You might think about smart lights if you’re looking to save energy and money. You might think about smart lights to give a room a new look without a big project or big money. There are even safety, convenience, and environmental reasons.
Smart lights, with LED bulbs, combined with more smart devices and electrifying more parts of your home, can be part of a more efficient, greener, and more enjoyable home. We’ll go into how you can use smart lights for all of these potential benefits.
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What Are Smart Lights?
Smart lights are internet-connected light bulbs you can control from an app, a smart speaker, or smart home hub, like an Amazon Echo or Google Nest. You can control them with your phone or your voice, when you’re at home or miles away. Many of them can change color and brightness or can coordinate in preset automations.
It's easy to see why people love smart lights and why they’re getting even more popular.
- Smart lights provide a pleasant ambiance in the home.
- Smart lighting can be remote controlled.
- Smart bulbs can reduce energy use and save you money.
The appeal of smart lights extends beyond saving money and transforming living spaces. They're also better for the environment, as proven by the U.S. Department of Energy. According to its 2019 study, LEDs are considerably better for the environment than all other options, including the classic incandescent bulbs. While not all LEDs are smart lights, all smart lights are LEDs.
How Do Smart Lights Work?
While all smart lights use wireless tech to receive and send signals, different light bulbs use different communication methods.
Some use Bluetooth to connect directly with your smartphone. Others use built-in Wi-Fi to connect with your internet router. To control smart lights from any location in your home, you may need a central hub to seamlessly communicate between all devices. Opting for a Wi-Fi hub allows your smart light bulbs to communicate with your home’s internet more effectively.
In addition to Bluetooth and Wi-Fi, many smart light bulbs use smart-home-specific communication technologies like Z-Wave and Zigbee. In this case, you’ll need a central hub to act as a translator between your home’s internet and the smart light bulbs so they can communicate with each other. For example, Philips Hue Lights use Zigbee as the communication technology for their bulbs, so you need their Philips Hue Bridge hub to connect the bulbs to your internet and let your network speak that language.
How Do Smart Lights Save Energy?
The light-emitting diode (LED) is one of today's most energy-efficient light technologies available. Top-notch LED light bulbs last longer, use at least 75% less energy, and give better lighting than CFL and incandescent bulbs.
According to the U.S. Department of Energy's projections, using LEDs could save up to a whopping 569 terawatt-hours (TWh) in energy usage compared to not using LEDs at all by 2035. To put that into perspective, 569 TWh is equivalent to the total annual energy output of at least 92 1,000 megawatt power plants.
Yet, smart bulbs go above and beyond the normal LED light bulb to enable additional features that can help you save more money. Here’s how smart lights work to bring savings to your home.
Smart lights use less electricity
When it comes to saving money on your home energy costs, every little bit helps. Cents add up to dollars and before you know it you've saved hundreds of dollars without much effort.
Different light technologies use different amounts of energy, and the current generation of LED light bulbs is approximately 75% more efficient than old-school incandescent light bulbs. Compare that to CFL light bulbs, which are only 25-30% more efficient than incandescent bulbs. In both scenarios, smart LEDs use less electricity and waste less energy as heat.
Smart lights last a long time
On average, a smart bulb lasts 15,000-50,000 hours, while a standard incandescent bulb's lifespan is 750-2,000 hours. Based on average household usage of 3-4 hours a day, an LED bulb can last 15 to 25 years, while an incandescent bulb might only last about one year.
Not only will you save on energy bills, you’ll also help the planet by using less energy and generating less waste.
Lighting schedules reduce your usage
By putting certain smart home lights on a schedule, you'll ensure they're never left on when they don't need to be. This helps your smart lights save you money and energy in the short and long term.
Smart lights let you create rules for when they turn on and off. This could be by time of day or, in some cases, based on where your phone is. This can be really useful for outdoor lights (both security and decoration), as well as specific rooms of the home (like the bathroom) where lights seem to be on all the time.
Simply connect them with Apple HomeKit, Google Home, Amazon Alexa, IFTTT, or another smart home system to build your schedule.
Turn off the lights when you leave
How many times in a month do you forget to turn off the lights when you're going out? Twice? A few times? All the time?
With CFLs or incandescent light bulbs, if you forget to hit the light switch as you leave, the lights stay on until you're back. That’s wasted energy.
Smart home lights have changed the game. You can log into the smart home app and turn them off remotely. You can also program your smart home system to turn off all the lights in the house using geo-location technology — if all the connected phones are out of the house, the lights turn themselves off.
