We buy all the products we test — no freebies from companies. If you purchase through our links, we may earn a commission, which helps support our testing.
Seeking to improve the light quality of your photos or videos? We researched over 60 top contenders and purchased the 15 best ring lights for some quality hands-on time. We put each one through the wringer to ensure a well-rounded testing process. We shot a ton of selfies and portraits, timed the setup and breakdown of each model, assessed stability and durability, and came away feeling confident that we'd tested these lights to the best of our abilities. Read on to learn more about our favorites and our testing methods. Your home photos will level up in no time!
Max Brightness (from 36"): 2435 lumens | Dimmer: Stepless
REASONS TO BUY
Extremely bright
Digital readout
Battery-powered option
Easily mounts DSLR + phones
Stepless dimmer
REASONS TO AVOID
Quite large
No remote option
The Westcott 18" Bi-Color LED has you covered, from selfies to outdoor shoots. With 2435 lumens and a 3200K-5600K temperature range, you'll be set for photography, video calls, blogging, and much more. This ring light has a stepless dimmer and digital readout, allowing you to fine-tune brightness and temperature with the turn of a dial. The digital readout lets you quickly change settings based on external light conditions. The light includes two NP-F750 lithium-ion rechargeable batteries and a battery charging port. These batteries keep the light going on full power for 70 minutes, and there is also a wall-powered option for extended use. This ring light comes with a sturdy tripod and mounting accessories capable of holding a DSLR camera or smartphone. In addition, it has a USB port capable of charging phones and other electronics to avoid low battery interruptions. This light and its accessories fit nicely into a well-made storage bag with separate light, tripod, and battery compartments.
Depending on your needs, the Westcott 18" may be too large. It requires a tripod, so you'll need adequate floor space. This ring light does not include a remote or Bluetooth availability to control the light settings remotely. It's also a little pricier when compared to a standard ring light, but we found the high-quality construction and utility well worth the price and great for various applications. If a compact, remote-triggered model is what you're after, you can enjoy the UBeesize 10" Table Top at a fraction of the price.
The Westcott 18" Bi-Color LED Ring Light Kit is bright enough to light up a room.
Max Brightness (from 36"): 155 lumens | Dimmer: 11 steps
REASONS TO BUY
Very well designed
Great ball joint action
Extremely fast setup
REASONS TO AVOID
Phone mount doesn't work well with larger phones
The UBeesize 10" Table Top is a well-designed and easy-to-use ring light at a wallet-friendly price. Every aspect of this device is well thought out. The textured ball joint allows for completely customizable angle adjustments. Unlike many cheap ball joint tripods, this one actually stays put once you tighten it in place, so you don't have to worry about it dumping your phone or expensive camera. Its simple design and easily adjustable leg height allow for a speedy 10-second setup, while its size is conducive to tabletop photoshoots and traveling. Whenever we needed a small tripod for our DSLR, we reached for this one because it's generally easy to use, and the stability is trustworthy. It also comes with a small carry bag and a handy remote trigger for easy selfies.
On the downside, we wish the phone mount took into account larger phone cases (e.g., Otterbox). Additionally, this smaller ring light is a fraction of the price of some of the others in our test suite and, as a result, does not provide the brightness that larger, more expensive options do. However, neither issue is a dealbreaker compared to how much we like this light. The UBeesize 10" Table Top is a small, simple, and portable option, all at an unbeatable price point. If you need a ring light that's compatible with larger phones, the Westcott 18" Bi-Color LED is a more viable option. It features a remarkably bright light and works with large phones and cameras alike.
This ball joint on the UBeesize 10" Table Top is textured and grips well when it's tightened
Max Brightness (from 36"): 13 lumens | Dimmer: Stepless
REASONS TO BUY
Super easy installation
Inexpensive
Compact and portable
REASONS TO AVOID
Blocks rear-facing iPhone camera
Lower quality parts
The Xinbaohong Clip-On is a lightweight and compact clip-on ring light for smartphones. It offers multiple temperature settings, continuous dimmer capability, and the most basic setup imaginable — all at a very affordable price. It clips directly to the phone, like a chip clip. A single power button turns the light on, and successive presses cycle through the temperature modes. Super easy. It can easily fit into a backpack, purse, or jacket pocket. This is a great option for budget-conscious social media posters and selfie-takers alike.
