11 Types of Outdoor Christmas Lights
Updated: Nov. 28, 2023
The holidays are quickly approaching, and you know what that means. We'll show you our 11 types of Christmas lights to consider.
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Types of Christmas Lights
With aisles and aisles of indoor and outdoor Christmas lights filling stores each holiday season, it can be hard to choose the right ones. And with innovations in color, style and special features, there are more options now than ever before. Here are 11 types of Christmas lights to consider for your outdoor Christmas decorations.
LED Outdoor Christmas Lights
While LED Christmas lights are more expensive upfront, you’ll save money in the long run. You can pay $13.65 per month to decorate your rooftop with those old incandescent lights, or 22 cents per month with LED lights (prices estimated by Xcel Energy Colorado).
In comparison, LEDs are long lasting, with some LEDs rated to burn up to 100,000 hours. Additionally, LEDs come in warm-and cool-glow varieties. These multi-colored LED Christmas lights work well indoors and even on outdoor Christmas trees.
Incandescent Outdoor Christmas Lights
Incandescent Christmas lights often cost less upfront than LEDs, but like we mentioned above, they do cost more over time. The major attraction with this type of light is the warm old-school glow that will look beautiful on your home. This style often requires chasing down bad bulbs and fixing them.
Outdoor Projection String Lights
The LED outdoor Christmas light projector is the easiest and fastest way to get a LOT of light on your house. These lights require no roof installation and are a great time-saving alternative to traditional Christmas string lights. Simply plug them into an outdoor outlet and point them at your house.
These Christmas laser lights come with five patterns: snowflakes, jingle bells, Christmas trees, Santa Claus and starry red and green. If you need more options, here are some more of the best Christmas light projectors.
Mini String Christmas Lights
Mini string Christmas lights are great for blending your lights seamlessly into their surroundings when they aren’t in use. These lights with smaller bulbs are a popular trend now. By the way, you might want to get your hands on this Christmas lights repair tool that comes with everything you need to get the job done.
Smart Outdoor Christmas Lights
These outdoor Christmas lights can be controlled by an app or a remote control to adjust color, brightness, timing and pattern. The customizable options make them the perfect element for any Christmas light display.
These lights also include a preset scene setup. Simply pick the ambient motion you like and let the lights dazzle night after night. Learn how to store Christmas lights.
Read more about our favorite smart Christmas lights.
Large Bulb Outdoor Christmas Lights
These retro Christmas lights are everywhere during the holidays. These large bulbed lights (also known as C3, C5, C7, C9 and G40) evoke a sense of nostalgia. Thanks to LED technology we’ll see this type of lights for many years to come.
Battery-Operated Types of Christmas Lights
These battery-operated outdoor Christmas lights are ultra-flexible, which makes them great for light displays that aren’t near a power source.
Animated and Color-Changing Lights
Animated and color-changing Christmas lights add eye-catching action to any holiday lights display. These lights have 16 color options and four dynamic multi-color modes.
Net Lights
Net outdoor Christmas lights are already strung together, making it easy to get a uniform look when you drape them across shrubs or other structures. Next, get to know the purpose behind red-tipped Christmas lights.
Icicle Lights
These icicle outdoor Christmas lights give your home a snow-covered appearance no matter where you live. These icicle lights are waterproof, withstanding rain or water spills — the perfect outdoor holiday lights. Want to hire help to decorate your house? Get to know the cost of Christmas light installation.
LED Rope Lights
These LED Outdoor rope lights are ideal for outlining doorways, windows and walkways, or for creating intricate shapes and designs for Christmas time light displays. The crystal-clear PVC jacket enables these lights to withstand extreme external environment weather conditions and temperatures. Mounting hardware is included in this kit.
