Whether you’re working, studying or reading, the best desk lamps will provide the right amount of lighting for your task. Not only can they illuminate your space, but they can also reduce the risk of eye strain as you chip away at your work in the dark.
Now's the hard part: figuring out which desk lamps truly cater to our needs as from-home workers. There are thousands of lamps you can buy online, plenty of which cost less than $20. But what if we told you that we've tested dozens of premium picks that are well worth an additional cost? On top of that, we've scoured for some of the highest-quality cheap lamps that won't break the bank (or simply break), and used them extensively in our own home offices.
Quick list
Our top overall pick is the BenQ e-Reading Desk Lamp. It's totally customizable, with settings for warmer and cooler lighting as well as built-in smart technology which detects the ambience level of the light in your room.
At just $40, this desk lamp offers a lot of smart features for the money. This includes a wireless charging base and a light on the base itself, which is ideal if you plan on using this lamp on a bedside table. The LED light is shockingly bright and its design is stylishly minimalist.
The IKEA Flottilj is basic, but it's also incredibly affordable. And I'm partial to its angular design, which can pivot to be a reading light or ambient light. Just be sure to buy lightbulbs if shopping through IKEA, as they don't come included!
The best desk lamps you can buy today
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Best overall
The BenQ eReading LED Desk Lamp is the best lamp because of the level of customization it offers. You can adjust how cool or warm you want the tone, depending on if you’re trying to concentrate at work or reading a book. It also adjusts itself thanks to built-in smart technology which detects the level of ambient light in the room.
The wide LED head also means this lamp offers great coverage, so you can see everything across the desk. It’s highly flexible too, with a ball-joint connecting the head to the stand and two other points which can be adjusted in the stand. If you’ve got a toned office, it’s available in a range of colors to suit. Our only qualm is that the wide head could be obstructive on a small desk.
Best budget
If you’re looking for an affordable, multifaceted desk lamp that looks sleeker than its $40 price lets on, look no further than this option from Afrog. Normally, I'm wary of products that are hard to find outside of Amazon, but this lamp has proven its mettle as a budget pick with its shockingly bright LED and built-in charger.
Obviously, this lamp is not my favorite overall, but I wouldn't hesitate to purchase this lamp again if my lamp-buying budget was only $40. Despite standing out like a sore thumb aesthetically on my desk, it worked incredibly well for the price, and I loved the extra functionality of the device charger. It keeps my phone close and ready to use, but not too much so.
On top of a solid light (or rather below it), this lamp has a side light that allows you to see around the base in case you're using this lamp on your bedside table. It also has warmth adjustment for the main light, which could additionally be a relief if you don't want a harsh daylight-esque glow illuminating your bedroom at night.
Best compact
IKEA is home to some of the cheapest home goods you can find anywhere, but that doesn't mean there's a sacrifice in quality. This build-it-yourself model in the Flottilj line may only cost $9 (closer to $15 with the separately sold E17 bulb), but it's one of the brightest lamps we've tested, and it claims to last 25000 hours between bulb swaps.
This lamp is unquestionably on the smaller end, and there isn't much adjustment. That said, you can pivot the head of the lamp 360 degrees to alternate between a reading light and an ambient light. Mine sits on the far left corner of my desk, and when I'm not using it to read something, I point it at the wall behind my workstation to illuminate yet another corner of my office room.
If you're buying this lamp online, just make sure to get the bulb in your cart as well, as the two don't automatically come together. The standard pairing is with this warm-toned E17 Solhetta bulb, which puts out a pleasant 2700 Kelvin temperature that's great for accent lighting in the evening.
Best premium
Naturally, with the Solarcycle Morph, you’re paying the Dyson premium. This is an expensive light, but the flip side is that it offers a wide array of highly useful features, and of course comes with Dyson’s typically elegant design and exquisite standard of finish.
The light has a potent maximum brightness of 850 lumens from its concentrated cluster of LEDs, plus an adjustable temperature between 2700K and 6500K. And the light itself is highly adjustable, with an overhead orientation for writing or an upwards position to bounce off a wall or ceiling. You can also set the light downwards directly over the baffled upright tube, which massively softens the light for an ambient lighting setup — otherwise the light is a little too bright (even at its lowest setting) for ambiance.
