Dimmable LED Grow Lights (The Best Fixtures Reviewed And Compared)

Dimmable LED grow lights are not that common.

I admit, I thought there were far more of them. But when I started researching, I mainly found the ones I already knew about and few others.

And most of those “others” are not great. Two of them, on the other hand, are quite impressive. They are both included below.

The only problem?

Both are fairly new, so they do not have much of a track record. They look good on paper and produce good numbers when tested, but do they last?

How is quality control? In other words, how likely are you to get a dud?

And if you do get one that doesn’t work, how is customer service at getting it repaired or replaced?

Those are questions you can only answer with time.

That (along with an additional reason for each light, which I detail in the reviews below) is why I ranked the two newer lights, impressive as they may be, lower than the more established brands.

Which ones are the newer brands? You can probably guess: Lenofocus and Fissioning.

Before we get into the quick reviews of the best dimmable LED plant lights, let’s compare the most important specs of each.

 

Dimmable LED Plant Lights: Comparison Table

 

Best Dimmable LED Grow Light: Review Of The Top 6

These are the top 6 dimmable horticultural LED fixtures currently available. I’ll begin with the best overall, and then follow with the best American branded light, the best value, the most powerful, the best dimmable COB light, and the best of the “blurple” options.

I used the least powerful lights from Spider Farmer, HLG and the CREE COB for this comparison, to keep things more or less equal (all use around 100 watts of power). Unfortunately, I had to use a slightly more powerful one from Viparspectra, since they do not have one in the 100 watt range.

All 4 of those brands also have more powerful versions. The two newer brands do not, which is why I used the smallest lights from each brand. I provide links below to my reviews for each brand, where you can find a comparison of all of the lights they have available.

 

Best Overall: Spider Farmer SF 1000 With Dimmable Meanwell Driver And Samsung Chips

I took price into consideration when choosing the overall best light, but I still ranked the Spider Farmer SF 1000 number one, even though it is the highest priced light by about $20.

Why is that?

The spectrum. Spider Farmer is the only one of these brands that combines warm white, cool white, deep red and IR diodes in one fixture.

Specifically, they use 3000K and 5000K white light, red light with a wavelength of 660 nm and infrared light with a wavelength of 760 nm. This spectrum has been shown to give bigger and higher quality yields than one containing only white light.

Lenofocus also uses 3000K, 5000K and 660 nm diodes, but their light does not include IR. Nevertheless, the deep red is more important than IR and the Lenofocus costs much less, so why is this one ranked higher?

Simply because of their track record and their use of top-bin LED chips from Samsung. Lenofocus uses Chinese branded chips (Refond and Ledstar), which don’t come close to the quality of Samsung. They are also a newer brand, so we really don’t know how well their lights hold up in the long run and how well the support their customers a year or two after purchase.

In terms of power usage and output, the SF 1000 is about on par with the other fixtures on this list. Apart from the spectrum and the higher price, the other main difference is a more solid build. You can see that just looking at the photo.

If you need something more powerful, Spider Farmer also has the SF 2000 and SF 4000 lights. The 2000 is basically two of the 1000 fixtures and the 4000 is four of them. You can see them all compared in my Spider Farmer review.

All Spider Farmer lights are extremely efficient (2.7 umol/J) and this 1000 covers an area of 2 by 2 feet for flowering (3 by 3 for vegging). It gives you an output of 450 umol/m²/s dead center at 18 inches from the canopy, while drawing only 100 watts. You get a 3 year warranty with your purchase and can return the light within 30 days.

Pros

• Perfect spectrum for all stages of plant growth
• High quality components (Samsung chips and Meanwell driver)
• Great output of 450 umol/m²/s at 18 inches
• Passive cooling (no noisy fans)
• Yield of 2.2 grams per watt
• 3 year warranty and 30 day money back guarantee

Cons

• Higher price

 

Best US Brand: HLG 100 V2 Quantum LED Grow Light

The 100 watt V2 Quantum Board LED from Horticultural Lighting Group surprisingly costs a bit less than the SF1000 from Spider Farmer. Usually the SF lights are cheaper.

So why did the lower cost not land it the top spot on this list?

