To help you find the best selfie lights in a sea of cheap knock offs and unreliable options, we spent 15 hours testing 25 individual models. We also judged each selfie light on its ability to adjust brightness and work with smartphones as well as digital cameras for the best user experience. With all these features in mind, we chose the UBeesize Selfie Ring Light as our top pick. It’s also sturdy and durable, making for a long-lasting light that you won’t need to replace anytime soon. Within each of those modes, you have 10 levels of brightness, providing the perfect light source for your selfies. We were also pleased to find that the UBeesize includes an adjustable tripod for easier setup and stability.
Be aware that the tripod gets a little unstable at the highest setting, but on a hard floor, it typically does alright. WHY WE LIKE IT: The Auxiwa Clip On Selfie Ring Light was built with portability and convenience in mind.
Simply squeeze to open the clip, place it as desired on your phone (make sure you don’t cover the front facing camera!) The ring light even includes a soft gel strip to protect your phone from being scratched during use. The clip on ring light for smartphones is powered by rechargeable batteries that you can charge directly from your phone, which is a nice touch. The remote is reliable and the holder keeps your phone in place so you don’t get any blurry selfies during a shoot.
The most useful feature of the tripod is its 360-degree panning head that allows you to place the light in whatever configuration you need to capture the best selfie possible. Simply open the clip and position the light in the appropriate spot over the front-facing camera, then get your selfie game on. You won’t have to worry about damage to any of your devices either with the light’s padding strips on the clip portion.
We were pleased to find that this light is compatible with all smartphones and most other devices, too, making it one of the most versatile options on our list. The light itself performs well, too, with 36 individual LED bulbs that provide comprehensive, bright coverage, ideal for use with smartphones, iPhones, pads, and makeup mirrors. If you find the highest brightness to be too much, you have two lower settings as well, which is great for such a compact and portable ring light.
Fortunately, the GLOUE selfie light’s batteries charge quicker than other models we tested, so you’ll get back up and running in no time once plugged in. The Qiaya also includes a sturdy tripod that’s one of the strongest and most stable options we’ve tested to date. WHY WE LIKE IT: The KobraTech MiLite is the most well-built smartphone ring light we tested on our list, with a unique design that gives you crystal clear selfies every time. It’s built with portability and durability in mind, which is apparent in its sturdy materials and solid clip mechanism.
Also, this mini ring light is universally compatible with any laptop, smartphone, iPad, or tablet. As we tested the top options you can buy today, we looked for the perfect balance between all of these aspects.
Things like tripods, remotes, or clip-on designs for smartphones all make these lights easier and more convenient to use so you can focus solely on snapping the perfect picture. Finally, we didn’t include any selfie lights that we thought were cheaply made or that were likely to fall apart after just a few photo shoots.
The best ring lights of 2021
Long used by professional portrait and macro photographers as well as makeup artists, and perfect for selfies, streaming, vlogging and most photo and video tasks, they have become favorites of social media influencers and content creators of all kinds. But you don’t have to be a top Twitch streamer or overnight TikTok sensation to appreciate being cast in a better light on Zoom calls — they’re also the perfect addition to work-from-home office setups. The convenient clip mounting fits on your phone or laptop, and won’t scratch your screen.
It brings it all together at an affordable price point, making it a clear winner among the ring lights we tested.
This flexibility gave the EMart major bonus points, as it was the only ring light we tested that peeked above laptop height even at its lowest setting. But what, er, shone brightest during our tests was the flattering light cast by the EMart, which came across as natural sunlight in both portraits and selfies.
In photos taken during both day and night, the lighting gave us high-quality images, highlighting everything it was supposed to without producing distracting shadows. One of them is quite handy, clipping onto the thinnest part of the tripod stand with a small metal clasp that wraps around the pole; it can hold your phone vertically or horizontally. This isn’t a deal breaker since the other phone holder gives you plenty of options, but it is annoying nonetheless. Whether you’re using this light for a professional appearance in virtual meetings or for fun and creative content making, this is a great option.
The Whellen Selfie Ring Light is extremely lightweight and small, so it easily fits in pockets, purses, backpacks — you name it. We stuffed it in a purse while grocery shopping, and even with keys, a phone, a wallet and some spare change around it, the light didn’t so much as get scratched.
The Whellen’s clip has rubber padding on the reverse side to prevent it from scratching your screen. Once the light is at its dimmest, you can click and hold the top button again for it to come back to brighter levels until you reach the brightest setting. While on par with the entire field (almost all averaged the same life span), the included USB charging cable is only 10 inches long. We then established parameters to test, looking in particular at brightness, color options and results in photos and videos. This is a bright LED light that has a cold shoe mount for a camera, a tripod mount and a magnetic back to attach to other surfaces, but it isn’t easily usable with a phone, and you’ll have to supply a small tripod to use it with a laptop. The photos we took with this light seemed to have a white film over them that made them look unnatural or poorly edited.
