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Halogen vs. LED Headlights: What’s The Difference?

January 17, 2024
LED VS. Halogen Headlights

Table of contents

So it’s crucial to know their differences and choose the best. Regarding choices, it all depends on your car and other factors. Visibility, energy-efficient nature, and lifespan are some factors to consider.

Well, that’s what we want to help you with here. You can make a smart decision on which headlight you should opt for. I’m excited to dive into this with you. Ready? Let’s go! 

Everything You Must Know About Halogen Headlights

Let’s explore halogen lights, considering their illumination mechanism. These lights consist of tungsten filament encased in a halogen gas-filled bulb. So, you must understand this unique setup.

How Do Halogen Lights Work?

Understanding the basic principles and mechanics of halogen lighting is good for you. A halogen light has a thin tungsten filament in a glass filament capsule. The glass contains a halogen gas that is super resistant to high temperatures.

halogen headlights

Now, this is how the halogen headlight works. It sends electricity through the tungsten filament, which heats it to about 2000°C. At that extremely high temperature, the tungsten filament begins to glow. It’s called the incandescent process. The halogen light uses minimal halogen, which can be bromine or iodine.

Common Features and Characteristics of Halogen Headlights

It is more like a glass bulb filled with halogens. Halogen light bulbs are known to have good energy efficiency, quality of light, and reasonable lifespan. They are cheaper to buy since their cost of production is comparatively low.

Headlights don’t last forever, so you need to consider maintenance costs. Halogen headlights are also easier to replace. That’s another point to note. You can easily replace your halogen light bulbs without a professional.

Halogen headlights produce a softer light. It might seem like a deficiency at first, but not really. Having a softer light can be good for you and other drivers on the road. They emit lumens ranging between 900 to 1000 with a whiter color temperature of 3000K. Halogen bulbs also have a slightly yellow-tinged light. It’s pretty gentle on the eyes. That’s a good thing.

Everything You Must Know About LED Headlights

Let us now turn our attention to LED headlights, a modern form of lighting. You can unlock the potential of automotive lighting technology by knowing its features and practical applications.

alt= led headlights

How Do LED Lights Work?

Here, we explain the technology and operation behind LED headlights.

LED bulbs are simply semiconductors. LED headlights are a collection of super sharp and powerful LEDs emitting bright light. LEDs produce clear light when an electric current passes through them. They only require a small amount of current to shine so brightly.  

LED headlights use a relatively small amount of energy to illuminate than halogen bulbs. LED means Light Emitting Diode. They are 90% more efficient compared to an incandescent bulb. 

LEDs use a solid-state lighting (SSL) technology. The SSL produces light from a piece of solid matter, not a vacuum or argon gas. It doesn’t produce heat like the incandescent bulbs and is brighter. Thus, you get a perfect light pattern.

Common Features and Characteristics of an LED Headlight 

Let’s highlight the efficiency, longevity, and performance of LEDs. First, LED headlights work better and produce less heat.

The LED headlight has an exceptional lifespan. They are pretty impressive, with a lifespan that can reach 50,000 hours. That’s a greater longevity than many lighting options. Hence, it reduces maintenance costs since you won’t need replacements so often.

Their energy efficiency is superb because it requires just a small amount of energy. They consume less energy and emit less heat, which is close to zero. It makes them environment friendly and reduces electricity bills.

LEDs can work in cold conditions better than traditional lighting options by 5%. Also, they don’t produce heat or UV emissions, unlike halogen headlights. 

LED vs. Halogen – A Comparative Analysis


Features Halogen LED
Brightness Soft light Sharp and bright light
Visibility Covers a good distance Covers a longer distance
Energy Efficiency Low High
Power consumption Much Minimal
Durability Less durable More durable
Maintenance/replacement More frequently Less frequently
Lifespan 1000 – 6000 hours 25000 – 50000 hours
Warm-up/delay time Yes No
Heat Emission High Low
Color temperature 3200K – 5000K 6000K
Installation time About half an hour About half an hour

As you can see, halogen emits soft light, whereas LED produces sharp and bright light. Likewise, their lifespan also differs a lot. Halogen lights last between 1000 to 6000 hours while LEDs have a 25000 to 50000 hours lifespan. So, considering all these points, including power consumption and heat emission, you will find LED lights far better than halogen.

LED vs. Halogen Headlights – Which Is Better?

LED vs. Halogen Headlights

The LED bulb is better with features like better light quality, longer lifespan, and higher energy efficiency. Don’t you think?