This light comes at a great price point, but it also has its drawbacks. When using it in a portrait orientation, the clip mount blocks the rear-facing camera of many phones, so if you want to take a non-selfie photo, you either have to slide it to the corner or a different side of the phone. In addition, the light itself is not especially bright, so if you are taking a photo of anything more than an arm's length away, this light isn't going to make a noticeable difference. Also, for everything we love about this mini light, it feels lower quality than other, higher-end portable options. However, for its simplicity and ease of use at a bargain price, the Xinbaohong is a nice portable light for selfies. If you can afford to swing a few more bucks, take a look at the well-designed UBeesize 10" with Tripod, which includes a solid tripod and is quite bright.
The Xinbaohong Clip-On is a nifty and inexpensive ring light that clips easily to a phone for quick content creation.
Max Brightness (from 36"): 240 lumens | Dimmer: 11 steps
REASONS TO BUY
Includes a useful tripod with a level
Very versatile
REASONS TO AVOID
Slightly dimmer than competitors
Heaviest USB light
We love the versatility of the UBeesize 10" with Tripod — it comes with some great features, and they're all well-designed. It has an excellent, fully functional tripod and a carry bag for the light. There's a separate carry bag for the tripod, and it also includes an easy-to-use remote trigger for your phone. This light sets up fast (we managed it in 18 seconds), and adjusting it is a dream. It also features the same phone holder as the UBeesize 10" Tabletop, which can easily twist to whatever angle you want.
Unfortunately, the phone holder on this model has the same issues as the others — it doesn't grip phones with a large case well. We also wish the light was slightly brighter, though it's the brightest of the 10" sized lights we tested. This is a great mid-size option at a very accessible price point. If you need a brighter model, the Razer Ring Light 12" is a solid option that's cheaper than the priciest premium products we tested.
The UBeesize 10" with tripod is a very stable and versatile light.
Max Brightness (from 36"): 168 lumens | Dimmer: Stepless
REASONS TO BUY
8 colors and 3 tones to choose from
Heavier duty tripod than competitors
Very lightweight
REASONS TO AVOID
Brightest setting is slightly dimmer than similarly-sized lights
Light control can be finicky until you figure it out
Separate tripod required for DSLR
If you're looking to add color and variety, the Lavkow RGB light is a perfect addition to your photo/video setup. Though almost all the lights in our test allow you to change the temperature (how warm or cool the light quality is), this one also allows you to choose whatever color you want. It offers bright purple, red, and cyan, as well as more standard options. On top of all these fun color options, it comes with a surprisingly solid tripod.
The downside is this ring light won't support larger cameras, the phone holder doesn't function the best, and the lighting is dimmer than competitors with a comparable 10" size. Additionally, the light control is somewhat difficult to use, and we had difficulty achieving our desired color. Although, with a few minutes of button pressing, we managed to figure it out. The Lavkow is best for those who want artsy color options at a modest price.
No matter your favorite ring light color, the Lavkow likely has it.
Max Brightness (from 36"): 14 lumens | Dimmer: 4 steps
REASONS TO BUY
Portable
MagSafe is easy to use for more than just iPhones
Durable
REASONS TO AVOID
Not very bright
Only one light temperature setting
The ShiftCam SnapGrip Creator Kit is a top choice for content creators who need a reliable light on the go. This portable device turns a phone into a more traditional-looking camera by adding a shutter button, light, and detachable mini tripod to any smartphone. The tripod legs also easily collapse down into a selfie stick. This light uses MagSafe magnetic technology to quickly click in place on your phone. It even comes with an adapter sticker that turns any non-iPhone into a MagSafe magnet-compatible device. It also strikes us as high-quality and comes with a semi-rigid case to protect the light and battery.
