2022 Best LED Light Bars for Sale for Truck, Jeep, and UTV

One of the best modifications you can install on your truck or car is an LED light bar. Not only do they look fantastic but they light up the road at night, making it much safer to drive on roads without street lights or out in the desert.

In our case, we love to go off-roading at night because it’s so hot during the day, which is why we choose to use high-quality light bars when possible. An LED light bar is necessary to see where you’re going in the middle of the desert. Without quality lighting, you’re effectively driving blind and risking the potential for a crash.

The great thing about LED light bars is that they come in many different sizes and forms. The variety of various forms means that an LED light bar can be easily mounted anywhere on your vehicle. Even if you have a smaller vehicle, you’ll be able to install a powerful LED light bar very easily.

If you have a large car like a truck, then you can install multiple large LED light bars!

The most popular sizes are 2” pods, 12” LED light bars, 20” LED light bars, 24” LED light bars, 30” LED light bars, 40” LED light bars, and finally 50-54” LED light bars. If you have a truck the best option is a 50” or 52” LED light bar for your roof. Mounting an LED light bar on your roof helps to eliminate the shadows that off-road lights can produce if they’re mounted low.

Brand	Type of LEDs	Waterproofing	Warranty	Price Check
Rigid Industries	Cree	IP68	Lifetime	Check Latest Price
Baja Designs	Cree	IP68	Lifetime	Check Latest Price
KC HiLites	Cree	IP68	27 Years	Check Latest Price
Rough Country	Cree	IP67	3 Years	Check Latest Price
Rigid Horse	Cree/Philips	IP67	1-5 Years	Check Latest Price
Auxbeam	Cree/Philips	IP67	1+ Years	Check Latest Price
Nilight	Cree	IP67	2 Years	Check Latest Price

To help you find the perfect lights for your application, we’ve created this guide and compiled all the best options on the market into one place.

This guide is fairly long so you can jump to different sections here:

Best LED Pods
Best 12” – 24” LED Light Bars
Best 30” – 40” LED Light Bars
Best 40” – 54” LED Light Bars
Best UTV LED Light Bars
Best Motorcycle LED Light Bars

Best LED Light Pods

If you want LED light but don’t want a big bulky LED light bar than these LED light pods are the perfect solution. They pack a ton of power into tiny packages. These pods also give you more options for mounting locations and how you have them angled.

They also work great on something small like a motorcycle, ATV, or UTV. Some of the lights listed below also have DOT approved variants which you can legally use as fog lights on the street!

#1 Rigid Industries D-SS

We wanted to start the list of pods with one of our favorite products, the Rigid Industries D-SS. One of the problems that can occur with LED lighting, is not having enough lighting going to the side of the trail.

Obviously, you want to see directly in front of the vehicle, but knowing what’s to the left or right is nice as well. These LED light pods are great because of their unique design. Not only do they feature normal forward facing LEDs, but also diagonal facing LEDs to help illuminate the sides of the trail.

Although these light pods are a little pricey, their innovative design is completely worth it. Just like every other Rigid Industries product out there, these are built to the tough possible standards with waterproof, dust proof and shock proofing.

They only consume 24W of power each, and output 2,400 lumens which is a very impressive watt/lumen ratio. If you have the money for these little pods, they’re pretty hard to beat!

Warranty: Lifetime
Power: 24W each
Output: 2,400 lumens
Water Proofing: IP68
Build Quality: Excellent

#2 Baja Designs Squadron Sport

Coming in on our #2 spot is Baja Designs. Although we like Baja Designs quite a lot, these pods are pretty expensive for their size, so we couldn’t justify putting them in the #1 spot.

Unlike the Rigid Industries pods listed above, these don’t feature any innovation, but they are top notch. All Baja Designs lights use very efficient chips, powerful diodes, and superb reflectors/projectors.

The Squadron Sport LED light pods consume 20W of power each and output 1,800 lumens. This is slightly fewer lumens/watt, but Baja Designs primarily focuses on making good projectors. The tight light pattern means if you plan on doing any racing, these are the lights you’ll need.

These light pods are fully waterproof, dust proof, and a lifetime warranty covers them. We don’t think they look the prettiest, but these pods are great for racing.

Warranty: Lifetime
Power: 20W each
Output: 1,800 lumens
Water Proofing: IP68
Build Quality: Excellent

#3 Rigid Industries D2 Midnight (Editor’s Choice)

In our #3 spot is another Rigid Industries product. Rigid offers a few different kinds of LED light pods, but the Midnight edition is the best looking. On top of looking pretty good, they aren’t expensive for the kind of quality you’re getting.

Unlike the D-SS pods, the D2 pods are just the typical 2×2 design. Other than being blacked out, there is nothing special about these pods. If you’re looking for a more budget friendly light, we have more affordable options listed below.

Just like pretty much every other Rigid Industries product, these little light pods are fully waterproof, dustproof, and shockproof. The lights output 1,600 lumens in a full spot beam pattern at 16W. Once again this is an excellent lumen/watt ratio.

Overall we think these are the best high quality LED light pods for the money. If you need pods for a street-legal specific application, Rigid Industries has a variant of the D2 that can help you out.

