Growing plants indoors allows you to have complete control over the growing and producing stages of the plant to ensure the best possible crop. Certain crops are sensitive to the types of lights used to promote growth, as well as the amount of light offered throughout the day. Because of this, if you are growing indoors, you will want to make sure you have dependable, long-lasting lights for peace of mind.

Not all grow lights are made the same. Differences in spectrum offerings can affect plant growth stages in different ways, and you must be aware of how different types of bulbs and light influence your harvestable plants.

5 Best Grow Lights for Weed Comparisons

PRODUCT

FEATURES

Advanced Platinum Series Grow Light - $$title$$

Advanced Platinum Series Grow Light

  • Light Type: LED
  • Wattage: 150
  • Warranty: 5 years limited

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Roleadro LED Galexyhydro Series Grow Light - $$title$$

Roleadro LED Galexyhydro Series Grow Light

  • Light Type: LED
  • Wattage: 45
  • Warranty: 3 years

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Small White Aspect Luxury LED Grow Light - $$title$$

Small White Aspect Luxury LED Grow Light

  • Light Type: LED
  • Wattage: 20
  • Warranty: n/a

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GooingTop LED Grow Light - $$title$$

GooingTop LED Grow Light

  • Light Type: LED
  • Wattage: 50
  • Warranty: n/a

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JUEYINGBAILI Full Spectrum Plant Lights - $$title$$

JUEYINGBAILI Full Spectrum Plant Lights

  • Light Type: LED
  • Wattage: 80
  • Warranty: n/a

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Why You Can Trust Us

Our team consists of vivid gardeners. All of us spend plenty of time outside in the spring and the summer to make our gardens look spectacular. We also cannot live without growing plants when the weather conditions do not allow it to be done outdoors. That's why during the cold months, we grow whatever we can indoors. 

However, to have only the best crops, we understand the importance of indoor grow lights. To choose only the best ones, over the years, we have gone through numerous product reviews and descriptions on the internet and have tried many of them on our own. 

It allowed us to create this list of the best 5 indoor grow lights that you can currently find on the market.

Backyard Boss Top 5 Best Indoor Grow Lights

Best Power

Advanced Platinum Series Grow Light

    Platinum LED has created a powerful series of LED panel lights called Advanced Platinum, which spans from 150 watts to 1200 watts.

      Pros:

    • Increased performance with both veg and bloom
    • Great for flowering plant
    • Noticeable plant growth
      Cons:

    • May not cover as much space as advertised
    • Fans slightly loud
    • Must experiment with distance

Why We Like It: With a full 12-band light spectrum that includes UV and IR, these lights are supposed to provide 2 to 3 times the light efficiency.

With toggle switches between veg and bloom, you can specify the light spectrum needed for your plant’s stages to maximize efficiency. Plus, no ballast is needed to use these units. Simply plug them right in to get going and hang them directly over where needed. 

A series of fans complete each housing unit, as well as well-placed ventilation and aluminum coiling heat, sinks to ensure a cool running system.

Who Should Buy It: These lights are perfect for anyone who needs control and consistency for maximum yield over varied crops.

Best For Large Crops

Roleadro LED Galexyhydro Series Grow Light

    Roleadro’s 45 watts to 1600 watt light choices encourage just about any growth situation.

      Pros:

    • Supports transplant growth well
    • Power-efficient
    • Supports all stages of growth well
      Cons:

    • Needs more blue light for better veg support
    • Takes time to find proper height placement for max use

Why We Like It: Galexyhydro series from Roleadro allow for a red to blue spectrum ratio of 8 to 1 that is more specific to bloom and high production crop yields but still provides sufficient lighting for mature growth. 

With the addition of small amounts of both UV and IR, your plants are influenced by product protection against viruses, as well as increased vigor. Fans and proper ventilation, combined with built-in heat sinks, helps keep these type of lights running in any indoor space. 

