solar path lights outside the house over the garden

10 Best Solar Path Lights in [current_year] (Review)

Nobody likes to get home at night through a dark path or sidewalk. One of the most beautiful additions that you can purchase for your driveway is a solar powered path light.

These devices are designed with LED technology to maximize your energy savings and to last many years. There are many options available in the market, however, here we will show you the best solar path lights in [current_year].

You will learn about the most interesting solar pathway lights reviews, the 5 things that you cannot forget about when choosing one of these products, how to light up your own solar pathway, how many lights do you need and much more!

Carlos

Written by qualified solar engineer Carlos. Last updated:

The Best Solar Path Lights

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1. Gardenbliss Solar Path Lights

front facing gardenbliss solar path lights

Key Features:

  • Weather resistant with double-waterproof seal
  • NiMH battery technology
  • LED lights

Key Specifications:

  • Weather resistant with double-waterproof seal
  • NiMH battery technology
  • LED lights

Where To Buy

Elegant, reliable and lasting. The solar path lights from Gardenbliss Solar are a great solution to provide a remarkable enhancement to the appearance of your walkway or patio at home during the night.

This kit brings 10 led solar pathway lights that are powered using energy from the sun over the day to charge a battery based in nickel-metal hydrate (NiMH) technology. These batteries can be completely discharged and fully charged again by solar power without suffering any damage or reduction in performance as lithium-ion technology would have if completely discharged.

Moreover, the advantage of this kit is that the solar led pathway lights are guaranteed to last a long time (over 30,000 hours of operation during the night). These lights also have a small polycrystalline solar panel on the top of the structure that allows them to detect the presence or absence of light. This acts as a sensor that will automatically turn on the light as soon as the night falls.

GardenBliss made a beautiful design with two height options to suit the needs of different customers. Meaning you can adjust the height to either 12 inches or 8 inches.

2. Enchanted Spaces Solar Path Lights

front facing enchanted spaces solar path lights

Key Features:

  • Glass lens with beautiful light patterns
  • 10-12 days required to fully charge the battery for the first time
  • Illumination range: 4×4 foot square area

Key Specifications:

  • 500mAh AA NiMH battery
  • Tall height: 16 inches
  • Weight: 2.6 pounds

Where To Buy

Another great option to light up the areas of your house. Enchanted Spaces solar path lights use LED technology to provide bright illumination to your walkway.

This product requires 10-12 charges under direct sunlight to reach maximum battery capacity, this will depend on the available amount of light for each day. This charging requirement is referred only to the first charge.

Once the 500mAh AA NiMH battery is fully charged for the first time, the energy storage device is able to get fully charged every day using solar power.

The set is easy to install as it does not require wiring to make the installation and the products include metal ground stakes that must simply be forced into the ground (grass) to position the Enchanted Spaces solar path lights.

Moreover, these modern solar path lights are designed with glass lens that provide a beautiful star-shaped light pattern on the ground.

As with other solar lights, these products automatically turn on as soon the night falls using their solar panel as a light sensor.

3. Moonrays 91381 Solar Path Lights

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front facing moonrays 91754 solar path lights

Key Features:

  • 360° display and 120° beam angle.
  • Weather resistant
  • Ribbed bronze finish

Key Specifications:

  • Strong battery capacity:1,500mAh
  • Lasts up to 8 hours during the night.
  • Illumination range: 48-inch area and 14 inches above the ground

Where To Buy

Moonrays 91381 offers one of the top-rated solar path lights in the market. Designed with an elegant ribbed bronze finish and glass lens that enhance the aesthetics and architectural view of your home.

These 30 lumen solar path lights are designed with warm 35-watt LED bulbs (25 times brighter than standard lights) that provide bright white light. These products also provide a 360° display and a 120° beam angle for a sophisticated and high-quality landscape lighting.

Moreover, Moonrays lighting fixtures have a solar module that constantly recharges 3 AA NiMH batteries that have an overall capacity of 1,500 mAh and that can last up to 8 hours during the night.

These high lumen solar path lights have a lumen output that is designed to cover a 48-inch area and over 14-inches above the ground.

The set includes a 2-pack lighting fixture that is easy to install as all the requires is to push the ground stakes into the soft earth and activate the product, no wiring needed. Bright light will turn on automatically as it gets dark.

4. SolarGlow Super-Bright 15 Lumens

front facing solarGlow super-bright 15 lumens

Key Features:

  • Rugged ABS plastic construction
  • 100% lifetime replacement guarantee
  • Weather resistant

Key Specifications:

  • 8 hours of light availability over the night
  • 15-lumen output
  • Dimensions: 17.5 x 12.3 x 7.4 inches

Where To Buy

SolarGlow also offers this 6 pack of solar powered path lights for your driveway or paths.