Warranty: Lifetime
Power: 16W each
Output: 1,600 lumens
Water Proofing: IP68
Build Quality: Excellent

#4 Rough Country 2” X5

Fourth on our list is the Rough Country X5 LED light pods. Although Rough Country doesn’t have the same authority in the LED light bar market as Rigid Industries or Baja Designs, they still make excellent lights.

If you’re looking for LED pods which blend the best of pricing and quality, the X5 LED pods are as good as it gets. They use the standard 2×2 pod design, and jam one more LED in the center of it all. This design creates an X shaped pattern, hence the name X5.

We don’t really think they look very good, but it provides a good light output at a low price. These light pods are IP67 water resistant and dust resistant. They output a claimed 2,250 lumens at 25W thanks to the 5th LED diode in the middle.

Warranty: 3 years
Power: 25W each
Output: 2,250 lumens
Water Proofing: IP67
Build Quality: Good

#5 Auxbeam 4” Pod

Of course, not everyone wants to spend $50+ on LED lights and that’s understandable. We have personally used Auxbeam lights on our vehicles in the past and we know their product line pretty well.

Their 4” 18W pods have a very basic design and they’re significantly more bulky than any other lights on this list, especially for their light output. Bulkiness aside, they are tough and put out a pretty good amount of light, especially for how cheap they are.

Auxbeam claims these pods are IP67 water and dust resistant, but who knows how accurate that claim is. Each pod is powered by six Cree 3W LEDs, for a total of 18W per pod. Light output is rated at 1,800 lumens, but this is likely an estimated number, with the real number probably closer to 1,500 lumens.

If you want to stay in the affordable range, this is pretty much the best you are going to get.

Warranty: 1 Year
Power: 18W Each
Output: 1,800 Lumens Each
Water Proofing: IP68
Build Quality: Good

#6 Auxbeam 3” Pod

Generally speaking, we really don’t like cheap Chinese lights, because the majority of them are a waste of money. These 3” Auxbeam pods, however, we know for a fact are relatively decent because we had these exact lights on our 1992 Jeep Cherokee.

They don’t have the massive light output of something like a Rigid Industries product, but these pods have an extremely tight light pattern, so much so that they are usable on the street without blinding oncoming traffic (not certified street legal). The reason for this is the decently sized projectors which make all the difference.

These pods use four 5W Philips LEDs which have a nicer color tone than most Cree LEDs. Total power consumption per pod is 20W with an estimated light output of 2,000 lumens. When I had these lights on my Jeep, I subjected them to lots of water and dust, and never had a failure, so the IP67 water and dust rating stands.

Warranty: 1 Year
Power: 20W Each
Output: 2,000 Lumens Each
Water Proofing: IP67
Build Quality: Good

Best 12” – 24” LED Light Bars

The 12” – 24” LED light bars are great for a number of reasons. You can easily fit one of these LED light bars behind the grill of pretty much any car. These LED light bars also output a ton of light for their size which really helps justify spending the money on a quality one.

#1 Baja Designs OnX6 20″

Up first is Baja Designs with their OnX6 light bars. Although this light bar is pretty expensive, the amount of light it outputs is insane. Part of this is because of Baja Designs’ single row design which allows them to use large projectors. Those large projectors put the light where you want it, and doesn’t waste any of it. Other than that, this LED light bar isn’t innovative in any way; it’s just extremely high quality.

The OnX6 20″ uses 10W Cree chips for a total of 120W of power and an absolutely insane 14,700 lumens. This LED light bar is also IP69 water and dust proof, as well as IK10 mechanical impact resistant. If you can manage to break it, however, Baja Designs covers this LED light bar with a lifetime warranty. Although this LED light bar is very expensive, it outputs nearly twice as many lumens as the next best 20” light bar.

Warranty: Lifetime
Power: 120W
Output: 14,700 lumens
Water Proofing: IP68
Build Quality: Excellent

#2 Rigid Industries E-Series 20” Midnight (Editor’s Choice)

Second on our list is the Rigid Industries E-Series 20” Midnight. We would’ve put this LED light bar first on the list, but it lacks in total lumen output. We love how the blacked out Midnight Edition looks and plan on installing one behind the grill of our 2015 Fiesta ST. Being all blacked out makes it less noticeable which makes it less susceptible to theft.

Just like any other Rigid Industries LED light bar, this one is water, dust, and shock resistant. It outputs an impressive 9,200 lumens at 110W. It should be noted, however, that the Baja Designs OnX6 outputs 5,500 more lumens while only consuming 10W more. If you want the blacked out look, then this is the LED light bar for you. Plus it’s priced very competitively.

Warranty: Lifetime
Power: 110W
Output: 9,200 lumens
Water Proofing: IP68
Build Quality: Excellent

#3 Rigid Industries Radiance 20″

Third on our list is the Radiance 20” which is one of the most affordable products that Rigid Industries makes. The design isn’t the best looking but isn’t the worst. You still get Rigid’s legendary build quality and light output, but at a much lower cost. One of the cool things about the Radiance series of LED light bars is the ambient lighting. Different versions have different colors of ambient lighting which can accent your truck well.

Just like any other Rigid Industries product, the 20” Radiance is water, dust, and shock resistant. The Radiance 20” outputs 5,300 lumens at 94W. This light output is significantly less than the E-Series listed above, but the Radiance is quite a bit cheaper. If you want Rigid Industries legendary quality but don’t want to spend a lot of money, then this is the LED light bar for you.

