The best light bulbs for a bedroom

Here is what happens in most homes. Someone buys a multipack of bulbs, and the brightest, coolest ones go where they seem most needed - the bedside lamp, because that is where you read. So the last light you look at before sleeping is a 5000K daylight bulb at 1,500 lumens, twelve inches from your face.

It is exactly backwards. Cool light does not produce more light than warm light at the same lumen rating - it reads as sharper, which is useful over a kitchen counter and actively unhelpful an hour before sleep. And 1,500 lumens at close range is glare, not reading light.

The fix costs one bulb: 800 lumens, 2700K, dimmable, CRI 90 or better. If you own a bedside lamp with a daylight bulb in it, change that before buying anything else on this site.

The Philips Ultra Definition A19 is the straightforward answer for the first three rows: 800 lumens, 2700K, published CRI 95, dimmable, at supermarket pricing. Where a recessed can over the bed needs a reflector shape, the Waveform 95 CRI BR30 publishes an R9 figure as well.

Most rented bedrooms have no switched socket beside the bed, which means getting up to turn a lamp off, or reaching behind a nightstand for a cord switch in the dark. It is a small daily annoyance and it is the reason smart bulbs earn their place here more than anywhere else in a home.

A WiZ Connected A19 or a Sengled Matter bulb screws into the lamp you already own, dims electronically with no dimmer in the wall, and can be scheduled to go warm and low in the evening. No wiring, no permission, and it comes with you - the full picture is in best smart bulbs without a hub.