Makita DML805 vs cheap work light: two different lamps
Updated: October 2026
You have seen 6,000 lumens at about £20 and 750 lumens on a Makita DML805 at about £79, and the cheap number looks like the better lamp. It is not the same scale. This Makita DML805 vs cheap work light page says when the genuine body is the buy, and when a £12 to £25 bare head is only a spare you can return. Prices and stars for those heads are on the [Makita cordless lamp comparison](/hub/workshop/makita-cordless-lamp). Products Compared used Makita UK's published figures and the UK shop prices named below. A qualifying purchase can earn a commission at no extra cost to you.
You have seen 6,000 lumens at about £20 and 750 lumens on a Makita DML805 at about £79, and the cheap number looks like the better lamp. It is not the same scale.
You have seen 6,000 lumens at about £20 and 750 lumens on a Makita DML805 at about £79, and the cheap number looks like the better lamp. It is not the same scale. This Makita DML805 vs cheap work light page says when the genuine body is the buy, and when a £12 to £25 bare head is only a spare you can return. Prices and stars for those heads are on the Makita cordless lamp comparison. Products Compared used Makita UK's published figures and the UK shop prices named below. A qualifying purchase can earn a commission at no extra cost to you.
Our top picks
| Badge | Product | Role in this set | Mains lead | Stated line | Note | Price | Offer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Best overall |  Dorehouse Dorehouse 41-LED | Returnable spare | No lead | Seller 4,800 lm | 8.8 | about £11.99 | View offer |
| Best value |  HEXJOSGL HEXJOSGL 16-LED | Lighter spare | No lead | Seller 4,800 lm | 8.7 | about £11.95 | View offer |
| Alternative |  Edtran Edtran 48 W | Large-sample spare | No lead | Seller 6,000 lm | 8.5 | about £19.90 | View offer |
On this page
750 lumens and 8,000 lumens are not one scale
Makita UK specifies the DML805 at 750 lumens on one mode and 450 on the other. Seller claims beside it run from 3,400 to 10,500 lumens, with 8,000 on the Tumnatt at £24.99 and 6,000 on the Edtran at £19.90. Products Compared did not measure either family. A larger printed number is not a finding that the cheap head is brighter in a loft. Use the DML figure as what Makita says, and the amazon figure as what a seller typed. Shoe checks are on the Makita 18V work light buying guide. Makita's warranty does not cover these heads. If a cheap lamp shorts a pack, and one GZYZ review reports that, the seller is the argument, not a Makita repair for the head.
The DML805 is a mains light that also takes a pack
Makita UK describes the DML805 as 14.4 V or 18 V, or mains with XPT. Machine Mart listed the DML805/2 bare unit at £79.19 including VAT, with a 2.5 m cord. That price is a cluster around £79 to £96, not £12. What you pay for is the cord and the specification, not an extra 7,000 lumens. You can light the bench when every pack is charging, and still click a pack on with no socket. None of the twelve cheap heads has a mains lead. Buy the DML805 when the light is daily, and the £12 head only as a spare.
Torch, tower, or a £12 spare
The DML815 is the small torch, not a rival to a flood. Makita UK specifies 160 lumens and up to 54 hours on an 18 V 6.0 Ah pack. On amazon.co.uk the body, ASIN B07VR2FNWD, was £23.76. That sits in the cheap-flood band and is still a different tool: a cupboard or a joist, not a wall wash. The Tumnatt at £24.99 is not a brighter DML815. The DML812 lists 600, 1,000 and 1,250 lumens at £74.99 for ASIN B085VTRG7L. Choose it when the beam has to travel, and the DML805 when the light has to sit. The DML814 tower publishes 3,000, 1,700 and 900 lumens and IP55, with shops around £250 to £280. IP65 or IP67 on a £14 head is the seller's sentence, not the same kind of statement.
When the £12 spare still has a job
A loft for an hour, a bonnet at the kerb, or a power cut where you already carry the pack: the Dorehouse at £11.99, 4.4 from 320, is the aftermarket head this comparison can point at, if the pack locks and you will not file the connector. The HEXJOSGL 16-LED at £11.95 is the lighter alternative, with 62 reviews and no IP line. Both can flatten a pack if you leave it clicked on. Neither becomes a DML805 because the title says 4,800 lumens. Buy the DML805 in the £79 to £96 cluster if you need the cord, the DML815 for a stated pocket runtime, and the DML814 if you need the bay.
Common questions
Is 8,000 lumens at £25 brighter than 750 lumens on a DML805?
Nobody measured that for this comparison, so the pages do not show it. Makita publishes 750 and 450 lumens for the DML805. The Tumnatt publishes 8,000 lumens, with watts shown as both 92 and 95. Those numbers are not on one scale. Choose the DML805 when you want the published modes and a mains lead. Choose a cheap head only as a returnable spare, not as a brighter DML.
What do I get for about £79 that the amazon head does not have?
A DML805 body with a mains lead. Machine Mart listed a 2.5 m cord at £79.19 including VAT, with Makita's 750 and 450 lumen modes, on 14.4 V, 18 V, or the mains. The battery is not in that bare-unit price, and you do not get a 10,500 lumen claim. The same check ran up to about £96, so about £79 is the lower part of the cluster. The amazon heads have no mains lead.
Is the DML815 the same kind of lamp as these floods?
No. It is a 160 lumen torch with up to 54 hours stated on an 18 V 6.0 Ah pack, and the amazon.co.uk body was £23.76. The floods here claim thousands of lumens and have no runtime you can treat as Makita's. Similar money is not the same shape of light. Buy the DML815 to carry, and a flood to sit and cover a task.
When is the tower the right machine?
When one stand has to light a bay, and you want Makita's 3,000, 1,700 and 900 lumen modes and the IP55 line on the DML814. The shop cluster here was about £250 to £280, with £428.40 as an outlier to ignore. A bonnet or a loft does not need the DML814.
Does Makita warranty a third-party head that uses my pack?
No. The head is not a Makita product, and work lights without a serial number are outside the extended registration. If the head fails, you are dealing with the amazon seller and the Consumer Rights Act 2015, not with a Makita repair for the lamp. If the pack is damaged, stop using it.
Can I use the cheap head until I can afford the DML805?
Yes, if the job is occasional, the pack locks without filing, and you take the pack off when you stop. That is a spare, not a trial of the DML805's brightness. A head that dies in weeks, the GZYZ pattern, is a poor bridge. If the work is already daily, wait and buy the DML805.
Related pages
Sources
Public UK sources and the amazon.co.uk listings compared on this page. Updated October 2026.
- Makita UK: DML805 (retrieved October 2026)
- Makita UK: DML812 (retrieved October 2026)
- Makita UK: DML815 (retrieved October 2026)
- Makita UK: DML814 (retrieved October 2026)
- HSE: Site lighting (retrieved October 2026)
- Electrical Equipment (Safety) Regulations 2016, regulation 3 (retrieved October 2026)
- Consumer Rights Act 2015 (retrieved October 2026)
- Power Tool World: Makita DML805 (retrieved October 2026)