To find the absolute best Christmas lights for indoors, we spent several weeks researching indoor lighting products and tested each for 28 hours, comparing each light's brightness, bulb shape and size, length, quality, and features .
Before shopping, make a plan for where and how you want to hang your lights, says Lance Allen, Decorative Holiday Merchant at The Home Depot. “Decking the halls looks different for everyone, but I do recommend mapping out a plan for your lights to get the best results. Pick a focal point to highlight. Place your brightest lights or a higher concentration of lights on the areas you want to pull the most focus on and build out your plan from there," he says.
No holiday display is complete without a few strings of Christmas lights, and no matter your style, there are plenty of indoor string lights to help make your home festive.
Best Overall
Wintergreen Lighting 5mm LED Christmas Lights
Amazon
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Our Ratings
What We Like
Extremely bright lights
3 year warranty
One-piece bulbs resist corrosion
Able to connect up to 44 strands
What We Don't Like
Bulbs can’t be replaced
Could come in longer strands
For bright, festive indoor lights that will stand the test of time, we recommend the Wintergreen Lighting 5mm LED Christmas Lights. They were the brightest and most vibrant lights out of more than a dozen products we tested. These holiday lights are 24 feet long with 70 bulbs on each strand, and they’re available in a variety of popular color schemes, including amber and cool white, red, multi-colored, and even red and white. Plus, you can connect up to 44 strands end-to-end using just one outlet, allowing you to create bigger and brighter displays.
When testing the Wintergreen Lighting Christmas Lights at home, we liked that they had one-piece professional-grade bulbs, which keep moisture and dust out to prevent corroding. The lights are Energy Star-certified, and the brand offers a 3-year seasonal warranty as well.
While a tad more expensive than other picks, we agreed these were extremely high-quality and seemingly long-lasting, so you won't have to replace them as often. One downside is that individual bulbs are not replaceable, and we wish these came in longer strands. Still, the brightness and variety remain unmatched.
Price at time of publish: $25
Bulb Type: LED | Bulb Shape: 5mm conical | Length: 24 feet | Maximum Connected Strands: 44
The Spruce / Camryn Rabideau
Best Budget
Home Accents Holiday 100-Light LED Mini Warm White String Light
Amazon
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Our Ratings
What We Like
Long-lasting
Classic appearance
Also available in multi-colored options
Able to connect up to 30 strands
What We Don't Like
Slight strobing effect
Not the brightest lights we tested
These under $20 Christmas lights are just under 30 feet long with 100 bulbs per strand. The Home Accents Holiday Mini String Lights feature T5 mini bulbs in a warm white color for a traditional holiday display. (They’re also available in a multi-colored option.) You can connect up to 30 sets of these LED lights, and they come with a few replacement bulbs in case one ever goes out.
While we appreciated the classic look of these Christmas lights in testing, we noticed that they have a slight strobing effect (caused by a lack of rectifiers). It’s not as noticeable when the lights are spread out and hung on a tree covered with ornaments, but it can make your eyes hurt if they're bunched up closely together, you stare at them for too long, or you're sensitive to flashing lights. Additionally, these lights weren't the brightest of the bunch we tested, but they were plenty bright for an indoor Christmas display and looked very pretty on the tree.
Price at time of publish: $20
Bulb Type: LED | Bulb Shape: T5 mini | Length: 29.5 feet | Maximum Connected Strands: 30
The Spruce / Camryn Rabideau
Expert Buying Tip
"I recommend paying attention to the connection limits of light strands. Don’t connect more strands together than the directions recommend." –Lance Allen, Decorative Holiday Merchant at The Home Depot
Best White
GE Energy Smart Colorite Miniature LED 100-Light Set
Walmart
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Our Ratings
What We Like
Good value
Extremely bright and vibrant
Strand stays lit if a bulb is out
What We Don't Like
Not available in other colors
Bright white isn't as cozy as warm yellow
For those who enjoy pure white Christmas lights, we recommend the GE Energy Smart Colorite LED Light Set, which impressed us with its brightness. These Christmas lights have classic T5 mini bulbs, but they’re slightly larger than usual and extremely bright, making them stand out from the competition. The Energy Star-qualified lights meet strict energy efficiency criteria set by the US Environmental Protection Agency or the US Department of Energy, which helps you save money on utility bills, without sacrificing brightness or performance.
