It's hard to overstate the usefulness of smart lights, and once you have one in your home, you'll start to see dozens of different ways to use it, from simply creating a schedule to changing the light's temperature to suit the time of day, or even making it flash when someone rings the doorbell.
Smart lights don't have to be expensive either. Sure, equipping your entire home with high-end Philips Hue color bulbs would be an expensive undertaking, but that's not your only option. There are (literally) brilliant bulbs from other brands that offer impressive features and quality for much less money, and even Philips has a collection of lights at an entry-level price these days.
Below you will find the three best smart light bulbs that I recommend for your home. I opted for the Hue Essentials in my own apartment, but it would also happily fit into any of the other options, especially if I was in the mood to party.
Best overall
Philips Hue essential
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Philips Hue is the biggest name in smart lighting and has been at the top of our roundup of the best smart lighting systems for years, but it's always had one major drawback: it's expensive. That's where Philips Hue Essential comes in.
Hue Essential, which launched last year, is a more affordable alternative to the standard Philips Hue White & Color Ambiance series, with fewer bulb options and a much lower price. You can't choose from such a wide variety of sizes and styles (at launch, there were only three bulbs and one light strip available), but during my testing, I was very impressed by how well they performed compared to their full-price counterparts.
Like regular Hue bulbs, Hue Essential lights can be controlled individually via Bluetooth or via the Philips Hue app. Using the app unlocks many more features, including the ability to assign a set of bulbs to a particular room or area and control them together, create automations, apply scenes (themed color palettes), and link them to other devices such as sensors and switches.
The more advanced features also require a Philips Hue Bridge, which is an additional expense you'll need to consider when budgeting for your new smart lighting system, but it's worth it if you're adding them to more than one room, especially since it also allows you to connect your lights to virtually any smart home ecosystem.
The colors are bright and bold, and in my tests, the Hue Essential bulb proved to be just as responsive as a White & Color Ambiance bulb that costs twice as much. The two bulbs use different color technologies. meaning the more expensive bulb offers a wider palette, but in everyday use, you'll be hard-pressed to tell the difference.
The only real downside to choosing Hue Essential bulbs is that they can't be dimmed as low as regular Hue bulbs. That won't matter in most situations, but if you want to use your smart lights to gently wake you up in the morning or for subtle lighting in your home theater, more expensive bulbs may be the best option.
For everything else, though, Hue Essential bulbs offer an amazing array of features, excellent quality, a well-designed app, and the broadest compatibility of any smart light you can buy today.
Read our full Philips Hue Essential Review
party lighting
GE Cync Dynamic Lighting Effects
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Philips Hue Essential lights are great, but GE Cync Lighting Dynamic Effects bulbs offer something Hue doesn't: the ability to assign multiple colors to a single bulb so you can set the mood with a single light. Better yet, these party-ready smart lights can change their multiple colors in response to music without the need for additional sensors or accessories. It's a party on your roof and everyone is invited.
“The dynamic effects available here are a delight, especially the ones that respond to the audio, and set it apart from the competition,” said our reviewer, James Holland. “Get enough of these and you can probably host your own rave.”
These bulbs connect directly to Wi-Fi, so unlike Philips Hue lights (which use the Zigbee wireless protocol), you don't need a hub to use all their features. If you plan to equip your entire home with smart lights, then a Zigbee mesh network makes more sense (each light effectively acts as a repeater, giving more range), but if you just want fun lighting for one or two rooms, Wi-Fi will be fine.
During testing, we found GE's bulbs to be surprisingly easy to connect, and the accompanying Cync app is much better designed than many others we've tested over the years.
“The GE Cync Lighting Dynamic Effects bulb may be a little expensive compared to other models, but its connectivity is rock solid,” James said. “In fact, the closest I've had to a problem is a second or two of delay when turning off the app, but that's only if the light has been on for a while.”
Do you want to take the party further? There are also wall lighting panels with dynamic effects, LED strips and string lights so you can design a setup to suit your room. However, these bulbs aren't widely available outside of the US, so if you want to have some fun with smart lighting elsewhere, scroll ahead for my next recommendation.
Read our full GE Cync Dynamic Lighting Effects Review
Budget
Essential elements of nanoleaf matter
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Nanoleaf has carved a niche for itself in smart lighting for gamers. Whether you want a light-up board to hold your headphones and controllers, flexible string lights that sync with the on-screen action, or stackable, light-up storage cubes to display your collectibles, Nanoleaf has you covered.
It does have a more sensible side, though, including some great smart bulbs that are particularly bright and bold, and pair nicely with Nanoleaf decorative lighting or used alone.
As you can see from the name, these particular bulbs are Matter compatible, meaning you can use them as part of a combined smart home comprising devices from different brands – a significant advantage over many similarly priced smart bulbs.
We experienced some connectivity issues during installation, but once we set up our Nanoleaf bulbs, we were very impressed. We especially liked the way you can easily sync your Nanoleaf bulbs with what's happening on your screen and the Circadian Lighting feature, which changes color temperature and brightness throughout the day to help you feel energized when it's time to work and relax in the evening. Creating custom color scenes is also very easy (and you can even share them with other Nanoleaf users if you're feeling generous).
Like the Hue Essential series, Nanoleaf's budget bulbs don't give you a huge variety of shapes and styles to choose from (there's a screw fit, a bayonet fit, a bulb for recessed ceiling lights, and that's it), but the fact that you can use them with any major smart home platform opens up a world of options if you want to expand your smart lighting even further.
Read our full Nanoleaf Matter Essential Elements Review
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The best smart lights for every room.
