Flashlights are an essential item for nighttime outdoor activities like camping or walking a dog, emergency situations, or whenever you need an alternative and portable light source. The average flashlight shines a decent enough beam, but if you’re looking for something brighter, there are significantly brighter flashlights available.
The world’s brightest flashlight clocks in at 100,000 lumens, but our list also consists of flashlights that can reach 80,000, 65,000, and 34,000 lumens and have impressively long battery lives as well as built-in fans to keep them cool. We’ve rounded up the brightest flashlights to shine a light on whatever you need.
Also: Scared of the dark? You won’t be if you get one of our favorite flashlights
pros
World’s brightest flashlight
Super bright light
Long distance
Impressive battery life
cons
Long charging time
Relatively heavy
Tech Specs: Lumens: 100,000 lumens | Distance: 4,429 feet | Battery Life: 14 hours on lowest setting | IP Rating: IP56
The brightest flashlight you can currently get is the IMALENT MS18. It can get up to 100,000 lumens, making it 50 times brighter than car lights. That highest brightness level will last about a minute before it dims to 25,000 lumens, which it can sustain for an hour. It has nine settings, including cold or warm light options as well as a strobing light, and it has an OLED digital display to show the battery level.
This flashlight also has a heat pipe-cooling system that uses cooling fans to ensure high performance and longer runtime when it’s at its brightest (and so that it doesn’t overheat in your hands). In addition, its IP56 rating means that it is water- and dust-resistant.
pros
Durable material
Most affordable
Displays battery level
cons
On the heavier side
Tech Specs: Lumens: 4,200 lumens | Distance: 820 feet | Battery life: Up to 15 days (on lowest lumen setting) | IP Rating: IPX8
You get what you pay for, and you’ll notice the brightest lumen flashlights on this list can reach up to $600. But if you still want a brighter-than-average flashlight for less than $150, this option from OLIGHT reaches a maximum output of 4,200 lumens for 2.5 minutes and up to 820 feet. There are five different modes to choose from, and a rotary knob switch on the head of the flashlight allows for smooth adjustment between the different brightness levels.
pros
Portable design
Built-in cooling fans for high lumens settings
cons
Fans can be noisy
Low mode is still a bit bright at 1,500 lumens
Tech Specs: Lumens: 65,000 lumens | Distance: 3,399 feet | Battery life: Up to 4 hours on lowest setting | IP Rating: IP56
Another flashlight from IMALENT produces almost as impressive lumens but is more compact for better portability. The flashlight can get up to 65,000 lumens for 45 seconds (turbo) before it goes down to 25,000 lumens for three minutes. It recharges in just two hours with a 2A adapter and can last up to four hours on a full charge.
This flashlight has seven settings, including turbo and strobe. In addition, three high-performing cooling fans automatically turn on at 5,000 lumens or higher output levels.
pros
Windy mode
IP68 rating means it can be submerged in water for longer periods
Short charging time
cons
Loud fan
Pricey battery replacement
Tech Specs: Lumens: 80,000 lumens | Distance: 3,773 feet | Battery life: 8 hours | IP Rating: IP68
Most of these bright flashlights take longer to charge since they use so many lumens, but this flashlight from ACEBEAM only takes 1.5 hours to charge fully. Its turbo mode reached 80,000 lumens for 30 seconds but can run at 23,000 lumens for 20 minutes.
This flashlight has a built-in dual intelligent temperature regulation system, including an innovative cooling handle that turns on automatically when the flashlight needs to be cooled down. It’ll even cool itself down after you’ve turned off the light, known as its Windy Mode.
pros
Lightweight and portable with a handle
Battery voltage indication
cons
Charger not included with flashlight
Can get very hot
At just .73 pounds that fits in the palm of your hand, this flashlight from ACEBEAM is super lightweight but will still shine up to 32,500 lumens. It has seven different settings and has the most durable IP rating on this list—IPX8—meaning it is shockproof and waterproof up to 98 feet in water.
The world’s brightest flashlight is currently the IMALENT MS18 which can get up to 100,000 lumens and reach up to 4,429 feet.
|
Flashlight |
Price |
Lumens |
Beam distance |
|
IMALENT MS18 |
$700 |
Up to 100,000 lumens |
4,429 feet |
|
OLIGHT Seeker 3 Pro |
$140 |
Up to 4,200 lumens |
820 feet |
|
$410 |
Up to 65,000 lumens |
3,399 feet |
|
|
ACEBEAM X75 |
$400 |
Up to 80,000 lumens |
3,773 feet |
|
ACEBEAM X80GT |
$330 |
Up to 34,000 lumens |
1,224 feet |
Any of the flashlights on this light will be bright and have high lumens, but it really depends on the size of flashlight you are looking for and what price you’re willing to spend.
|
Choose this bright flashlight… |
If you want… |
|
IMALENT MS18 |
The brightest flashlight overall. |
|
OLIGHT Seeker 3 Pro |
A budget-friendly flashlight that shines bright. |
|
IMALENT MS12 Mini |
A compact flashlight that gets up to 65,000 lumens. |
|
ACEBEAM X75 |
A super bright flashlight that charges super fast. |
|
ACEBEAM X80GT |
A bright flashlight that weighs less than a pound. |
We chose these bright flashlights through extensive research in the market. We compared lumens, IP ratings, beam distance, and different price points to provide you with a wide variety of options.
Lumens is a measure of the intensity of the light coming out of the flashlight, on the highest brightness setting. It may also be shown for multiple light settings.
The average flashlight emits about 100 lumens. However, the higher the lumens, the brighter the flashlight will be.
Your smartphone’s built-in flashlight only gets up to 40-50 lumens, so it is a significantly dim light compared to your average flashlight, and especially these bright flashlights.
Here are a few other options to look into:
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