Each stand is 33 feet long with a total of 100 LED lights. While these aren't professional-grade lights, they still seemed to be very well made when evaluated during testing. The white Christmas lights have “constant on” technology, meaning you won’t lose the whole strand if a bulb burns out or comes loose. (They do come with replacement bulbs and fuses nonetheless.) You can connect up to 25 strands of these lights end-to-end.
Price at time of publish: $16
Bulb Type: LED | Bulb Shape: T5 mini | Length: 33 feet | Maximum Connected Strands: 25C
The Spruce / Camryn Rabideau
How do you fix indoor Christmas lights?
If your Christmas lights aren’t turning on, there are a few troubleshooting steps to take. The first step to fix Christmas lights is to check that there’s power to the wall outlet. If that’s not the problem, you’ll want to check to see if any of the bulbs are loose or burned out and replace them, if needed. If that doesn’t work, you can also try replacing the fuses, which are located in the plug—most string lights come with one or two replacement fuses, which are small metal and glass cylinders.
Best Colored
Pro Christmas T5 Smooth LED Christmas Lights
Christmas Designers
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Our Ratings
What We Like
Available in numerous colors
Bright and colorful
Double sealed against the elements
What We Don't Like
Not the most saturated in color
If you’re looking for classic colored Christmas lights to deck your holiday tree, the Pro Christmas T5 LED Lights are bright and cheerful. They come in a range of hues, including multi-colored, red and green, and blue. In testing, we noticed they weren't the most saturated in terms of color, but they’re fairly bright and look fine wrapped around a Christmas tree. Plus, the professional-grade lights feature a one-piece bulb and socket design that prevents rust and corrosion, ensuring your lights last for years to come.
These Christmas lights are over 23 feet long with 70 bulbs on each strand, and you can connect up to 44 sets end-to-end to decorate even the largest displays. We liked that the lights are fully wave rectified, meaning there’s no discernible flicker from the LED bulbs.
Price at time of publish: $22
Bulb Type: LED | Bulb Shape: T5 mini | Length: 23.3 feet | Maximum Connected Strands: 43
The Spruce / Camryn Rabideau
Best for Christmas Trees
MZD8391 105FT 300LEDs Christmas Lights
Amazon
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Our Ratings
What We Like
Extra long strand
Can be used outdoors as well
Offers several lighting effects
What We Don't Like
No replacement bulbs
Smaller bulbs
There’s nothing worse than running out of lights when you still have several feet to go in your decoration, but that won’t be an issue with the MZD8391 Christmas Lights, which measure in at an impressive 105 feet (the longest on our list), making it a great choice for artificial or live Christmas trees of any size. This extra-long strand of lights is available in both multi-colored and white options, and we found that they’re brighter than many other products, even though the bulbs are quite small.
This set of lights has 300 LED bulbs that span 99 feet of its length, and the remaining 6 feet is an extra-long lead—ideal if your outlet isn’t close by. We liked that the wires of these Christmas lights are noticeably thinner than the norm, making them easy to hide in a holiday tree or other decoration, and as an added bonus, there’s even a button on the plug that allows you to cycle through the set’s eight lighting effects, transforming your tree into a colorful light show.
Price at time of publish: $22
Bulb Type: LED | Bulb Shape: Not listed | Length: 105 feet | Maximum Connected Strands: 4
The Spruce / Camryn Rabideau
Expert Buying Tip
"Consider where you are hanging lights, LED bulbs are best suited for live trees and wreaths because they stay cool to touch and prevent fires." –Lance Allen, Decorative Holiday Merchant at The Home Depot
Best Professional-Grade
Holiday Essence LED Mini Christmas Lights
Amazon
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Our Ratings
What We Like
Durable one-piece bulbs
Bright and colorful
Able to connect up to 45 strands
What We Don't Like
Very short
Slight strobing effect
If you’re tired of having Christmas lights burn out after just one or two seasons, it might be time to upgrade to professional-grade lights, such as the Holiday Essence LED Mini Christmas Lights. Many of the experts we spoke to recommend using this type of light, as the bulbs and sockets are one solid piece, preventing moisture, dirt, and dust from getting into the bulbs and causing them to burn out prematurely.
