Until scientists invent convenient little mini Suns we can keep inside our homes, our plants will need to rely on artificial light. Fortunately, those sources of illumination have come a long way in terms of efficiency and efficacy.

LED technology has improved everything from TVs to your smartphone, but it can also help your plants. Whether you're trying to baby your indoor plants, nurture some seedlings that will eventually go out into the garden, or just please an outdoor plant that needs to spend some time inside, these LED arrays can pump out the photons plants crave.

But, you can't just go shining an LED flashlight at your precious plants. You need to pick the right power, colour, and size to make your indoor garden thrive. That can be tricky, but these picks can provide the perfect illumination no matter what your flora looks like.

How do HPS grow lights compare to the best cheap LED grow lights?

You may have heard about HPS grow lights as well. They're pretty inexpensive so if you're in the market for a low cost grow light you may want to compare and contrast the two grow light types.

HPS grow lights perform better than the best cheap LED grow lights in terms of light intensity and even coverage area. The problem is they emit a lot of heat. So if you're growing in a small enclosed space, HPS is definitely not the way to go in my opinion.

You'll end up spending additional money buying fans and ducting for your grow tent which will ultimately make the project more expensive.

However, if you're growing in an open space, an HPS light may be a strong competitor to the best cheap LED grow lights.
In terms of spectrum, the LED grow lights win. HPS lights will require changing bulbs for each phase of cannabis growth. In comparison, the best cheap LED grow lights emit spectrum that's sufficient for all stages of plant growth.

ECO Farm SP-400 Samsung Foldable Dimmable Full Spectrum LED Grow Light

Features:
This ECO Farm led grow light comes with 1088 pcs high efficient Samsung LM281B leds,boast the market-leading efficiency to 2.8 µmol/J and 2.5g yield per wattage with 30% higher Average PPFD. Only consumes 420W, perfect coverage for 5x6ft , The 420w led grow light will help you achieve maximum quality and quantity. You can freely control and adjust light intensity outside of grow tent, no need go into. Place them at hand, easy to operate. The 4 bar led grow light, each bar is covered with high-grade glue, waterproof and cleanable, not easy to be full of dusty. This plant grow light is with special dimmer, can be adjusted at accurate brightness. 0–10 levels available. That means your could see clearly brightness level and record it when you adjust it. No worry about there will be difference.

Mammoth Lighting Fold Series MF04S LED Grow Light

Features:
This Mammoth LED grow light draws 430 watts from the wall,achieving the high efficiency and higher average PPFD at 4'x4' flowering coverage,completely beat the 800w HPS/MH grow lamp. Simple structure,detachable driver,no fan,no noise. 4 aluminum light bars for better heat disappear and stay cool while enabling even light spread.Save you a lot at ventilation and exhaust. The most powerful daisy chain, controller available, especially beneficial for home,grow tent,grow room,greenhouse,garden,vertical Racks,hydroponic,soil growth. Proven high-yield full spectrum. Born for big buds,Rapid plant response from seed to flower,speeds up flowering time and boost yields.Easy dimming design meets needs of indoor plants at different stage of growth

What to Consider When Choosing the Best LED Grow Lights
The following sections detail some of the most important qualities to keep in mind when shopping for the best LED grow lights for your needs.

Light Spectrum
Natural sunlight features all the colours on the electromagnetic spectrum. Some LED lights can reproduce only certain colour frequencies, while full-spectrum white LED lights to produce all the hues necessary for every stage of the growing process.

Blue light helps plants grow in the earliest stages of their lives. It's the first colour that plants can absorb in their vegetative state.

Purple light is also used in the vegetative state; however, it's not as effective for photosynthesis as blue light.

Red light helps in the latter stages of growing and is essential for buds to flower.

White light encompasses all the colours of the spectrum. Used alone, it can be effective for every developmental stage.

Power
It's a bit difficult to compare LED grow lights because manufacturers use a variety of metrics to measure the power of their lights and the amount of light they emit. The brightness of LED lights is measured in lumens. Seedlings require approximately 2,000 lumens per square foot to thrive, while flowering plants may need as much as 10,000 lumens.

While lumens measure visible light, biologists often use photosynthetic photon flux (PPF) or photosynthetic photon flux density (PPFD) to measure light intensity in terms of the light that plants will actually absorb. PPF is measured in μmol/second, which is the number of photons of light emitted every second. PPFD is measured in μmol/m2/s and measures the density of light distributed per square meter per second. The higher the PPF and PPFD, the more effective the light should be.

To establish how much electricity a light uses, look for its "actual power draw" or "actual power consumption." This is measured in watts and gives a good indication of the light's power. Bulb wattage is not a good indicator because LEDs are designed to be energy-efficient.

Heat Output
One of the risks when using a grow light is that the heat emitted by the bulbs can damage your plants. However, LED lights give off very little heat relative to the amount of light they produce. But they do produce some heat, so many models are equipped with built-in cooling systems to ensure proper temperature regulation.

Some LED lights have aluminium heat sinks, and others come equipped with fans. A unit with a fan might be loud, so factor noise level into your choice when selecting a grow light.

Connecting
Many LED grow lights are designed to link to other units to cover larger areas, which is typically referred to as "daisy chain connectivity." Products with this capability simply plug into each other and then plug into one outlet, which minimizes the number of cords required for setup.

Conclusion

If your plants need a little top-up when it comes to sunshine, the best LED grow lights can provide just that in an affordable, efficient way. If you're getting serious about growing, you'll want to make sure you get the right kind of light for your plants, but there's almost certainly an LED option out there that can give you exactly what you need.