Busy With DIY Projects? These Work Lights Are Perfect for Getting Things Done (2024)

We want our work lights to provide lighting in a variety of harsh environments, so they have to be durable, reliable, and bright. The Milwaukee M18 Rocket Dual Power LED Flood Light is an adjustable tripod light with impact-resistant construction and an all-day 3000 lumen output that can run on 110V or battery power, which is why it’s our favorite work light.

If we could only have one work light, this would be it. It sets up in seconds, with a quick release for the tripod legs, and extends all the way from four to seven feet to accommodate different situations and job sites.

Its 3000 lumens are enough to provide task lighting for a variety of situations. If you need to light up the undercarriage of your car, it can do that. If you need to light a ceiling you’re painting, it can do that too. Though, if you need something brighter, the Husky Twin-Head LED Work Light (our best with stand pick) puts out 10,000 lumens from two adjustable light heads.

The compact LED light head is also impact resistant, so you don’t need to worry about it tipping over, unlike the more fragile (but brighter) halogen bulb in the Woods 500 Watt Portable Work Light (our best budget pick). The tripod legs do have screw holes though, so it’s easy to secure in place in uneven environments. It’s also dust and water resistant, with an IP54 rating, so you can use it both indoors and outdoors. That’s one of the best IP ratings on our list, though the Maxeon Cyclops 720 (our best portable pick) has a stronger IP64 rating if you need something portable that’s dustproof in addition to being water resistant.

This is a battery-powered light that uses Milwaukee M18 batteries, but it doesn’t include one. If you aren’t already in the Milwaukee battery ecosystem, you can pick up an M18 XC Starter Kit that comes with a battery and charger. This light is a dual-power light though, which means you can plug it in using any extension cord if your jobsite has power available. When used with an extension cord, it doesn’t need a battery at all.

The Woods 500 Watt Portable Work Light is a versatile option that’s significantly less expensive than most of our recommendations. It’s exceptionally bright and portable, and very durable, with all-metal construction and a tempered glass lens to protect the halogen bulb. The built-in carrying handle makes it easy to pick up and move around, and the head rotates up and down to aim light where you need it.

This is the only halogen work light we recommend, due to the inherent benefits of LEDs. This light runs very hot, despite a heat-dissipating design, so it can be uncomfortable to use in close quarters. The benefit is that it’s very bright without also being very expensive. Even without a tripod, it’s bright enough to illuminate the undercarriage of a car, dim areas at a construction site, or provide task lighting for home improvement projects.

We do wish this had a longer power cord, which is a theme for a lot of our favorite work lights. It’s an especially big issue here though, as the cord is only about a foot long. You’ll need to pick up a heavy duty extension cord if you don’t have one already. It doesn’t have a power switch either, but with such a short cord that isn’t a big issue. It turns on when you plug it in, and off when you unplug it.

If you aren’t already locked into a specific battery ecosystem, we recommend the Ryobi One+ 18V LED Flood Light as our favorite rechargeable work light. It’s very bright, with dimmer settings, and lasts up to 16 hours on the lowest setting. The best thing is that you can keep using it even if the battery dies, as long as you have an extension cord on hand. There’s a power plug recessed into the back, so you can plug in any extension cord and keep working.

This light runs on Ryobi 18V batteries (the same ones used in drills, fans, and other tools), but it doesn’t come with one. If you don’t already have other Ryobi tools, you’ll need to pick up a One+ 18V starter kit with a battery and charger. We would have preferred if it came with the battery, but it is a cost-saving move for people who already have a toolbox full of Ryobi batteries and don’t need any more.

We like this as a general purpose work light, because you can use it in a lot of different ways. It has a built-in stand that lets you set it on the ground or a workbench, and it swivels 360 degrees. There’s no horizontal swivel though, which can be an issue when using the other mounting options.

The base includes integrated hooks and keyholes for hands-free use, a threaded insert for use with a tripod, and 2-by mounting capability (you can snap it securely on a 2x4 board). It also works with Ryobi’s Link system, so you can snap it onto Link wall storage in addition to compatible tool boxes and containers.

This Husky work light features sturdy aluminum construction, dual heads, and a telescoping tripod stand. The dual LED heads are exceptionally bright, and they’re hinged so you can aim them in unison or in different directions. This is a good general purpose work light that’s suitable for a wide variety of job sites and purposes, both indoors and outdoors.

