The 10 Best Light output meters (2023 reviews)

We consider a light output meter to be a worthy investment in the long run. We are here to help you choose the right one for your needs from all the best available products in market today.

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Our Top Picks:

Best Overall: Buy: Drmeter Light output Meter READ REVIEW

Best For film: Buy: URCERI Light output Meter READ REVIEW

Best For money: Buy: BTMETER Light output Meter READ REVIEW

Best For available Light Photography: Buy: Leaton Light output Meter READ REVIEW

Best For film camera: Buy: Sekonic Light output Meter READ REVIEW

Best For grow Light: Buy: Smartsensor Light output Meter READ REVIEW

Best With calibration certificate: Buy: Extech Light output Meter READ REVIEW

Best For Light bulb: Buy: AOPUTTRIVER Light output Meter READ REVIEW

Best For Android phone: Buy: In Licht Light output Meter READ REVIEW

Best For Iphone: Buy: Vabira Light output Meter READ REVIEW

Best Overall: Drmeter Light output Meter

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The drmeter light output meter is capable of outshining several other meter featured in this list in overall features. This light meter gives you the amount of light in lux and candle powers, no information at all about the f/stop or iso or anything like that. It measures from single digit lux to 200, and it works well for specialty flower positioning. The device is capable of measuring light levels from next to nothing all the way to half again as bright as the mid-day sun at the beach. It comes with a case to keep it protected. This is the perfect solution to effective lighting.

• Comes in a nice case for storage and transport
• Easy to compare to the required industry standards for lux values
• One of the new comers and featured product

Best For film: URCERI Light output Meter

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The urceri light output meter might be a relatively new release, but it's still nothing short of impressive this year, thanks to multiple price cuts and added new features over the past few months. There's a major difference between lumens and lux, and this meter only measures lux, not lumens. It is a tool that allows you to explore the intensity of light in 3 dimensions. The sensor is the white circular area at the top of the meter, usually covered by a black cover. It also measures lumens and candle power of incandescent bulbs or any other light source. The display is backlit with a black background, so the numerals are pretty easy to see and read.

It's for light lumens but this could be used for all kinds of things. It is easy to use and helpful in setting lighting ratios.

• New and hot release
• One of the new comers and featured product

Best For money: BTMETER Light output Meter

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Btmeter line of meter come in a pretty wide variety of styles, so you can definitely find one that suits your individual preferences and needs. This light meter features MAX/MIN function, so it can log the maximum and minimum lumen. It can measure luminance at 0.01300, 000 lumens, (0.0130, 000 foot candles), which is much wider than the others. It measures mostly green wave length that the human eye can see. It measures lux but does give a good indication of the light intensity.

This just measures the lums of light, not the camera settings you need. The light sensor can be rotated 270o, so you don’t need to turn around the light meter to measure lights from different angles. It is easy to use, easy to understand, and a great value for the dollar. It is good for comparing different brands of LED's.

• Good for measuring low light levels
• Recommended indoor lighting levels range from around 100 to 1000 lux
• Easy to set up and use
• Accurate easy readings and great customer service

Best For available Light Photography: Leaton Light output Meter

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The leaton light output meter is suitable and reliable and fits well with your daily usage. There are many modes for this lux meter, including a mode that only outputs on its display the largest measurement taken, a mode that only outputs the lowest measurement taken, and a mode that holds the current measurement on screen. It also makes it lousy for measuring aquarium/ grow lights, since plants use mostly blue and red, while lux measures mostly green. It furnishes readings in either LUX or foot candles, the standard units for measuring light levels.

The digital light meter will allow you to measure the lighting in an area. When the lux meter is first turned on, it is set automatically to auto mode, where it automatically sets the range, and multiplier for the measurements. This item works well for comparing the relative brightness of different sources of light.

• Lightweight, portable, easy to used and works as expected
• Very useful for maximizing lux to plant canopies and inexpensive too
• Good investment for long term

Best For film camera: Sekonic Light output Meter

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Next on the list, we've got yet another meter that manages to win our hearts. It's the sekonic light output meter and it's widely considered as one of the best convenient meter you can buy. Shooting with a standalone light meter will force you to think about light quantity and quality for any given scene. It's quite small and light weight. It includes a strap, carrying case, cr2032 lithium battery and accessory mounting shoe. It comes with a rubber ring that will add enough grip to keep the meter solidly attached to your camera. The dial indicates all matching shutter speeds / apertures at once without wasting power to draw a LCD / color display / etc. The meter is small and easily tucked away in a pocket.

