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Oct 23, 2024

The 12 Best Running Lights for 2024 - Lights for Running at Night

Alert others to your presence and protect yourself with these essential accessories. We earn a commission for products purchased through some links in this article. Why Trust Us? Whether you’re trying

Alert others to your presence and protect yourself with these essential accessories.

We earn a commission for products purchased through some links in this article. Why Trust Us?

Whether you’re trying to beat the midday heat or simply don’t have the time to squeeze a run while it’s light out, chances are you’ll have to run at dusk or in the dark at some point (if you haven’t already). As fun and convenient as it can feel to go out at night, the low visibility of both you and your surroundings makes for a more dangerous environment, especially on busy roads and technical trails. Cars might not be able to see you on the road, and you might struggle to see rocks, roots, and other ankle-breaking trail features. To combat this problem, there are plenty of running lights, from body-mounted options to handhelds to the classic headlamps.

Whatever you opt for, make sure you’re wearing the best equipment—an unreliable light could leave you in a rough situation if it runs out of juice in the woods. We’ve sought out (and tested) dozens of light options, and listed our favorites for you here. Read on for quick info on the best running lights, followed by things to keep in mind as you narrow down your options, plus our full reviews.

The first thing to consider is whether you’re looking for a light to help you see, to help others see you, or both. While some two-in-one light combos, such as the Avanto Pro, can do both at once, the average single light will serve only one of the two purposes.

For seeing, we recommend a light with a high lumen count—200 to 500 is ideal—and a steady beam. Some fancier lights can also switch between a spotlight and a floodlight, allowing you to change your depth of field on the fly if you’re changing speeds. The one issue: A steady beam isn’t always going to catch the attention of others, even if it’s bright, so it’s not best to bring only this light on a road run, especially if you run in the street.

On the other hand, other lights are made for conditions where you simply need to catch the attention of others, even in better-lit environments like a lamp-lined street. These LED lights usually offer several different settings, like a flashing or strobe mode, and are more set-it-and-forget-it type lights. These products, however, won’t provide the same all-round illumination as more powerful headlamps and dedicated spotlights.

If you’re primarily concerned with making sure others can see you, select an option that can clip on or otherwise secure easily to your clothing, as these lights are most likely to stay in place and provide a better picture to other road users of where you’re standing.

On the other hand, if you want the light to follow your line of sight and illuminate potential tripping hazards, we recommend a headlamp or chest-mounted spotlight that you can more easily reach to adjust on the fly.

If you tend to sweat a lot on your runs, or if you’re trying to tap out some long routes in the rain, look for a light with a high ingress protection rating. This indicates a device’s ability to block dust and water from passing through its housing, and the rating is formatted as IP followed by two digits (the first for dust-resistance, the second for water). When it comes to water, it can range from IPX0 (no protection) to IPX8 (totally waterproof when submerged for sustained periods).

When you see “X” like that in place of the first digit, it means the light hasn’t been tested for dust-resistance. If a brand has tested it for that, the number will be between 1 and 6 to represent the device’s ability to block out solid particles. For all-weather applications, look for a rating of 4 or above. But any will suffice on a dry evening if you don’t sweat heavily.

Collectively, we’ve been running for decades and frequently head out before the sun rises or after it has already set. We recognize the importance of visibility for runners, and have experience with a variety of lights and reflectors. We’ve used this insight—as well as extensive research—to put together this list of options.

We’ve tested the majority of these lights in-house, with several of them undergoing rigorous testing to measure exactly how much light they can put out and for how long. We also evaluated any changes over the long term in their durability and charging speed. We’ve worn them on nighttime runs, packed them away for backpacking trips, and even thrown them on in bed to read books.

For the lights we haven’t tested, we relied on metrics like weight, light output in lumens, waterproofing, fit mechanisms, and price. We then cross-referenced our picks by checking user reviews online to get a better look at each light’s long-term performance in a wider variety of hands. We collected the results of our testing and research below—read on to see the lights we wager will keep you the safest for the longest.

