Best Solar Lights

Best solar lights
(Image credit: Amazon)

Solar lights are a great way to quite literally brighten up your yard without spending too much or using any energy. Positioned correctly and with enough sunlight, solar lights should be able to provide a gentle glow to your garden throughout the year. Some of the best outdoor solar lights can be attached to a motion detector and used for security, too. Here is our list of the best solar lights.

Best overall

Best solar lights

(Image credit: Amazon)

Mpow Motion Sensor Security Lights

For added lighting and security

The Mpow solar lights feature 140 individual solar lightbulbs to light up a lot of areas around your home. These waterproof lights come with two lights that can be mounted to your home, fence, or patio. Because they are wireless, setting up these lights is easy. Each light has a motion sensor, so you can choose to set these lights to come on only when someone walks by, or have them continually on. There are three distinct light settings.

Best garden lights

Best solar lights

(Image credit: Amazon)

Deco Express Solar Lights Outdoor

Light pathways

The Deco Express solar lights look like small, flickering flames as they line your driveway and walkways around your home. They are perfect for adding a bit of ambience without being too bright or overpowering. Each of the six lights that come in this pack is set on a garden stake that is easy to push into place. These lights stand independently of each other, so you can set them as close, or apart as you need them.

Best string lights

Best solar lights

(Image credit: Amazon)

Omeril Solar String Lights

26 foot string of waterproof lighting

This string of solar lights features 50 crystal ball-like bulbs strung on an 8M wire. It has a rechargeable battery that will use solar to collects, transform and store energy until you’re ready to use them. When fully charges these lights will sine between eight and 14 hours a day. These lights can be hung from ceilings, draped from fences, or wrapped around shrubs to create a fun, romantic, and beautiful atmosphere in your yard.

Best party lights

Best solar lights

(Image credit: Amazon)

Lezonic Solar String Lights

Great for weddings and garden parties

This string of solar lights is small enough to bring a delicate touch to a wedding party, or bold enough to use a holiday décor. This package comes with two strings of light that have a total of 120 LED solar bulbs and 12M of length to cover a good deal of space. The solar panels and battery gather and hold enough power to last for up to 8 hours of light time. The Lezonic solar string lights have eight light settings, are easy to hang and use, plus feature a thin wire that seems to fade into the background instead of overpowering the look of the lights.

Best value

Best solar lights

(Image credit: Amazon)

LOHAS Solar Security Lights

Multi-purpose solar lights

These solar lights can be used around your home and garden areas to give you more light without increasing your energy bill. They are easy to mount over staircases, or on fences. You get four solar lights, each with eight LED bulbs inside to give you a bright beam. It stores solar energy during the day and automatically shines when it gets darker. You can use batteries to power these lights, which is especially helpful during times of the year when it isn’t as sunny outside.

How to find the right solar lights for your yard

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Type of Light

The type of solar lights you buy depends on their intended use. Standalone solar lights work best for small areas that don't need much light. Strings of lights work best for walkways, though some can be mounted higher near patios. Post- or wall-mounted solar floodlights are excellent options to install near doors and on patios.

Brightness

The level of brightness can vary considerably in solar lights. In general, solar lights won't produce as much light as ones connected to the electrical grid, but they can be effective in places where you want more ambience, security, and safety. If your focus is the ambience and illuminating walkways, then you don't need solar lights with high light output, as measured in lumens. However, if you plan to use the lights for security and illuminating walkways, it's best to choose brighter lights with high lumen ratings, preferably with motion sensors to save on battery power.

Quantity & Range

The number of lights to buy depends on the range of each light and the size of the area you want to illuminate. Depending on their intended use, solar lights can cast light from a range of two feet up to 38 feet. Lights with shorter ranges usually come in multi-packs, making them ideal for pathways and near landscaping features. In this setup, you want the light footprint from each unit to extend as far as that of nearby units; whether or not the light patterns overlap comes down to your personal preferences. If you want lights for outdoor parties or security, they should illuminate a larger area, but you won't need to buy as many.

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