Night in a neighborhood can feel a little threatening at times.
Even if you know you live in an area with low animal pests or crime, going onto your driveway, or into your backyard can feel a little like you’re inviting trouble.
Even on a well-lit sidewalk, the light that gets to the front of your house can feel like a dare from when you were a kid, going into the abandoned house with nothing but your wits.
Only now, you’re an adult, and you’re entitled to light your front porch a little. That’s why you need to grab a good floodlight.
It’s a great way of adding a little security to your home when you need to make that little midnight to talk out the trash or grab something you left out in the flower garden.
Plus, plenty of floodlights come with motion sensors now, that will help alert you to a potential animal or stranger that has walked onto your property.
In most cases, they’ll leave once they realize they can be seen. Because of that, floodlights have become a basic, but essential, piece of low-level home security.
If you’re currently looking for a good floodlight, we’ve compiled a great little buyer’s guide for you to help you out.
We’ll compare some of the best floodlights on the market right now, plus some features you’ll want to keep in mind when buying your light.
LEPOWER Solar Security Motion Outdoor Floodlights
Looking for a new security floodlight with a sleek, modern design? Worried that you’ll be sacrificing quality and versatility?
Then worry no longer: Lepower’s Solar security lights have you covered. This bright light is practically a miniature lighthouse, fitted above your driveway!
With in-built solar batteries, this floodlight can gather power in the day, and stay bright all night.
And if you’re worried that they may not last enough for your needs, maybe you’re worried that the winter months are a little too dark for a little too long, then don’t worry; with a rechargeable battery life of at least 2400mAH, Lepower have you covered for the long dark times too.
Waterproofing is essential for good outdoor light devices, and this model is built to survive the toughest rainstorms. No water’s getting inside this light!
And with a high-quality motion tracker installed into the device, there’s no chance that strangers to your doorstep will make it out of the floodlight’s shining path.
Pros
- Excellent light levels – With up to 1000lm, and a capable light level of 5500k, this is a good light for those who want to be able to see clearly when they’re outside, doing those late-night tasks. Its LED lighting system beats out any traditional normal light chip.
- Long battery life – With an effective power conversion system from the floodlight, plus having the option to use rechargeable batteries, this is a handy piece of kit for all-day round lighting.
- Excellent Motion Sensor range – With up to 72 feet on the motion sensor range, plus a field of vision that is 180 degrees wide, you’ll know about anyone coming up to your front door before even they know what light just hit them! Great for keeping track of cars, animals, and people alike.
Cons
- No dusk to dawn function – With no ability to turn on and off when nighttime begins and ends, you may want to look around elsewhere if you’re looking for a low-maintenance light.
Buyer’s Experience
We found when we were testing this floodlight, that the item works great for both front-of-the-house spaces, and our backyards.
The need to recharge its batteries though, whilst also needing to change the modes of the motion sensor, meant that managing this light has to be a part of your late light security routine.
Still, in terms of light output and its sensor array, this is still a great little floodlight!
- Solar Powered, Energy Saving: The solar outdoor flood lights by solar energy, no need for electricity bills. The solar panel is monocrystalline...
- 1000LM Brightness Outdoor Solar Flood Lights: The led motion light with the 2 adjustable heads design, produces up to 1000lm 5500k brightness....
- Outdoor Solar Motion Lights: Outdoor solar lights motion sensor can be triggered by the moving human, cars or animals up to 72FT sensing range at...
TBI Security Solar Lights Outdoor Floodlights
Do you want your floodlight to have total adjustability, whilst also covering a great field of range?
TBI has your back, with their Pro Security Solar Light Outdoor Floodlight. Let no stranger or intruder get past your lats ever again with this model!
It’s always frustrating when you find a floodlight that is bright enough and has a great battery life, but the single or double head just doesn’t cover enough of your driveway or backyard to really give you the light you want.
That usually means that you’ll need to adjust the head manually, which can be a real pain if you have to keep doing this.
As we already implied, this isn’t a problem with the TBI security floodlight.
With the rotatable head on this light by TBI is a really handy feature to have, with a range of up to 355 degrees of movement, an almost complete turning circle.
That’s pretty impressive for such a small piece of kit!
Plus, with its 216 LEDs giving you a light level that would make you think you were having a close encounter of the third kind, this one-two combination of great light distribution and excellent light quality will help you say goodbye to those dark, stressful late-night trips out down the driveway or into the garage.
