The 9 Best Smart Light Bulbs of 2022
Updated: Oct. 17, 2022Brighten every room of your home—and even the exterior of your house—with the best smart light bulbs.
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Whether you want to brighten up your outdoor space or give your living room a pleasant evening glow, it’s hard to know which smart light bulb will be the right one for the job. But we have you covered, even when it comes to smart light bulbs with color-changing, dimming, automated and voice-controlled options.
We found the best smart light bulbs for nearly any application. We based our picks on performance, features, ease of use and product reviews, so you can make the best choice for your smart lighting needs.
Best All-Around Smart Light Bulb
Phillips Hue White and Color Ambiance
The Hue White and Color Ambiance kit showcases Phillips’ cutting-edge, full-spectrum, color-changing smart bulb technology. Customers love its excellent color production and lighting performance from the brightest to the dimmest settings. The well-developed Philips Hue ecosystem offers a variety of base types and a range of smart switches and accessories, all managed by the excellent Philips Hue app. The kit comes with three white and color medium-lumen 60-watt smart bulbs that can be used both inside and outside.
The Hue app paired with the Hue Bridge offers an intuitive interface for color and dimming controls, scene and scheduling settings, and media sync capabilities. Hue bulbs can also be voice controlled via any of the big three smart home control ecosystems: Amazon Alexa, Google Assistant and Apple HomeKit.
Pros:
- Easy to use
- Fits most lamps and overhead lights
Cons:
- More expensive than similar options
Best Color Smart Light Bulb
Wyze Bulb Color
The Wyze Bulb Color offers a lot of performance for a less expensive price. This bulb can be an excellent value if you want just a basic setup or to use it in your smart home setup to suit your exact needs. The package comes with two 12-watt bulbs designed for indoor use only.
Having access to 16 million colors (plus a tunable white option) allows you to cool or warm the temperature of the light right from your phone. The Wyze app offers basic controls, scheduling and sensor-triggering using Wyze Sense contact and motion sensors. Note that some sensors require a Bridge with at least one Wyze Cam in your setup, but they’re all pretty inexpensive. Of the big three smart home ecosystems, Wyze is only compatible with Amazon Alexa and Google Assistant, so look elsewhere if you’re set up with Apple HomeKit.
Pros:
- Easy to use
- Inexpensive
Cons:
- Indoor use only
Best Budget Smart Light Bulb
GE Cync Smart LED Light Bulb
You don’t have to spend a lot to upgrade your home with smart light bulb technology. The GE Cync Smart LED Light Bulb comes with plenty of bells and whistles, including a color-changing bulb that connects to your Google Assistant or Alexa for voice control. Plus, you’ll never have to come home to a dark house when you manage your bulbs by connecting to then to the Cync mobile app. These smart light bulbs fit medium base sockets for 60 watts, making them a versatile option throughout your home.
Pros:
- Inexpensive and versatile
- Plenty of color options for every mood and room
Cons:
- Some buyers note problems with the Cync app
Best Smart Light Bulb That’s Part of a Smart Home Suite
Geeni Suite of Smart Home Products
The Geeni suite of smart home products includes everything you need. Lighting, switches, outlets and cameras. They even have smart scales, light strips, humidifiers, essential oil diffusers and other home products you can control through a single app. That eliminates jumping between a handful of different apps to control your devices.
The Geeni Prisma bulbs are dimmable, multicolor capable and don’t require a hub. They also work with Google Assistant and Alexa.
Pros:
- Individual pieces are inexpensive
- Variety of options
Cons:
- Costly when purchasing the entire suite
Easiest Smart Light Bulb to Use
Kasa Smart WiFi Light Bulb
The Kasa Smart WiFi Light Bulb by TP-Link connects directly to your home WiFi connection so you don’t need a smart hub to control the light. And setup is easy with the user-friendly Kasa smartphone app that includes illustrated steps and an intuitive interface. A secured 2.4GHz network is required. The package comes with one 9-watt soft white smart bulb.
Use the app to control your lights remotely and set up room groups, scenes, and schedules. The basic version of this light bulb is dimmable, but Kasa also offers a tunable white version (2700K to 5000K) and a multicolor version (2500K to 9000K) if you want color-changing capability. Voice control can be set up with Amazon Alexa, Google Assistant or Microsoft Cortana.
