133 lights on the bench
Same lumens.
Completely different light.
Lumens tell you how much light a torch makes, not where any of it goes. Beam Picker draws every light’s beam from its own published output and peak intensity, so you can see the shape of it before you buy.
Both about 500 lumens · 25× the reach
Drawn to the same scale from each light’s published candela. Reach is on a log scale.
505 lm/363,375 cd
Pencil thrower · ~2.4° · 1,205 m reach
500 lm/600 cd
Flood · ~60° · 49 m reach
By job
What do you need it to do?
The job decides the beam long before the budget does. Start with the kind of light, then compare the picks inside it.
EDC
52Pocketable everyday-carry lights with high CRI and useful runtimes.
Tactical
18Duty and self-defense lights with momentary switches and high output.
Headlamp
16Hands-free lights for trail running, camping, and work.
Thrower
14Long-throw lights that push a tight, far-reaching beam.
Keychain
11Tiny keychain and AAA lights you can carry everywhere.
Right-Angle
10Clip-on right-angle lights that double as compact headlamps.
Flooder
7Wide, even flood beams for up-close work and area lighting.
Lantern
5Area lanterns for camping, power outages, and tents.
Before you filter
The specs that actually decide it
Lumens vs Candela: What Actually Makes a Flashlight Bright
Lumens are the total light a torch produces; candela is how concentrated that light is in the centre of the beam. Lumens tell you how much you're lighting up, candela tells you how far you can see. A 1,200-lumen flood light and a 1,200-lumen thrower make the same amount of light — the thrower just aims almost all of it at one small spot, which is why it reaches 700 metres and the flood light reaches 90.
CRI, Tint and Colour Temperature Explained
Colour temperature (in kelvin) is whether the light looks warm orange or cold blue. CRI is how accurately it renders colour compared with sunlight — 90+ is high CRI and makes skin, wood, blood and foliage look right instead of washed out. Duv is the sideways error: two lights at the same kelvin can look pleasantly rosy or unpleasantly green depending on which side of the black-body curve they sit.
18650 vs 21700 vs AA: Which Flashlight Battery
21700 is the current default for a full-size light: the most capacity and the highest sustained output. 18650 is the same idea one size down, with a far bigger range of hosts and cells. AA and AAA lights trade a lot of performance for the ability to buy a replacement anywhere. Built-in cells are the most convenient and the least repairable — when the cell dies, the light usually does too.
The catalog
Every light, one spec plate
Filter by brand, beam type, cell, and features. Pick up to three to put their beams side by side.
Features
133 lights
Wuben
$159
Wuben X1 Pro
Flood/~39°/377 m
- Lumens
- 13000
- Candela
- 35520
- Cell
- 21700
- Weight
- 13.5 oz
Cree XHP50.3 HI + 4x XHP50.3 HD
Wuben
$160
Wuben X1 Falcon
Flood/~47°/303 m
- Lumens
- 12000
- Candela
- 23000
- Cell
- 21700
- Weight
- 13.6 oz
XHP70.2 6000K (x3)
Sofirn
$55
Sofirn SP36 Pro
Flood/~43°/268 m
- Lumens
- 8000
- Candela
- 18000
- Cell
- 18650
- Weight
- 10.0 oz
Samsung LH351D 5000K
Wurkkos
$59.99
Wurkkos T1
Balanced/~23°/415 m
- Lumens
- 5500
- Candela
- 43025
- Cell
- 21700
- Weight
- 4.9 oz
Unspecified + RGBW Side
Olight
$169.99
Olight Seeker Ultra
Flood/~34°/265 m
- Lumens
- 4800
- Candela
- 17600
- Cell
- 21700
- Weight
- 7.2 oz
4x White LED + TIR
Emisar
$50
Emisar D4V2 21700
Flood/~42°/210 m
- Lumens
- 4500
- Candela
- 11000
- Cell
- 21700
- Weight
- 3.5 oz
Nichia 519A 4500K
Nitecore
$85
Nitecore i4000R
Balanced/~25°/346 m
- Lumens
- 4400
- Candela
- 30000
- Cell
- 21700
- Weight
- 3.8 oz
CREE XP-L2 V6
Acebeam
$90
Acebeam H30
Flood/~31°/268 m
- Lumens
- 4000
- Candela
- 18000
- Cell
- 21700
- Weight
- 4.5 oz
CREE XHP70.2 + Nichia 219C
Acebeam
$290
Acebeam Terminator M1 2.0
Pencil thrower/~5.0°/1,620 m
- Lumens
- 3900
- Candela
- 656100
- Cell
- 21700
- Weight
- 11.4 oz
4x LED + Zoomable LEP
Wurkkos
$30
Wurkkos TS21
Flood/~39°/195 m
- Lumens
- 3500
- Candela
- 9500
- Cell
- 21700
- Weight
- 3.4 oz
Samsung LH351D 5000K
Nitecore
$80
Nitecore MH12 Pro
Balanced/~23°/323 m
- Lumens
- 3300
- Candela
- 26000
- Cell
- 21700
- Weight
- 3.9 oz
Luminus SFT-40