We are supported by our audience. When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Learn more.
In this article we review and feature the best bike lights for riding at night. We narrowed down this list of top 5 front bike lights based on their features, overall quality, user feedback, price, and a maximum of 1300 lumen light output.
Related Articles:
5 Best Front Bike Lights For Commuting
Introduction
Most cyclists at one point of time or another ended up riding at night on unlit roads. Without proper bike lights, this experience is not a pleasant one. We want you to stay safe and enjoy riding your bike even at night and that’s why we prepared this review so you can choose the best option for yourself!
In general, bike lights fall into two categories: “lights to be seen with” and “lights to see with”. Here we focus on the second one and review the best bike “lights to see with”, which are perfect for night riding and also will not cost you all the money in the world.
When choosing the best light for you, keep in mind a few things.
First, the kind of riding you plan to do. For example, if you plan to ride 5 hours at night, then you need a light with a battery that can last this long. So definitely consider battery power, its charger type, and the time it takes to charge.
Second, decide how much brightness you need. Brightness is generally measured in lumens. For riding on unlit roads, we suggest a minimum power of 800 lumens. But we strongly encourage you to go higher than this number. Most lights will have different modes anyway, and you can select appropriate brightness based on your needs.
Third, you should also consider mounting options, especially if your bike has oversized handlebars, but this does not apply to most riders. Also, if you plan to lock your bike outside you would need a bike light that can be easily taken off and put back on.
We hope you will find our reviews and suggestions helpful.
1. Moon Meteor Storm Dual Front Light
- Charging Type (USB vs Battery): USB rechargeable
- Lumens: up to 1300
- Run time (max): 2 hours on max light mode | up to 400 hours for day flash mode
- Charging time: 2.5 hours
Positives
- A Dual-color beam for foggy weather
- Automatic cut-off system when fully charged
- Lock system
- Battery light indicator
Negatives
- Overheats when used at max or for a long time
The cold and foggy weather will not stop you from riding out at night because the Moon Meteor dual-beam light was made for it. It gives you three kinds of beam colors to adjust to different weather conditions. Moreover, it has two LEDs. The “warm white” light that is excellent at reducing glare in fog and misty condition. And the “cold white,” which is a regular LED light you find in most bike lights.
The automatic cut-off system when fully charged is pretty awesome and helps to extend battery life. Also, you get 3 battery life indicator modes: “low battery”, “charging”, and “fully charged”.
The waterproof rating is IPX5, which means the light can withstand low-pressure water jet spray. Last, but not least, you get a universal bracket mounting option, meaning it could be fit to most bike frames.
If you are looking for a similar item with a slightly lower lumen output, we recommend to check out Moon Meteor Storm Lite Front Light.
2. Lezyne Macro Drive 1300XL Front Light
- Charging Type (USB vs Battery): Micro-USB rechargeable
- Lumens: up to 1300
- Run time (max): 2.5 hours at max light mode | 148 hours at 15 lumens of light output
- Charging time: 3.5 hours fast charge
Positives
- Integrated cooling fins designed to prevent overheating
- Battery life
- Excellent light beam pattern
Negatives
- Not waterproof
When planning a long night ride on unlit roads, the Lezyne Macro Drive 1300XL is the best bike light for you. This light could last for up to 2 hours and 30 minutes at a maximum of 1300 lumens output. It has a Tri-Focus optics lens producing a bright center spot and wide-beam light at multiple angles.
This light is equipped with cooling fins to prevent overheating and extend the battery life. The charging time is also great.
Keep in mind, that this light has some level of water resistance, but it is not fully waterproof.
3. Cateye Ampp 1100 Front Light
- Charging Type (USB vs Battery): USB Rechargeable
- Lumens: up to 1100
- Run time (max): 1.5 hours at max light mode | up to 50 hours with the flashing light mode
- Charging time: 3 to 5 hours
Positives
- OptiCube lens technology
- Built-in lithium-ion rechargeable battery
- 3-level battery life light indicator
- Brightness
Negatives
- The battery drains fast at max light mode
- IPX4 water resistance rating
Cateye Ampp 1100 offers a great level of brightness and multiple modes to fit your needs. OptiCube lens technology helps to balance the light distribution both front and sideways.