Again, it’s the spectrum. The HLG fixture uses only 3000K white or only 4000K white diodes. It’s available with either. The 3000K version is better for flowering and the 4000K one for growing. If you are using it for all stages get the 3000K version.

This all white spectrum is very good, but the Spider Farmer spectrum is better, with its mix of warm and cooler white diodes, deep red diodes and infrared diodes.

The newer HLG fixtures add in red diodes themselves, so HLG themselves know the spectrum is better. You can see all of the different fixtures that are available in my review of Horticulture Lighting Group Quantum LEDs.

The biggest advantage of HLG fixtures is track record. In terms of quality control and customer service, they are far better than any Chinese brands.

More importantly, their lights have been on the market for a while and have a proven track record of success. That is something the next two lights on this list can not claim. It is the only reason I ranked this light higher than the next entry from Lenofocus, which is cheaper and has a better spectrum.

The HLG 100 V2 uses 95 watts and delivers an output of 420 umol/m²/s in the center of the coverage area at 18 inches from the canopy. It uses 95 watts. Purchasing HLG 100 V2 light also gives you a 1 year warranty, which is pretty pathetic these days.

Pros

• High quality components (Samsung chips and Meanwell driver)
• Great output of 450 umol/m²/s at 18 inches
• Longest track record of success
• Passive cooling (no noisy fans)

Cons

• All white spectrum not as good as one with additional red and IR
• Only a 1 year warranty

 

Lowest Cost: Lenofocus LF100B Dimmable LED Grow Light

The Lenofocus LF100B is a great low cost alternative to the HLG and Spider Farmer lights.

It is easily the cheapest fixture on this list, but it actually has the second best spectrum and also delivers a similar output to the other lights on this list. The main drawback are the Chinese brand LED chips.

Let’s begin with the spectrum.

The LF100B features a mix of 3000K and 5000K white diodes plus 660 nm red. It lacks the infrared wavelengths of the Spider Farmer, but its spectrum tops that of all the other lights on this list.

This light features a dimmable Meanwell driver, just like the HLG and Spider Farmer lights, but it does not use Samsung chips. Instead it uses Refond white led diodes and Ledstar red ones. Both are Chinese brands that are a big step down from Samsung. They also cost a lot less, which is why this fixture is so much cheaper.

This Lenofocus light uses 98 watts and delivers 570 umol/m²/s in the middle of the coverage area at 12 inches from the canopy. They do not provide data for 18 inches, but the output is similar to other lights on this list.

The effective coverage are for flowering is around 2 by 2 feet. If it’s not in a tent, it’ll be under 2 by 2. For vegging, it covers 3 by 3 feet. It has a 2 year warranty and a 30 day money back guarantee.

Pros

• Lowest price
• High quality Meanwell driver
• Great spectrum with 3000K and 5000K white, plus 660 nm deep red (but no IR)
• Passive cooling (no noisy fans)

Cons

• Chinese brand LED chips (not Samsung)
• Lacks IR
• Very short power cable (5 feet)

 

Best Output: Fissioning Samsung And Meanwell LED Grow Light

My least favorite thing about the Fissioning Dimmable LED grow light is that it used to lack a power cord. You needed to buy one on your own and also install it on the light. For some reason, this was not made clear on the Amazon product page.

That is unacceptable!

I was very close to leaving this fixture off my list entirely when I read this. But since Fissioning have rectified the situation and now ship their light with a cord, I decided it should have a place on this list.

It is a pretty impressive light, after all.

It consumes around 120 watts and gives you an output of 938 umol/m²/s dead center at 12 inches from the canopy, when inside a grow tent. The effective coverage area is 3 by 3 for vegging and 2 by 2 for bloom. The output makes this the most powerful light on this list.

So why isn’t it my top choice, especially since it costs less than the Spider Farmer light?

Once again, the answer is the spectrum. This Fissioning light has only one diode color. You can choose between 3000K white or 4000K white, with 4000 being better for vegging and 3000 being better for flowering and also the better choice if you are going to use it for every stage of plant growth.

That white light is great for plants, but it is not as good as white light with additional red and infrared. Adding the deep red and infrared diodes results in larger and higher quality yields and is worth paying the $20 or so extra.

Fissioning give you a 3 year warranty on the light, which is nice, considering HLG can only be bothered to guarantee their light for 1 year.

