There’s an effortless way to jazz up a room with light and color and thankfully it doesn’t involve cans of paint or expensive new lighting fixtures. The best strip lights, which are generally installed using pre-applied adhesive, go up in just a few minutes and can often be controlled right from an app on your smartphone. Our favorite strip lights are the Govee RGBIC LED Strip Lights, which feature over 65-feet of lighting and offer a wide range of pre-set hues and can be voice activated from various popular smart speakers.
The best strip lights add ambiance, color and cool effects. Here are our favorites for 2023. Resistors
Strip lights can be installed under cabinets or along the top of walls to add light to any interior room. Strip lights are also worth considering if you have a dim area that might benefit from a light source—like a closet or basement—or install them along window edges to add a decorative glow. Some strip lights are fairly basic and only offer one hue (usually white) while others can change colors, create colorful shapes and patterns or even synch in time with music. Here are some of our favorite strip lights that get the job done.
Length: 65.5 feet | Control: Controller, app, voice | Special features: Color changing, audio sync, segmented color grouping
This 65.5-foot long strip of bright RGBIC LED lights from Govee can fill any space with colors of the rainbow, which makes this an ideal product to consider for seasonal decor or for having on display for your next party.
These lights can be operated via a connected controller, using the Govee app, or by using your voice to activate them via Amazon’s Alexa or Google Assistant speakers. One cool feature is the onboard microphone, which can detect and react to sounds. So if you’re watching a movie or listening to music, it can be programmed to shine brighter when the noise gets louder. Additionally, these strip lights can pulsate, flash or fade, which makes them ideal for using during any celebration.
Length: 16.4 feet | Control: App, voice | Special features: Trim for custom fit, lighting schedule, custom presets
If a low budget option is more of what you’re seeking, these smart strip lights from Roku are worth consideration. Activated by the Roku Smart Home app or with Alexa or Google Assistant (there is no manual remote control included), these lights can glow any color you desire (choose from millions of different options), and they can be easily synced with audio to enhance any movie watching or music listening experience. You can also design your own custom light shows and even set a schedule where the lights slowly dim as the sun goes down, and softly brighten to wake you up at a predetermined time. Going away? Program the lights to turn on in your absence, so it looks like someone is home.
Length: 16 feet | Control: App, voice | Special features: Color segments, sleep/wake cycle assist, custom color creation
For some, strip lights with more options are simply better. The version from GE’s CYNC division can easily display multiple different segments of lights to glow in various colors (you can pick among 16 million different shades). When paired with Alexa or Google Assistant, the Dynamic Effects Smart Strip Lights can be effortlessly activated by voice or can be operated via app to sync with your favorite music, games and movies.
For those interested in its alarm clock feature, the lights can be conveniently set to a sleep and wake cycle, which creates a perfectly balanced warm amber light tone (think a warm color temperature of 2000K) at night and then a cooler bluish light (around 7000K) that is similar to an early morning sky.
Length: 6.6 feet | Control: Controller, voice | Special features: Superior cool and warm whites, screen mirroring
Soft and warm white light is the ultimate mood lighting and looks great in any room. The Nanoleaf Essentials Smart LED Lightstrip features specialized white LEDs that can produce bright, cool white and even a soft amber glow, which skews warmer. We are also fans of these for the holiday season, as there’s nothing prettier than white lights in a window. One can also consider lining a mirror with these strip lights, or adding a soft glow behind a TV screen or monitor. This particular strip light is on the shorter side, but for small spaces that need a glow up, they perform beautifully.
Length: 6.5 feet | Control: App, controller | Special features: Seamless color, easy to position into varied shapes, light drawing with app
Seeking strip lights you can shape by hand into fun shapes? These are for you. The Twinkly Flex Light Tube can be easily twisted and formed into just about any shape you’d like—from a music note to a smiley face to a flower and much more. Once you’ve created the shape you desire, simply hang it on your wall. One must give it a color, too. To do so, download the Twinkly app and choose from a rainbow of fun colors to make it your own. One downside is that these particular strip lights are on the shorter side (6.5 feet long), but if you’re looking for a light source on the small scale, this will do.
Length: 6.25 feet | Control: App, voice | Special features: Designed for placement behind TV, excellent audio/video syncing
The Philips Hue Gradient Lightstrip is specially designed to deliver visual effects to the sounds of your favorite music, movies and games. One caveat is that you’ll need to also buy the Philips Hue Bridge to enjoy all the smart technology these lights offer, but the ambiance it creates is nothing short of magical. The Gradient Lightstrip can detect and sync with audio volume or screen colors, glowing with tones and intensity that will greatly enhance your audio and visual gear.
While on the costlier side, this particular light strip may be the special effect you’ve been seeking for your at-home media and gaming setup. They’re not difficult to install, as mounting brackets are provided, and they easily connect to the corners of the back of your screen. Once the strip lights are locked into the brackets, simply tilt them to angle you desire.
Length: 100 feet | Control: App, remote control | Special features: IP68 water resistance, music syncing mode
If adding strip lights to an outdoor area is on your wish list, these AILBTON Outdoor LED Strip Lights are designed to withstand the elements, including heavy rain and driving snow. With a water resistant tube rating of IP68, these particular lights can endure full submersion in water and will still continue glowing. They are offered at a generous 100-feet long, which makes it ideal for lining a walkway or sprucing up your yard for the holidays. If you want to try out strip lights temporarily, this particular product may not be for you. Why? Installation is slightly complex, and will take time as they come with brackets that must be screwed into a hard surface. However, once they are in place, they could last for years. And they can be controlled via app or an included remote control. Bonus: They can be synced with music, which makes for a fun light show.
The Forbes Vetted editors, like all consumers, want products that work efficiently, hold up to regular use and help make our homes more functional and comfortable. In addition to crafting articles on how to add light to our personal spaces both indoors and outdoors, our home and kitchen team also writes, researches and, in many cases, tests a slew of products and appliances that create healthier, cleaner and more efficient dwellings. This includes everything from the best stackable washers and dryers, to the best carpet cleaners for pets, the best vacuums for any living space and the best air purifiers for those who have allergies.
As a contributing writer to Forbes Vetted, I adhere to the depth of research required for all of our home product recommendations. To find the best strip lights, I assembled a list of about a dozen contenders, then whittled it down based on price, functionality and performance. I also personally tested many of these products and evaluated whether they could be installed, programmed and utilized in the ways they were being advertised. Lastly, I researched numerous customer reviews and ratings to see which strip lights performed best to determine the overall categories and winners.
Even adding just a tad more light to our spaces can transform them immediately. Here are more lighting stories to help enrich indoor and outdoor areas.
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I am a commerce editor for Forbes Vetted covering beauty, fashion, travel and home. Prior to joining Forbes, I held positions at BuzzFeed and Dotdash Meredith where I was responsible for curating lifestyle content and testing products for real-world insights. My work has appeared in Women’s Health, Men’s Health, BuzzFeed, Brit + Co, Everyday Health and more. I hold a Bachelor’s Degree in English/Creative Writing from Marist College and currently reside in Brooklyn, New York.
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Panel Light I’m an editorial contributor covering all things beauty and fashion. I write about my adventures in testing the latest in skincare, haircare and makeup, and exploring trends in clothes and accessories. I’m not afraid to stick needles in my face or straighten my hair on an airplane (true story!), and I gets a rush from copying the best celeb outfits on a budget. My bylines have appeared in Elite Daily, Hello Giggles, Brides.com, MyDomaine, Byrdie, Well + Good, Parents and more.