Lumen to Watt Equivalents in Light Bulbs
When you buy an LED bulb, wattage is no longer the only measure to consider. What really matters now are lumens, which indicate the amount of light emitted. But how do you know how much light corresponds to the old 60W or 100W bulbs? Here’s the explanation.
What is the relationship between lumens and watts?
Watts (W) measure energy consumption, while lumens (lm) measure the brightness of the bulb. Incandescent bulbs required many more watts to emit the same amount of light as an LED.
- Lumens: indicate how much light a bulb emits.
- Watts: show how much electricity it consumes.
With the arrival of LED technology, we no longer choose bulbs by watts but by lumens. An LED bulb of just 10W can emit the same 800 lumens as an old 60W incandescent bulb. That’s why today what matters is not how many watts it consumes but how many lumens it produces. Still, it’s understandable to look for equivalency to know if an LED will light up as much as an old bulb.
Lumen-Watt Equivalence Table
Here’s a simple table to help you choose the right LED bulb based on the light you need:
| Approximate Light Output - Lumens | Watt Equivalent | LED Consumption (W) |
|---|---|---|
| 450 lm | 40 W | 4 - 6 W |
| 800 lm | 60 W | 7 - 10 W |
| 1100 lm | 75 W | 10 - 13 W |
| 1500 lm | 100 W | 14 - 17 W |
| 2000 lm | 125 W | 18 - 23 W |
| 2600 lm | 150 W | 24 - 30 W |
How many lumens do I need for each room?
It depends on the use and the type of room. As a general guideline:
- Kitchen / Bathroom: 200-300 lumens per m²
- Living Room: 100-150 lumens per m²
- Bedroom: 75-100 lumens per m²
It’s no longer enough to look only at watts. To choose the right LED bulb, you need to pay attention to the lumens, since they determine how much light you’ll get. LEDs consume much less power and give you the same or even more light than an incandescent bulb.