The Best LED Lights for Your Bicycle

Whereas it is mandatory to have lights on your bike when cycling in the United States, this understated accessory does more than help you see or be seen at night. Indeed, you may want to use bike lights to catch drivers’ attention during the day, especially in winter, as you cross the road. A set of daytime bike lights that are brighter than flashing lights keep you visible in the daytime. That’s why, when shopping for bike lights, determine what you want to get out of your bike lights. Will you be using them mostly after sunset or during dark and cloudy days as well?

Likewise, sidelights help you maneuver heavy traffic as you commute in the city. And, lights with clips or straps that you can mount on your bike helmet, backpack, or seat post, allow you multiple uses of this essential cycling accessory.

With various brands promising quality bike LED lights, this buying guide will help you pick the right ones for your riding style. I’ve handpicked these bike lights from reputable brands based on their brightness, reliability, convenient mounting, ease of recharging and, of course, thousands of customer reviews that I sifted through in preparation for writing this buying guide. So let’s kick off with my top recommendations below.

The Supernova SUPER NOVA is a dynamo size front light with a pristine, non-blinding light beam. Indeed, this minimalistic bike light lets you see the road clearly without distracting on-coming drivers, hence great for riding in traffic at night. With no switch, it runs nonstop, without causing any drag. Plus, it’s one of the better-looking bike lights out there, and in part, why it graces the top of our buying guide.

The Flare RT Light is a small but powerful daytime and nighttime bike light to keep you constantly noticed by drivers and other road users alike. The lights use a distinctive beam focus to make you visible from up to 2km away. With a max output of 200 lumens, a flashing feature, and LED high-powered bulbs, this bike light set has been designed to keep you safe on the roads and paths you’ll be taking. USB rechargeable, this bike light set is easy to mount and includes the necessary USB charging cables.

The Cygolite Metro Pro – 1,100 Lumen Bike Light is your ultimate day and night bike light designed to withstand rugged and wet conditions. It features a hard handlebar mount, fast USB recharging, durable & water-resistant design, and a light activation lock for convenient transport. Plus, the light relies on a side-to-side swivel for wider coverage. Available in 1100, 950, 800, and 650 lumens versions, the Cygolite is designed and manufactured in California.

This two-piece front and back bike light set is known as the Cycle Torch Bolt Combo. It’s easy to use, durable, and waterproof. That’s probably because it uses airplane-grade aluminum in its construction to protect its 180-degree tilting ultra-bright LED lights. These lights will help keep you visible to other road users in all weather and light conditions, and you can mount or remove these lights from any handlebar in under 5 seconds.

You’ve probably heard of the Bontrager brand before. They’re well-known in the biking world. And if you prefer high-speed cycling, the Ion Pro RT bestows you with self-contained lights with consistent brightness. Indeed, these lights have the right focus, flash, and range, making you visible from up to 2 km away. They are easy to use and compatible with Garmin devices & helmet mounts.

This tail light from Padonow is three times brighter than daylight and has dual mounting options compatible with most bikes. The Padonow Smart Bike Tail Light relies on its smart light intelligence to allow four unique lighting modes. It will keep you safe while preserving battery life using its auto ON/OFF feature that senses ambient light and enters one of its four modes appropriately.

The PWR Road is a modular road bike light comprised of a light head and power bank that can charge other devices. It retails with a convenient side-mount and shim that fits handlebars of between 22.2 mm and 38.1 mm. These capabilities, coupled with its six lighting modes that last for up to 195 hours, are perfect for even the longest of road cycling trips.

If your fast riding causes accidental switching on or off or your biking lights, consider getting the Lumina OLED 1200 Boost Headlight. It relies on a locking feature to prevent involuntary bike light operations. Besides, it has a wide and consistent beam, charges fast, and its nine lighting modes last between one hour and 18 hours.

When cycling in heavy traffic or tackling an overgrown mountain trail, having a bright, programmable front bike light is a plus. With up to 4,000 lumens that run for up to 23 hours and wireless remote control for its ten programmable lighting modes, the Gemini Titan 4000 OLED USB Rechargeable Front Bike Light presents you just that. If you want an absolute blinding level of light on your bicycle adventures, this is the front bike light you want. It’s probably the brightest you can get.