Keep in mind these lights are quite short at just 16 feet (the shortest on our list). While there are 60 LED bulbs on each strand, we found that you need at least two sets to decorate a Christmas tree, maybe even three. The lights come in both multi-colored and white options, and you can connect up to 45 strands of them together to complete your holiday display.
Price at time of publish: $14
Bulb Type: LED | Bulb Shape: 5mm conical | Length: 16 feet | Maximum Connected Strands: 45
The Spruce / Camryn Rabideau
Best Large Bulb
NOMA C6 LED Christmas Lights
Amazon
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Our Ratings
What We Like
Cute faceted bulbs
Ideal for larger displays
Replacement bulbs included
What We Don't Like
No lead wire
The colored lights aren't as vibrant
The NOMA C6 LED Christmas Lights are perfect for those times you want to make a bolder statement—the C6 bulbs have a pretty teardrop-shaped faceted design that we loved in testing. We also appreciated that they’re not so big that they seem out of place indoors.
These lights come in a wide range of colors, and each strand is over 23 feet long with 70 bulbs spaced 4 inches apart. During our tests, we found that the colors aren’t as vibrant as other Christmas lights, but they still stand out on a tree thanks to their unique shape. You can connect up to 45 strands of these lights together, but the one downside is that there’s virtually no lead wire, meaning the bulbs start immediately after the plug.
Price at time of publish: $25
Bulb Type: LED | Bulb Shape: C6 | Length: 23.8 feet | Maximum Connected Strands: 45
The Spruce / Camryn Rabideau
Best Smart
Twinkly App-Controlled LED Christmas Lights
Amazon
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Our Ratings
What We Like
Extremely high quality
Able to be controlled via smartphone
Many customization options
What We Don't Like
Somewhat complicated to set up
If simple lighting displays just aren’t your style, the Twinkly LED String Lights give you more customization options than you ever thought possible. These high-end Christmas lights actually sync up to your smartphone, and through the Twinkly app, you’re able to put them on a timer, adjust the brightness, and play around with dozens of lighting effects. In testing, we found that it was easy to sync the strands to the app, and we were impressed that the app can even use the phone’s camera to “map” the lights and ensure its lighting patterns are optimized.
The Twinkly Lights offer 65.5 feet of wire and 250 LED bulbs—enough to cover a large tree—but we thought it was strange that the string lights are actually split into two separate strands, both of which are connected to the main control unit. Our testing notes report that this unconventional design makes it somewhat complicated to set the lights up, but thankfully, both strands have a generous lead wire to get them where they need to go. The lights have the brand’s AWW bulbs, which appear to be a smaller version of 5mm conical bulbs, and they do get a little warm to the touch if left on for long periods, so just make sure to handle them with care.
Price at time of publish: $63 for 26 feet
Bulb Type: LED | Bulb Shape: AWW | Length: 65.5 feet | Maximum Connected Strands: N/A
The Spruce / Camryn Rabideau
Best Lighting Effects
JMEXSUSS LED Indoor String Lights
Amazon
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Our Ratings
What We Like
8 lighting effects
Clear wire blends in at night
UL588 safe certified
What We Don't Like
Extremely long lead wire
No way to connect multiple strands
For a more dynamic Christmas display, the JMEXSUSS LED Indoor String Lights have eight lighting modes, including twinkling, chasing, slow fade, and more. During testing, we found the lights to be warm, cozy, and bright, despite having smaller-than-usual bulbs. We also liked that the strand’s wires were clear and thin, which made them virtually invisible at night.
These Christmas lights are 43 feet long in total, but it’s important to note that only 33 feet of the wire are lit—there’s a generous lead wire that’s 10 feet long (overly generous). To change the lighting effect, you simply press a button on the plug but keep in mind that you’re not able to connect multiple strands.
Price at time of publish: $17
Bulb Type: LED | Bulb Shape: Not listed | Length: 43 feet | Maximum Connected Strands: N/A
The Spruce / Camryn Rabideau
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