Pros:
- Easy to install, and comes with a user-friendly app
- Affordable
Cons:
- White and multicolor versions sold separately
- Indoor use only
Best Filament-Style Smart Bulb
Kasa Filament Smart WiFi LED Bulb
If you want an old-school filament style with the longevity of LED that gives off a warm candlelight glow, look no further than the Kasa Filament Smart WiFi LED Bulb. This soft white bulb works well in any environment—inside or outside. The bulb is also dimmable—turn it down to see more of the filament design inside. Each package comes with one 7-watt bulb.
The Kasa system doesn’t require a hub, so just screw in the bulb and pull up the Kasa app on your smartphone to connect it to your WiFi. Another plus? you can add voice control and automation with Amazon Alexa, Google Assistant or Microsoft Cortana.
Pros:
- Can be used with other Kasa products
- Easy to install
Cons:
- Some users note the bulb has a shorter lifespan than advertised
Best Smart Bulb for Outdoor Floodlights
Hue White Outdoor Par38 Smart Bulbs
If you’re looking to replace your Par38 floodlight bulbs, Philips has you covered with its Hue White Outdoor Par38 Smart Bulbs. This is an ideal option if you already have a Hue setup; if you don’t, keep in mind that the Hue Bridge is required to connect the bulbs to your network.
Another handy feature of the Hue system is geofencing, which automatically turns on your lights when it detects your phone approaching your home via GPS—a safety feature to light your way from your car to your house.
These bulbs (two per package) are dimmable and come in a warm white color similar to incandescent. We like that because it’s not as harsh, improving night vision. The bulb housing is built to withstand outdoor conditions and comes with a robust three-year warranty. It works with Amazon Alexa, Google Assistant and Apple HomeKit.
Pros:
- Can set to automatically come on when your phone is detected nearby
- Can be used with a variety of smart assistants
Cons:
- Hue Bridge required to connect bulbs to network
Best Smart Light Strip
Gusodor LED RGB Strip Lights
For a party in a box, take a look at these Gusodor LED RGB Strip Lights, with more features than you thought possible. They’re waterproof, have a 24-key remote control and a built-in microphone for music beat sync. Now that’s a party.
Beyond the party scene, these could set the mood in any room, light up your Christmas or other holiday festivities, or encourage creativity with modes like flashing, breathing, gradients and 25 more dynamic options. Besides the remote control (included), you can use the free app on IOS or Android mobile devices. They come in 32-, 65-, 120- and 200-foot lengths.
Pros:
- Lots of fun features
- Works in several applications
Cons:
- Need an AC/DC power source
- Some buyers note problems with color fading after extended use
Best Smart String Lights
Govee Smart Outdoor String Lights
You may not want to come inside after you hang the Govee Smart Outdoor String Lights in your backyard space. These string lights connect to your WiFi and Bluetooth, and you control them through the Govee Home app, or via voice commands with your Google Assistant or Alexa. The string lights transform your yard with vibrant colors and 40 preset lighting modes, which sync with your music to set the mood.
The lights come in either 48-foot or 96-foot lengths and also feature a timer, so you can schedule them to come on once the sun sets.
Pros:
- Customizable
- Easy to use
Cons:
- One 96-foot strong per outlet
What to consider when buying smart light bulbs
When you’re ready to update your home to smart light bulb technology, there are some things you’ll want to consider.
How do smart light bulbs work?
Smart light bulbs allow you to control them via a multitude of ways, including through a remote, an app, smart assistants, and voice control.
What are smart light bulbs?
Smart light bulbs are controlled wirelessly and allow you to customize the lighting in your home. Designed to work with existing lamps and light fixtures like standard light bulbs, smart light bulbs can be customized in various ways, including being dimmable, programmed to music and set on a timer.
Do smart light bulbs use electricity when off?
Smart light bulbs are considered “vampire devices,” meaning they do draw some power even when they are not being used. That’s because WiFi and Bluetooth technology draw power, as they require energy to maintain a connection. However, the power draw when a smart light bulb is off is minimal.
Are smart light bulbs energy efficient?
Smart Light bulbs are energy efficient compared with traditional light bulbs, since they don’t get as hot. Plus, you can program smart light bulbs to come on and off at certain hours, thus saving money on your energy bill.
Are smart light bulbs safe?
Smart light bulbs are just as safe as traditional bulbs. However, it’s possible that someone could hack into your network. Fortunately, there are steps you can take to secure your home tech devices.
Do smart light bulbs work outside?
If you’re looking for smart light bulbs for your outdoor space, you’re in luck! From floodlights and motion lights to string lights and spotlights, there are plenty of outdoor lighting options when it comes to smart light bulbs.
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