Warranty: Lifetime
Power: 94W
Output: 5,300 lumens
Water Proofing: IP68
Build Quality: Excellent

#4 Rough Country 20” Black Series

To finish this list off, we found the best bang for buck 20” LED light bar possible. We ended up with the Rough Country Black Series. Just like before, we picked the Black Series because of its awesome looks. Rough Country makes a chrome version of this LED light bar if you would rather have that.

This light bar is IP67 water and dust resistant, uses 120 watts of power, and outputs 9,600 lumens. If you’ve been keeping track of numbers, then you might’ve noticed this LED light bar outputs more Rigid Industries E-Series. The light beam isn’t going to nearly as good as the other light bars on this list, neither will the build quality. If you’re on a tight budget but still want a quality product, then this LED light bar is pretty hard to beat.

Warranty: 3 years
Power: 120W
Output: 9,600 lumens
Water Proofing: IP67
Build Quality: Good

#5 Rigidhorse 20” Five Row

When it comes to rows of LEDs, we prefer less, as it leaves more room for large projectors which can direct the light properly. Some of you out there always want more, which is why we put this light bar on the light. Unlike most 12-24” lights, this 20” from Rigidhorse use five rows of LEDs.

The five-row design should theoretically result in HUGE light output, but without well designed and large projectors, the light ends up spilling everywhere you don’t want it, resulting in pretty subpar light output, especially for the amount of power this light draws.

This particular light is Rigidhorse’s “ultra-thin” model, which uses a thinner body than most light bars, which should help reduce the whistling noise that many light bars create at speed. With five rows of LEDs, power consumption is rated at 480W, which is pretty insane considering this light is only a 20”.

Light output is estimated to be 25, 000 lumens, but again, the tiny projects let the light spill all over the place, meaning you’ll probably see around 10,000 lumens on the trail – the rest of it will be wasted lighting up the sides of the trail, your hood, or the trees above.

Warranty: None
Power: 480W
Output: 25,000 lumens (estimated)
Water Proofing: IP68 (estimated)
Build Quality: Poor

#6 Auxbeam 22” 5D Curved

Having used this exact light bar on our 1992 Jeep Cherokee, we can confidently recommend it. It’s not a particularly bright or amazing, but for the price, it has a pretty decent light output thanks to the large projectors. The housing is slightly curved which helps give the light bar a pretty wide pattern. It’s still a cheap Chinese light bar at the end of the day, but the design helps it perform like something more expensive, mostly due to those large projectors.

With 40x 3W Cree ELDs, this light bar consumes 120W and outputs 18,000 lumens. That lumen count is probably inaccurate, as it looked closer to 12,000 lumens when we tested it. The housing is IP67 dust and water rated, so it’s not bullet proof by any means, but it’s tough enough for the average off-roading trip. Like other Auxbeam lights, it has a 1-year warranty.

Warranty: 1-year
Power: 120W
Output: 18,000 lumens (estimated)
Water Proofing: IP68
Build Quality: Good

Best 30” – 40” LED Light Bars

We love the 30″ to 40″ light bar size because it’s perfect for mounting on a front bumper. Mounting the light bar down low on a bumper does create more shadows, but unlike a roof mounted light bar it won’t cause any windshield glare. An amber light bar is ideal on the front bumper because it won’t light up the dust in front of the windshield making it much easier to see where you’re going in dusty conditions.

#1 Rigid Industries E-38” Amber/White

In the 30”+ size we love the Rigid Industries amber and white LED light bars. These lights allow you to switch back and forth from amber to white color. Amber is much better at cutting through the dust than just plain white, so this LED light bar will be perfect if you plan on driving in dusty environments or racing.

Just like all Rigid Industries products, this LED light bar is water, dust, and shock proof. If you can somehow manage to break it, it’s covered by a lifetime warranty. This LED light bar outputs an impressive 12,578 lumens at 152W. Although this LED light bar is fairly expensive, the amber feature makes it well worth it.

Warranty: Lifetime
Power: 152W
Output: 12,578 lumens
Water Proofing: IP68
Build Quality: Excellent

#2 Baja Designs OnX6 30″

Second on our list is the OnX6 30” from Baja Designs. Just like the other Baja Designs products we’ve talked about, this one isn’t innovative. The design is pretty standard, but the components used are the best available. Baja Designs focuses on making sure the projectors inside their LED light bars are as good as possible.

This LED light bar uses 18 Cree LEDs that add up to 175W and output an insane 22,050 lumens. This light bar is impact-proof, dust-proof, and water-proof just like all Baja Designs products. Although this light can’t switch from white to amber like the E-38, you can buy an all amber version of this LED light bar. We would recommend getting the all amber version if you plan on driving in dusty conditions.

Warranty: Lifetime
Power: 175W
Output: 22,050 lumens
Water Proofing: IP68
Build Quality: Excellent

#3 Rigid Industries E-Series 30” Midnight Edition (Editor’s Choice)

Third on our list is the E-Series 30” Midnight. Unfortunately, this LED light bar doesn’t use the amber design of the E-Series listed above, but the awesome looking all black design makes up for it. Once again, the all-black design helps keep your LED light bar less noticeable, helping to keep thieves at bay.

This LED light bar uses 165W and outputs an impressive 13,800 lumens. Of course, it’s water, dust, and impact proof just like all Rigid Industries products. We think this 30” has the best bang for back in this category. Rigid Industries does offer a chrome version of this LED light bar if you don’t like the all black design.

