8 Best Smart Light Bulbs

Smart homes and their myriad of features are still growing in popularity. Smart light bulbs are one of the first investments homeowners make towards a smart home. It’s a large market out there, so knowing which are the best smart light bulbs comes in handy.

Generally, smart light bulbs are LEDs, using less energy than traditional options, while also being bright, easy to set up and compatible with all smart home systems. Purchasing energy efficient bulbs is a very eco-conscious decision. But that doesn’t mean that just any bulb will do. Doing a bit of research before buying smart light bulbs is worth it. 

One of the best smart light bulbs will easily connect to your home network, giving you full control over lighting from your smartphone or even a virtual assistant like Siri, Alexa or Google Assistant. These bulbs can be linked to other smart home devices. 

Because you have so many options to choose from, we’ve put together our recommendations to make the decision process easier for you. 

1. Philips Hue White And Color Ambiance

• Works With: Alexa, Google Assistant, HomeKit
• Lifetime: 25,000 hours
• Hub Required: Yes
• Brightness: 800 lumens
• Bulb Type: A19
• Power consumption: 10 watts

The Philips Hue LED bulbs are quite advanced, so if you are looking for something like that, then you should consider them. They’re more affordable than you might think, at $15 each. The newer versions easily pair with Alexa or Google Assistant without necessitating the Hue Bridge. 

If you are looking for something more decorative, then the vintage style LED Hue White bulbs with fake filaments twisted inside is exactly what you are looking for. 

Buy it here. 

2. Wyze Bulb

• Works With: Alexa, Google Assistant, IFTT 
• Lifetime: 20,000 hours
• Hub Required: No 
• Brightness: 800 – 921 lumens
• Bulb Type: A19
• Power consumption: 9.5 watts

One of the best smart lights is also the cheapest one. The Wyze Bulb, created by the Seattle-based startup Wyze Labs, is available on the company’s website for $8, plus shipping. 

The bulb has built-in Wi-Fi radios, so you won’t be requiring any extra hub hardware plugged into your router to use them or link them to IFTTT or Alexa. All you need to do is screw them in, turn them on, pair them with the Wyze mobile app and enjoy your lighting. 

Apart from the highly appealing price, these bulbs function nicely. For one thing, each bulb offers a full spectrum of white-light color temperature settings. You can have a warm, candlelike 2,700K light to hotter, whiter daylight tones, coming close to 6,000K.

Additionally, the Wyze bulbs are very bright, ranging from 880 to 921 lumens depending on the set temperature. 

There is only one real downside to this bulb. The Wyze app feels a bit limited in terms of light scheduling due to its shortcuts feature. You can enjoy lighting timers and a vacation mode, though. However, you can fix this problem by using the IFTTT, or an Alexa or Google Assistant. 

Buy it here.

3. Philips Hue White Floodlight LED

• Works With: Alexa, Google Assistant
• Lifetime: 25,000 hours
• Hub Required: No
• Brightness: 800 lumens
• Bulb Type: LED 
• Power consumption: 10 watts

The Philips Hue White Floodlight LED Bulbs are a recently released version of the highly popular Hue White smart LED bulb. This is a great addition to the Phillips collection, as there aren’t that many smart floodlights. 

The reasons why this is a great model don’t vary that much from the ones that recommend the regular-sized bulb. It’s efficient, bright, and it’s part of a highly appreciated smart lighting platform. This bulb uses both Bluetooth and Zigbee, so you can pair it directly with your smartphone, Google or Alexa and skip the Hue Bridge if that appeals to you. 

The price for the Philips Hue White Floodlight LED bulb is $20 for a single pack and $35 for a two-pack. 

Buy it here.

4. Sengled Smart Wi-Fi LED

• Works With: Alexa, Google Assistant
• Lifetime: 25,000 hours
• Hub Required: No
• Brightness: 800 lumens
• Bulb Type: A19
• Power consumption: 9 watts

If you are looking for an inexpensive and easy-to-install option, the Sengled Smart Wi-Fi LED bulbs make a wonderful choice. Unlike the Philips’ bulbs, this option is much more fitting for less technical-minded people, as the Sengled Smart Wi-Fi LED connects directly to your home network, no bridge required. 