This light has just a few drawbacks worth noting. First, it is not especially bright. It does the job for selfies or anything within close range but much more than an arm's length away, and its effectiveness fades fast. Second, it's heavy, which you might notice if you plan on taking a bunch of selfies with the included stick. When attached to the stick, the weight of the light combined with a phone sometimes forces the pivoting ball joint to slump over at an angle. However, for convenience and quality in a tiny package, this light is our go-to when on the go. If you can't swing the cost, check out our favorite portable budget model, the Xinbaohong Clip-On. It's lightweight, affordable, and fits in your jacket pocket, so you can take a selfie whenever the moment strikes.
The ShiftCam SnapGrip Creator Kit comes with a tripod with collapsible legs to turn it into a selfie stick. The SnapGrip portion not only feels like you're shooting with a DSLR camera but also charges your phone while you shoot.
Credit: Ben Applebaum-Bauch
Compare Products
The Mactrem has two tripods, which is an interesting setup.
Credit: Richard Forbes
Why You Should Trust Us
To test ring lights, we took hundreds of photos with each of these devices and conducted controlled photo experiments to measure relative brightness. We played with all the different features, timed setups and breakdowns to assess ease of use, and monitored stability by attaching our phones and cameras to each product. We determined the durability by physically comparing each model throughout our testing and digging through online user reviews to find any frequent issues to consider while testing.
Our testing of ring lights is divided into four rating metrics:
Light Quality (50% of overall score weighting)
Ease of Use (20% weighting)
Stability (20% weighting)
Durability (10% weighting)
This review is the collective work of several veteran GearLab testers. Senior Review Editor Richard Forbes has been shooting photos with a wide range of cameras (from phone and film to pro-DSLRs) for nearly two decades and has been a working photographer for seven years. He firmly believes that photography is painting with light, so he spends way too much time thinking about how to get the right light in the right place. He loves to use ring lights on shoots and for his own selfie game. Richard is joined by Hayley Thomas, a lover of photography since she was a child, growing up with her photographer mother. She has a keen eye for composition, and her Canon Mark IV 5D is never far from her side. Ben Applebaum-Bauch has been with the GearLab team for almost six years. In that span, he has tested hundreds of home goods and electronics products, taking dozens of product photos each time. Often relying on the assistance of a ring light, he knows what to look for in these models that will bring the best user experience and lighting to the shoot.
We tested every feature in-depth in order to bring you as comprehensive a review as possible.
The Auxiwa Clip-on is bright enough to help out a laptop webcam, but isn't anywhere as bright as larger options.
With its helpful digital readout and optional batteries, the Neewer Digital model is the cream of the crop.
We took tons of photos and videos with a range of phones and cameras to test these ring lights.
Analysis and Test Results
Ring lights are an essential tool for anyone who films or photographs faces. They provide a kind and diffused light that removes shadows and helps subjects stand out from their backgrounds. Even if you're just doing a ton of Zoom calls, ring lights will help you look your best. Our expert testers subjected each product to a series of rigorous tests designed to reveal any strengths or weaknesses and then sorted the results into four weighted categories.
Value
We determined value by comparing the price of a ring light to its performance (i.e., its overall score). The UBeesize 10" Table Top and Xinbaohong Clip-On are quality options if you want to save money while still getting a decently performing product. You forfeit many of the fancy features that the more expensive models offer. However, you still receive a decent light at a fraction of the price with either one.
The Ubeesize 10" Tabletop is a great affordable option.
Credit: Richard Forbes
On the other hand, the Westcott 18" Ring Light is one of the most expensive ring lights we tested, so we would expect it to perform extremely well across all of our metrics, and it does. It delivers value with excellent light quality and sheer brightness. It is easy to use, stable, and durable, making it a versatile and long-lasting product. That said, this option is only worth the money if you are looking for a more advanced model. If you want something of high caliber but don't need or want to pay for extra features, the Neewer 18" Kit is another solid value pick.
The stepless dimmer and digital readout of the Westcott 18" Ring Light make it easy to set the perfect brightness and temperature.
Credit: Becca Glades
Light Quality
We focused most of our testing on the amount and quality of light produced by each product. We deemed brightness the most important factor of light quality. However, a few other characteristics also come into play, like dimmability and the variety of tones each kit offers.