Warranty: Lifetime
Power: 165W
Output: 13,800 lumens
Water Proofing: IP68
Build Quality: Excellent

#4 Rigid Industries Radiance 40″

Last but not least is the Rigid Industries Radiance 40”. This 40” LED light bar comes in at half the cost of the other light bars while being the largest. It features that legendary Rigid Industries reliability that we love, in a small form factor. It also features an ambient lighting system if you’re into that.

Of course, it’s also water, dust, and shock resistant. It outputs an impressive 12,348 lumens at 217W making it super bright for the money. If you’re on a budget then this is the perfect LED light bar for you. If you have a little bit of extra money laying around, however, we would recommend the E-Series midnight listed above.

Warranty: Lifetime
Power: 217W
Output: 12,348 lumens
Water Proofing: IP68
Build Quality: Excellent

#5 Rigid Horse 30” 5-Row Straight

For those of you out there who love to save money, but still need a somewhat decent 30” light bar, this is for you. Again, high-quality projectors are much more important than sheer lumen count, so don’t expect to get some Rigid Industries competitor for dirt cheap. Like the 20” Rigidhorse listed up above, this 30” uses a five-row design, three rows with individual projectors and two rows with group projectors.

This Rigidhorse is good at outputting huge amounts of light with its 600W worth of LEDs outputting a claimed 35,000 lumens. Rigidhorse used to rate this light bar much higher than this but realized how inaccurate their claims were and brought it down to 35,000 lumens. Due to the projector design, however, a lot of light is spilled directly up and down, reducing the amount of light that makes it to the trail. For the price, though, this light bar is pretty good!

Warranty: 5 Years
Power: 600W
Output: 35,000 lumens (estimated)
Water Proofing: IP68 (estimated)
Build Quality: Poor

Best 42” – 54” LED Light Bars

The 42″ – 54″ light bars are great for installing on the roof of your vehicle. Since most car/truck roofs are curved we recommend purchasing a curved light bar to properly fit your roof. If you drive a Jeep Wrangler, don’t worry, there are straight versions of every single LED light bar listed below.

#1 Baja Designs OnX6 50” Arc Series

First up is the Baja Designs OnX6 50” Arc. This LED light bar doesn’t bring any groundbreaking innovation to the table, but it does offer an insane amount of light output. Baja Designs’ main focus with their product is using high-quality LEDs and the best projectors possible. We know some people don’t want a single row light bar on their roof, but if you want to best light pattern possible, this is the way to go.

The OnX6 50” outputs an insane 32,250 lumens at 315 watts which is a pretty good lumen/watt ratio indicating a good design. The curved design works well with the spot/flood design providing excellent coverage on the trail. It also features a 5000K color which is a very natural shade of white. Of course, this LED light bar also features a lifetime warranty, and it’s water/dust/impact proof. If you plan on doing a lot of desert racing, we would recommend getting the ‘racer’ version of this light bar.

Warranty: Lifetime
Power: 315W
Output: 32,250 lumens
Water Proofing: IP68
Build Quality: Excellent

#2 Rigid Industries RDS 50” Midnight (Editor’s Choice)

Second on our list is the RDS 50” from Rigid Industries. I know we recommend the E-Series lights a lot, but it’s for a reason: they’re nearly unbeatable in quality. If you want the best of the best, then this is it, plus the midnight edition looks awesome. This LED light bar doesn’t bring any innovations, but the new Pro versions of these light bars are even brighter than the older version. Just like every other E-Series, this light bar is pretty expensive, but again, if you want the best of the best you have to pay for it.

This LED light bar outputs 26,150 lumens at 375W which is a surprisingly low lumen/watt ratio, but still a lot of lumens non-the-less. Just like most Rigid Industries products this LED light bar is water, dust, and shock proof. If you really don’t like the all black look this LED light bar is offered in the standard chrome E-Series design.

Warranty: Lifetime
Power: 375W
Output: 26,150 lumens
Water Proofing: IP68
Build Quality: Excellent

#3 Rigid Industries 50” SR-Series Midnight Edition

Third on our list is another product from Rigid Industries, this time it’s the SR-Series. This light bar is perfect if you want a single row design like the Baja Designs OnX6, but with the Midnight Edition look from Rigid Industries. The SR-Series also has the benefit of being quite a bit cheaper than the standard E-Series LED light bar.

This light bar outputs 18,750 lumens and consumes 200W. This is a much better lumen/watt ratio than the E-Series LED light bar listed above, but still not as good as the OnX6 from Baja Designs. Of course, this LED light bar is water, dust, and shock proof so you won’t have to worry about it breaking when you’re going hard off-road.

Warranty: Lifetime
Power: 200W
Output: 18,750 lumens
Water Proofing: IP68
Build Quality: Excellent

#4 Rigid Industries Radiance 50″

Last but certainly not list on the list is the 50” Radiance from Rigid Industries. Its low cost makes it the perfect middle ground between the typical E-Series light bar from Rigid and a cheap Chinese LED light bar. One of our favorite features of this light bar is its ambient lighting system which will set off the look of your truck, Jeep, or UTV.