The Solarcycle has an automatic mode which tailors brightness and temperature to your local sunlight and darkness conditions, and existing ambient lighting. There’s a motion sensor, to turn it off automatically and save energy. There are also modes for studying, working and relaxation, plus wake-up/sleep modes to automatically turn the light on/off and adjust brightness and temperature according to your routines — this makes it a great bedside lamp, too. In testing, the companion app proved a little janky, failing to connect to the light and needing to be restarted.
Best clamp-on design
Though this type of lamp doesn't work with every type of desk, clamp-ons are a superb solution to the issue of desk space. By attaching to the outer edge of your desk and extending overhead, you only sacrifice a few square inches of space while getting a full-power lamp.
I found that this Uplift model works especially well because its sleek design packs all its controls into one button. Simply tap the power button once the lamp is switched on to swap between three different shades, and use the switch on the power cord to turn it off when you're done.
This lamp may not have the adjustability of other options on this list, such as the BenQ lamp we crowned Best Overall, but I was happy to see that it at least had some customization opportunities.
Best for video calls
Want to use a desk lamp to light up your face in a dark room instead of looking like you're about to tell a scary story around the campfire? This lamp from Vari is incredibly easy to configure at just about any angle you'd like, including directly facing you. The adjustment is effortless, but it also doesn't sag over time like some cheaper lamps can.
Though it took me some time to figure this out without looking up instructions, this lamp is fully adjustable through one knob and soft-touch button located at the base. All you have to do to turn it on is hit the knob once, then you can adjust brightness by turning it. To toggle through the three available light temperatures, simply tap the soft touch button.
How we test the best desk lamps
How much testing can you really do with a lamp? Trust us: it's more than you think. When it comes to what makes a quality desk lamp, we're interested in a wide range of factors, including luminosity, the spread of light across a room, customizability, easy controls, and bonus functionalities like device charging. Not every lamp needs all of these qualities to make the list, but we also know the lamp's price should be congruent with its offerings.
Each lamp on this list got at least a week of solo testing, all perched in the same location on our desks. Not only did we use them like we assume the average consumer would, but we also tested their limits by leaving them on for days at a time, stretching their power cords, dropping them, scuffing them, and more blatant abuse. Life happens, and we don't want to recommend anything that can't withstand said happenings. If something does break, it doesn't automatically disqualify it, but it does have extra work to do to stand out among other lamps at its price point that didn't.
Ultimately, the lamps that made the cut have the best balance of durability, longevity, usability, and price out of all the options we've had our hands on. There are surely other quality lamps out there, as there are thousands upon thousands flooding the web, but we stand behind all our recommendations here thanks to our first-hand experience.
How to choose the best desk lamp
With so many different types and sizes of desk lamps on the market, it can be tricky to know which one is ideal for your needs. Before buying, there are a few things to consider. First, what design and size do you prefer? Is it adjustable to suit your needs and workspace? Also, what other handy features do you prefer? There are some that operate via a touch operation to adjust the lighting levels, or a remote control.
What's more, you might prefer a desk lamp to be compatible with a handy USB port for charging smartphones. While other lamps will have motion sensors to save on energy. What's more, there are desk lamps that will adjust automatically to ambient light, varying the brightness depending on the time of day.
FAQs
Are LEDs better than bulbs?
Generally, LED desk lamps are better for your vision and may prevent eye strain or other related illnesses. Plus, most LED lamps deliver a more natural brightness that is ideal for remote working.
In addition, the lifespan of LED lighting is up to 40 times longer than the incandescent or halogen bulb. They are also predicted to last for at least 50,000 hours, which means an LED desk lamp would never need regular replacement.
Where is the best place to put a desk lamp?
Determining the placement of your desk will largely depend on the size of your desk, but the positioning of your lamp needs to be right to ensure the right amount of lighting. As a rule of thumb, the ideal distance is 15 to 36 inches away from your work area. However, you find desk lamps with adjustable arms so you can change the height on the fly for varying tasks.
Additionally, if you are a right-handed person, place the desk lamp on your left side and vice versa if you are a left-handed person. This stops your dominant hand from shrouding out the lamplight, especially right where you're trying to write.