Pair with other devices
You can pair your smart bulbs with hardware switches, sensors, phones, and other accessories for increased control and more frugal use.
For example, you can add special wireless smart switches that control the lights from different parts of the home that didn't originally have a wired switch.
You can use paired sensors to automate smart lights. With those sensors, your lights can do things like turn on when somebody walks into a room, touches a cabinet, or opens a door. Most smart bulb manufacturers sell motion sensors with their products, including the top-rated Philips Hue Motion Sensor.
In addition, you can use color-changing lights to create alerts based on other smart home sensors. Popular options include programming your bulbs to turn blue if there's a water leak or red if someone leaves an exterior door unlocked.
Track your energy usage
Many smart home devices, smart bulbs included, keep track of how much energy they use. This allows you to review usage data to see how much electricity you are actually using, which can reveal ways you can use less energy.
See how much you can save with home energy changes
How Much Can You Save With Smart Lights?
The actual amount of smart light savings depends on various factors like the electricity rate per kilowatt-hour you pay, what type of bulbs are being replaced, and if you’re going to LED bulbs throughout your home.
Here’s a good rule of thumb: An average LED bulb adds about $1 to your energy bills every year compared to the $7 added by a comparable incandescent bulb. If you’re going to LED and smart bulbs, the margin could be greater if you see even better energy efficiency by using the smart features.
According to Energy Star, an average American house contains more than 40 sockets for light bulbs, which means the average home could save about $240 per year using smart lighting. Yes, you might have to make an upfront investment by buying all new bulbs, but if you do the math over years of energy consumption, you stand to save a lot more with smart lights. LED bulbs last an average of 25 times longer than incandescent bulbs.
Smart lights typically cost more than standard LED light bulbs and you’ll need to include the cost of the bulb in your savings calculation, but you’re getting more than just light.
Do Smart Lights Use Power When They're Off?
The short answer to that question is, “Yes, they do.” However, it’s important to understand the context.
Smart lights are “vampire devices,” which means they use electricity even when they're turned off or in standby mode. The reasoning is simple: In order to be turned on with your smartphone or any other smart device, the lightbulb still needs to be connected to Bluetooth or the internet. It takes electricity to maintain that constant connection so you can turn on the lights whenever you need them.
However, the amount of power a smart light uses in standby mode is very small and can be offset by the bulb's other benefits. A typical smart bulb only uses a few cents a month when turned off or in standby mode. It would take a long time for the power used by your smart bulbs to become dollars.
Types Of Smart Lights
Smart home technology has evolved rapidly over the past few years. Today, a wide variety of energy saver light bulbs exist to suit many different users.
You can get bulbs with warm, neutral, and cool light color temperatures. You can also purchase bulbs in any color of the rainbow or any color on the daylight spectrum. You can get bulbs that change color and light temperature. The choices are endless.
Smart light bulbs vs. smart switches vs. smart plugs
When it comes to smart lighting, you have three main options from which to choose. Each has its benefits and drawbacks.
- Smart bulbs: Using actual bulbs is ideal if you want to control them individually or want to tweak the color of your home's lighting. Smart bulbs come in different sizes and shapes, so you're sure to find one for almost any fixture or lamp, whether outdoors or indoors. Compared to switches and plugs, bulbs give you the most benefits.
- Smart switches: When you want to control light bulbs operated by a light switch, smart switches are another option. They're particularly useful for switches that control several light bulbs at the same time. However, while they offer benefits like timing and scheduling, they typically don't do color changes. Switches have more features than smart plugs, but less than bulbs.
- Smart plugs: Smart plugs convert ordinary appliances in your home into smart ones. They do this by allowing you to control the power supply to the appliance through an app on your smartphone. To create a smart lamp, you can add a smart plug to any ordinary electrical outlet in your home and then plug in your favorite mood lighting. In terms of features, plugs only provide basic on/off control and energy tracking.
Smart Light Bulb Shapes
When it comes to light bulbs, smart or not, people envision the classic “inverted pear” shape. It’s what most of us grew up using and what many of us still use today. But just like many other rapidly growing forms of home technology, energy saving light bulbs have evolved to come in a wide variety of shapes and sizes.
A Series (A15, A19, A21, A25): A-shaped bulbs (the “inverted pear” shape) are the standard for most home settings with A19 being the most common.
BR Series (BR20, BR30, BR40): BR simply stands for “bulged reflector.” These bulbs have a bulbous shape and tend to be shorter than the A-type. If you need wide-angled lighting in your home — for instance above the kitchen surface or in the hallway — we recommend the BR30.
