The Best Book Lights for Getting Through Your To-Read List When It’s Dark Out

This compact, clip-on book light (I’d even call it cute) sort of looks like a USB flash drive—and in fact, sliding up the top reveals a USB connector that lets you charge the book light using a phone power bank, car charger, USB port on your laptop, or USB outlet (no cable necessary!). One full charge gives you eight hours of reading time! The light has two modes and allows you to adjust the brightness from 10 percent to 100 percent. Besides this pretty shade of purple, this book light is available in bright blue, lime green, and white.

Pros

• Built-in USB connector
• Four LEDs and adjustable brightness
• Body can be rotated 360 degrees

Cons

• Metal clip isn’t that strong and can damage paperback books

Blue light has been found to suppress melatonin, a hormone that your body releases at night and helps regulate your sleep/wake cycle. This clip-on book light eliminates 99.95 percent of blue light and offers three color temperatures: amber, natural, and white. It has a dimming function, too. The book light is thin enough to use as a bookmark when folded flat—a pretty handy feature—and you can charge it with a laptop USB port, USB outlet, phone power bank, or car charger. A full charge gives you 20 hours of reading time.

Pros

• Three different color temperatures (amber, natural, white) and adjustable brightness
• Flexible neck
• Built-in USB
• Up to 20 hours of battery

Cons

• Lowest setting is still bright
• Clip is bulky

Looking for something a bit more fun than the average black or white book light? This one gives you 32 choices (!), from flamingos to geometric designs to cute potted cacti. Some of the designs were probably designed for kids—a bright blue bookworm, a mummy, and so on—but hey, there’s nothing wrong with indulging your inner child. The book light is very flexible and is thin enough to use as a bookmark. (Note: It only has one brightness setting.)

Pros

• Lightweight and thin
• Flexible material

Cons

• Only one brightness setting
• Clip is bulky

With seven LED lights, nine color temperatures, and three brightness settings, this light has plenty of options to make sure your nighttime reading is as comfortable as possible. It has up to a 32 hour battery life and a flexible neck, and comes in three different colors.

Pros

• Nine color temperatures and three brightness settings
• Can be used as a clip-on or freestanding
• Has a battery display

Cons

• Battery drains quickly

You don’t have to worry about this clip-on book light disrupting your sleep like your phone or tablet can, because it eliminates 99.5 percent of blue light. Four hours of charging with the included micro USB charging cable will give you 30 hours of reading time, and you can adjust the brightness to 25, 50, or 100 percent—equal to 20, 40, and 80 lumens. (A standard 60-watt bulb produces 800 lumens.) At 2.5 ounces, it’s very light and perfect for travel.

Pros

• Removes 99.95 percent of blue light
• Three levels of brightness settings
• Up to 30 hours of battery
• Can be used as a clip-on or freestanding

Cons

• Clip portion is heavy

So, Energizer makes book lights—who knew? This one can either clip onto your book or stand by itself, and gives off a wide beam of light to accommodate larger books. The three dimmable light modes go from 10 to 100 lumens, and with a full charge, you’ll get 5.5 hours of reading time. (That’s using the highest brightness setting; lower settings will give you more time, of course.) The book light has a shatterproof lens and comes with a USB charging cable.

Pros

• Lightweight
• Three dimmable light modes
• Can be used as a clip-on or freestanding

Cons

• Clip is bulky
• Only 5.5 hours of battery

If you do a lot of nighttime reading, this is probably the ideal clip-on book light for you. With a full charge, it’ll provide 28 hours of light on high or 48 hours on low. (You may not want to complete those hours consecutively.) It runs on three AAA batteries (not included), so the battery compartment is bulkier than that of most book lights, but that’s why this light could be more convenient than the ones that need less common battery types. This bright book light can clip onto your book—or many other things—or stand by itself.

Pros

• Two light levels
• Can be used as a clip-on or freestanding

Cons

• Requires three AAA batteries
• Lamp gets hot

These cute book lights are more fun than the average model because they offer six design options, as well as plain white for the minimalists out there. Here are your choices: a cartoon owl, a pretty paisley print, a pile of books (very meta), a peacock feather, a baseball, and … a flaming football. At 2.4 ounces, it’s perfectly portable for travel. This book light is designed to run on non-rechargeable batteries, but the brand also sells a similar rechargeable model for just a couple dollars more.

Pros

• Foldable design
• Three dimmable light modes

Cons

• Requires two lithium coin batteries
• Very small in size

This compact light can be easily folded up and put in a pocket or bag, and it has a built-in USB charger so you don’t have to worry about losing any cords. It has a warm white light, two brightness levels, and can last for up to eight hours on a charge. It comes in a variety of fun colors.

Pros

• Built-in USB charger
• Two level of brightness
• Can be used as a clip-on or freestanding
• 350° flexible holder

Cons

• Clicks loudly when closing
• Light can be too bright

This lightweight lamp features nine brightness modes—warm, white light, bright, soft—to protect your eyes at night. It has a clip that fits on books of all sizes and kindles and the light heads are adjustable.

Pros

• Nine levels of brightness
• Foldable
• Fits on books and kindles

Cons

• Requires charging

If you’d rather not clip something to your book, a neck reading light could be the perfect solution. They’re less common than clip-on book lights (and they look a bit like medical devices, TBH), but they’re versatile and easily portable. For example, if you’re walking your dog at night, just throw this around your neck for an easy light source. The design is flexible, so when you’re reading in bed, you can easily direct the light away from your partner. This neck light has four brightness settings and lasts for 60 hours (!) on a full charge from the included micro USB charging cable.

Pros

• Four power modes (USB ports, laptop, power banks, micro-USB cable)
• Four LEDs and four brightness settings
• Battery up to 60 hours

Cons

• Bulky in size

A neck reading light is a great choice if you want to keep your books clip-free and pristine—and this one is the #1 bestseller in the Book Lights category at Amazon. It has an ergonomic design with three light settings (yellow, warm white, and cool white) and three brightness levels. When charged fully with the included USB-C cable, it can last from six to 80 hours (!), depending on the brightness level you choose. Want a more interesting color that what’s pictured here? It’s also available in pink and bright blue.

Pros

• Ergonomic design
• Three temperature color modes and three brightness settings
• Battery up to 80 hours

Cons

• Lowest setting is still bright
• Proprietary charging cable

With four flicker-free LED lights and three brightness settings, this neck light can be used for reading, puzzling, and other activities that need just a little extra brightness. It has flexible arms, each with its own switch, to give you options to vary your light, an included micro-USB cable, and it has up to 40 hours of battery life.

Pros

• Ergonomic design
• Four LEDs and three brightness levels
• Up to 40 hours of battery

Cons

• Lowest setting is still bright
• Clunky design

If you’re looking for a portable neck light, look no further than Luxjet. Weighing only 3.8 ounces and having a bendable neck, the Luxjet hug light easily fits into a carry-on or personal bag. While it needs three hours to charge, the battery lasts between six and 12 hours.

Pros:

• Lightweight
• 6-12 hour battery life
• Portable

Cons:

• Long charge time