We like the flexible design of this work light, which is really like two lights in one. The tripod telescopes between about 26 and 76 inches, so you can shine light directly where it needs to be.

You can also remove the light from the tripod for easy transport, although it is a bit heavy. It’s a nice option to have though, and the light has a built-in stand so you can use it without the tripod if you need light down close to the ground.

This work light is very durable, so it can stand up to some rough use. It’s impact resistant, which is essential for any tripod-mounted light due to the chance of tipping over. It’s also water resistant, so you can use it uncovered outdoors. The only real limit is the short power cord, which is only about six feet long. That’s significantly longer than the one foot cord included with the Woods 500 Watt Portable Work Light (our best budget pick), but we still would have preferred a longer cord. You may not be likely to use this light within six feet of an outlet, but that’s what extension cords are for.

This classic trouble light from Cable Matters is exactly what every mechanic needs in their toolbox (or hanging next to it, at least). The timeless trouble/drop light design includes a comfortable plastic handle with push-button switch that you won’t accidentally turn off, a strong metal cage and reflector, and a hook for hanging it off a convenient shroud or bracket.

The best part about this trouble light is that the handle includes a built-in grounded outlet so there’s no need to pull out a separate extension cord. The 16AWG cable is protected by an SJTW cable jacket that’s capable of standing up to oil and other chemicals, so it’s suitable for use in your garage, a repair shop, or anywhere else you need it.

When this trouble light was designed, it was intended for use with rough service incandescent lights. You can still buy rough service incandescent bulbs, but we prefer to use this light with a rough service LED instead. LEDs are more durable than incandescents, and they also produce less heat, which means you can safely install a 100 watt equivalent in this trouble light. We recommend rough service 100 watt LED bulbs designed for garage door openers, since they’re shock resistant. Cool or bright white is preferred for most tasks, but you can use warm or soft white if you prefer.

While this light is a classic pick that every mechanic should have, we also love the Maxeon Cyclops 720 (our best portable pick) for automotive repair applications. It’s small, bright, and has a strong magnet that lets you stick it to any handy ferrous metal available on the undercarriage of the car you’re working on (like the frame) for an easy, hands- and cord-free light source.

The Maxeon Cyclops is our favorite portable work light because it’s tiny, bright, and durable. It’s small enough to slip in your pocket, but it puts out plenty of light (with three intensity settings) and isn’t flimsy or weak at all. We do wish the plastic housing was chemical-resistant, but avoid spraying brake cleaner or acetone on it, and you probably won’t have an issue with that.

This is a battery-powered light that charges via USB-C, so you can use the same charger that you use for your phone—no need to carry around a proprietary charger, or end up on a job site with no way to charge the light. It lasts a long time too, at about five to six hours per charge, and only takes three hours to fully charge.

Our favorite thing about this light (other than the size and brightness) is the base. You can set it on a workbench and then swing the light to achieve the ideal angle, but it’s also magnetic, so it’s perfect for working on cars. Snap it to the frame, a strut tower, or any other convenient bit of ferrous metal, and it holds fast. It’s also dustproof and water resistant, with an IP64 rating, so you can use it in pretty harsh environments without worrying.

This clamp light from Cable Matters is the exact combination of a tried and true design with modern technology that we love to see. It features the same type of strong, metal clamp used in clamp lights for decades, but uses a compact LED light instead of a bulky reflector. It’s easier to maneuver in tight spots than a reflector-style clamp light, but holds just as tightly.

We like that the color temperature of this light is bright white, and that it provides more than enough illumination for task lighting. Whether you clamp it to the undercarriage of your car or to a workbench, it puts out plenty of light without any dingy yellow or orange undertones. It also runs much cooler than the incandescent bulbs used with old reflector-style clamp lights, so it’s much more comfortable to use in close quarters.

Our only complaints about this light are minor. The cord is shorter than we’d like, and the light doesn’t swivel very easily. The cord is six feet long, which is probably more than enough if you’re using it at your workbench, but will likely come up short if you’re using it to work on your car or on a job site. That’s easily solved with an extension cord, but it would have been nice if the cord were longer. We feel the same way about the mobility issue—it does swivel, but only if you loosen up a screw first.