It also allows for a cool running system to ensure you can keep your lights going up to 20 hours at a time to force and manipulate specific stages of plant growth. Small, compact lights for seed starting or up to larger cash crop grows would benefit from the variable spectrum range these lights provide.

Who Should Buy It: With the seriously huge range of light choices offered by the company, there is absolutely something for everyone concerning your plant needs.

Best Design

Small White Aspect Luxury LED Grow Light

    This small indoor light from Soltech Solutions will be a perfect addition to a home that is modernly designed.

      Pros:

    • Comes with an outlet-mounted lighting timer
    • Easy to assemble
    • Small and compact
      Cons:

    • Doesn’t have a turn on/off switch
    • Might require purchasing additional hooks

Why We Like It: Having this light will not only allow you to grow plants inside but also catch the eye of the visitors. 

Even though this light is small compared to others on this list, it is powerful enough to provide a lot of powerful light. It comes with a 15ft long vintage fabric cord to make your space look even more interesting. 

This light has an innovative and precise photosynthetic spectrum that will allow your plants to thrive with ease. Thanks to its aluminum profile, you will be able to grow almost everything from houseplants to small trees.

Who Should Buy It: If you want to buy a light that will allow you to grow plants and add plenty of charm to your space, this product is for you.

Best Portability 

GooingTop LED Grow Light

    This clip-on Led light is perfect for small plants that can use some extra light from time to time.

      Pros:

    • Highly portable
    • Lightweight
    • Easy To Use
      Cons:

    • Not that bright
    • Not as strong as others on the list

Why We Like It: GooingTop Led Grow Light has 10 Red and 74 white LED lights to resemble the full sunlight at noon.

Even though this lamp isn’t too big, it comes with a timer function that has 3 options. It can be set to run for 4, 8, or 12 hours. You can program it, and it will automatically turn on and off based on your settings. 

It’s super easy to install and move around since it comes with clip-on LED lights attached to two goosenecks. Thanks to that, you can point it in any direction you want, providing light to your plants.  

Who Should Buy It: If you have a small plantation that doesn’t need powerful light, consider buying GooingTop LED Grow Light.

Best Functionality

JUEYINGBAILI Full Spectrum Plant Lights

    This LED growing light from JUEINGBAILI is one of the best sellers on Amazon among all of the indoor growing lights.

      Pros:

    • Long-reaching arms
    • Very functional
    • Brightness Adjustment
      Cons:

    • Legs tend to sag
    • Light has to be very close to the plants

Why We Like It: Thanks to four highly flexible and long-reaching arms, this light will allow you to grow plants anywhere you want as long as you can clip it to a surface.

The lights are placed at the end of four goosenecks that you can bend accordingly to your needs. This solution not only allows you to point the light in any direction but also increases the coverage area significantly. Also, for the best fit, you can choose from 9 brightness settings, from 20 to 100 percent.

It has an intelligent timing function and high-quality LED circuits. It means that thanks to the circular memory, the time function automatically turns on and off the lights accordingly to your settings. What’s more, the LED bulbs are made of aviation aluminum extending their longevity to more than 50 000 hours. 

Who Should Buy It: That light is a perfect solution for people who want to have a highly functional light that is powerful enough to let their plants grow.

What is a Grow Light?

young tomato plant under LED grow light

Image credits: nikkytok via Canva

Grow lights are artificial light sources used to mimic the natural spectrum of the sun. It helps influence both plant growth and maximizes production through the chemical process of photosynthesis. This process allows plants to convert light energy into something they can use. These lights are easy to use and run off your home outlets for power. Plus, they are popular with everything from hobby growers to cash crop producers due to the control you have over light quality and time. They come in a variety of spectrum choices to fit the various needs of your plant growth stages.

Grow lights also have varied sizes to meet the needs of the many spaces that may be used to grow your plants. Everything from small grow tents to larger greenhouse nurseries can benefit from the control grow lights. Since light is one of the major components plants need to thrive and survive, you will be able to manipulate and influence growth and overall production.