Pros
- Exceptional field of light distribution – With three separate heads, and 355 degrees of adjustable motion, this is just the light you’re looking for to light up your whole garden.
- Brilliant light levels – With light levels of up to 2200lm, this excellent level of brightness is a great compliment to the field of view this light provides.
- Great battery capacity – With an inbuilt capacity of up to 2200mAh, which can be extended to 3000mAh when combined with its solar panel function and rechargeable batteries, this is definitely a long-lasting light that will stay working for the whole night!
- Motion tracker – Just because you have great light, doesn’t mean you should forget its motion sensor range. With up to 40 feet of range for detection, this light really has it all!
- Waterproofing – both the lights themselves and their included solar panels are protected against the elements. No outdoor lights would be complete without this handy feature.
Cons
- No dusk to dawn feature – Whilst the long battery life does compensate for the lack of this function found in other floodlights, it can be a little frustrating to only get a few nights out of these lights without charging them.
Buyer’s Experience
We found installing these lights pretty easy. They were lightweight making it easy to move them up to the places we wanted to attach them to.
We did find though that if conditions were not completely ideal, some features didn’t work quite as well as we had hoped, such as the motion sensor on windy and rainier days.
Still, this is an excellent product with a great light range, and the easy installation is just the icing on this brightly-lit cake.
- 🎁【Ultra Bright 216 LEDs with up to 2200 lm】Brighten your backyard with the solar light outdoor set by TBI Pro. Expereince great vision at...
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Ring Outdoor Solar Floodlight
With several generations of floodlight engineering under their company belt, Ring has released their new smart Solar Floodlight, and we wanted to see if it lived up to their other products.
What sets this floodlight apart from others we have discussed so far, is the connectivity functions this handy piece of kit has built into itself.
Being compatible with most smart devices, whether it’s an Amazon Echo, an Alexa device, or the company’s on Ring Bridge, you’ll have plenty of ways to manage this smart little floodlight.
Plus with this function, you can set up a schedule for when you want your floodlight to be turned on or off, get notifications when they Ring floodlight.
Plus, thanks to its connectivity, you can connect all your Ring smart light devices together as part of a network, creating a protective wall of light and sensors that will let you know when anything new or odd approaches your home.
Pros
- Excellent connectivity – with the whole family of Ring connective devices to play around with at your fingertips, plus Amazon Echo and Alexa connective options, there probably isn’t a popular Bluetooth system it can’t connect with. All of this with easy setup, too!
- Notification straight to your device – This floodlight will let you know by mobile if this light has detected something
- Customizable options – Change your floodlight settings to how you want them. Too bright? Just turn it down a notch. Want your lights on at set times and not others? Just a few taps from your smart device, and you’re good to go.
Cons
- Ring Bridge not included – A Ring Bridge is vital for connecting with any other Ring lights and devices you might have around the house. This will put you pack a fair amount if you don’t already have this, which can make keeping tracking of more than one item tricky.
- On the pricier side – This is certainly one of the more expensive floodlights on this list, which, given the relatively low levels of light, about 12oolm, is a little on the low side when compared to other products too. This doesn’t mean that the light isn’t serviceable, but if you aren’t excited about, or plan on using the Bluetooth functions built-in, you may want to look elsewhere.
Buyer’s Experience
We found that the ability to set schedules and light levels r the Ring floodlight really helps extend its battery life, which will probably make it less of a hassle to maintain in the long run.
However, we did find there were some issues with the motion sensor function, which seems to function based on shadow placements in its field of vision.
Either it wouldn’t register a change in light levels when something moved in front of it at night, which meant it wouldn’t turn on at all.
Or, in the light of daytime, the motion sensor would sense the shadows moving with the time of day, and would turn on way too often.
- Perfect for driveways and backyards – a solar-powered floodlight that shines 1200 lumens of light when motion is detected.
- Ring Bridge, Echo (4th Gen) or Echo Show 10 (3rd Gen) required to enable smart features, such as mobile notifications and customizable settings.
- Smart features – when connected to a Ring Bridge or compatible Echo Device, get mobile notifications, set schedules, turn the lights on and...
Guardian 580X Solar Security LED Floodlight
Looking for a reliable piece of kit that will keep track of those pesky critters and strangers at night? Then maybe take a look at the Guardian 580X Security floodlight, by the Solar Light Mart.
This easy to install light comes with 3 new lighting features for usability, being able to detect movement at night within a range of up to 12 meters with its duck to dawn setting, a fully lit setting for its 84-piece LED system when it does detect light, as well as a standby mode that is ready to go into full brightness setting.
