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The Spruce
Keeping plants alive and helping them flourish can be hard as is, but growing things indoors is even more tricky. You have to give them enough—but not too much—water and make sure they have enough soil and a large enough pot. Aside from that, one of the most crucial factors of growing plants inside is light.
Positioning your plants in front of a window where they can drink up natural sunlight is ideal. But as you probably know, this is easier said than done. Whether your window situation is less-than-sufficient for plants or you live somewhere that only gets sunny a few months of the year, a grow light is an excellent solution.
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The Spruce / Nusha Ashjaee
What to Look for in a Grow Light
Size
When deciding what size grow light you need, think about how many plants you'll need to cover. Also, if you’re planning to move your light from place to place, you may want something lighter and portable, whereas if you know it’s going to stay put, that may not be as much of a factor. Also, consider the space where you plan to put it and make sure there’s room for it to operate safely and not up against furniture, drapes, or other items.
Type
There are various types of grow lights to consider, from panels to ones that hang overhead or screw into a regular light fixture. The type of plants you have, the amount of existing natural light, and where your plants are located will help you narrow down your choices.
Ease of use
From installation to keeping them operating properly, some grow lights require more effort than others. Also consider how much noise a grow light makes, particularly if it’s going to be placed in a busy area.
Want to flex your green thumb inside? Here are the best grow lights to help your indoor plants live their best life.
Best Overall: Roleadro LED Full Spectrum Grow Light
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The best overall option is the Roleadro LED Grow Light. Thanks to the brand's proprietary spectrum with 460 to 465 nm, 620 to 740 nm, and a 6,000 to 6,500 K waveband, it provides indoor plants with a diverse range of light. This helps promote growth and allows even the most delicate, tropical plants and flowers to not only grow but bloom year-round. You can also grow seasonal vegetables and herbs in the winter, spring, summer, or fall.
This 75-watt grow light also has an aluminum cooling plate to effectively dissipate heat, even on the highest setting. It comes with hanging brackets and is easy to set up. You can put it together in about a minute and hang it from almost anywhere in your home.
"In our test, the grow light gave our seedlings ample nourishment early on, so they didn’t outpace themselves. The light also proved to be the perfect size for a standard seed tray. It distributes light evenly so each seedling gets an equal share of light."—Stacey L. Nash, Product Tester
Best Bulb: GE Grow Light With Balanced Spectrum Seeds & Greens LED Light Bulb Clear
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You can also get special bulbs for growing indoor plants, like the GE BR30. This full-spectrum bulb offers high-quality lighting that encourages houseplants, indoor gardens, cacti, and flowers to flourish every month of the year. Unlike some other grow lights that produce harsh lighting, it provides soft, natural illumination and warmth.
The GE BR30 features innovative LED technology, which allows it to last for 25,000 hours (or about five years) and use only 9 watts of energy. With a balanced light spectrum designed for seeds and greens, you can grow herbs, lettuce, cucumbers, peppers, and other vegetables right in your home.
Best Mounted: Feit Electric Dual Full LED Plant Grow Tube Light
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Looking for something you can mount? Your best bet is the Feit Electric Dual Grow Tube Light. This grow light is lightweight, durable, and easy to install. It arrives fully assembled and can be hung or mounted flush against your ceiling or walls. Designed to mimic natural sunlight and work as a replacement for traditional greenhouse bulbs, this product delivers.
It emits 450 nm of blue light and 655 nm of red light, the perfect combo for indoor gardening. The blue encourages the growth of tall, leafy plants and vegetables, and the red promotes budding, fruiting, and flowering. Plus, it has a low heat emission, which prevents burnt leaves and reduces your electric costs.
Best Hanging: Soltech Solutions Grow Light
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The Soltech Solutions Grow Light is an aesthetically pleasing hanging lamp. It has a 15-foot fabric cord and comes with an LED bulb, three ceiling hooks, two wall fairleads, and a swag hook. Choose from either white or black, both of which offer a chic, minimalist vibe.
You can get this grow light in size small (5.8 x 3.8 inches with 2,000 lumens) or large (7 x 4 inches with 4,000 lumens). The lamp provides sufficient lighting for houseplants of all sizes and varieties, and it lasts for 15 years.
Best for Herbs: TorchStar Plant LED Kit Indoor Herb Grow Light
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The best option for herbs is also from TorchStar. With full-spectrum solar simulation, the LED Plant Kit provides both the right lighting and a container for growing herbs indoors. Mimicking natural sunlight, it illuminates for 16 hours a day and then turns off for 8 hours at night.
This herb grow light measures 19.9 x 2.2 x 14 inches. It's the perfect size to place on your windowsill, desk, kitchen counter, mantle, dresser, or side table.
Best Adjustable Spectrum: iPower 10W Dual Head LED Grow Light
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The iPower LED Grow Light has two flexible gooseneck arms and two light heads. But the rotatable necks aren't the only thing that's adjustable on this lamp. It has three light modes (red, blue, and a red/blue combo) and 11 dimmable settings. The smart timer allows you to set it to turn off after a certain amount of hours, and then turn on at the same time the next day for a 24-hour cycle.
Like the CFGROW lamp, this grow light has a large mounting clip, which you can attach to a desk, table, shelf, or any other slim ledge. It comes with a USB cable and plugs into standard outlets.
Best Desk Garden: AeroGarden Harvest Elite with Gourmet Herb Seed Pod Kit
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Are you in the market for a desk garden? If so, we think you'll love the AeroGuard Harvest Elite. The high-performance 20-watt LED light provides full-spectrum rays for growing a wide range of herbs and veggies. We're talking mint, basil, parsley, thyme, rosemary, sage, and dill.
With a sleek design and an LCD control panel, it looks almost like a high-end countertop kitchen appliance. The Harvest Elite comes in light green, white, black, or a stainless steel finish. At just 11 x 8 x 15 inches, it's the perfect size for a tiny desk garden. The kit also includes seeds for six different herbs—and since they grow in water, you can get started right away.
Our top pick for grow lights is the Roleadro LED Grow Light (view at Amazon) due to its unmatched waveband emission. If you want a complete indoor garden kit, opt for the AeroGarden Harvest Elite (view at Amazon), which comes with a starter pack of seeds.
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