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Reviewed's mission is to help you buy the best stuff and get the most out of what you already own. Our team of product experts thoroughly vet every product we recommend to help you cut through the clutter and find what you need.
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The Govee M1 is a high-quality light strip that can be trimmed, dimmed, and packs in plenty of fun color options and features. Read More
Philips Hue is known for its high-quality luminance and vibrant colors, and these smart strip lights deliver on those fronts. Read More
This is the brightest LED strip light in our guide, with lots of fun in-app presets. It also works with Matter. Read More
The LIFX Lightstrip with Color Zones offers bright colors and plenty of customizable lightning effects. Read More
The Eve Smart Light Strip only works with Apple devices, offering full integration with Apple's Siri and HomeKit's adaptive lighting. Read More
Sometimes, a fun new gadget is all it takes to transform your home completely. One of your space's most noticeable (and overlooked) upgrades is adding smart LED strip lights. It’s an affordable way to illuminate places like the underside of kitchen cabinets and add mood lighting along hallway baseboards.
The Govee M1 Smart LED Strip Light (available at Amazon for $99.99) is our top pick for the best LED strip lights. We've thoroughly evaluated its variety of customizable lighting features, ease of setup, and durability, and it has come out on top. For a Matter-enabled LED strip light that's one of the brightest you can buy, the Nanoleaf Essentials Matter Lightstrip (available at Amazon) is our pick. However, we've also considered other intriguing choices, each of which has something unique to offer.
The Govee M1 is the best LED strip light you can buy.
The Philips Hue Bluetooth Lightstrip Plus is our pick for Best Upgrade.
This Nanoleaf strip light is the brightest of any we've tested.
We fell in love with the LIFX Lightstrip with Color Zones for their incredibly simple set up, ease of use, and variety of awesome features.
The Eve Light Strip is the best option for Apple HomeKit.
Easy to install
Great lighting features
Works with Alexa and Google Assistant
Can’t be spliced
Works with Alexa and Google Assistant
Awesome lighting features
Great for gaming and watching movies
Can be hard to assemble
No Apple HomeKit support
Limited options for installation
No hub needed
Works with Alexa and Google Assistant
Email account verification for new logins
Limited lighting effects
No support for Siri
Works with Alexa and Google Assistant
Syncs up with sound
Useful features
No true "white" color
No protective coating
We put each light strip through in-depth, hands-on tests to fully understand each one’s capabilities, features, and downsides. We also looked for necessary app security features like two-factor authentication.
We set the lights up in various indoor locations throughout our testers home, testing to see which ones work the best in low light, offer the best connectivity, and integrate with smart assistants for easy control. We also tested the companion apps on iOS and Android to get a feel for their connectivity, ease of use, and features.
LED strips are a versatile lighting option that can be added anywhere inside your house. They are often seen in home theater setups, but the bendable, sticky lights are a quick and easy way to brighten up the dark spots in your home and add accent lighting. There are a few things to consider before you purchase LED strip lights.
When purchasing smart LED strip lights for your home, check to see whether they require a hub. Unless you already have a compatible smart home hub, we recommend choosing a smart strip light that doesn’t require you to purchase another device.
It is also essential to select a strip light that easily integrates with your existing smart home environment. We tested models that work with Siri, Alexa, and Google Assistant. However, only some of these strip lights are compatible with all three popular smart assistants.
While most of the lights we tested connect over Wi-Fi, some use only Bluetooth, and others can use either. We found Bluetooth connections unreliable and slow, so we recommend selecting a strip light with Wi-Fi.
The amount of light a bulb produces is measured in lumens—the more lumens, the more brightness. Many of the light strips we tested had adjustable brightness to best suit the space in which they were used. However, even one of the sets on the lower end of brightness, the Cync LED Light Strip, with 800 lumens, could light a dark room.
Most LED strip lights can be cut down or extended with additional light strip sections. However, not all of the lights are as customizable. Think strategically about where you need extra lighting, then measure the area. During testing, we installed strip lights around TVs and mirrors, along baseboards and door trim, on bookcases and office desks, and under kitchen cabinets.
Camryn Rabideau is a full-time freelance writer and product tester with eight years of experience. She's been lucky enough to test hundreds of products firsthand, and her specialties include bedding and pet products, which often require help from her two dogs, three cats, and flock of rambunctious chickens.
Rachel Murphy is Reviewed's home editor. She holds a journalism degree from the University of Central Florida. Prior to joining the team, she worked as a freelance writer for publications like Insider and Mashable, and as an associate editorial producer for Good Morning America. Aside from smart home tech, her interests include food, travel, parenting, and home renovation. You can usually find her sipping on coffee at any time of the day.
Jill Schildhouse
Freelance contributor
Jill Schildhouse is a valued contributor to the Reviewed family of sites.
Our team is here for one purpose: to help you buy the best stuff and love what you own. Our writers, editors, and lab technicians obsess over the products we cover to make sure you're confident and satisfied. Have a different opinion about something we recommend? Email us and we'll compare notes.
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