That’s quite a handy set of features for a floodlight to have, especially for one that fits comfortably in your hand!
Plus, with a battery that can take a lot of outdoor punishment, whether it’s knocks, weather, or other kinds of wear and tear, this is definitely a great product if you are looking for a home floodlight system that needs very little attention from you once it’s set up.
Pros
- Great functionality – Green setting means dusk to dawn setting is active, set to full power. The blue means the PIR motion setting is on. Red indicates total darkness standby mode. Great versatility, depending on what you are looking for in your night-to-night business.
- Great light level adjustability – You can decide between full-power 730lm mode, for a bright glow that will keep you well-lit, or a softer 55 lm setting, for those times when full-power is just too blinding.
- Well-built battery – with a thousand life cycles that can take all sorts of outdoor punishment, great stability against heat, and high electrical current damage, this is a hardy light that can be trusted to work, even in the worst conditions.
Cons
- Relatively low light levels – For a single head, this is still an impressive amount of light. But if you are looking around for the brightest possible lighting in your floodlight, then you may want to consider looking for more than one head for your outdoor light source.
- Single head, low range of light – The small size of the head means that this may be ideal for a smaller home, but you may need to buy multiple if your backyard is large, or you have a 2-car driveway.
Buyer’s Experience
We found that it was very easy to set up over an area, given its smaller size, and did light its given spot all night (although this may not be the case if we were running this floodlight at full power all the time).
But again, the size of this setup meant that we were only able to light up a single car in a driveway. Perhaps it’s best as a supplementary light, where its sensors can complement a bigger light source.
- 6 watts 84 pcs LED producing 730 lumen (full power mode) upon Guardian PIR Motion Sensor activation. Normal operation or dim mode with 55 lumens...
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Richarm Outdoor Dusk to Dawn Solar Floodlight
If you’re looking for a floodlight that operates from dusk to the break of dawn, then you’re going to want to take a look at Richarm’s Dual remote solar floodlight.
The perfect illuminator for your garage, pool, or driveway.
Once you program these lights into their auto-mode, they’ll be able to turn themselves on when dusk comes and switch themselves off when dawn arrives.
If you’re looking for a floodlight that doesn’t require too much interference once it is set up.
And with their excellent waterproof casing, there’s no need to worry when a storm hits your home if your light will survive. This durable little piece of kit is ready for whatever the weather or sky throws at it!
Worried that you have to place your floodlight somewhere where it won’t get any charge from the sun during the day?
Have no fear; Thanks to the over 16 feet of cable, you’ll have plenty of room and distance to mount both your light and solar panel wherever you want!
Plus, each light and solar panel has an adjustable range of up to 90 degrees with its wall brackets. A handy little feature if you’re not sure if your walls will receive their light at those low points in the year.
Pros
- Excellent dusk to dawn feature – A great function to have you struggle to turn your light on or off as part of your nightly security routine. No need to worry that they won’t catch anything at night, or if they’ll use their power-up in the day.
- Flexible positioning – With great adjustability for the wall brackets and angling, plus 16.4 feet of wiring between the solar panel and the floodlight, you have a variety of movements to suit your home’s needs. Plus, with the 2 pack, you’ll be able to spread your light even further!
- Waterproof casing – Great for if you live in those areas with a high amount of rainfall. Storms won’t make this little light budge!
Cons
- Less effective in dim-lighting – If the sunlight in your area isn’t very strong for whatever reason, due to weather conditions or altitude, you may find that the battery does not fully recharge between uses. It may be worth trying to find an alternative power source if you’re looking to buy this product.
Buyer’s Experience
We found that the cord, whilst long enough for lighting smaller spaces, like an outdoor dining table, that we did need an extension cord if we were hoping to have the solar panel on a different side of our house from the floodlight, though that is available, just not included.
We did also find that at full power, the charge from the solar panels didn’t last much longer than 4 hours, which doesn’t even cover a full night, although this might have been because of the weather conditions that day.
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GROWNEER Solar Motion Spotlight
![2019 [Upgraded] Solar Spotlight Motion Sensor Solar Lights 12 Led 600Lm Solar Powered...](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/41dyFEzKC5L.jpg "Best Solar Flood Lights 11")
For a floodlight that is built up to standard, both in light levels and durability, you’ll want to take a look at the Solar Spotlight Motion Sensor floodlight, by Growneer.