The included instructions are clear and concise and the light meter is very simple to use. It's the kind of thing you can carry in your pocket wherever you go, keeping your camera in your backpack until you need it.

• Excellent build and very portable light meter
• Great value for a light meter
• Very light and small enough to put in pocket

Best For grow Light: Smartsensor Light output Meter

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We know from years of feedback from readers, customers and amazon sellers, what most people want in a convenient and appropriate meter. The smartsensor light output meter is exactly that - it's a simple meter that hits all the right notes. This light meter is perfect for gating orchids as houseplants. It can be used in scenic design, research teaching, metallurgy building, industry inspection as well as agriculture researching and illumination control. It is used to measure intensities of illumination in lux or footcandles, including all visible lights such as led and fluorescent. It comes with a large LCD display and backlight, so it’s much easier to read the data.

The Lux meter has its own temperature sensor to measure the temperature of the environment in real time. It is lightweight and portable hand-held design and small size make the meter easy to carry. It fits hand perfectly, providing a comfortable grip feeling. It is beneficial for multi-directional detection.

• Must have for distancing lights from plant canopy
• Good brand reputation

Best With calibration certificate: Extech Light output Meter

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This light meter is very useful for the purpose in determining indoor illumination levels. The included light sensor is attached to a 45” (1.1m) cable, allowing you to get closer to the light source and take more accurate measurements. It allows the user to quickly read and interpret data right on the meter. The light meter can be used to measure the foot-candle/Lux levels produced from LED lighting. The backlit screen is very helpful when trying to take readings in low light levels.

This is a 5-star instrument, brilliantly designed and easy to use. The meter has a peak hold feature which allows the meter to capture light pulses that rise or fall down to 10s.

• Plastic build but sturdy enough as a handheld device
• Has a tight-fitting cap that is used for zeroing
• Good investment for long term

Best For Light bulb: AOPUTTRIVER Light output Meter

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Best part: aoputtriver light output meter costs comparatively low and it is available to ship in 24 hours. The light meter is used to measure light levels in the environments where live plants are installed in offices, shopping malls, hotels and other business premises. It measures ANY light output, just be aware that measuring "Lumens" requires special conditions and equipment (555nM spectral center, Integrating Sphere, etc) that are not commonly used. You can use this Lux meter as a PAR meter for certain lights.

For determining straight up light lumens within an area, this works well. The Device measures the light intensity in LUX units at the sensor location from the light source. It looks like a Gaussian bell curve. There is a simple conversion method that gives a very rough estimate of par, using lumens. It comes with a range of 300, 000 lux.

• Has a backlight for low-light use
• Works very well with quick response times
• Excellent switch actuation, and good lcd resolution

Best For Android phone: In Licht Light output Meter

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We know from years of feedback from readers, customers and amazon sellers, what most people want in a convenient and appropriate meter. The in licht light output meter is exactly that - it's a simple meter that hits all the right notes. Licht Pro portable light meters fit inside of your pocket and provide easy-to-read data, yet are powerful enough to be used by lighting designers. It sounds like a German techno band or a futuristic robot butler. It measures 5 key light values. It's more for the pro photographer or videographer than the hobbyist.

This handheld cct meter can collect the key lighting index in seconds with pinpoint accuracy. It comes with key lighting indexes including illuminance, cct, eml, contrast, and uniformity, so you'll have everything you need to test and analyze your lighting situation. It gives impressive measurements in a variety of lighting situations and makes adjusting lighting so much easier. It is very easy to use and the app works well.

• Very useful high quality light meter
• A really great and consistent light meter
• Very capable device for lighting design
• You'll be able to create a high quality, well lighted environment in no time

Best For Iphone: Vabira Light output Meter

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Not everyone likes to purchase meter for their regular usage, but the vabira light output meter would be an anomoly. The light meter can test the kelvin (CCT) range up past. It measures almost 3" x 3" and.75" high, with auto off or side mounted on/off button. It can see the data directly even if the lux is higher than 200, 000lx when using the light meter. The app displays light levels and auto change as the puck is moved. The app is easy to install and with a few clicks it is connected to the app. It is good for designers, lighting repairmen, car light inspectors, photographers. It includes a waterproof resealable clear pouch. It's easy to use.

• Made temperature balancing easy for a terrarium
• One of the new comers and featured product