LED strip lights are new and versatile forms of lighting. There are many variants and exceptions, but for the most part, they have the following characteristics:

Consist of many individual LED emitters mounted on a narrow, flexible circuitboard

Operate on low-voltage DC power

Are available in a wide range of fixed and variable color and brightness

Ship in a long reel (typically 16 feet / 5 meters), can be cut to length, and includes double-sided adhesive for mounting

Determining LED Strip Brightness

Brightness of LED strips is determined using the metric lumens. Unlike incandescent bulbs, different LED strips can have different levels of efficiency, so a wattage rating is not always meaningful in determining actual light output.

LED strip brightness is typically described in lumens per foot (or meter). A good quality LED strip should provide at least 450 lumens per foot (1500 lumens per meter), which provides approximately the same amount of light output per foot as a traditional T8 fluorescent lamp. (E.g. 4-ft T8 fluorescent = 4-ft of LED strip = 1800 lumens).

LED strip brightness is primarily determined by three factors:

Light output and efficiency per LED emitter

The number of LEDs per foot

The power draw of the LED strip per foot

An LED strip light without a brightness specification in lumens is a red flag. You will also want to watch out for low cost LED strips that claim high brightness, as they may overdrive the LEDs to the point of premature failure.