Although it’s not as good looking as the SR-Series it outputs lots of light, 21,384 lumens at 243 watts to be exact. It’s also water, dust, and shock resistant so it can take a beating. It should be noted that it’s only resistant to the elements and is more likely to fail under extreme conditions, but still much stronger than a cheap Chinese LED light bar.

Warranty: Lifetime
Power: 278W
Output: 15,876 lumens
Water Proofing: IP68
Build Quality: Excellent

Best UTV LED Light Bars

UTVs have become extremely popular in the last 5 years. Can-Am took the UTV market to the next level with their Maverick XRS. UTVs have become extremely fast and can blast through the desert at insane speeds. The only problem is most UTV owners live in the desert where night off-roading is common. If you want to blast through the desert at night you need to be able to see enough to not crash.

#1 Baja Designs OnX6 30”

Most UTVs are pretty narrow, and a 30” LED light bar is the biggest size that will fit. Although the OnX6 30” is pretty expensive, it projects light extremely far which is crucial if you want to go fast. We specifically chose the amber version of this light bar because often UTVs travel in packs making conditions extremely dusty. The amber light will cut through the dust and make it easier to see where you’re going.

We know that UTV owners like to beat on their off-road toys, which often involves breaking parts breaking. Assuming this is the LED light bar you decide to purchase, then you won’t have to worry since Baja Designs backs all of their LED light bars with a lifetime warranty. The 30” OnX6 light bar from Baja Designs is IP68 water and dust resistant, so you won’t have to worry when you go mudding or splash through a big puddle. Just like any other Baja Designs product, this one is pretty expensive. If you want the best of the best, however, this is the way to go.

Warranty: Lifetime
Power: 175W
Output: 22,050 lumens
Water Proofing: IP68
Build Quality: Excellent

#2 Rigid Industries Capture (Editor’s Choice)

Next up on our list is the Rigid Industries Capture LED light bar. We know that driving in a UTV can take you to incredible places and racing around through the desert can make for some awesome looking footage. Rigid Industries is the only company to offer an LED light bar with integrated charging for a GoPro camera. These means you drive all night long and record awesome footage without having to worry about your GoPro dying.

The LED light bar itself is around 12” and includes a high/low beam. On the low setting it outputs 1764 lumens, and on the high setting, it outputs 5,880 lumens. Just like any other Rigid Industries LED light bar, the Capture is water, dust, and shock resistant, so you won’t have to worry about it breaking if it bumps into a tree branch on the trail or gets covered in mud. Although this LED light bar from Rigid Industries doesn’t output a massive amount of light, it’s perfect if you want to record your night time trail riding for all your friends to see.

Warranty: Lifetime
Power: 71W/12W
Output: 5,880/1,764 lumens
Water Proofing: IP68
Build Quality: Excellent

#3 Rigid Industries Dually XL Hyperspot

Third on our list is the Dually XL Hyperspot LED light cubes. We chose these because of their hyper spot projectors which will help you see significantly farther down the trail. Plus these cubes are relatively small which is important on a small vehicle like a UTV. These cubes have twice as many LEDs as the standard Dually lineup which gives them a ton of light output. If you want a bright set of reverse lights, this could be perfect for you.

If you plan on mounting Dually XL light cubes on your front bumper, they will be much more susceptible to getting hit with rocks and other items. Rocks could become an issue with a low quality LED light bar, but with how incredibly tough Rigid Industries light bars are, it’s a non-issue. If you do somehow manage to break these LED light cubes, Rigid Industries will cover it with their lifetime warranty.

Warranty: Lifetime
Power: 33W
Output: 2,736 lumens
Water Proofing: IP68
Build Quality: Excellent

Best Motorcycle LED Light Bars

One of the best things about LED light bars is the ability to install them on anything you want. If you have a “naked” bike or a dirt bike, an LED light bar can help you see and be seen. This will ultimately make riding safer and much more enjoyable.

#1 Rigid Industries Ignite Motorcycle Kit

When it comes to motorcycle lighting, Rigid Industries is pretty much the only way to go. Especially since Rigid offers a kit that makes it super easy to install a light on your motorcycle. Their kit comes with 2x high/low beam LED light pods and a simple wiring system that makes installation a breeze. Depending on the motorcycle you are installing this on, you may need an upgraded stator.

These light pods output a decent amount of light compared to other LED light pod. When compared to the stock headlight on your motorcycle, however, it’s clear just how bright these little lights are. When you’re riding in the desert, it’s pretty easy to crash, and a low-quality light bar wouldn’t withstand impacts like that. Since this is a Rigid Industries product, it’s shock resistance so you won’t have to worry about it breaking if you fall over. Plus, if you manage to break it, it’s covered by a lifetime warranty.

Warranty: Lifetime
Power: 12W each
Output: 1,000 lumens each
Water Proofing: IP68
Build Quality: Excellent

#2 Baja Designs XL Racer Edition

Second on our list are the Baja Designs XL Racer Edition LED light pods. Although these pods are incredibly pricey, they’re engineered explicitly for speeds over 100mph. Being able to see at high speeds is incredibly important, especially on two wheels. This kit also includes a simple wiring harness to make installation nice and smooth. You’ll probably need an upgraded stator since these pods use quite a bit of power.

Outputting an impressive 4,300 lumens each, these pods are sure to light up even the darkest of nights. Unlike the Rigid Industries pods listed above, these lights aren’t specifically designed for motorcycles, so some DIY wiring and mounting may be required. Just like every Baja Designs product, these pods are water and dust resistant, so you won’t have to worry about them dying when you ride through puddles.