Designed with rugged ABS plastic construction, they provide a tough weather resistance that guarantees long lasting solar path lights. They can be exposed to extreme weather conditions such as rain, snow, or even frost.

One of the best and more interesting features that the brand offers is a 100% lifetime replacement guarantee that certainly indicates a high-quality product.

SolarGlow path lights are also designed to last up to 8 hours during the night using solar power to charge batteries during the day. Besides, they have a 15-lumen output capacity.

Ease of installation is an important feature. As with other solar path lights, the 3 plastic stakes can be buried into the ground. By simply placing them under direct sunlight, the solar panel is able to charge the battery and turn the light on when night falls.

5. Subsistent (Warm White)

front facing subsistent (warm white)

Key Features:

  • 8 LED bulbs
  • Spike lighting
  • IP67 waterproof protection

Key Specifications:

  • 5.4 square inch solar panel.
  • 5 hours to charge
  • 600mAh lithium-ion based battery

Where To Buy

The unique solar powered LED disk lights from Subsistent (Warm White) for walkways are a unique option to light up the entrance of your house.

Designed to act as solar garden lights, these pathway lights have 8 LED bulbs that provide a bright white light that comes from the ground and goes up towards the sky, making them act as path torches.

Moreover, the product is a 4-pack set with solar pathway lights that have been designed with a high-quality aluminum alloy material that provides IP67 waterproof protection.

In-ground solar path lights like these have a plastic and sharp cone-shaped stake that can be introduced into the grass without the need for any other installation procedure.

They are also sized with a 5.4 square inch solar panel that provides 120mAh per hour and that can fully charge the 600mAh lithium-ion battery installed in the pathway solar lights with just 5 hours of full sunlight.

The lighting fixture is also designed to work under three modes of operation (ON/FLASH/OFF), adjustable via the switch button located on the back of the panel

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6. GELOO (Warm White)

side facing geldo (warm white)

Key Features:

  • Yellow light
  • IP65 waterproof protection
  • Charging time: 6-8 hours of sunlight

Key Specifications:

  • 1,000mAh lithium-ion battery
  • 8-12 hours of illumination over the night
  • Solar panel efficiency: 17%

Where To Buy

GELOO (Warm White) brings a beautiful design six-pack of solar powered lights, perfect for the yard, patio, sidewalks, driveways, or even to be placed close to a swimming pool.

Completely powered by solar energy, the lighting fixtures do not require any wiring nor electricity from the grid to light up the night.

By absorbing nearly 6-8 hours of sunlight (estimated charging time, variable depending on weather conditions), the pathway solar lights can provide between 8-12 hours of illumination over the night using a 1,000 mAh lithium-ion battery. Charging is made through a small solar panel placed on top of the pathway lights with a 17% efficiency and an 880 mW power output.

The product is IP65 waterproof protected (dust and water jet protection) and has been designed with a warm yellow LED light to offer an elegant illumination powered by solar energy.

7. GIGALUMI 6 Pack

side facing gigalumi 6 pack

Key Features:

  • Glass and bronze metal finish
  • Lighting pattern design
  • Weatherproof

Key Specifications:

  • 10 hours of operation over the night
  • 400mAH NiMH battery
  • 19 inches height (including the stake)

Where To Buy

The GIGALUMI 6 Pack solar path lights have a beautiful antique design that is integrated with a glass lens that provides a sophisticated pattern and lighting effect with a soft white tone.

Moreover, the structure has been manufactured with a bronze finish that adds an elegant touch to your yard.

The installation process is very simple as the metal stakes need to be pushed into the ground to secure and position them. Once the switch located on the back of the panel is on, the pathway lights will automatically turn on at night and turn off during the day.

Regarding some important specs, the Gigalumi solar lights are designed to run over 10 hours during the night using the charge during the day. The metal solar pathway lights work through a 400mAh AA NiMH battery that can be discharged to 0% and charged up to 100% without suffering damages

8. Voona 8-Pack (Silver)

side facing voona 8-pack (silver)

Key Features:

  • Stainless-steel body and top.
  • High-density plastic ground stake
  • Automatic turn on/off

Key Specifications:

  • 500mAh NiMH battery capacity
  • 6-lumen output capacity per light
  • Dimensions: 4.7 x 15.8 x 4.7 inches

Where To Buy

Maybe one of the most valuable and yet cheap solar path lights are the Voona 8-Pack (Silver) solar landscape lights.

Small yet stylish, these solar powered path lights have a stainless-steel design that is integrated with glass lens which create a Sun pattern lighting effect that has no match on this list.

Moreover, the stainless-steel design is made mainly for the body of the path light, however, the ground stake is made out of high-density plastic. The body allows it to endure harsh weather conditions.