What Spectrums of Light Do Plants Utilize?

Red Calibrachoa Flower Starts Under Grow Light

Image credits: GarysFRP via Canva

Most plants use variable amounts of the entire light spectrum in one way or another. The rule of thumb is that young seedlings and maturing plants need an abundance of short blue wavelengths. These provide warmer temperatures which support healthy vegetation. Blooming and producing plants require the longer red-hued wavelengths, which are cooler and mimic the sunlight later in the day as the growing season progresses.

Luckily, most of what a plant uses falls within the visible spectrum and can be easily measured. When you can’t decide which types of grow lights to purchase, you can stick to lights found within the 420nm - 740nm range so you can support all stages of plant growth. There have been many studies on how small amounts of IR and UV rays affect plants. 

Types of Grow Lights

Indoor Kale Garden under grow lights

Image credits: Permaculture Apartment Images via Canva

There are many different types of grow lights available to choose from for your growing needs, so it can get pretty confusing if you are somewhat inexperienced about what to look for when first getting started. Always be sure to do a little research concerning your specific plant strain and what it truly needs to flourish.

High-Intensity Discharge (HID)

HID bulbs have been around for quite some time and are popular dependable choices that many experienced growers come back to time and again. These lights are specific to certain ranges of the light spectrum, so you can control the exact amounts of light your plants are getting.

Fluorescent

Fluorescent bulbs typically produce warmer, blue lights and are popular in boosting the early stages of growth. They burn coolly and efficiently and also work well in more enclosed spaces.

Light Emitting Diode (LED)

Growing in popularity, LED lights put out very little heat and are built into panels so you can mix and match individual diodes that emit various light spectral wavelengths. It means you can offer support to all stages of growth at the same time.

Plasma

Plasma is the newest addition to the grow light family. They function similarly to ceramic metal HID bulbs. They are supposed to be able to offer a wider variety of light, however, and work much more efficiently.

What To Consider When Buying Grow Lights?

ripe tomato plant under LED grow light

Image credits: nikkytok via Canva

How much space do you have?

Efficiency is a word most growers need to take advantage of to provide the best product for the best cost they can. Plants need light, so jamming too many plants into one area will restrict their growth. Remember, small plants still grow bigger and will require more space as they grow.

How much time do you have?

Hobby crops are much different than commercial crops, where people may be making an entire living off growth and production. If you are not a commercial grower, you probably don't have enough time to stick around to switch your light on and off. Long-lasting bulbs incorporated into smart house designs allow you to set timers even when you’re not around, consider these smart investments.

Do you plan on forcing your plant stage growths?

The most crucial stage of growth to influence heavily is the vegetative stage. Since it requires light on the blue end of the spectrum. Use long-lasting, dependable bulbs with warmer, shorter wavelengths to help your plants mature and ensure that they are getting the most out of these long ‘days’.

How We Picked

Finding the perfect indoor light can be a challenging task. Your choice will be specific to your plant needs, grow space, and even personal preferences based on your past experiences. Growing plants indoors requires research to determine what is best for your strains, and to maximize potency. 

Because of this, we made sure to include products that vary because we know that everyone has their unique needs. Thanks to that, you can find in this list lights in varied sizes, shapes, or colors. We are confident that everybody will be able to get something suitable.

And The Best Light Is...

Even though all lights are worth the recommendation, our top pick based on consumer experiences is the JUEYINGBAILI Full Spectrum Plant Lights. It comes with four flexible and long-reaching arms so you can point the light in any direction you want, increasing greatly its coverage area.  

What's more, it has 9 different brightness settings, as well as an intelligent timing function. Thanks to these, it will provide your plants with light even when you are not at home, based on your personal settings.

If you have any questions about our picks or have used any of them yourself, we’d love to hear about your experiences below. And, as always, please share!