For more great ways to make every run safer, check out our picks for the best headlamps and the best reflective running gear.

When we were initially acquiring a sample of the Tracer 2 to test for this article, NoxGear’s reps warned us that it might be difficult to capture the full brightness of this light vest on camera. They weren’t wrong—this setup is intensely redundant, relying on a central back light, illuminated shoulder straps, and a reflective waistband to bathe every inch of your torso in light. And despite its slim appearance, it stays in place quite well.

NoxGear also offers a separate light, called the Tracer Lamp, that fixes to the buckle of this vest’s reflective waist strap. It puts out a considerable 500 lumens, is rechargeable, and is super easy to attach and remove.

Sporting a set of front and rear lights for the best balance of seeing and being seen, this chest- and back-mounted combo is ideal for nighttime road runners who want a more secure, mass-centered light fixture than a headband or clip-on.

You can control the settings on both lights with a button on the side of the headlight, allowing you to cycle between high, low, and strobe beams. The rear light is quite a bit smaller than the front, but it still does the job plenty well, especially when it’s strobing.

Combine the convenience of a running waist pack with excellent brightness and visibility with this 600-lumen rig from UltrAspire. This is one of the pricier options we recommend, but it’s also one of the most fully featured, with 600-lumen brightness, a one-handed zipper that opens the full width of the removable hip pocket, and the brand’s new lighting technology that accentuates shadows along uneven running surfaces for the more trip-prone runners out there.

This light-pack-belt combo comes with a high-powered rechargeable battery, claiming up to 6 hours of light at its max brightness of 600 lumens. Granted you usually won’t often that much light, and most of us can get away with the 300 lumens for all but the toughest terrain. This feature-packed light has battery indicators, multiple light settings for different focuses, and an ergonomic belt shape to reduce chafing. UltrAspire also offers these waist-mounted light systems in 800 lumens and 400 lumens.

These bands don’t have any straps or buckles to adjust or tighten—you just slap them on your wrist, arm, or ankle. They feature three light modes—full, slow flash, and fast flash. And they’re not wastefully single-use; they run off of replaceable watch batteries. Their full-length LEDs also shine in 360 degrees, unlike other types that only make you visible to people in front or behind.

The lone knock: These bands have lower water-resistance capabilities and can only withstand light to moderate rain. If downpours are in the forecast, consider a different option.

While a handheld light might seem old fashioned (running with a flashlight, anyone?) and doesn’t necessarily fit into any true body-mounted category, there is a time and a place for the versatility and convenience of this style. Nathan’s model takes the running-with-flashlight vibe up a notch, with a comfortable hand harness that allows you to carry the light without strain or fatigue. Think of it like what you find on the brand’s handheld water bottle systems. The soft, wicking strap wraps around your wrist and over the back of your hand, cradling the light in your palm without active effort.

The light also has a slight downturn, which points the beam at the ground in front of you as opposed to at waist level. It has a maximum output of 400 lumens, and Nathan claims the Polaris can last over 7 hours at that brightness. While we haven’t run it into the ground at max lumens, that’s a pretty strong claim for a bright light. This is heavier than others here, landing at just under 5 ounces—something to keep in mind if you’re keeping your accessory weight low.

The two powerful LEDs on Nathan’s small-but-mighty clip-on lights offer considerable illumination despite their quarter-sized package. And although they’re made of a cheaper-feeling plastic, they weigh next to nothing as a result, meaning they can clip almost anywhere on your clothes or gear without bouncing around too egregiously.

These lights cycle through a steady mode, full strobe, and alternating strobe via a quick push of the power button, and all were bright enough to cast a visible beam on our hands through our t-shirt. Not bad for such tiny lights.