Using a 6-lumen output LED technology, the solar powered lamps provide a warm white light appearance to the driveway or patio where they are placed. The product also uses a pre-installed rechargeable NiMH 500mAh battery that can work to provide power to the LED bulb over 8 hours, suitable for night time.

Unlike another solar path light set, this product includes 8 lamps at an affordable price, which makes it an attractive balance between performance, aesthetics, and price.

9. GIGALUMI Solar Light

front facing gigalumi white-4pack

Key Features:

  • Color changing LED lights
  • Stainless steel construction
  • Dual LED mode

Key Specifications:

  • 9 inches height above ground
  • 600mAh AAA NiMH battery capacity
  • Working time: 8 hours

Where To Buy

Another interesting option to light up your pathways or patio area.

The GIGALUMI Solar Light Solar path lighting fixtures have an important aesthetic feature that makes them different from the other products, they change the light color.

By installing these color changing solar path lights, the area that you wish to light up will have a romantic and beautiful atmosphere, illuminated by green, purple, red, pink, orange or blue LED lights with a flower or diamond pattern that will be visible on the ground.

Each LED light will have two operating modes as well. One of the lamps will change colors, and the other will have a constant white color that will have a more elegant and brighter illumination effect.

The product is made out of stainless-steel in its body and top side, and it has a 9-inch-tall height above ground.

Additionally, it is integrated with a solar panel that charges a 600mAh AAA NiMH rechargeable battery that is able to work over 8 hours during the night, depending on weather conditions.

10. Maggift 12 Pack

side facing maggift 12 pack

Key Features:

  • IP44 waterproof protection
  • Cool white light
  • Charging time: 6-8 hours

Key Specifications:

  • 200mAh NiMH battery capacity
  • Lasts between 6-8 hours
  • 2 lumens lighting output

Where To Buy

The simple and most affordable solution of the list are the Maggift 12 Pack solar LED pathway lights.

This product has been designed to provide an efficient lighting solution for your driveway or walkway.

The installation process of this lamp is simple. First, you must remove the stake and glass cover. Later you must also remove the tab under the light cap in order to activate the lamp for first use. Then, simply reassemble the parts and push it into the ground.

Maggift has focused on providing a cool white color for this product, offering a clear plastic lens to create a pretty light effect on the ground.

Moreover, the solar panel installed on top of the solar powered lights is also able to charge the 200mAh NiMH battery within 6-8 hours of sunlight. At the same time, this battery capacity is enough to power the lights for 6-8 hours during the night.

Keep in mind that these solar pathway lights only have a 2-lumen output, so they provide low illumination.

How to Choose Solar Path Lights – 5 Things to Think About

Aesthetic Design

The main idea of an LED lamp for your driveway or sidewalk is to provide a bright light as you approach your home at night. However, there is no need to focus only on the practical purpose.

One of the main advantages of solar powered path lights is that no ugly or dangerous wire is needed across your yard to power the lamps. This also allows you to focus on providing a beautiful entrance to the area.

There are multiple options for you to choose from. Path lights can have a silver brown, bronze or matte black appearance. Light patterns are also variable and they provide a unique design view to your house.

Moreover, there are different sizes and shapes as well. Some have an antique look style while others have a modern design. Actually, you can also choose disk lights that do not show themselves above the ground if you do not like the idea of the lamps jumping out to sight or you can find hanging solar pathway lights if you like them above the ground.

Security or Decorative Purpose (Light Colors and Intensity)

The second factor that you should think of is the purpose of installing solar led pathway lights.

There are two main possibilities: security or decoration.

If you are looking for a decorative purpose, then the lumens or the lighting capacity are not that important. Here you can focus on a solar path light that provides soft illumination. Moreover, decorative solar pathway lights can also have a color changing feature that is most attractive and original.

However, if you want to install them to make you feel more secure when getting home, then you must definitely select the brightest solar path lights. For this aspect, the lumen output is essential as well as the height of the lamp. We will discuss more about it below. If what you are looking for is security, you might also want to consider purchasing a solar motion light

There is also the option to mix both security and decoration by choosing a beautiful and bright option like Moonrays, which have received lots of positive solar path lights reviews.

Battery life and Capacity

Among the specs that you must look into, the battery life and capacity are definitely one of the most important.

These products should last for years, and the riskiest element of the solar light is the battery. Typical battery life for these are between 2-4 years. Meanwhile, solar panels and LED lights can last up to 25 years. As you can see, the longer the battery lasts, the fewer replacements it will need.

On the other hand, the battery capacity is a great indicator of how long the battery will take to charge and how long it will last as well.

The great advantage of choosing a high battery capacity solar light is that on cloudy or winter days when the solar radiation is not good, your path light will still be able to light up the area for more consecutive nights.

Choosing low battery capacity path lights is good on one side as the battery gets fully charged during a single day. But, if one day is sunny and the next one is cloudy, you might end up having light at night during the first day only.

