Best Long Lasting LED Bulbs

7 Of The Best Long Lasting LED Light Bulbs

Introduction

Hi, and welcome to this article about the best super-long lasting LED light bulbs.

We review a lot of light bulbs here at Light Bulb A to Z. You can find them all in our articles section..

For each light bulb we list the lifetime in the Fact Sheet section. . In general LED light bulbs will last from 15,000 to 25,000 hours. Though some manufacturers claim much longer lifetimes.

Often I am skeptical of long lifetime claims from unknown brands. However, when a light bulbs is Energy Star certified it has been evaluated by an independent lab. And part of this evaluation is to ensure that their energy saving and lifetime claims are correct.

Finding the Best Long Lasting LED Light Bulbs

In order to find the LED light bulbs with the longest lifetimes I downloaded information on 12,148 different light bulbs from Energy Star. As well as providing wattage and light output information the data includes a lifetime for the bulb. The longest lifetime listed is 50,000 hours. So all the light in our list have this lifetime.

In addition to the information from Energy Star our selections for the best long lasting LED light bulbs considers:

• Online reviews from a number of light bulb retailers. Though lots of the bulbs in this review are specialist so have few if any reviews.
• Price, we are always looking for the best value
• Energy Star qualified, whether the bulbs has met strict energy efficiency criteria set by the EPA
• Lifetime and length of warranty, as these provide a measure of quality
• Dimmable, having a bulb that can be used with a dimmer switch makes it more versatile

50Watt – Cree Lighting PAR20

Firstly Cree go back 40 years to their founding as RUUD Lighting in 1982. They launched their first mass market LED commercial fixtures in 2007, and have a 650,000-sqft. manufacturing headquarters in Racine, Wisconsin.

This light bulb is a PAR20 (this means it is a small reflector) 15-degree spot light. Also it is dimmable, comes with a 5 year limited warranty, is damp location rated and works in recessed fixtures, Finally it has a CRI (see our blog post on CRI here) of 94 which means it should give good, crisp colors.

Fact sheet

• Rating: Not available
• Price: Around $9.50 a bulb if bought individually
• Wattage: 50 watt equivalent / 7 watts actual
• Lumens: 550
• Light Range: Warm White (3000k)
• Lifetime: Rated to last 50,000 hour (46 years based on 3 hours per day use)
• Warranty: 5 years
• Dimmable: Yes down to 10%
• Indoor/Outdoor: Indoor use only

50 Watt – Green Creative PAR20

Green Creative are a lighting development and manufacturing company based in Sanford, Florida. They have been in business since 2010.

So a few details about the bulb. Firstly it comes in either white, or this rather fetching black, casing. And produces 550 lumens of warm white light. Also it has excellent color reflection, with a CRI of 98. Additionally, it is available in spot, narrow and flood beam angles

While this bulb was actually submitted to Energy Star for the Canada market it is readily available in the United States. Though priced a little high for a 50 watt flood light the 46 year lifestyle should offset this cost.

Fact sheet

• Rating: Not available
• Price: Around $14.20 a bulb if bought individually
• Wattage: 50 watt equivalent / 6.5 watts actual
• Lumens: 550
• Light Range: Warm White (3000k)
• Lifetime: Rated to last 50,000 hour (46 years based on 3 hours per day use)
• Warranty: 3 years
• Dimmable: Yes
• Indoor/Outdoor: Indoor use only

75 Watt – Cree Lighting PAR30S

Another super long life light bulb from Cree Lighting.

It is good to see these mid-priced light bulb on our best lifetime LED light bulbs list. Good to know you can buy a light bulb for $10 that should last 45 years.

This particular light bulb is a short-neck reflector (PAR30) that replaces a 75 Watt incandescent. Also it has a very tight spot beam of only 15 degrees. So you are going to get a lot of light in a small area.

Fact sheet

• Rating: 4.7 stars out of 5
• Price: Around $10.50 a bulb if bought individually
• Wattage: 75 watt equivalent / 12 watts actual
• Lumens: 1050
• Light Range: Warm White (3000k)
• Lifetime: Rated to last 50,000 hour (46 years based on 3 hours per day use)
• Warranty: 5 years
• Dimmable: Yes down to 10%
• Indoor/Outdoor: Indoor use only

100 Watt – Satco S9760 PAR38

Satco is a leading supplier of lighting products. Providing lighting for commercial, residential and industrial customer. They have 1.5 million square feet of inventory throughout North America. With offices and warehousing in Brentwood, New York.