It’s more expensive than the Whellen Selfie Ring Light but didn’t provide nearly as good results. Fotodiox Selfie Starlite Vlog Pro Ring Light and Tabletop Set ($99.95; amazon.com)
This is a good desktop option if you’re looking for a ring light to use while applying makeup, while filming videos or during virtual meetings.
The tripod included is very short, so it sits at a good height on a desk but doesn’t adjust tall enough for use with a laptop’s built-in camera.
The light looked great in photos and worked really well for video calls, but overall was overly bright and distracting during use.
Best ring light in 2021: beautiful lighting for vlogging, video calls and selfies
Even if you don’t have aspirations of making it big on YouTube, ring lights also come into their own in the new world of increased home working. Indeed, pair them with the best webcams and your home setup will instantly look more professional – vital for making the best impression when on an important video conference! They haven’t skimped on build quality either, unlike a lot of ring lights, the Razer feels very sturdy and reliable.
It’s a fantastic 12-inch ring light perfect for video conferencing, vlogging or streaming and you won’t be disappointed with your purchase. Lume Cube Wireless Light The best portable ring light packs a powerful punch Specifications Color temperature: 3200-5600K Power source: Li-Ion batteries, mains Dimensions: 18 inches TODAY’S BEST DEALS Prime View at Amazon View at Walmart View at Moment Reasons to buy + Mains or 90 minutes of wireless power + LED readout for settings + 6.5-foot light stand included Reasons to avoid – Pricier than rivals If you’re looking for a ring light to shoot flat lays or unboxing videos, we’re not convinced the plastic mounting bracket is the best but if you’re using it in a normal upright position, look no further.
It’s on the smaller side for a ring light, but still a perfectly good size for self-taping, vlogging, TikToks and other quick and easy uses. It plugs in via USB, and comes with a 54-inch tripod, meaning it’s very easy to get started the instant you take the Neewer 10-inch LED Ring Light out of its box. But the Neewer 10-inch LED Ring Light is an all-around solid choice that will suit the vast majority of users perfectly, and that’s why it nabs our top spot.
ESDDI PLV-R432 18-inch Ring Light Best ring light for YouTube – big, bright and bicolor Specifications Color temperature: 3000K-6500K Power source: Mains power Dimensions: 458mm outer dia / 318mm inner dia TODAY’S BEST DEALS View at Walmart Check Amazon Reasons to buy + 18-inch diameter with 48W power + Includes light stand, case, phone clip Reasons to avoid – Requires lots of space – Phone holder isn’t great
Its sheer size makes it perfect for beauty and makeup work, too, giving you plenty of room and abundant light. Prominent dials adjust brightness and temperature, and the light can even rotate 180°, making it useful for shooting flat lays or macro work.
For example, it delivers a massive 1,840 lux at a distance of 3 feet which makes it perfect as a key or fill light for both stills and videos. Rotolight Ultimate Vlogging Kit Best ring light for streaming with a smartphone Specifications Color temperature: 6300K, 5600K, 4100K, 3200K (using filters) Power source: 3x AA batteries Dimensions: 130mm outer dia / 38mm inner dia Weight: 170g TODAY’S BEST DEALS Prime View at Amazon Low Stock View at Walmart View at BHPhoto Reasons to buy + 80W equivalent power + Ultra compact + Includes filters to adjust temp Reasons to avoid – Changing filters is fiddly Now it’s back in an all-in-one kit, which also includes a Rotolight mini tripod, stand adapter, phone clip and accessory bar – making it the perfect partner for a tabletop smartphone setup.
The Neo 2 is a bit heavy and unwieldy for the hotshoe, but this smaller model is just the right size (though this kit doesn’t include a foot for the shoe), and the hole in the middle is perfect to poke a microphone through!
While it’s the largest ring light on offer here, with 44W of dimmable output from 352 LEDs, it doesn’t have quite as much power or temperature range as ESDDI’s 18-inch 48W model. Also bundled are a 6’5″ light stand, ball head adapter and vertical / horizontal phone holder, wireless remote and carry case. The ESDDI 10-inch ring light is Ideal for smartphone shooters, with a two-way grip that holds your handset both horizontally and vertically, along with a Bluetooth remote for stills and video. They’re great for taking on nights out so you can capture well-lit selfies, on holiday or even when travelling away from home so that you can Facetime loved ones no matter how much light is around you. Smoovie Flexi Selfie Ring Light Best mount-anywhere ring light that can also hold your phone Specifications Color temperature: (Three white light settings) Power source: USB Dimensions: 6-inch TODAY’S BEST DEALS Check Amazon Reasons to buy + Flexible clip arm mounts anywhere + Second flexi arm can hold smartphone + 3 tone settings & adjustable brightness + USB powered Reasons to avoid – Less color temp control Ring Lights are fantastic but, unless you’re sitting at a desk or table, you might struggle to find a surface or enough space to erect a tripod.
The clip also has a second flexible arm that can hold your camera phone, so this can either be used strictly as an adaptable ring light or as a dedicated smartphone setup.
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