The best neck lights for knitting

An unsponsored review of the most popular neck lights ranked by brightness, comfort, and battery lifetime

A good neck light should be in every knitter’s project bag. It’s almost as important as finding a good interchangeable knitting needle set. It’s a tremendous helper when knitting with black yarn, but also saves energy because you don’t need to turn on all the lights in the living room to tanning salon brightness. But which neck light is the best, and where are the differences?

Well, I went to Amazon and bought all of the most popular neck lights for you and tested them thoroughly. I charged them fully and then recorded how long the batteries lasted. I used a special light meter to compare the brightness, and of course, I also knitted a bit with each to see how comfortable they are and how pleasant the light feels. Here are the results.

Note: I earn a small commission for purchases made through links in this article.

#1 Gritin Neck light

The overall best neck light I found during my tests was the Gritin LED Neck Reading light. While it didn’t score highest in most categories, it received four out of five possible stars in almost all categories that matter.

It has a phenomenal battery run time of 7.5 h on the brightest setting and offers 3 different modes (cool, warm, yellow). Especially the warm light feels very pleasant. With 250 LUX per light, it wasn’t the brightest, but the light intensity was serviceable enough during my tests and my eyes – especially as it sheds light in a nice radius of ~21 cm at a distance of 30 centimeters.

The neckband is stiff and rather wide with a little inlaid padding. While it looks very similar to many of its competitors, it has to be noted that it’s a lot more rounded and overall flat, making it nestle against your neck quite well – despite the austere appearance. The flexible arms are also quite a bit longer than most competitors and easily stay put.

The rather cheap price is certainly the icing on the cake, while a lot of knitters will enjoy the fact that the battery has a status bar where you can see how much run time is approximately left.

>> Buy the Gritin neck light here on Amazon

#2 YKZ/Radixium Neck light

My personal favorite, and a close second in the ranking, was the so-called YKZ neck lights (a technically similar light is sold under the brand name Radixium). It has an exceptionally warm & nice light, and offers 3 different modes at a battery run time of around 6.5 h on the highest setting.

But above all, it’s the most comfortable neck light I found during my research. It weighs 152 grams. So it might not be the lightest of the lot. However, since the neck band is fully flexible AND flat, this weight gets distributed evenly all around your neck. Almost all other neck lights have a stiff center piece that sits rather weirdly on top of your neck and often doesn’t stay put.

The only possible downside is that the light intensity is not the brightest. During my tests, I was only able to record 240 lux per light – possibly because the lens sheds the light in a rather wide cone with a radius of more than 25 cm. I could also well imagine that the long and super flexible ends help a lot of knitters who typically find that their chest is in the way.

>> Buy the YKZ neck light here on Amazon

#3 Stier/Hyper tough work light

If you are looking for a strong light, then the Stier neck light will probably be your best friend. During my tests, I was able to record 2800 LUX per light. Only one light was brighter, but the Stier (also sold as Hyper tough with a slightly different neckband) convinced me a lot more because it’s just so flexible while still being surprisingly comfortable despite its ~165 grams.

It’s certainly one of the pricier options on this list, but I feel it’s well warranted for the extra quality & brightness you get. On the negative side, it has to be mentioned that this is a neck light intended for work and not leisure. So while it does have different brightness settings, it does not offer a truly warm or yellow setting. Personally, I don’t mind, but some prefer these warmer tones.

Another downside is the fact that it actually uses batteries and cannot be charged through a USB Type-C socket like all the other lights on this list. The way I see it, this could also be seen as more sustainable. You can easily get some high-quality rechargeable batteries that will increase the run time. Plus, once they are finished, you can exchange them. A lot of other craft lights need to be thrown away once their batteries inevitably fail.

>> Buy the Stier/hyper tough neck light here on Amazon

#4 FAYIBUY/EastPin light

A wonderful contender for the top spots is also the EastPin Neck light for book lovers. While it was probably intended for reading, it works very well for knitting as well. What I really like about this neck light is the fact that it has two different arms. One has a very intense spotlight (~2500 Lux) you can point at the very spot you are knitting your stitches. The other arm has a wide panel with quite a couple of LEDs that creates a warmer and much wider cone of light that will illuminate the rest of your project.

On the downside: It’s rather heavy (164 grams), and it’s not all that flexible either. Or rather, the flat end is very difficult to position. I could well imagine that knitters with a big bust will have a hard time finding a way for it not to block their line of sight.

The neck piece doesn’t feel all that comfortable either. It’s not totally horrible, but certainly a distinct step away from the top 3 entries here on this list.

>> Buy the FAYIBUY/EastPin neck light here on Amazon

#5 Glocusent neck light

The quite popular glocusent neck light was only able to rank 5th in my test. I suspect they benefit from a lot of reviews on Amazon and a slightly more aggressive marketing strategy. What truly sets the light apart is the fact that there are 6 different modes: Warm, cool, and yellow. And for each of these three modes ,you can adjust the brightness from low, to medium, and high.

But other than that, it is rather uncomfortable to wear. It’s one big stiff piece of plastic sitting on top of your neck. The flexible portion of the arms is rather short, presenting a big problem for knitters who need these arms to reach over their busts, etc. The battery run time (~6 h) was also rather in the middle of the whole range at the brightest setting, and this brightness was only rather average as well with 280 LUX.