Experienced in covering all your outdoor needs with their outside and gardening kits, let’s see if their floodlight lets you carry on gardening into the night!
The two-headed piece has six LEDs per light, with each one being able to emit 50 lm of light.
Now, that might not sound like a massive amount, but once they are turned on together as a group of 6, from 2 separate lamps, they emit a grand total of 600 lm of light.
For the small size of this floodlight, that’s an impressive amount of brightness this device can release!
Plus, their adjustable stalks allow for them to cover a large area for their size too.
Once that is paired with their excellent 20 feet of motion sensing, plus a range of 120 degrees for each head, you have a pretty impressive range of security from just one head.
The battery is a pretty impressive one too. When paired with its solar panel charging and power-saving features, this little light will go for up to 12 hours on a single charge.
And thanks to its intelligent PIR system, the dim light function can stay on for a good while, if no movement is detected. That’s a handy piece of hardware!
Pros
- Great adjustability – With 2 mounts that have 360 degrees of rotation, no spot will go unseen by this amazing compact floodlight.
- Surprisingly powerful – With a total of 600lm being emitted from these lights, this is a great piece of equipment for lighting those smaller corners of your driveway, backyard, or pool.
- Great battery – With up to 12 hours of light during the night, plus a smart PIR system to adjust for lower light levels being emitted, there’s no worry about it
Cons
- Not suitable for larger areas – Whilst the adjustable head can help push the light range out a little further, this floodlight is intended to focus on a smaller area, rather than larger spaces. Think carefully if you know you have a large field for a backyard or a 2-car driveway.
Buyer’s Experience
We found out that the lights were set to dim automatically when they were installed above our driveway, which was helpful considering that we did this in the late afternoon.
That way, we got to see how well they worked straight out of the box.
It’s a very blue light when it is at full power, which can be a little irritating if you accidentally catch a look straight into the lamp, but that’s on my curiosity, rather than the lamp itself!
Still, they worked pretty well on the first night, considering that they didn’t have much of a chance to charge.
We did find that the batteries were wired to the lamps when we unboxed them, which may be an issue if they need to be replaced at some point.
Buyer’s Guide
Size
There are some obvious bonuses to having floodlights that are larger or have more heads. They can usually light up a larger area, whilst also bringing more intense light to it so you can see better.
For homes with larger front and backyards, you’ll probably want to consider these options first.
However, it’s worth keeping in mind that larger floodlights will put a higher demand on their batteries, especially if they are kept at full brightness.
And their solar panels and batteries may struggle to maintain this for long periods of time.
If your space is on the smaller size, an appropriately sized, smaller light will do just fine.
LM
If you have already been searching for a floodlight, you may have come across the abbreviation ‘lm’ next to a listed floodlight’s features.
LM is an abbreviation for ‘Lumens’ which is simply a way of measuring a bulb’s light output.
If you’re looking for a higher Lumen level, 1000 is considered a good benchmark for higher light output, although you might find higher intensities in larger LED floodlights.
MAh
Another confusing abbreviation you might have come across while searching for a floodlight is ‘mAh’.
This is just a shortening of the term ‘milliampere/hour’, which just refers to the battery life of your lamp they have stored.
A floodlight with 1000mAh or less will likely have a shorter operating time, although this might not be the case if the lm or wattage is also lower.
Some batteries, with the assistance of solar panels, can go up to 3000mAh, which would be considered a relatively high level for a standard floodlight.
Motion Sensor Range
Most, but not all, floodlights today will have in-built motion sensors, that allow for the lights to be turned on when something moves within their effective range.
In some floodlight models, this is a feature that has to be manually turned on or off before the floodlight works.
For others, especially those with a listed ‘dusk to dawn’ function, will only turn on past a certain time or ambient light level, which requires less maintenance on your part.
A motion detection range of below 10 feet would be rare, with the upper range being somewhere in the mid-20s.
If you find a light over 30 feet, you may find that you’ll get interference from the sidewalk leading to your house, although anything with this kind of range is pretty rare for commercial use.
Frequently Asked Questions
Should I Use An LED Bulb In My Floodlight Over A Traditional Bulb?
LED bulbs, usually, will take less energy to put out the same amount of light as a traditional bulb. This is why many solar-powered floodlights in today’s market use LEDs, as it is less strain on the panel, and the light’s battery.
Are All Floodlights Adjustable With Their Light Levels?
No, they are not. If a floodlight does have adjustable settings for how bright it can be, it will probably be described on the webpage, or in the packaging, if you are buying one from a store.