To measure and compare sheer brightness between these often very similar devices, we used the LT300 Light Meter by EXTECH. We were sure to measure each ring light from the same distance of 36 inches away and with no ambient light present. We even tested each light multiple times to confirm all readings. The lights in our test suite emit a large range of lumens.
Why are LED lights measured in lumens?
Most light bulbs are measured in watts, which is a measurement of the energy emitted. So the higher the wattage, the brighter the light. Since light-emitting diode (LED) technology uses energy more efficiently, wattage is not a viable measurement of brightness, which is why LEDs are measured in lumens.
When it comes to sheer brightness, the Westcott 18" Kit edges out the Lume Cube 18". The former emits a whopping 2435 lumens, and the latter an exceptional 2267 lumens. The Neewer 18" Kit takes third at 2065 lumens, which is still extremely impressive compared to the rest of the products in our test suite. These models are wall-powered lights (though the Westcott also comes with batteries). Part of the reason for the out-of-this-world brightness on these three is their size; they both have roughly 25 times the lighting surface area as the tiny Auxiwa Clip On, which gives them quite the advantage. The Westcott, Neewer, and Lume offer continuous dimming, meaning the dimming is completely customizable. The Westcott 18" also offers a sliding tone scale, which is a rather unique feature. If you are searching for the absolute brightest, you should go with one of these larger lights. The Razer Ring Light 12" is smaller and less powerful. Still, at 789 lumens, it holds its own, especially compared to its closest competitors, the Ubeesize 10" with Tripod and Sensyne 10" Ring Light, which emit just a couple hundred lumens.
A good ring light can dramatically change a room and how you subsequently appear on camera.
Credit: Laura Casner
Regarding portable models, the Rotolight Ultimate Vlogging Kit is exceptionally bright for its size, boasting up to 1000 lumens, which is multiple times brighter than lights of equivalent size. However, in terms of overall quality, this model suffers because it's not dimmable. Instead, you must manually swap the plastic temperature disks over the light face to change the light quality.
The UBeesize 10" Table Top has an 11-step adjustment that allows you to fine-tune its brightness.
Credit: Ben Applebaum-Bauch
In addition, it would be disingenuous to ignore the obvious issue with a "brightness only" approach. This test has a huge range of sizes, from the enormous 18" Neewer model to the tiny Auxiwa Clip-On. Obviously, the largest lights should be the brightest, so we also measured the ring lights' exact sizes (which were roughly as advertised) and compared these values to brightness values.
The whole range of light sizes (from the clip-ons to the 18"ers)
There wasn't much light from the small clip-on lights.
A brightness testing shot from a 6" ring light.
Our result from a 10" ring light was better than the smaller products but still lags behind the big 18" options.
Look what an 18" ring light can do: so bright!
Testing light quality of various ring lights. Clockwise from top left: Auxiwa Clip On, Mactrem 6" LED, Neewer 18" Kit, UBeesize 10" Tripod.
In case you haven't used many ring lights, we wanted to compare how each light size category affects a portrait. One of the big things is the "catchlights" — if someone uses a ring light, you can almost always see the characteristic circles in their eyes.
To show more about how they look (and how the different lights compare), we took a bunch of selfies with different exposures (in camera) to make the lighting similar. This approach shows how the different light sizes change the face and the photo. We did not edit these photos at all.
In this photo, there is nothing but natural light. Find the contrast among different ring lights in the photos below.
Credit: Richard Forbes
No light — set up with dramatic side lighting so the ring light would be most apparent.
The Auxiwa Clip-On gives off a saturated hue.
Credit: Richard Forbes
Auxiwa Clip-On — This light isn't bright enough to do much; you can see how it doesn't fill in the right side of the face.
The Mactrem 6" makes facial details very clear.
Credit: Richard Forbes
Mactrem 6" — This one fills the face better; you can't see the side lighting as dramatically, but you still can't see the characteristic eye "catchlights."
We wish the AIXPI 10" offered more facial coverage.
Credit: Richard Forbes
Aixpi 10" LED Tabletop — This one fills the face pretty well, but the right side is still lost. The photo also has a green cast, but you can start to see the ring light catchlights.