Pros

• Highest output on this list with 938 umol/m²/s at 12 inches
• High quality components (Samsung chips and Meanwell driver)
• Passive cooling (no noisy fans)
• 3 year warranty

Cons

• All white spectrum not as good as one with additional red and IR
• No track record yet

 

Best Dimmable COB LED: Canagrow 100W CREE CXB3590 Light

The Canagrow CREE CXB3590 COB LEDs are just about the only dimmable COB LED grow lights on the market that are any good. That is why this light is on this list.

As a COB light, the light emanates from a small area, as opposed to from multiple points across a larger panel, like the rest of the lights on this list.

As a result, the light has to travel further to reach the outside of the coverage area. It loses much of its intensity because of that distance.

COBs are great when you have several of them spread out over a certain area, to cover it evenly. When you only have one, the light intensity drops off too much toward the outside of the coverage area.

A larger panel does much better and that is why this light would be my last choice on this list as a standalone light. But it would be my first as a supplemental light, due to the smaller size.

This light uses around 65 watts of power and delivers an output of around 400 umol/m²/s at 18 inches in the middle of the coverage area. It covers a 2 by 2 area during flowering and a 3 by 3 area during veg.

The CREE COB used in this light has a color spectrum of 3500K, which makes it great for any stage of growth, but not as good as a 4000K light for vegging or a 3000K light for flowering. This is another reason is makes a great supplemental light.

That said, 3500K is a great light for a full cycle grow and the larger fixtures that are available are great as standalone lights. You can see all of the models in my review of the Canagrow CREE COB fixtures.

This light comes with a 3 year warranty and also a 30 day money back guarantee. One final small issue: it has a fan. The fan is very quiet, but all of the other fixtures on this list are passively cooled, so they do not have any fan and run completely silent.

Pros

• High quality components (CREE COB LED and Meanwell driver)
• Rated lifespan of 100,000 hours
• Great as a supplemental light
• 3 year warranty and 30 day money back guarantee

Cons

• Less suited as a standalone light, due to one single point of light only
• All white spectrum not as good as one with additional red and IR

 

Best Dimmable “Blurple” LED: Viparspectra Dimmable Series PAR450

I really wanted to include a “Blurple” light and the Viparspectra Dimmable Series PAR450 is easily the best dimmable blue and red heavy LED grow light on the market.

The big difference between the Viparspectra and th other lights is immediately obvious from the pictures. This one uses multiple colored diodes, instead of all white.

It does have some white diodes as well. They have a color temperature of 3000K and 7500K. Then it has blue diodes (440 nm, 445 nm, 460 nm, 475 nm), red/orange diodes (580 nm, 595 nm, 615 nm, 630 nm, 660 nm) and IR (730).

It is a good mix of colors, but the ratio is a little too heavy on the blue light, for my liking. I would have preferred fewer blue diodes and more white ones instead. The white light contains blue wavelengths, after all, especially the 7500K white light (I would have fewer of those than of the warmer 3000K ones).

I like the spectrum. It is better than one that includes only red and blue. But I would much prefer to have more light in colors other than red and blue, meaning more white diodes. That said, I love the fact that you can dim the reds, blues and whites separately.

This light is more powerful than the other lights on this list, because Viparspectra does not make a dimmable light with less power. That said, it is less efficient than the other lights. That is why I mostly recommend the quantum board or COB style lights. They simply give you a higher output for the same input.

The Viparspectra PAR Series lights also produce more heat, which means they have internal fans to dissipate it. These generate noise.

Specifically, this light provides 840 umol/m²/s of light dead center at 18 inches from the canopy. But it needs 213 watts to achieve that. That’s not bad, but less efficient than the COB or quantum LEDs. The coverage area is on par with other lights on this list.

Viparspectra is one of the better known Chinese brands. As such, they offer a 3 year warranty on their lights and a 30 day money back guarantee. The PAR450 is the smallest light in the dimmable lineup. You can take a look at the more powerful options in my Viparspectra PAR Series review.

Pros

• High ratio of blue to other colors makes it a great vegging light
• 3 year warranty and 30 day money back guarantee

Cons

• Spectrum is heavier in blue light
• Less efficient than other lights on this list
• Larger and heavier fixture
• Multiple fans make the fixture a bit noisy