In terms of pricing, these bulbs start from $12 for a soft white bulb and $15 for a daylight bulb to $25 for a multicolor bulb. The Sengled app works with both Google Assistant and Alexa and you get all the basic smart-bulb features, which include scenes, timers, routines and schedules. 

Buy it here.

5. Lifx Mini LED

• Works With: Alexa, Google Assistant, IFTT 
• Lifetime: 50,000 hours
• Hub Required: No
• Brightness: 800 lumens
• Bulb Type: A19
• Power consumption: 9 watts

Lifx Mini Led bulbs, developed by an Australian start-up, is the option you are looking for if you are looking for color bulbs. The company tests with bold, bright shades which look amazing. Plus, these lights use Wi-FI network to connect with the router, so you don’t require a hub. 

The app is excellent, having lots of features and it’s compatible with Alexa, Siri, Google Assistant and IFTT, immediately after purchase.  The app offers easy lighting control, plus some really nice extra features like animated effects and auto-scheduling. 

Buy it here.

6. Lifx Z Multicolor Light Strip

• Works With: Alexa, Google Assistant
• Lifetime: 40,000 hours
• Hub Required: No
• Brightness: 700 lumens
• Power consumption: 17 watts

When it comes to color-changing light strips, Lifx scores again with its 9.8-foot Lifx Z light strip. Even though the price tag might be high, the colors are as great as you would expect from all Lifx bulbs. Plus, these bulbs can put out multiple colors at the same time. This feature gives you quite the freedom when it comes to creating scenes and animated effects. 

The price is, as mentioned, rather high, a bulb going for $90 or more. Still, nothing can compare to the color lighting this bulb is responsible for, not even the Philips Hue. 

Buy it here. 

7. TP-LINK Kasa Filament WiFi Light Bulb

• Works With: Alexa, Google Assistant
• Lifetime: 25,000 hours
• Hub Required: No
• Brightness: 600 lumens
• Power consumption: 7 watts

The TP-LINK Kasa Filament WiFi Light bulb is by far the best filament-style smart light bulb on the market. The Edison-style, as these are also called, cast an old-timey, warm light, which is great if you are looking to create a certain type of atmosphere. Plus, they are much more appealing than regular LED bulbs and they can be easily paired with exposed lighting fixtures. They connect directly to your Wi-Fi, no hub required and with the help of the Kasa app, you can control the lighting in multiple ways. 

The price is also appealing, a bulb costing $15. Granted, it’s pricier than a non-smart bulb, but it’s still reasonable. This option works well with Alexa and Google Assistant and you can gain access to several advanced features if you have a TP-Link’s smart router.

Buy it here.

8. Nanoleaf Canvas

• Works With: Alexa, Google Assistant, HomeKit
• Lifetime: 25,000 hours
• Hub Required: No
• Brightness: 50 lumens
• Power consumption: 1 watt

Nanoleaf, a Toronto-based startup, brought something really interesting to the market. If you are ready to go all the way with smart lighting, then you need to try the multicolor Wi-Fi LED smart light panels for your walls. These would make a fine addition for the living room, during game night or the kids’ room. The Nanoleaf Canvas panels are a great option, square-shaped and touch-sensitive.

These panels can display a lot of animated effects and they even come with a library with hundreds of user-created options, which are free to try. A tap is all that is required to turn them on and off and off and you can choose between presets, coming with built-in buttons on the base panel. The Nanoleaf Canvas connects to Siri, Alexa and Google Assistant. 

They are a bit pricey, as the nine-panel Nanoleaf Canvas starter kit now costs $200, similar to the triangle-shaped versions. But it’s worth it if you are looking to make a statement. 

Additionally, the panels are fun and easy to set up. You can easily use the Nanoleaf app, Alexa, Google Assistant, HomeKit or buttons on the panels. And here is something really cool. With the nifty feature called “Rhythm Mode” and the built-in microphone, the canvas synchronizes effects and colors to the music played. 

Buy it here.