Cool white and warm white christmas lights

Professional light installers and holiday enthusiasts turn to Wintergreen Lighting's LED string lights because they are engineered to work well outside. If a bulb can be removed and replaced, it means water can get in. These light sets are patented with a sealed construction design for the bulbs to keep water out and keep the lights looking good.

VIVID COLORS

Wintergreen Lighting string lights use color-specified LEDs in specific Kelvin temperature color ranges to ensure color consistency. Entry level string lights do not and are made using a wider color range, which means more variations in color from light to light. If you want your next outdoor light display to look amazing, get color-specified LED lights from Wintergreen Lighting.

MAX CONNECT CAPABILITY

For many Wintergreen Lighting string lights, you can connect up to 216 watts end-to-end from a single plug outlet. Light set wattage varies by color, but this means certain sets can be connected end-to-end up to 45 sets long. And other set colors can be connected up to 90 sets long! It has never been easier to make amazing Christmas light and other holiday light displays with this max connect capability.

The terms warm white and cool white refer to the high and low end of the white light colour spectrum. Warm white is the golden version of white and Cool white also known as bright white and cold white.

Using Warm White Lights

Warm white casts a yellow hue and is most often used in the home it’s a comforting, tranquil and welcoming light. Use on a green tree with traditional Christmas colours like red, green and gold. Also a popular choice for decorating the Christmas table, warm white adds a cosy glow more like that of a traditional wax candle flame.

Gold tree with warm white lights.

Using Cool White Lights

In contrast cool white leaves a blue hue and adds a bright, fresh and clinical glow. Most effective for outdoor decorating. Cool white goes well with shades of blue, grey and silver it looks terrific on a white tree and adds a brilliance that’s hard to match.

Cool white cluster lights on a flocked tree.

Cool white copper lights with silver baubles in a table decoration.

Fantastic display using warm and cool white lights

Remember there are no rules. Lately it’s become very popular to see warm white lights in a flocked or white tree a look I particularly like. An instant update if you are tired of the same style year after year but want to keep the same Christmas tree.

The holidays are a joyous time full of visits from friends and family, food, and festive decorations. For most people, getting in the holiday spirit includes hanging Christmas lights—a task that often comes with the frustrations of burned-out bulbs, tangled wires, colors that don’t pop, or—even worse—a bum set right out of the box.

Along with getting an early start on holiday shopping, the best way to kick off the season smoothly is to start with the right lights. These days, there's a wide range of bulb types and styles on the market, and some sets offer fun (and often helpful) features. There are vintage-style sets, mini incandescent lights, multicolor LEDs with different lighting modes to match your mood, novelty lights, and more. There are also sets made specifically for covering bushes and shrubs, along with solar- and battery-powered options.

But with so many choices out there, finding a set of Christmas lights that works for your setup and aesthetic preferences can be an overwhelming task. That's why we've created a lineup of our top picks, plus the most essential things to consider before you shop. Read on for our recommendations.

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What to Consider

Before you start adding holiday lights to your cart willy-nilly, you'll need to nail down a few specifics related to your space and personal preferences. We've outlined the most important below.

Incandescent Lights

Traditional “mini lights” use a tiny incandescent bulb that presses into a plastic socket. The contacts on the light bulb are thin wires that are bent back and contact the socket when the bulb is pressed in. While these lights will give you that old-fashioned Christmas look, there are often issues to contend with over time, like flickering bulbs or sections that burn out. With larger, vintage-style bulbs that screw in (like C7 and C9 models), they can loosen in the socket or possibly overheat.

LED Lights

People often look to LED lights to solve their holiday lighting problems—because they use less power, more strings can be connected to create displays that would impress even Clark Griswold. But one of their biggest issues is with the “color” of white lights. You'll typically find white LEDs in cool or warm options; cool white trends toward blue, whereas warm white is more amber, like a traditional candle light.

If you like the traditional look of incandescent mini lights, it's tough (though not impossible) to find an LED substitute. With larger LEDs that are meant to mimic actual screw-in bulbs, the whites are are a bit closer. With multicolor lights, the difference isn't as obvious.

There are two kinds of wiring harness that string LED lights together. The first type is wired almost exactly like traditional mini lights; the LED sits inside a plastic “bulb” and is pressed into the mini light socket. Over time, these may develop some of the same intermittent contact issues of the incandescent lights, though it's less likely and the upside is that bulbs are replaceable. There are also LEDs that are soldered on the string and then sealed, so there aren’t any wires or sockets to loosen, but if an LED goes out, there’s no easy way to replace it.

Extra Features

Some Christmas lights include extras that give you more color options and functions. There are sets that are dimmable, sometimes with several degrees of brightness, and multiple lighting modes so you can opt for slow fade one day and flashing the next. Some come with remotes and timers, which are definitely handy, and most offer end-to-end connection, so you can string together more than one set. Keep in mind: You should always refer to the manufacturer’s product information to determine exactly how many lights can be strung together.

How We Selected

We dug into our own research and testing to make our selections, plus we considered reviews from expert sources including Good Housekeeping. We surveyed the market and used our own experience with Christmas lights to determine the best options. Our list features Christmas lights in a range of types and styles as mentioned above, and every set we write about has an average customer rating of 4 out of 5 stars or more.

Looking for more Christmas décor for your home? Check out our stories on the best artificial Christmas trees, the best outdoor Christmas decorations, and the best Christmas window decorations.

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