You will discover that car manufacturers are gradually adopting LED lights as the standard lighting. Halogen headlights exist mainly in budget cars and the used car market.

Only the low cost of halogen headlight replacement is a drawcard here. You don’t have to pay an exorbitant price to replace a halogen bulb. However, when you replace the halogen bulbs, your LED shines brightly.

LED lights are way more attractive and fitting for luxurious cars than halogen bulbs. When you buy a new car now, you’ll only find adaptive LED lights there. Some even use laser lights.

Without an argument, you will find that having greater visibility and a long lifespan is better than heat. With time, there will be more market adoption for LED lights, and the costs should also be reduced. 

What Factors Should You Consider When Choosing Headlights?

Through the dark and foggy roads, your vehicle’s headlights are your eyes to see. How bright and reliable are they? Anything short of these can lead to terrible experiences. Either a road accident or getting pulled over is not something you want to experience.

Just like we mentioned earlier, nothing lasts forever. Headlights fade off with time, and you will need to replace them. The best thing would be for you to change them all simultaneously. Doing that will reduce the cost for you. However, there are factors to consider when selecting your vehicle’s headlight.  

1. Better Visibility and Brightness

Better Visibility and Brightness

Visibility has to do with lighting distance and seeing the road. Brightness is about how sharp and bright you want the light to be. LED headlights have the best features here. 

However, there are old car models that still use halogen headlights. These are things you need to check out before buying your car headlights. Also, auto manufacturers provide every vehicle with its specified power rating.

Brighter light gives more visibility, but make sure you adjust your power rating. If the brighter headlight has a higher power rating, make sure that you make the necessary adjustments.

It is worth stating that going for a brighter halogen headlight might not be the best. If a halogen bulb shines more, it emits a higher temperature, which is not so good. It also means a shorter lifespan. 

2. Type of Headlight

There are many types of headlights in the market with different technologies at work. We only consider two because they seem to be the most prominent headlights. Consider functionality and how attractive the headlights are when choosing your next headlight. Make sure they meet your requirements and fit perfectly with your vehicle. 

3. Color Temperature

You can measure the output of your headlight. The color temperature is in Kelvin (K). It is the temperature at which the headlights illuminate. When the kelvin rating is lower, the light becomes more yellow, leading to less illumination.

But when the kelvin rating goes up, the whiteness of the light increases. Thus, the light output goes from yellow to white, then blue, with a higher rating, giving off purple.

You will find that the yellow light color is common with the halogen light. It has good visibility in different weather conditions. Nevertheless, the white light is outstanding and common with more expensive new cars. That’s the LED headlights. If you want a fantastic driving experience, you should opt for these headlights.

3. Lifespan

The last thing you want to do is avoid buying a light that has a short lifespan. If you get the perfect car headlight, its lifespan must be impressive. Having good longevity saves you from paying unnecessary maintenance costs too often.

Headlights replacement

You won’t need to keep replacing your headlights because they are fading off. It’s best to buy headlights that will last you longer. Carry out appropriate research to get the very best headlight for your vehicle.

4. Price

Here’s the last factor to consider before buying your headlights. You don’t need to break the bank just to get a good headlamp. Simply find one that falls within your budget at a reasonable and affordable price. Note that the prices may change depending on the particular type and its quality. 

For your good, don’t buy cheap quality; save a few pennies. If you need to save more money to get a quality, do just that. Buying a cheap quality headlight will only cost you more money in the long run.

You will end up spending more money on maintenance and replacement of lights. Save up and buy the best! The headlight should fit your needs and last longer.

Final Thoughts

Weak sight can be worse than no sight. You can’t afford to drive at any given speed without clearly seeing the road ahead. Your headlights are your eyes for the road through the dark and the fog. Moreover, your car’s light helps you and other drivers. So, it’s time to work on your car’s electrical system and get the lights replaced.

Are you tired of using traditional LED bulbs or halogen lamps? We recommend that you choose LED lights that will serve you best. With this headlight, you’ll be confident to drive through any weather or time of the day. 

Why Buy LED Headlights from Carlightvision?

Light up all roads with our exquisite LED headlights. The outlights align well with the car’s electrical system. Regardless of the climate conditions, you can enjoy every bit of your driving experience.

With Carlightvision‘s innovative lighting technology, you’ve got no worries driving through any road. You can have the best of different features in one. Reliability, visibility, and style merged into one. Connect with us now and experience true-quality lighting!

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About Mark Yang

Hey there, I'm Mark Yang, Hope my blog posts can help you. I have been in the car light field for more than 20 years. So if you have any questions, I'm always happy to help you.
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