This flood light reflector delivers 1950 lumens of warm white light in a focused 25 degree beam. Though it is not dimmable it is damp rated. Also it comes with a five year warranty. While this bulb has actually been discontinued by Satco you can still find it online to buy.

Fact sheet

• Rating: Not available
• Price: Around $25 a bulb if bought individually
• Wattage: 100 watt equivalent / 18 watts actual
• Lumens: 1950
• Light Range: Warm White (3000k)
• Lifetime: Rated to last 50,000 hour (13 years based on 3 hours per day use)
• Warranty: 5 years
• Dimmable: No
• Indoor/Outdoor: Indoor use only

150 Watt – Light Efficient Design Corn Cob

To begin with there is a lot going on with this corn cob bulb from Light Efficient Design. According to the maker’s details it has nine different lighting options. In this case the color temperature can be set to warm light, soft daylight or daylight. Also the wattage can be adjusted to 12, 18 or 24W. Thus providing 1650, 2610 or 3360 lumens of light.

Light Efficient Design have their offices in Cary, Illinois. Since launching 2008 they have expanded from 3 employees to 50. They specialize in LED retrofits for high intensity discharge fixtures.

Though they cost over $50 each you do get a lot for your money. And 46 years to enjoy it.

Fact sheet

• Rating: Not available
• Price: Around $57.50 a bulb if bought individually
• Wattage: 100/150/200 watt equivalent – 12/18/24 watts actual
• Lumens: 1650/2610/3360
• Light Range: Warm White (3000k), Warm Daylight (4000k) or Daylight (5000k)
• Lifetime: Rated to last 50,000 hour (46 years based on 3 hours per day use)
• Warranty: 5 years
• Dimmable: Yes/No
• Indoor/Outdoor: Indoor use only

200 Watt – Green Creative A23 HID Replacement

Now we start to get into some very high lumen light bulbs. Firstly this one from Green Creative.

This bulb is a replacement for traditional high-intensity discharge (HID) bulbs and 200W incandescent bulbs. And is suitable for use on post tops or bollards, or for light low bays. To point out it generates 3400 lumens of warm daylight, which is a lot. Compared to the previous 150 watt light bulb its price of $30 seems good value.

Fact sheet

• Rating: Not available
• Price: Around $30 a bulb if bought individually
• Wattage: 200 watt equivalent / 25 watts actual
• Lumens: 3400
• Light Range: Warm Daylight (4000k)
• Lifetime: Rated to last 50,000 hour (46 years based on 3 hours per day use)
• Warranty: 5 years
• Dimmable: Yes
• Indoor/Outdoor: Indoor use only

250 Watt – Maxlite PAR38

MaxLite provide energy-efficient lighting products to the commercial building and residential markets. And have been in business since 1993. They have offices in New Jersey and California and warehousing in Indiana.

So a few facts about this light bulb. Firstly it costs $55! So, not cheap for a single light. Though I guess it should last 46 years. That works out at $1.20 per year, which seems less expensive.

As with many bulbs on this best long lasting LED light bulbs list it is a high lumen, high wattage bulb. Though high wattage is a relative term. After all 38 watts is a lot for an LED bulb, but still less that the old, $2, 60 watt incandescents I have in the kitchen drawer.

This light bulb is a PAR38, which means parabolic aluminized reflector with a size of 38 times 1/8th inches or 4.75inches. In brief it is a downward reflector flood light. Also their is a smaller PAR30 version available. Finally it generates 4000 lumens of warm white light. Considering that this is the equivalent of five 60 watt incandescent bulbs this is a lot of light.

Fact sheet

• Rating: Not available
• Price: Around $55 a bulb if bought individually
• Wattage: 250 watt equivalent / 38 watts actual
• Lumens: 4000
• Light Range: Warm White (3000k)
• Lifetime: Rated to last 50,000 hour (46 years based on 3 hours per day use)
• Warranty: 5 years
• Dimmable: No
• Indoor/Outdoor: Indoor use only