8 of the Best LED Christmas Lights to Jazz Up Your Roof, Tree or Fireplace Mantel

‘Tis the season for sparkle, be it in your makeup, your next cocktail party spread or, of course, in your holiday decor. Christmas lights are the ultimate way to add a festive glow to your home, indoors or out, and we’ve picked the best LED Christmas lights for you to choose from.

Why LED, you ask? While LED lights may be a little pricier than incandescent lights, they’re more energy-efficient, so you’ll save money on your electric bill, especially if you’re planning on stringing them throughout your home or front lawn. They also remain cool to the touch, unlike incandescent lights, so are safe for use in homes with young children or pets, and can be incorporated easily into decor (try these ribbon lights, $18, for some extra flair). LED lights are also brighter than your standard Christmas lights, which can be a draw for some, but some do come with dimming capabilities for sensitive eyes (or neighbors), like the Ollny color-changing Christmas lights (from $39).

With all that said, we searched through over 30 of the highest rated LED Christmas lights to bring you the top eight that’ll light your tree (and the rest of your home) for years to come.

With more than a half-dozen years of experience in remodels and renovations, Audrey Scheck leads Audrey Scheck Design, a full-service interior design firm based in Austin, Texas.

While most of us are looking for LED Christmas lights to bring some sparkle to our homes, it can’t hurt to know what the professionals look for when decorating. According to top Christmas lights supplier, Christmas Lights Etc, considering professional grade lighting comes down to durability and the ability to customize length and style. Thankfully, the majority of the lights on our list can be connected to multiple strands to create your ideal length, and are rated highly by fellow shoppers on the durability front, so you can consider yourself a Christmas pro!

Every home has different lighting needs, whether you’re just looking to light your Christmas tree or to adorn every room with holiday cheer. We searched for LED Christmas lights of all lengths, colors and styles (focusing on the ones that had the best reviews from fellow shoppers) to bring you a comprehensive best-of-the-best list to help light your home this season.

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When choosing between LED and traditional incandescent Christmas lights, you may be swayed by the relatively cheaper price point of incandescent. However, let our expert Audrey Scheck, along with the Christmas tree pros at Balsam Hill, give you the rundown on why LED lights could be a better bet for you this holiday season:

1. Cost over time: LED lights may cost more at the outset, but given their energy-efficient construction, they’ll be cheaper on your electric bill, especially if you plan to string a lot of them or run them constantly.
2. Brightness: LED lights are, by nature, brighter than incandescent lights, which for some is a definite plus. If you prefer a softer look, fear not, most LED Christmas lights come in warm white varieties that soften that LED intensity.
3. Availability: Incandescent lights used to be all you could find at home goods stores, however, as LED Christmas lights increase in popularity, they’re popping up wherever you can find your more traditional bulbs.
4. Durability: Scheck informed us that LED Christmas lights are made of epoxy lenses, rather than glass, making them harder to break. Who knew?

To answer this question, we turned to Scheck and the home DIY experts at Home Depot. If your LED Christmas lights aren’t shining like they should, check for the following five issues to see where the problem lies before shelling out for a new set:

1. No circuit power: Test the outlet with a voltage tester.
2. Blown fuse: According to Home Depot, “Strands of traditional and LED holiday lights usually have cartridge fuses. These fuses are located in a small compartment in the cord plug behind a sliding door. The fuse is a small, glass cylinder with metal-plated ends and an internal metal filament,” check this compartment for a blown fuse, and if the fuse looks cracked, it’s time for a new one.
3. Burnt out bulb: Use a Christmas tree light tester to test each bulb individually. We know it’s a pain, but replacing a single bulb is much more cost-efficient than swapping out an entire strand, and, Scheck tells us, will extend the lifespan of the remaining bulbs.
4. Broken wire: Check the length of the strand to ensure no wires are poking through.
5. Bulb not attached correctly: Work your way through the length of the strand and ensure that each bulb is seated correctly in its socket.