Warranty: Lifetime
Power: 40W each
Output: 4,300 lumens each
Water Proofing: IP68
Build Quality: Excellent

#3 Rigid Industries 6” Midnight Edition (Editor’s Choice)

Third on our list is yet another Rigid Industries product. We love the midnight edition LED light bars. The small 6” design will fit on most bikes. The blacked outlook will improve the look of your motorcycle and improve your vision at night. Although this LED light bar isn’t as cheap as the Rigid Industries motorcycle kit, it will output way more light. Rigid Industries also offers an SAE street legal 6” LED light bar if you’re worried about getting a ticket.

It’s pretty common to accidentally down your motorcycle, especially when off-road. Luckily, this LED Light bar from Rigid is shock resistant so you won’t have to worry about it being destroyed from the occasional fall. This 6” Midnight Edition outputs an impressive 4,500 lumens while only consuming 45 watts. Depending on your bike, you may need at upgraded stator to handle the extra load.

Warranty: Lifetime
Power: 45W
Output: 4,500 lumens
Water Proofing: IP68
Build Quality: Excellent

#4 Auxbeam 7” Round Light

There are a lot of motorcycles out there that use round headlights but want a super bright LED upgrade, and this is the perfect solution. Unfortunately, it doesn’t have the blacked-out look of some of the light bars listed above; however, it has a much lower price. Just one of these uses 80W so you may need to upgrade your stator depending on your bike.

Having such a lower price forces, this LED light pod to use lower quality components than a comparable light from Rigid Industries or Baja Designs. The body of the light pod is only IP67 rated so it won’t be able to take repeated hard hits or long periods of submersion in water. There is also a greater possibility of dust getting inside the light. The output is rated at 8,000 lumens, but this is just an estimate from Auxbeam. The actual light output is unknown. For the price, this is one of the best lights you can get for your motorcycle.

Warranty: 1 Year
Power: 80W
Output: 8,000 lumens (estimated)
Water Proofing: IP67
Build Quality: Good

#5 Harley Headlights

On many brand new Harley Davidsons, Harley offers an option for their “Daymaker” headlight, which not only looks awesome, but provides superb light output. Unfortunately, the official “Daymaker” headlights are incredibly expensive and don’t perform to the level many Harley owners would like. Plus, any models without the Daymaker light are stuck with a really dim non-LED headlight. Luckily, there are some awesome options on the market.

The light we are showing here is designed for touring bikes and soft tails equipped with a 7-inch headlight. If you have a Sportster or Dyna, or any other harley with a 5.75-inch headlight, you’ll need this light. Not only do these lights look awesome and similar to the offical Harley lights, they provide fantastic light output, ranging from 3,600 to 2,400 lumens depending on high or low-beam.

This particular kit also includes 2x 4/5-inch passing lights for extra light output. Although these lights are pretty cheap, they are covered by a solid one-year warranty and offer IP67 water protection.

Warranty: 1 Year
Power: 45W
Output: 3,600 lumens / 2,400 lumens
Water Proofing: IP67
Build Quality: Good

What to Look For

I know it’s tempting to buy the cheapest light bar possible. After selling light bars locally for over two years I learned one critical thing, low cost will always equal very low quality. If you think that companies like Rigid Industries or Baja Designs are expensive for no reason, then you are wrong. Companies that produce super cheap lights bar have to make some profit. To turn a profit, they’ll use the cheapest components possible and lie about the quality.

The result is something like a cheap 50” light bar that outputs less light than a 6” Rigid Industries light bar. I understand if you can’t afford a super expensive light bar, but saving up to purchase a quality product is a much better idea than buying a cheap, low-quality Chinese LED light bar. I’m going to tell you what you need to look for in a light bar, so you don’t buy one that sucks.

Different Types of LEDs

The first thing you need to look for is the type of LEDs that the light bar uses. A lot of Chinese LED light bar manufacturers lie about what kind of LEDs they use. It’s very common to see light bars labeled as Cree LED, but they use fake Chinese knock-off LEDs which look like real Cree LEDs. Remember, you get what you pay for. Real Cree LEDs aren’t cheap and they’re easy to fake. Luckily, there are a few key things you can look for to help you identify what kind of LEDs a light bar uses.

Epistar LEDs are always completely round. These are different than most LEDs which are square. Back in the day sellers would claim their light bars used Cree LEDs, but they used Epistar LEDs to lower their cost. I would stay away from these Epistar LEDs because they have abysmal light output and awful light color.

CREE LEDs are always square and look kind of small. These are typically easy to identify because of their smaller footprint. These are a massive step up from Epistar LEDs but don’t provide the best possible light output or color. These are also commonly faked, as real CREE LEDs are relatively expensive. A massive majority of the super cheap LED light bars on Amazon claim to use CREE LEDs, but actually use fakes.

Osram LEDs are always square, but the yellow diode is always round. These are easy to identify because of the little projector that’s on top of the diode. Osram LEDs output the most lumens of all these LEDs thanks to their advanced design. I would argue that the light color is acceptable, but it could be slightly warmer.

Philips LEDs are also square with a round diode. You can tell these apart from the Osram LEDs because they don’t have a large projector on the diode. These output about as much light as Cree LEDs, but they have the best light color.

