Best bedside lamps for reading in a bedroom
A bedside lamp for reading should give even light, dim smoothly, and sit comfortably on a nightstand. The strongest fits here come from TechRadar's tested wake-up lights, with a mix of smart features, compact design, and budget-friendly options.
4 products ranked Updated
Our rankings are built from published testing by named outlets, not from our own lab. We earn a commission when you buy through our links, and it never changes the order.
The short answer
- 1 Philips Hue Twilight Best smart bedside lamp
- 2 Philips SmartSleep Sleep and Wake-Up Light Best wind-down bedside lamp
- 3 Beurer Wake Up Light WL50 Best compact bedside lamp
- 4 Lumie Bodyclock Spark 100 Best budget bedside lamp
Philips Hue Twilight
TechRadar puts this at the top for readers who want a bedside light that can shift gently from bright to dim. The front bulb also works as a reading light, which makes it useful on a nightstand. The tradeoff is the high price and the extra bridge needed for full use.
Pros
- Smooth dimming
- Front bulb works as a reading light
- Good as a bedside addition
Cons
- Most expensive in TechRadar's roundup
- Needs a Philips Hue Bridge for full use
Where these findings come from
Philips SmartSleep Sleep and Wake-Up Light
TechRadar recommends this for people who want the room to soften before sleep and still have a strong reading light. Its gradual brightness changes and warm-to-cool color shifts make it especially flexible. The price is high, and the speaker is not a strong point.
Pros
- Gradual brightness changes
- Warm-to-cool color shifts
- Excellent reading light, per TechRadar
Cons
- Relatively steep price
- Speaker quality is not great
Beurer Wake Up Light WL50
TechRadar treats this as the most balanced pick in its roundup. It is small enough for a bedside table, has colored mood lighting, and works well as a reading lamp. The drawbacks are the short battery life, the unreliable radio, and the alarm noises.
Pros
- Small enough for a bedside table
- Works well as a reading lamp
- Colored mood lighting
Cons
- Battery life is only three hours
- Alarm noises are not ideal
- Radio is unreliable
Where these findings come from
- TechRadar: TechRadar named it its best overall wake-up light; it praised the natural-looking sunrise effect, colored mood lighting, and small size for a bedside table.
- TechRadar: TechRadar says it works well as a reading lamp, but the radio is unreliable, the alarm noises are not ideal, and battery life is only three hours.
Lumie Bodyclock Spark 100
This is the budget option in TechRadar's roundup. It is affordable but effective, with a wake cycle and backup alarm. It gives up the smoother fade of the premium models, so it is the plainest choice here.
Pros
- Affordable
- Wake cycle plus backup alarm
Cons
- Not as smooth as premium models
- Less refined dimming
What actually matters
For bedside reading, the lamp has to do more than look calm on a nightstand. It should give enough light to read without forcing you to hold the book at odd angles. It should also dim smoothly. A lamp that drops from bright to useless in one step is not much help in a dark bedroom.
Shape matters too. TechRadar's picks here are wake-up lights, not classic lamps, but the useful part is the same: they can sit on a nightstand, fade gently, and in some cases double as a reading light.
There is also the usual tradeoff. The smoother and more flexible the light, the more likely it is to cost more or need extra hardware. TechRadar's top smart pick is the most expensive in the roundup and needs a Hue Bridge for the full experience. If you only need a lamp to read for a little while before sleep, the budget pick may be enough.
What these picks have in common
TechRadar says it spends hours testing every product or service it reviews. Its wake-up-light roundup includes at least five models, and the outlet explicitly identifies several as useful bedside lights or reading lights. For the Beurer WL50, TechRadar also has a separate product review that says it works well as a reading lamp, while also flagging weak alarm sounds, unreliable radio, and short battery life.
What we are leaving out
We are leaving out products that the outlets did not clearly tie to reading in a bedroom. We are also leaving out any option that is more desk-oriented than bedside-specific.
A useful bedside lamp almost always has a drawback. The question is whether the flaw is acceptable. For some people, it will be price. For others, it will be a bridge that adds to the setup, a short battery life, or dimming that is not as smooth as the premium options.
Where this comes from
We did not test these. These people did.
Every score on this page rests on the testing below. The ranking is ours; the measurements are not. How we research.
- TechRadar — TechRadar says it spends hours testing every product or service it reviews. Its wake-up-light roundup includes at least five models, and the outlet explicitly identifies several as useful bedside lights or reading lights.
- TechRadar — TechRadar's review of the Beurer WL50 says it works well as a reading lamp, while also flagging weak alarm sounds, unreliable radio, and short battery life.
Questions people ask
Do I need a smart lamp for reading in bed?
Which pick is closest to a true bedside lamp?
What is the main downside of the best budget pick?
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