The CYGOLITE Hotshot Taillight comprises 2-watt red LED lights that you can clip virtually anywhere on your bike. It relies on an easy-to-use dual button control to activate an extra long-range beam. Additionally, it has an adjustable flash tempo & brightness and lasts between 30 minutes and 500 hours, depending on which mode you choose to run it in. And at only 1.76 ounces per light, it’s incredibly light, meaning you’ll be adding a negligible amount of weight to your bicycle.

If you’re shopping for rear mountain bike lights, consider the Topeak RedLite Aura Bike Tail Light. It is a lightweight bike tail light that mounts the rack or seat post of an MTX to give you an uninterrupted view or up to 220 degrees. But don’t worry. It can also easily mount to your seat post with the included attachment.

This bike light set from CAT EYE (why do some companies insist on capitalizing their names everywhere?) comprises a headlight and rear bike light set ideal for all-year-round urban commuting. These lights rely on an easy-to-use FlexTight universal mounting bracket to operate as a standalone flashlight. More so, you get two mounting brackets and two clothing clips to help you mounted the light at multiple locations.

Perhaps the best-looking and most sleek headlight available, the Garmin Varia UT800 Smart Headlight is a trail edition headlight compatible with Edge cycling computers. Hence, you get to automate such functionalities as ON/OFF switch and brightness control to extend the battery life. The steady blast of 800 lumens will keep going for a measly 1.5 hours, but boy, oh boy, those 1.5 hours will be lit in a whole lot of light.

The Serfas Thunderbolt USB Tailight is a versatile rear bike light that uses dual silicone straps to mount practically anywhere you want. For example, you can fasten it on your helmet to see up to a mile away. The light is USB rechargeable and produces 35 lumens of pure red light.

A remote-controlled handlebar for your tail light is a convenient addition to any bicycle. But the benefit of controlling the light intensity and modes isn’t the only function this tail light offers. As its name implies, it allows you to alert other riders when making a left or right turn or braking without having to lift your hands to touch the mount. If you fancy this level of convenience, then the Qrlitos Smart Bike Tail Light with Turn Signals is your best pick. It also makes your bike kinda look like a Transformer, which I suppose is cool.

The Micro Drive Pro 800XL is a lightweight front bike light that is remote switch compatible. You can adjust to any of the eight output modes as you move for a full day or night visibility.

The Blackburn Dayblazer Front and Rear Bike Light set is ready to provide you with a reliable round bike light set for your 25.4mm to 35 mm bike mounts. And, this ANSI FL-1-certified bike light has a battery indicator, alerting you of low battery levels in good time. The set is rated as IPX67 dustproof and waterproof, meaning you never have to worry about whether there will be any intrusion of moisture or dirt. In other words, this is a super reliable set of bike lights you can trust for years to come.

If you’re willing to pay the price, the Kryptonite Alley F-550 headlight and taillight present you with six bright output modes and a memory function to illuminate your way for 11-26 hours. This capable bike light set can be mounted on the head tube, upright or horizontally, for optimum versatility. And like with all high-quality and modern LED bike lights, the Kryptonite includes a built-in battery level indicator.

For a bike light with a whopping five day modes, four night modes, the Cygolite Metro Plus– 800 Lumen Bike Light is actually quite affordable. It’s also available in a variety of Lumen strengths from 650 up to 1100. Because of its wide variety of brightness settings, this front bike light is ideal for urban commutes and mountain riding. The Cygolite features a sleek form and is designed to mount onto your handlebar while lighting your way.

The Hotrod 50 USB taillight is an ultra-sleek rear bike light with a powerful, wide beam. It boasts a water-resistant design with six light modes, a low battery indicator, and a flexible, sturdy mount. Designed to look like a futuristic light, the Cygolite Hotrod can withstand the harshest of road cycling conditions and only weighs a minuscule 1.7 ounces.

If you desire a rear bike light with versatile mounting options, consider picking up the Blackburn Dayblazer Bike Rear Light. This light uses clips and straps to mount on seat posts, aero posts, helmets, and virtually anywhere else on your bike. Its blitz mode is designed to keep you visible in the darkest alley or on the brightest street.

The Magicshine® MJ-906 Bike Light Combo is a bright front and rear bike light with a 20-degree wide-angle beam. It provides you with up to a ridiculous 5,000 lumens, illuminating 210 meters ahead and behind you. This reliable light will charge fast using a micro USB charging port that is also compatible with other smart bike devices. Hence, it is your ultimate choice for off-road and trail riding adventures.

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