It’s not necessarily a light you will regret buying, but I do feel that there are lights that are more flexible, more comfortable, lighter, cheaper, and with a better battery run time. This is only average and possibly only ideal for people who require a lot of settings.

>> Buy the Glocusent neck light here on Amazon

#6 Osram/Ezred work light

The last entry here on my list with an average ranking is the Osram/Ezred/CAT neck light. It deserves to be mentioned because it was, with a whopping 5800 LUX per light, by far the brightest light I found. So, if you really need light intensity that simulates bright daylight, this could be your best bet.

The neck light only offers two different settings with faintly warm light, and the batteries will only last 4 hours (however, I do feel that’s okay considering the brightness). With 144 grams it’s not even that heavy, but I would say it’s still not a good fit for knitters. Two reasons, really. First of all, the flat neck light might feel comfortable, but you can barely adjust it. Secondly, the tip of the lights can only be adjusted vertically, but not horizontally.

As a result, you will have a hard time getting these to point in the direction you want them to point. If you are fixing a car, this might not be a big problem because the light cone is ample at a big distance, but for knitting, where the distance is typically much shorter, I personally couldn’t make it work all that well. On the plus side, you can actually detach each light (there’s a strong magnet keeping it in place) and use it as a handheld torch.

>> Buy the Ezred neck light here on Amazon

#7 LuxJet/Vekkia light

If you were to go by weight and battery run time, then the Luxjet/Vekkia light would possibly be the best neck light you could buy. It only weighs around 105 grams (so between 25-50% less than most of the competitors), and it will last up to 7.75 hours on the brightest setting.

The arms are quite flexible but never quite stay put, and have a weird bounce to them. The stiff neckpiece is too shallow to be comfortable, and the light is overall way too blueish. There is not even a true warm/yellow setting, making it quite a strain on the eyes.

Overall, the appearance is quite cheap, and it doesn’t seem exceptionally durable either. The worst bit is, if you ask me, the actual light cone. On paper, I was able to record a respectable 600 LUX in the dead center of each light at a distance of 30 cm. Sounds nice, right? However, the resulting light cone barely had a radius of 5 centimeters. Together with the fact that it’s quite hard to adjust the too flexible arms, I had a tough time illuminating my knitting enough.

>> Buy the Vekkia neck light here on Amazon

#8 Adoric/Olicraft neck light

Another product I can’t quite recommend is the Adoric/Olicraft neck light. While it did have by far the best battery runtime (13 hours!), and is typically available at a very competitive price (sometimes below 10 USD!), it’s just not bright enough. During my tests, I was only able to record 170 Lux per light, and that often just felt like it wasn’t enough.

On top of that, the central neck band is very stiff and quite wide, making it very uncomfortable to wear – especially since it’s on the heavier side (144 g) and the “padding” is glued on the plastic, making it stick out. Plus, the adjustable portion of the arms is also quite short. It’s also the only light on this list that only offers warm settings but no cool tones.

>> Buy the Olicraft neck light here on Amazon

#9 Diboniur neck light

Another product I am quite hesitant to recommend is the Diboniur neck light. What truly sets it apart is the fact that the whole length of the neckband is adjustable. There’s no stiff portion at all. However, the band itself is round and not flat, which reduces the possible contact points. As a result, it wasn’t able to score the highest in the comfort department. At 114 grams, it is rather light.

Sadly, the brightness is very low. It only sheds light in a cone with a radius of 19 centimeters at a distance of 30 centimeters, and this light has only roundabout 145 Lux. So I will say that it could still be a nice product for someone who prefers fit and comfort, and prefers a slightly dimmed light.

>> Buy the Diboniur neck light here on Amazon

My Summary

Now I bought all these neck lights (and quite a couple of more that didn’t make it on the list or simply are no longer available), and this leaves the question: Which ones did I continue to use?

I would say it’s a draw between the YKZ and the Stier neck light. I personally am a very sensitive person, and the fully flexible flat neck band of the YKZ light is just the most comfortable I could find. Plus, the mixed light feels extraordinarily pleasant to my eye, and it’s bright enough for most purposes.

For those projects where I need a bit more power (say, black, fuzzy yarn on 2mm needles in a dark room), the Stier neck light has become a good companion. The flat neck band, even though it’s quite bare, feels remarkably comfortable, and those powerful LEDs are able to blast away even the tiniest shadow.

All in all, I personally would go through this list with a clear priority. Do you need it bright? Do you want it comfortable? Do you need a lot of extra flexibility to reach across your bust? My pictures and notes should be able to give you some good intel on that to look out for – even though the products look slightly different and are sold by a different wholesaler.

At the end of the day, almost all of these products will do their job. Even the worst neck light (the now unevailable Eecoo light) was still usable. Considering that most of them are in roundabout the same low price range, there’s not all that much you can do wrong.

However, I would be hesitant to go by stars & reviews on Amazon. I was not able to match these with my findings, and suspect that some companies give away more review copies than others.

Anyway, that was my review of the best neck lights for knitters. Comment below if you still have any questions.