Different Types of Projectors

The projectors are what forces the light into a pattern instead of letting it go everywhere. There are a few different kinds of projectors although many of the older designs are starting to be phased out in favor of better designs.

Reflector Cup The first design that came onto the light bar scene was the reflector cup. This design continues to appear in low-end light bars today but is starting to die off. This design uses a simple upside-down cone that’s super reflective to direct the light. The problem with this design is that it allows a lot of light to go way outside the usable beam pattern. I would stay away from any light bar using this design because the light output will be poor and the beam will be even worse.

3D Projectors use a very similar design as reflector cups but with a small projector over the diode. This design helps eliminate light spilling far outside the beam which results in a tighter and brighter beam pattern. The 3D projector design is much better than the reflector cup design, but it’s still not very good at putting the light in a tight beam.

4D Projectors are much better than the first two designs. Gone is the upside down reflector cone in favor of an actual projector. The 4D design provides a way better light pattern and ultimately a far more light output. The only problem with this design is that the light isn’t directed into the projector. This allows for light to spill internally which limits light output.

5D Projectors fix the design issue of the 4D projectors and add a reflector cup under the projector. The reflector cup directs all the light into projector resulting in more light output. The beam is the same as a 4D projector but with increased light output. We strongly recommend getting a 5D light bar since it performs so much better than any other design.

6D and 7D Projectors are pretty much the same as a 5D projector. Unfortunately, the Chinese LED light bar industry became obsessed with incrementing the number in front of the D every time a new feature was added. The main features on these are the daytime running lights and light sensors built in. The tight beam pattern makes them safer for road use, but light bars aren’t legal on the street so I wouldn’t bother paying extra for 6D or 7D LED light bars.

8D Projectors are typically a quad row design for the spot beam projectors and sometimes a dual row design for the flood beam projectors. Like I mentioned above, the Chine LED light bar industry is obsessed with increasing the number before the D because of the massive sales increases when the 4D design hit the market. I strongly recommend staying away from 8D LED light bars. They may have a super high lumen count, but the small projectors won’t put all those lumens to good use.

Water and Dust Resistance

Considering that most of you are buying a LED light bar for your truck or Jeep, it’s crucial that you purchase something water and dust resistant. If you find a light bar that you like, but it’s not at least IP67 then stay away from it. If it’s IP67 rated that means it’s entirely dust resistant and water resistant up to 1m deep. An IP68 rating that also means that it is entirely dust resistant, and is water resistant up to 1.5m deep for 30 minutes.

As long as the light bar you’re looking at is at least IP67, you’ll probably be fine. Also be sure to check all the little bolts on the face are tight; If those small bolts wiggle loose dust and water will get into your light bar and ruin it. It’s especially common for dust and water to get into light bars that don’t have bolts on the face (ask us how we know). Lack of bolts on the face is annoyingly common with cheap Chinese light bars. No bolts on the front is a sign of an extremely low-quality light that you should stay away from.

Importance of a Warranty

If a manufacturer is selling a low-quality product, they know it. In rare cases, a reseller will be selling a low-quality product and have no idea that the product sucks. Even in that case, the reseller probably won’t back the product up with any long-term warranty. If the warranty is only three months long, that’s a clear indicator that it’s a lousy product. The manufacturer knows the super cheap components aren’t reliable, so they’ll offer a very short warranty to save money on returns. Margins are incredibly tight in the competitive Chinese light bar market, so saving money on product returns is a cheap way to improve revenue.

We don’t recommend buying another without a lifetime warranty. Anything less than a lifetime warranty is a clear sign of a poorly manufactured product. That doesn’t mean that a lifetime warranty guarantees a high-quality light. If the company that sold the light bar goes out of business the day after you purchase yours, the warranty will be useless. Warranty length ties back to making sure you are buying from a known and trusted company.

Curved vs Straight

A big topic of discussion is curved light bars vs. straight light bars. Each design has its pros and cons, and each person has a different opinion about which one is better. For moderate off-roading, we prefer curved light bars because they light up a broader area than straight light bars. With more of the trail and more of your surroundings lit up, night time off-roading becomes much easier.

Conversely, for heavy off-roading, we prefer straight light bars because it puts more light right on the trail. Straight light bars put significantly less light on the sides of the trail. Straight light bars put more light in a tighter pattern. For some vehicles, such as the Jeep Wrangler, straight light bars are used because the match the shape of the wind screen better than curved light bars.

Many off-road racers prefer straight light bars because it puts more light on the trail and less light off the trail. Straight light bars also project the light much further thanks to their tighter beam pattern. If you’re serious about high-speed off-roading, then we would recommend a straight light bar. If you’re just cruising around on the dirt, a curved light bar may work better for you. Both options are great, so there isn’t a wrong choice.

LED vs HID

If you were around in the off-road scene before light bars become popular you know about HIDs; If you didn’t know, HIDs we’re the best form of off-road lighting back in the day. You’ve probably seen Jeeps with big circle lights on the top before, and those circle lights are likely HIDs. Many people still use HID off-road lights, but at this point, most people have made the switch.

HIDs do one thing very well, and that’s project light an incredibly far distance. Projection distance is one area where cheap light bars are still struggling, but quality light bars like Rigid Industries and Baja Designs are thriving; This is why many well-paid race teams have switched to Rigid Industries LED light bars, but race teams that are still on a budget often use HIDs.