What we like about the Cateye’s light is its mounting option. You don’t have to worry about the light falling off on rough roads because of its super durable FlexTight bracket, which is also compatible with almost all types of bike frames and comes with a quick-release option.
The light is water-resistant and offers protection from splashing water, no matter the direction.
Cateye Ampp 800 Front Light is a similar less expensive option with a lower brightness level.
4. Nite Rider Lumina 1200 Boost Front Light
- Charging Type (USB vs Battery): USB Rechargeable
- Lumens: up to 1200
- Run time (max): 1 hour at boost light mode | up to 18 hours at daylight flashing mode
- Charging time: 3 hours
Positives
- Widespread visibility
- Easy access to the light mode button
- Easy to install mounting strap
- Fits both normal and oversized handlebars
- A light indicator when the battery is low
Negatives
- The battery drains fast at boost mode
The best feature of the Nite Rider Lumina 1200 is that it distributes the light forward and sideways from multiple angles. It has the super-brightness of up to 1200 lumens to lighten the road up. You can easily avoid stones or holes that could trip you off your bike. Additionally, the modern collimator lens technology that covers the light bulb makes it 100% water and dust resistant.
It also features seven different light modes to fit your needs. Generally, brighter light (including strobe) consumes the battery life faster. Medium brightness gives you a fair amount of hours to ride on unlit roads (up to 3 hours). The lower brightness mode helps to prolong the battery life up to 6 hours, and the flashing mode extends its life all the way to 18 hours.
Alternatively, if you are looking for a less expensive similar item with a lower maximum brightness, then consider Nite Rider Lumina Micro 850 Front Light.
5. Blackburn Dayblazer 1100 Front Light
- Charging Type (USB vs Battery): USB Rechargeable
- Lumens: up to 1100
- Run time (max): 1 hour at max light mode | up to 12 hours at 200 lumens of light output
- Charging time: 5 hours
Positives
- LED battery life indicator
- Tool-free installation
- Side Visibility
Negatives
- Long charging time (5 hours)
This light produces a maximum of 1100 lumens and offers five simple to use light models. You also get an LED charge indicator showing green, orange, and red which lets you know when to charge and what light mode to use. A useful feature for sure.
Similar to the other lights by Blackburn, it is made of CNC machined 6061 aluminum to produce a high-quality casing for breaking protection and overheating. This light is also smaller than most bike lights, which is an excellent choice to free up some space on the handlebar.
The mounting option uses a traditional watch strap type, which could fit any bike frame and is easy to take off and put back on. Additionally, there is a helmet mount option.
CONCLUSION
Each of the lights above has some pretty amazing features and offers a great deal of functionality. We highly encourage you to analyze your needs and price range to choose the best option for you. For example, if you plan to ride on rainy days then the waterproof feature is really important. Also, if you plan to ride in complete darkness, for example, on countryside roads then brightness level is a crucial factor for you.
We hope you found this article helpful.
Why should you trust us?
In order to feature and review any products on our website we do extensive research, read user feedback, carefully review forum threads, look at search trends, brand popularity, try to actually use and test as many products as possible ourselves, and evaluate other factors depending on the product category. By doing extensive research and incorporating it with our own experience we are able to shortlist only a handful of products out of thousands of options.
We want to bring value to our readers and help them find answers to questions and buy the most appropriate cycling products. Brands and cycling professionals always try to innovate and improve to get the best possible outcome. Unfortunately, innovations and product improvements these days result only in marginal gains, but the price increase for these gains is not equally proportional. In economics, this behavior is defined as “diminishing returns”. Knowing this we focus on featuring the best value for the money products that are affordable, but at the same time have a lot to offer. We don’t want our visitors to overspend on something they will not benefit from.