The Neewer 18" offers great overall coverage and gives the user a nice glow.
Credit: Richard Forbes
Neewer 18" — And this is it, exactly what these lights are supposed to do. You can see the catchlights in the eyes, and the face stands out from the background. There's a world of difference between this and the "no light" selfie.
Almost all of the lights have varying brightness levels, from the stepless dimming of the Westcott 18" Kit and Neewer 18" Kit to the 9-11 brightness settings of the USB lights to the four and three levels, respectively, of the ShiftCam SnapGrip Creator Kit and Auxiwa Clip-On. However, we found ourselves almost always using the lights to their full capacity, so the dim settings didn't matter much.
The Rotolight Ultimate Vlogging Kit comes with tinted slides instead of a built-in temperature adjuster.
Credit: Ben Applebaum-Bauch
Finally, almost all the lights have "color temperature" controls (besides the Auxiwa Clip-On and ShiftCam SnapGrip Creator Kit — and the Rotolight Ultimate Vlogging Kit utilizes plastic discs instead of temperatures lights, as described above). The USB lights we tested have three different controls, which allow them to provide warmer or cooler light depending on the vibe you're going for. Both the Westcott Kit and the Neewer Kit allow you to dial the white balance between 3200K and 5600K, and the Neewer Kit also includes red filters you can snap onto the light.
The Xinbaohong Clip-On cycles through three different temperatures from intermediate to cool to warm (in that order).
Credit: Ben Applebaum-Bauch
No ring lights in our review came close to the light quality the Westcott model offers. Still, of the smaller lights, the UBeesize 10" with Tripod performs better than the rest, with the Sensyne 10" Ring Light with 50" Extendable Tripod following close behind. These 10" ring lights offer 240 lumens and 11 dimmer steps, and 225 lumens and 10 dimmer steps, respectively. Both come with three different warm tones for a cooler or warmer feel.
An honorable mention in this department is the Lavkow RGB. What it lacks in sheer brightness, emitting just 168 lumens, it makes up with a unique set of light colors. This kit comes with eight fun colors and three warmth options. On top of these 11 light color options, it offers a stepless dimmer. If you want to spice up your selfies and videos with edgy lighting, the Lavkow is a fun option.
The LAVKOW RGB showing off its colorful side.
Credit: Richard Forbes
Ease of Use
As with many things, if a product is unnecessarily complicated, you may not use it. Within this metric, there was a wide range of well-designed (and not so well-designed) products, and to sort out which products made it the easiest for us, we set them up and broke them down repeatedly.
Our timed setup test revealed this most clearly, as the large Neewer and Westcott lights took the longest to set up (at roughly one minute and 15 seconds each), while the Xinbaohong Clip-On and Auxiwa Clip-On took only five seconds to clip onto a phone (though the Xinbaohong also blocks the rear-facing camera on an iPhone, so it's primarily useful for selfies). In the middle of the pack, some lights were unnecessarily fiddly: in particular, the Aixpi 10" with Tripod took 50 seconds to set up just because the parts didn't fit together well.
The ShiftCam SnapGrip Creator Kit comes with a magnet sticker to turn any phone into a MagSafe compatible phone. Once installed, it magnetically clicks into place on the light, and you're ready to shoot.
Credit: Ben Applebaum-Bauch
The ShiftCam SnapGrip Creator Kit is simple once you have the hang of it, but there are three layers between the MagSafe adapter sticker, the light itself, and the tripod/selfie stick, so it takes a minute to figure out how it all needs to go. We like the similar designs of the Sensyne 10" Ring Light with 50" Extendable Tripod and the Razer Ring Light 12". They have legs that deploy in three stages for easy adjustment. The Sensyne, however, has a max height of 50 inches, so it's not quite tall enough for most adults to be used if you are standing up.
The AIXPI light has a hilarious instruction manual. Some of the lights didn't come with these, leaving you to figure it all out on your own.
