How to choose a work light
Updated: 16 October 2026
You are in a UK garage or loft, and the titles are already shouting 11,000 or 30,000 lumens. How to choose a work light, for the twelve listings in our [work lights comparison](/hub/occupational-safety/work-lights), is an order of questions rather than a race to the biggest number. The job comes first, then the supply, then the lumen claim against the wattage, then whether a stand is actually a tripod, and only then the price. The Products Compared editorial team did not meter the beam. A qualifying purchase can earn a commission at no extra cost to you. You should finish with a type, not a winner.
You are in a UK garage or loft, and the titles are already shouting 11,000 or 30,000 lumens.
You are in a UK garage or loft, and the titles are already shouting 11,000 or 30,000 lumens. How to choose a work light, for the twelve listings in our work lights comparison, is an order of questions rather than a race to the biggest number. The job comes first, then the supply, then the lumen claim against the wattage, then whether a stand is actually a tripod, and only then the price. The Products Compared editorial team did not meter the beam. A qualifying purchase can earn a commission at no extra cost to you. You should finish with a type, not a winner.
Our top picks
| Badge | Product | Supply | Claimed lumens | Ingress | Note | Price | Offer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Best overall |  DEWALT DeWalt DCL050-XJ 18 V area light, bare | 18 V bare | 250–500 lm | Not resistant | 9.6 | about £38.67 | View offer |
| Alternative |  Bellanny Bellanny 200 W dual-head LED work light | Mains | 20,000 lm | IP66 | 9.2 | about £42.99 | View offer |
| Best value |  Coquimbo Coquimbo rechargeable inspection work light, 2-pack | Rechargeable 3.7 V | n/a | No IP code | 8.8 | about £9.98 | View offer |
On this page
Start with the job, not the lumen title
A garage bay and a bonnet are different lamps. A flood or a raised light is what you want for a floor, a car or a bench. A slim lamp with a magnet or a hook is what you want for a fuse box, a loft hatch or the back of an engine. The Coquimbo pair at about £9.98 is two inspection torches, 4.4 from 5,589 reviews, and a magnet reviewers use on a car. It will not light a shell, however many stars it carries.
HSE’s HSG38 scores lux on the task, about 50 on average for rough movement and about 200 for detail, and those figures were not measured here. Who each shape is for is on the best LED work light UK page.
Match the plug to the place
UK house sockets are 230 V. Regulation 35 of the Electrical Equipment (Safety) Regulations 2016 expects a BS 1363 plug, or a proper fused conversion plug, for domestic use. A site is a different supply. HSE’s HSG141 prefers batteries, or 110 V reduced low voltage from a centre-tapped transformer, about 55 V to earth. A cell that only prints 110 V is not that system.
The cheaper T-SUN at about £22.34 has a 110 V cell, while a UK review describes a domestic plug. Read the plate. The Yofuly at about £65.69 says 12 V AC in the cell and mains in the bullets, with no reviews. Only the EOTO at about £79.99 prints 230 V, and its wattage cells still disagree.
Read the lumen claim against the watts
A higher wattage is not a brighter lamp. Trust a lumen figure only when it and the wattage cell describe the same product. A rule of thumb, not a measurement, is to distrust a title many times the wattage times about 100 to 150.
The dual-head T-SUN at about £47.49 puts 11,000 lumens on a 60 W cell, above that rough band. The cheaper T-SUN’s 5,400 lumen title on 60 W sits inside it, and its 10,000 flux cell sits just above it. The EOTO claims 30,000 lumens against 100 W and 300 W cells. The Bellanny prints 100 W and 200 W beside 20,000 lumens. None of these listings states a CRI.
Ingress, mount, then price
IP65 and IP66, in BS EN 60529, are dust-tight jet ratings. IP66 is the harder jet. Neither is immersion, and the code may miss the switch. The Edasion cell says waterproof with no number. The cheaper T-SUN says IP66 in the bullets and IP65 in the cell, and a review says the switch by the plug is not waterproof.
With stand is not a tripod in the box. That cheaper T-SUN says the tripod is not included. The Bellanny is a handle and stand for a wall or a table. Heights are on the work light with tripod page. Read the included line before you pay.
Common questions
How many lumens do I need for a garage?
HSG38 guides you in lux on the task: about 50 lux on average for rough movement and about 200 lux on average for detail. Those figures were not measured on these lamps. Rapid’s shopping guide suggests at least 1,000 lumens as a retail starting point. Treat that as a shop rule of thumb. A 30,000 lumen title beside a conflicting wattage cell does not prove the bench is lit.
Is a higher wattage a brighter light?
Watts are electrical power and lumens are the claimed output. The Bellanny prints 100 W and 200 W, and the EOTO prints 100 W and 300 W, each beside a much larger lumen title. Use a lumen figure only when it can sit beside the watts. About 100 to 150 lumens per watt is a rule of thumb for spotting an inflated title, not a measurement of these listings.
What is the difference between IP65 and IP66?
Both are dust-tight ratings in BS EN 60529. IP65 covers water jets and IP66 covers more powerful jets. Neither means the lamp can be immersed, and neither automatically covers an inline switch or a USB port. Waterproof without a number, as on the Edasion water cell, is a weaker claim. A review of that pair found no seals on the ports.
Will a work light with a 110 V cell run from a UK socket?
Not on the strength of the cell alone. UK domestic sockets are 230 V with BS 1363 plugs. A real 110 V site system is centre-tapped, about 55 V to earth, with different connectors. The cheaper T-SUN’s cell says 110 V, while a UK review describes a domestic plug. Read the rating plate. Do not assume either supply.
Does with stand mean a tripod is in the box?
Read the included line. The cheaper T-SUN’s bullets say a bracket and screw holes, and they say the tripod is not included. The Bellanny describes a handle and a stand for wall or table mounting, not a tall telescopic pole. If tripod appears only in the title, treat it as a claim until the included line repeats it.
Is 6,500 K good for painting?
6,500 K is a cool-looking white. It is not a colour-rendering index, and none of these twelve listings prints a CRI. A cool flood can show edges and can also glare. One Bellanny review said the beam hurt their eyes. Matching two paint colours needs a stated CRI, which this set does not give, or daylight you already trust.
Related pages
Sources
Public UK sources used for this comparison, last checked on 16 October 2026.
- HSE HSG38, Lighting at work (retrieved 16 October 2026)
- HSE, Site lighting (retrieved 16 October 2026)
- Workplace (Health, Safety and Welfare) Regulations 1992, regulation 8 (retrieved 16 October 2026)
- CDM 2015, regulation 35 (retrieved 16 October 2026)
- HSE HSG141, Electrical safety on construction sites (retrieved 16 October 2026)
- Electrical Equipment (Safety) Regulations 2016, regulation 35 (retrieved 16 October 2026)
- Electrical Safety First, Plugs and fuses (retrieved 16 October 2026)
- HSE INDG236, Maintaining portable electric equipment (retrieved 16 October 2026)