Made to fit almost anywhere, these lights can clip onto a pocket, vest, bag, or whatever other straps you might have on your running gear. Even better, if none of your clothes feel like they could comfortably hold the weight, the EverLightFX comes with adjustable hook-and-loop straps, allowing you to attach these to your arms and legs. They also come in a variety of colors, which offers the functional advantage of having distinct front and rear lights—or the aesthetic advantage of matching the rest of your gear, if that’s more your thing.

If you’re looking to take advantage of the most mobile part of your running body—your feet—to boost your visibility even more, check out these clip-on shoe lights. They clamp onto your shoelaces and rest on your shoe’s tongue, holding themselves in place even as you thrash them around at your fastest paces. They also illuminate the ground immediately in front of your feet, which can help you stay on the lookout for tripping hazards as the daylight wanes.

More of a traffic alert than a tool for finding your way, these tiny, lightweight clip-on lights act as a warning to traffic and are so minimal that you can clip them to the collar or strap of even the lightest, breeziest running tank. These are slightly brighter than some other clip-on lights (16 lumens), and have a flashing red strobe on a reflective surface to give you more bang for your buck.

These quarter-ounce lights attach with a strong magnet, and we’ve worn them on sleeves, bra straps, and the cuffs of shorts to indicate the running stride and increase the chance of being recognized as a runner on dark streets. They aren’t rechargeable, but you can replace the coin-cell battery easily. Plus they turn on and off with just one push of a button. They come in a pack of two, and we recommend wearing one of your front and one on your back for maximum visibility.

It’s simple. It’s lightweight. It’s bright as hell. Black Diamond’s Sprint is one of the sleekest headlamps we’ve tested. We’ve used it in a range of applications, from rainy day runs to backpacking trips, and it has always performed exactly as well as it needs to. Nifty extra touches include a sliding touch-activated brightness adjustment (that even works with gloves) and a perfectly tensioned headband.

One thing to note: The highest brightness setting does dim after about 5 minutes, according to some of our tests. But we found the “medium” setting holds a more than adequate brightness for up to 3 hours.

Who would have guessed that you can find one of our favorite running headlamps at the hardware store? While running wasn’t the original focus when Energizer designed this budget-friendly light, it still outclasses plenty of purpose-built headlamps, especially those that hover around the $30 mark.

The Vision Ultra HD is equipped with a solid variety of settings that make good use of the light’s claimed 400 lumens, including a spotlight that reaches impressively far down the road and a floodlight that can illuminate your feet with ease. The model we tested came with a faulty charger, but we were able to fix it and get back on the road in no time.

We know how frustrating bulky and heavy headlamps can be, which is why this ultra-lightweight light made our list. It weighs just 2.8 ounces, and unlike similar models that have thick fabric headbands, the IKO Core uses a flexible plastic frame to give it a snug fit around your head. It also, conveniently enough, stands on its own, making it an effective camp light alternative in a pinch.

The IKO Core additionally has a single button, through which you can access all of its functions. That makes it easy and quick to operate without you having to remember which button does what—ideal for a fumble-free trot on a rocky trail.

Maggie Slepian is a full-time freelance writer in the outdoor industry and has tested gear professionally for almost ten years—she is an avid backpacker, trail runner, bikepacker, and horseback rider and has thru-hiked thousands of miles on the Appalachian, Colorado, and Ouachita trails, along with backcountry travel on terrain including coastal trails, the desert, and high alpine peaks. Maggie has written for New York Magazine, Huffington Post, REI, and Outside. She is a columnist with Backpacker Magazine and is the co-founder of BackpackingRoutes.com. Contact her at MaggieSlepian.com.

Adam Schram is an Assistant Editor of Commerce at Runner's World, though you might see his byline on Bicycling and Popular Mechanics, too. A lover of all things outdoors, Adam's writing career comes after six years as a bike mechanic in his hometown of State College, PA. His journalism experience is steeped in cycling and running gear reviews, and he's also a published creative nonfiction and satire author. When he's not writing, riding, or running, you can catch Adam at home mixing cocktails, watching Star Wars, or trying in vain to do the Sunday crossword. You can check out his latest work below.

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