Credit: Richard Forbes
We also looked at additional features in this category. We gave products higher ratings if they included things like a remote trigger (for use with a phone), like the UBeesize 10" with Tripod, or a tripod that can turn into a selfie stick, such as the Aixpi 10" with Tripod, ShiftCam SnapGrip Creator Kit, and Rotolight Ultimate Vlogging Kit. The UBeesize 10" Tabletop tripod can technically be used this way, but it is a little impractical given the size of the light and its wired setup. Again, the ShiftCam SnapGrip Creator Kit impressed us here with the added capability of the SnapGrip portion to wirelessly charge the phone it is attached to while in use. One super basic but unique feature of the Sensyne 10" Ring Light is that the included tripod has a bubble level to ensure a superior level shot.
All the add-ons that come with the Neewer Digital. On the left, the three phone holders, in the lower center, the DSLR holder, in the upper center, another phone holder that attaches to the DSLR holder. The red remote works with your phone to help with selfies, and the black remote controls the ring light itself.
Credit: Richard Forbes
Stability
The ring light you choose must stand up with a camera/phone attached. We set up each model, attached the largest camera or phone possible, and then jostled it vigorously to see whether it could stay up. We also assessed whether each could support a phone or DSLR and whether we felt confident that our electronics were actually going to stay where we put them.
The top scorer for stability is the UBeesize 10" Tripod, which proved remarkably sturdy. The Neewer and Westcott models also achieved a high score in this category (like all categories), inspiring confidence with whatever device we needed to use. The Auxiwa Clip-On, Xinbaohong Clip-On, and ShiftCam SnapGrip Creator Kit (to some extent) are also "stable" in the sense they don't require a tripod — they are as stable as your hands are.
Testing on all kinds of surfaces really helped show which products are the most stable and secure.
Credit: Richard Forbes
There were a lot of different DSLR holders and phone holders, though some were better than others. We were impressed by the UBeesize phone holder on both models we tested: the UBeesize 10" Tripod and the UBeesize 10" Tabletop. The holder has a solid feel and grips phones well. The Lume Cube 18" has a stable tripod, but we struggled to get iPhone Plus models into the holder. The Razer Ring Light 12" and Sensyne 10" Ring Light with 50" Extendable Tripod have level tripods with a wide base. However, they are both relatively lightweight, so they can get knocked over easily if you bump into them. The Lavkow RGB also has a wide tripod base that is slightly sturdier. The Rotolight Ultimate Vlogging Kit also has a stable mini tripod. But, we found that the weight of the actual light can cause the whole apparatus to tip to one side, especially if no phone is attached to anchor the other side. The Aixpi 10" LED Tabletop is so short that it has a low center of gravity, making it relatively stable. The Mactrem 6" LED strangely has two different tripods, both poorly balanced.
The UBeesize 10" with Tripod comes with one of the better phone holders.
Credit: Richard Forbes
Durability
To understand durability, we spent time setting up and breaking down each light repeatedly to identify any weak spots they might have. We supplemented our assessments by reading user reviews to see if there were any common problems. We were sure to put them through all the paces that a busy videographer or photographer might.
The ShiftCam SnapGrip Creator Kit and Rotolight Ultimate Vlogging Kit are some of the most sturdy portable models. This is partly due to their smaller size — fewer hinges and joints to break on tripods, for example. However, they are also both well-constructed. The ShiftCam is rubber-coated and comes with a zippered protective semi-rigid case for travel, while the Rotolight has a durable metal T-bar mount. The UBeesize and Westcott lights are the heartiest of the bigs, and we are confident the UBeesize 10" Tabletop, UBeesize 10" Tripod, Razer Ring Light 12", Westcott 18" Kit, and Neewer 18" Kit will all last a long time. On the other end of the spectrum, the Xinbaohong Clip-On, Auxiwa Clip On, Mactrem 6" LED, and Aixpi 10" with Tripod are all underwhelming and strike us as liable to break if the light were to fall on the floor.
We extensively tested and compared the top ring lights.
Credit: Laura Casner
Conclusion
We hope this intensive breakdown gives you a better idea of which ring light setup meets your needs, whether you're looking for the best ring light for studio use or the most portable option.
—
Richard Forbes, Hayley Thomas, Becca Glades, & Ben Applebaum-Bauch