Although HIDs can project light a very far distance, they’re fairly inefficient and produce a very blue colored light. As you may know, blue colored light is bad for off-roading because it lights up dust particles. This phenomenon will make you practically blind while driving, which is why some HIDs have amber tint or amber covers on them.

Spot vs Flood

Another thing you’ll see when buying a light bar is spot beam and flood beam. These are two different designs with different purposes, so you want to make sure you buy the right one. Flood beam is designed to flood the light everywhere. The flood beam design is great, in theory, because it illuminates more stuff compared to a spot beam, but in the real world it doesn’t work out so well. The reason it doesn’t work that well is once the light is spread out, it becomes much less intense. This problem is significantly worse on super cheap Chinese light bars, but not so bad on more expensive ones. For low-speed off-roading, flood beam can work perfectly, as it will help you see more of the stuff in front of you. Once you venture into high-speed off-roading, you need the light to be more condensed into a small area. With the light more condensed into a small area, it can ultimately reach farther distances without losing too much intensity.

Spot beam is much more useful thanks to its tighter beam pattern. It puts more light where you need it, and less where you don’t. Spot + Flood light bars combine the best of both worlds, although we prefer spot beam. Of course, not all spot beam patterns are the same. A cheap Chinese light bar with a “hyper spot beam” will have a similar beam angle to Rigid’s spot beam. Professional racers generally use Rigid Industries or Baja Designs lights, because the spot beam patterns of those lights are very condensed which allows the light to be intense even at long distances.

Amber Color vs White Color

One of the biggest problems you’ll face when using a light bar is being able to see through the dust. There have been times when we turned our light bars off because they were making it even harder to see through the dust. This situation happens because the light emitting from the LED light bar will reflect off of the dust particles instead of cutting through the dust. A simple solution to this problem is mounting LED light bars down on the bumper, as the dust won’t light up directly in front of the windshield.

The easiest way to have a light go through the dust is to make it the same color as the dust (that’s the theory, at least). Some light bars are completely amber colored, and some light bars can switch from white to amber. There are also claims that colors such as green cut through the dust even better than amber, but we cannot confirm these claims. The choice is yours, but we highly recommend an amber light bar if you plan on doing any desert racing. If you can afford it, an LED light bar which can switch from white to amber is even better.

Single Row vs Double Row

We’ve already covered this topic extensively in our Single Row vs. Double Row article, but we want to touch base on it quickly. Most light bars use a double row design because of its high lumen output and good projector design. When space is a constraint, a single row LED light bar must be used. Using a single-row LED light bar is common when mounting in hood scoops or bumper slots. Single row LED light bars can also use deeper and larger projectors to send the light further down the trail, which is why companies like Baja Designs exclusively use the single row design. With a larger projector, you direct more on the light down the trail where you want it.

One of the most innovative LED light bars to come out, is the ADAPT series from Rigid Industries. The ADAPT series allows the beam pattern and total output to be changed based on speed, so you’ll never have to worry about out-running your lights. The single row design allowed to use massive projectors which is how they use their adaptive lighting technology. Other companies, like Rigid Horse, use as many rows of light as possible in their light bars. While this does add up to a very high theoretical lumen count, the quad row design forces the use of tiny projectors. These small projectors ultimately do not direct the light forward very well, resulting in a ton of light being spilled outside your view.

Importance of Vehicle Specific Brackets

I know it’s tempting to save a couple of bucks and use the brackets that come with light bars. If you’re planning on mounting the light bar somewhere other than your roof, then that might be okay, but if you’re planning on mounting your light bar on your roof, then we highly recommend purchasing vehicle specific brackets.

The brackets that come with a light bar are made to be mounted on a flat surface. The roof of your truck or SUV isn’t completely flat. Furthermore, the stock mounts require holes to be drilled directly into your roof. The roof isn’t designed to hold the weight of a light bar and eventually there will be massive dents where your light bar was mounted.

Vehicle specific brackets fix this by mounting the light bar to your door jambs or roof rack. Both the door jambs and roof rack are designed for holding up weight indefinitely. Vehicle specific brackets also position the light bar in a much more optimal position and look WAY better.

An excellent place to look for vehicle specific prices is Rough Country. They offer brackets for many different vehicles ranging from Ford trucks to Jeeps. We’ve used Rough Country brackets in the past, and they were great. Another option is to have a local fabrication shop make custom brackets for you. Although custom-made brackets are more expensive, they’ll probably look better than the cheap brackets supplied with your light bar.

Quality vs Price

Something should talk about before we start is the importance of quality. You wouldn’t be proud of your cell phone if it was a knock-off iPhone, would you? Just because you found a 50” LED light bar on Amazon for $75 doesn’t mean you should buy it. Super cheap LED light bars have extremely poor light output, light pattern, and build quality. If your friend claims his cheap LED light bar is as bright as a Rigid Industries LED light bar, then your friend has never actually seen a Rigid Industries LED light bar.

Time and time again I see 20” Rigid Industries LED light bars that outperform 2x cheap 50” LED light bars. I am telling you after years of selling LED light bars locally, don’t buy cheap Chinese LED light bars. You’ll be buying a low-quality product that will break and effectively waste your money. Buy a product you’re proud of and buy from a company that will always stand behind their products.