You don’t have to look far to get best led grow lights under $500. With many reputable companies competing for the bloated grow lights market, you can grow lights of superb quality with $500 and thereabouts.

LED grow lights are known for their efficiency and effectiveness. They’re cool hence won’t heat-stress your plants, consume less power, and are beginner-friendly. But for most people, choosing between the many brands presents a challenge, and I hate to say this but the higher your budget for the best LED grow lights, the broader the range to choose from, thus more problems.

If you have a small budget your choices narrow down to the few you can afford, and well, with fewer options, the choice is easy. But honestly, with a $500 budget, there are many super-performing LED grow lights for indoor growing.

How LED Grow Lights Work

LED bulbs produce light due electricity flowing through them, but some energy not being permitted to leave. Diodes allow current to only flow in one direction, and so the resistance is shed as light. The chemical makeup of the LED’s material determines the type of light they shed.

Some light is easy to produce with a little chemistry, others took a lot of work. A full spectrum LED is actually a tricky thing. Some produce it with clusters of single-color LEDs to emit some or all of the spectra you want. Others have a complex chemistry feat, managing to emit all of them from a single component. This is done based on voltages fed into them.

Some of these broad spectrum LED panels only emit white and UV light. LEDs can produce white light as actual white light, rather than combining component sources to produce it. Others are more advanced, capable of individual colors as well.

ECO Farm DBL5000 Full Spectrum LED Grow Light 480W

Features:

The ECO Farm LED Grow Light uses an upgraded Samsung LM281B chip with 6 passively cooled LED strips, the professional SMD design provides even and wide canopy coverage, higher light intensity, and less light decay. It easily achieves a 30% higher average PPFD and boasts an incredibly high efficiency of 2.5 µmol/J. A total of 1296 LEDs consume only 480W on a 4x4 ft growing area, resulting in a smaller footprint and better crop quality and quantity. Grow lights with enhanced blue light (3000–5000K) and rich red light (660nm), plus IR and UV light provide more precise and uniform dynamic PPFD Meets all plant stages from seeding to flowering, accelerating growth and enhancing crops Yield. The dimming knob design can adjust the light intensity in the range of 0–10V according to the growth needs. It is the perfect sunlight grow light for full cycle hydroponics, soil, grow tent/room growing.

LEX Grow Mini 300W Commercial LED Grow Light

Features:

The Lex Grow Mini LED Grow Light introduces a high-intensity full-spectrum light designed to replace any 600w HPS on the market with an efficient alternative. Using only 300 watts, this light is ideal for growers looking to cover a larger area while preserving valuable resources. The Lex Grow Mini 300 Watt Premium Commercial and Home LED Grow Light provides 3' x 3' flower footprint coverage and 4' x 4' vegetable footprint coverage. This LED unit is backed by Lex Commercial’s 5-year warranty, allowing you to increase production while reducing operating expenses. Lex Grow Mini Full Spectrum delivers the sun-like quality plants crave without the costly energy demands and negative effects of high heat. With Lex Grow’s Full Spectrum, you will see rapid growth and increased plant yields.

MAXSISUN MG3000 300W LED Grow Light

Features:

This grow light uses top-of-the-line components with Samsung diodes and a MeanWell driver with a strip light design. It is the most professional LED grow light and is perfect for 3x3 ft spaces from seed to harvest. The MG3000 provides plants with a rich and uniform PAR distribution with no hot spots, consuming only 300 watts, and delivering a true high efficiency rating PPF of 2.4 μmol/J per joule. Keep the same distance between the plant and the MG3000. Adjust its brightness for different growth stages. Smooth rotary dimmers provide flexibility to reduce energy consumption while reducing electricity bills. It helps you master light levels from normal daylight to super bright.

How to Maximize Plants Yield

According to Lighting Research Center, at present, 48% of growers use supplemental lighting to grow crops, what makes these technologies particularly valuable for those who make produce plants indoors. Apart from helping to yield crops, LED lights are energy efficient, allowing to reduce your energy bills. On top of that, this results in the increased cannabinoid content in plants grown under light.

Scientists from Dominican University have conducted a study and tested 45 plants grown with the use of this technology. The tests have shown an impressive range of full spectrum lighting for plants.

“To do the job, the correct PAR value in consideration to plant photosynthesis is critical. Further analysis will show the correct red and blue spectrum required by plants to gain nutrients and photosynthesis,” the researchers concluded.

The idea is that you get a color range that is perfect for plants to grow, without any excess illumination. In addition, such plants have elevated THC levels.

Using a hydroponic environment that includes dehumidifiers, lighting and irrigation facilities is essential for growing plants indoors, says Mel Thomas in his book “Plants Cultivation. A Complete Grower’s Guide.” This fact is supported by experience of growers who managed to yield large crops in an enclosed space.

A 50-Pint Dehumidifier with Humidity Control for some $200 is designed for a continuous operation. However, in this case you should place it near a low-level drain. You may want a an electric Mini Dehumidifier that covers an area of 150 square feet. This option is 4 times cheaper but is lightweight and portable. A wise choice is to acquire a temperature controller that comes with a humidity controller. Both gadgets have the calibration function and emit an alarm signal when either temperature or humidity fall outside a specified range.

Grow Light Placement Tips

Hanging or placing lights within the plant beds or pots is the ideal arrangement, as it imitates natural sunlight from overhead and exposes all sides and leaves of a plant into the artificial light.

Suggestion: Place grow lights directly over plantings to mimic natural sunlight.

As a rough guide, incandescent grow light bulbs should be at least 24 inches above your crops. Fluorescent and LED lights have a lower heat signature, so they may be put 12 and 6 inches above plants .

Keep adjusting the positioning of the grow light as your plants grow and mature to keep the proper distance. Consult your specific model and type of layout for precise specifics and directions.

And bear in mind that the lighting level required for growth inside is contingent on the characteristics of the specific plant being grown. Based on what you would like to grow, you might need unique lights set a different height for particular plant areas.

Suggestion: LEDs have a low heat signature and can be placed very near plantings.

Conclusion

In conclusion, with a $500 budget, you have a lot of high-quality LED grow lights at your disposal. These grow lights will meet your plants need at every stage efficiently.