highly customizable settings
- Doesn't work with HomeKit

If you want a smart lightstrip on a budget, the Govee LED Light Strips are a
great alternative. They even contain a built-in mic that lets their LED lights
sync to your music. The Govee app also has a number of presets and automations
available for you to mess around with. Like other lightstrips, they come with an
adhesive backing but you also get useful support clips too.



11. Nanoleaf Shapes
View at Amazon
View at MediaMarkt DE
View at SATURN



Best smart light wall panels

Works with: Alexa, Google Assistant, HomeKit
Hub Required: No
Lifetime: 25,000 hours

+ Simple setup
+ Striking color effects
+ Customizable touch commands
- Expensive

If you want to make a statement, you can't beat the Nanoleaf Shapes. At $199,
they're fairly expensive but their modular hexagon tiles connect together and
can be arranged however you want. The Nanoleaf Shapes also have plenty of
brightness settings, color patterns and pulsing music modes to play around
with. 

Read our full Nanoleaf Shapes review.




HOW TO CHOOSE THE BEST SMART LIGHTS FOR YOU

Why you can trust Tom's Guide Our writers and editors spend hours analyzing and
reviewing products, services, and apps to help find what's best for you. Find
out more about how we test, analyze, and rate.



(Image credit: Future)

Before you choose the best smart lights for your home, you should first get an
idea of where you’re going to put them and the space they will illuminate. You
should consider how many smart lights you’re going to need in total and whether
or not a bridge will be necessary to connect them. If you only need a few, you
might be able to skip using a bridge but the more you need, the more likely
you’re going to want to take some of the strain off of your home network. If
you’re using smart lights that require a bridge, they are usually more compact
as well as less expensive than Wi-Fi enabled smart light bulbs, based on price
per bulb.

LATEST VIDEOS FROM tomsguide Tom's Guide



Looking at the cost overall, smart lights are more expensive than traditional
LED lights due to the technology they contain. However, they have come down in
price over the years, so they’re more affordable – a good quality smart light or
smart light bulb can range from $10 to over $40. If you’re getting one with a
fixture, such as a wall panel or outdoor floodlight, the price can be in the
$100’s. If you often replace lots of light bulbs in one room, then a smart light
switch might be a better investment. To find out more, check out our guide on
the best smart light switches.



Here are 9 things you never knew you could do with smart lights in case you want
to find out more about some of their other unique qualities when compared to
traditional light bulbs. Plus, I turned this smart light into a sunrise alarm
clock — and it’s a game changer. 


HOW WE TEST THE BEST SMART LIGHTS



(Image credit: Future)

We test the best smart lights on a number of criteria, including ease-of-setup,
brightness, value and library of features. We compare most smart lights and
bulbs against Philips Hue lights, which are pricey but offer everything you
could want out of smart lights. Some budget smart lights brag that they have a
lot to offer, but we only recommend the ones that live up to their claims.  

Smart home compatibility is key to our testing. The smart lights above work with
at least two top smart home systems, if not more. You don’t want your smart
lights to lock you into a specific virtual assistant when there are plenty of
options that work with Google Assistant, Alexa, Siri, SmartThings and IFTTT. 

All of the brands we test are trustworthy and feel comfortable adding to our own
home networks. Use caution when shopping for smart lights from unknown
manufacturers though.

For more information about how we review products in general, please check out
the Tom's Guide How We Test page.


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Policy and are aged 16 or over.
Anthony Spadafora
Social Links Navigation
Senior Editor Security and Networking

Anthony Spadafora is the security and networking editor at Tom’s Guide where he
covers everything from data breaches and ransomware gangs to password managers
and the best way to cover your whole home or business with Wi-Fi. Before joining
the team, he wrote for ITProPortal while living in Korea and later for TechRadar
Pro after moving back to the US. Based in Houston, Texas, when he’s not writing
Anthony can be found tinkering with PCs and game consoles, managing cables and
upgrading his smart home. 




See more Smart Home Best Picks

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