E12: This type of bulb is known for its candelabra-style shape, making it perfect for more ornate light fixtures in formal dining rooms.
Of course, new technology often means new fashions. The vintage-looking Edison-style bulbs have had another day in the sun, and their exposed filaments and intricate designs place aesthetics front and center.
Light strips are another new smart light option, and can bring smart bulb benefits to low profile spaces, like under cabinets, or in an entertainment center to provide lighting that complements your movie.
Popular Smart Light Brands
When you think about the best smart lights, there are many other brands out there vying for your attention, including:
- Lutron
- Sengled
- Wyze Bulb
- Ring Solar
- Ikea
- Fibaro
- Kasa Smart
- Eufy
- Nanoleaf
- Sylvania
- Insteon
- LIFX
- Aoetec
- Govee
- Phillips
Whichever of these companies you get your smart lights from, we recommend you buy everything from one brand so it all works together effectively and through the same app. This will be simpler than managing several apps at the same time.
Smart home companies have been working toward greater communication across brands, so this may be less of an issue moving forward. If you choose from several brands, make sure your chosen products work together.
Control Smart Lights With Your Voice
When you connect smart lights to a virtual assistant, whether on your smartphone or through various smart speakers, your lights listen to your voice commands. Just tell them what to do, and they'll do it!
All the major smart home assistants work with smart light bulbs and voice controls, including:
- Apple Siri
- Google Assistant
- Amazon Alexa
With these virtual assistants, voice-activated lights are no longer a thing of the future. Use simple commands to turn lights on and off, dim or brighten lights, change the color, and so much more. Some assistants even offer a helpful “Wake Up” feature to get you going in the morning.
How Do You Install Smart Lights?
For bulbs, it's as simple as taking out the old bulb and putting in the new one. Just don’t forget to install the correct app to connect the bulb to your preferred network.
With plugs, you just insert the smart plug into an outlet and then connect your device into the smart plug. After you install the app to control and monitor the plug, you're ready to go!
Smart switches can be a bit difficult to install if you aren’t a home improvement regular. You have to remove your old switch to add the new one, which means dealing with the electrical wiring of your home. We recommend you get any smart switches installed by a professional.
Also we advise you do not install smart bulbs on a traditional dimmer switch. Because the dimmer limits the amount of power the bulb receives, the smart communication method might not work without the necessary power.
How Much Do Smart Lights Cost?
Smart light costs are coming down. In today’s market, a good smart bulb starts around $10. The price goes up depending on the number of features, the types of smart home devices it can connect with, and the quality of light it produces. For instance, if you want a bulb that can turn the light any color, you may have to spend $40 or more for a high-end model.
Wrapping Up
If there's a primary takeaway from this article, it's that a smart light can save money (and benefit the environment) by reducing your energy consumption. Most immediately, smart lights can make your home a more comfortable, convenient, and fun place to be. We all want to spend less money, use clean energy, and safeguard our planet. Smart light bulbs are just another step on your quest to make smart financial decisions and make the earth a better place.
At Palmetto, we have an endless passion for all things sustainable, and smart lights are one of them. With the Palmetto App you can track the full picture of your energy savings. Featuring an intuitive dashboard that provides energy production and consumption tracking, our app makes it easy to track your savings goals and boost your energy-saving results.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can smart lights save you money?
In some cases yes. Because smart lights are LED, they’re highly efficient. Since they can be scheduled or switch off when you leave home, they can keep you from wasting energy. How much they can save depends on what bulb they’re replacing, how much energy you’re wasting by leaving the lights on, and your local cost of electricity.
How are smart lights different from LED lights?
Smart lights are a type of LED light, but with additional features. They can change color, are app-connected, or can be set to specific schedules.
Do smart lights require Wi-Fi?
Most smart lights need to connect to wi-fi for setting programs or receiving instructions. Then, most smart lights will function to some degree offline, to some degree if they are connected to Bluetooth, but not wi-fi, and to a full extent when connected to their home wi-fi network.
Are smart lights a security risk?
There are ways smart lights, or any smart devices in your home, can be a security risk. They are susceptible to hacks or cyberattacks. It is possible for a hacker to access data through a connection. You should treat passwords, log in info, and your private data the same with smart device accounts as with any account or device.
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Andrew GiermakWriter and EditorAndrew joined Palmetto in Charlotte in August 2024. He’s been a writer in journalism, then in business, going back to almost the 20th century. He’s lived in Indiana, Virginia, Pennsylvania, Virginia again, and now North Carolina for the last 12 years. He likes golf. Is he good at it? Not so much.