Therefore, if you have a good solar resource in your location, you can opt for either low or high battery capacity solar path lights. However, if you do not have a good solar resource, select one with a high energy storage capacity.

Lumen output

Our next factor to consider is the lumen output.

A lumen is a unit that quantifies the amount or the intensity of light coming from a single source. In other words, the lumen unit establishes how bright the lamp is. More lumens mean a brighter light.

Typical lumen ranges for solar path lights are located between 2 and 200 lumens. Lower lumen units are intended mainly for decorative purposes while higher values can be intended for both security and decoration.

For instance, 100 lumen solar path lights would mainly be intended to provide security. Meanwhile, 10 lumen solar path lights would be designed mainly for decoration purposes.

A good sample to serve both purposes would be choosing 50 or 60 lumen solar path lights.

Weather conditions and Resistance

Since the solar path lights will constantly be located outdoors, they must be able to endure the weather patterns of your area.

Here, the most important indicator is the IPXZ waterproof protection grade. This is an international standard referred to the resistance of any product against the presence of dust or water.

The standard establishes that the first number (X) is referred to as the grade of protection against dust particles. Meanwhile, the second number (Z) is referred to the water protection (water jet or submersion resistance over time).

You must also verify if the product is able to withstand frost, especially in Northern regions.

How Many Lumens do the Lights Need to be so That They are Bright Enough?

solar path lights over the grass

You may find many answers to this question related to average estimations based on watts of light bulbs. Most of them will tell you that you will need around path lights around 100 lumens to be bright enough. Does that mean that solar lights below this value should not be considered? Yes, they should!

Lighting designing has many complex variables, however, the most important one of them is a unit called Lux. The lux represents the number of lumens per square meter (lm/m2).

International standards establish a specific amount of lumens for each area, whether it is for indoor or outdoor lighting (for instance a solar light for the top of a flagpole). The amount of lux that is received in the surface varies according to the height of the light source, the lumens that such light provides, the beam angle, and many other coefficients that we will not discuss in this article.

What you need to know is that the minimum amount of lux needed for a typical pathway in outdoor areas is 10 lux (according to P.Hebert, et.al from the University of Louisiana and CIBSE from the UK).

Therefore, as long as your solar light provides nearly 10 lux to the surface of the ground, then it fits your purpose. You can use a lux calculator to estimate the lux generated in a surface taking as a reference the lumens of the light, the height or distance of the light to the point that you want to illuminate and the beam angle as well.

Of course, 10 lux is only a minimum reference for visibility, perfect for decorative purposes. However, if you wish, you can increase the lux value by selecting a higher lumen light. Generally, lights between 2 and 50 lumens would suit any decoration purpose, while 50-200 lumens solar path lights would be more intended to provide security.

What Different Types of Materials are Solar Path Lights Available In?

There are mainly three types of materials available for solar landscape lights: high-density plastic, metal bronze, and stainless-steel.

Products made out of a high-density plastic are the most vulnerable to extreme weather conditions. Regions with extreme heat can lead to battery damage in plastic models while regions with freezing temperatures could cause cracking.

Metal bronze and stainless-steel are both good options regarding temperature performance and durability. However, stainless-steel has less temperature conductivity, a higher melting point, and is also stronger, so it could be considered superior to the bronze.

How Many Lights Should You Buy for Your Pathway and What Size Lights are Required?

four solar path lights near of the stones

The distribution of light in your pathway can really be up to your choice, there is no rule about it. However, if you want a bright lighted doorway or driveway, then follow these tips to find out how many lights you need.

  • Imagine the path that your solar lights would follow.
  • Estimate the length of such path in inches.
  • Use the illumination area covered by the solar light (provided by manufactured).
  • Using the expression , clear r.  Illumination area generally has a circular shape.
  • Multiply the radius by two (2) to obtain the diameter.
  • Now divide the length of the path by the diameter.
  • If it’s a decimal number round up to the next integer number.

If you do not have the illumination area, then you might use the beam angle of the LED light to estimate the diameter of the illuminated area. Use a beam angle calculator for this purpose (select conversion>diameter and place the beam angle and the height of the solar light).

How to Set Up and Place the Lights Around Your Path

It is actually very simple. Most of these solar lights include a ground stake (plastic, bronze or steel) that simply need to be pushed into the ground in order to secure them. Make sure that you do not twist or hammer the lights to fit them. If needed, use water to soften the ground and try again.

The setup is made at your convenience, and again, there is no rule about it. However, keep in mind that the idea is to make an aesthetic design that also serves as proficient illumination. Therefore, you must be aware of the illumination area that each solar light can cover.

Ideally, locate the solar lights at an equal distance from each other in such a way that the illumination area of two consecutive solar path lights do not intersect each other.

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