Wanna know what the best 1000W HPS grow bulb is on the market?
3 HPS grow light bulbs
You walk into your local hydroponic store or browse the internet looking for the best HPS grow bulb at the right price range... but then you get stuck. There are so many brands claiming they're the best dest and brightest with the best lumens and high PAR, etc., etc.-- which makes it difficult picking the best HPS light bulb that can help you produce your desired yields. Not only that, but the prices between all the different bulb manufacturers differ and it's tough figuring if the money you'd spend is going towards a bulb that claims what it does. Well, GrowAce has put your question to rest. We did a comparison test on 6 of the biggest HPS grow light bulb brands and pit them against each other. We set up parameters to make it as objective as possible and the results were surprising:

Testing the Best 1000w Single Ended HPS Bulbs

We asked our Instagram and Facebook followers what their favorite bulbs were, and combined with the highest-selling grow light bulbs on the market and we tested the following 1000w HPS bulbs: Using the same grow light ballast, reflective grow tent, and PAR meter, we tested each bulb for its total light intensity and here's what we found:
Best grow light bulb
To be thorough, we measured the PAR readings from three different heights, 15 inches, 27 inches, and 51 inches. Here are the readings from the highest par reading to the least to show you how much power these bulbs put out:
Grow light bulb pfdp readings
Grow light bulb pfdp measurements
Grow light bulb pfdp measurements
Grow light bulb pfdp measurements
Grow light bulb pfdp measurements
Grow light bulb pfdp measurements
We also created a comparison graph on the average PAR reading in the footprint we measured.
Grow light bulb pfdp measurements

Conclusion

And there you have it, the results for the top 6 popular grow bulbs to help you complete your best grow light system. As expected, time and time again that Hortilux outperformed the other 5 HPS bulbs, but here are a couple of other discoveries we made during this review:
    • While Eye Hortilux outperformed Yield Lab, it was Yield Lab that came out to be the best value
    • Yield Lab 1000w bulbs outperformed the 4 remaining bulbs and cost $12-70 less than them, too
  • The best, safest packaging goes to the Digilux bulb. While it did not perform as well as the rest, it's packaging was hands-down the best we've seen in a while
So with all that said, which is the best bulb? In terms of the highest light output, the winner is Eye Hortilux. In the battle for the best value (which we believe is the better choice of the two) you've got to go with Yield Lab, hands down. The next time you're out buying an HPS grow bulb for your fruits or flowers, remember this chart and ask yourself... Am I getting the best bulb for the price?

29 comments

Carlos

Appreciate the recommendation. Let me try it out can not wait to give my feedback.

Devin Martinez

“Hello William.

That is a great question. Since the HPS bulbs are sensitive you can tell by any black spotting on the bulb or a blue spotting. However, we do advise when grabbing an HPS bulb to be sure to put on a pair of gloves due to the fact that the HPS bulbs are delicate. All our HPS bulbs are shipped as a new bulb and will show no signs and if any issue that this does occur we will be more than happy to take care of you."

G

I know you used the same reflector. But it would be great to see this same test done, except for reflectors too. I can’t really apply this information to my particular setup because there are so many different reflectors. I would have to have the reflector you tested with for this to really mean anything for my particular setup. So, there, requested :) Same test, except Try each reflector with each bulb. I know its a lot of data to collect, but that would be very impressive. This is impressive too. Nicely done!

Jesse

I am doing some testing on some LED grow lamps and how they compare to HPS. In your graphic you explained it pretty well thanks for the much needed details.

Shawn

pretty insightful things here i had no idea how many HPS bulbs were out there now i am really interested to check these out.

dennis

I HAVE TWO OF THESE AND I USE THIS DAILY AND I LOVE THEM !! Thank you for guiding me in the right direction.

Dwayne

“You are so awesome! I don’t suppose I’ve truly read something like this before.
So great to discover somebody with knowledge and experience with these bulbs. Keep up the great work GrowAce! "

William

How do you no if a bulb is used hps

Max

Great Piece, i love how the HPS bulb works i use it for every grow cycle and it never fails me. I love that you sell these bulbs and back it up with the cool warranty. Thank you man!

Lowie

cool nice to know for further references. Do you have a channel or something we can subscribe to? Great dets.

Gretchen

“It’s a shame you don’t have a donate button! I’d definitely donate to this fantastic blog!
I suppose for now i’ll settle for bookmarking and adding to my list of daily reads.
Just to want to applaud GrowAce for graphs that are very useful for me great going. Good Readings!”

Ramona

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is genuinely remarkable.”

Mario

“Your style is really unique compared to other people I’ve read
stuff from. Thanks for posting when you have the opportunity, I just bookmarked this blog for future references. "

Jermaine

Wow, something like this is what i was searching for. I was having an issue trying to figure out what were the best High pressure sodium bulbs to use and this helped me so much.

Kirsten

Very good write-up. I certainly appreciate this article on the best grow bulbs around. I found it super helpful in the grow room and over my plants.

Devin Martinez

Will do, Marc! We’re here to make sure you know the best info on HPS bulbs as we can. And remember that while these are accurate readings, these are suggestions. We definitely have our favorites, and we’d go with the Yield Lab or Hortilux bulbs.

Devin Martinez

We’re glad we can help guide you in your search for the best 1000w HPS grow light bulb ! We’re here to make sure that no matter what sort of budget or grow lights you have, you get all the info you need to make the best decision for your grow room and your wallet.

Devin Martinez

Glad to hear we can help you decide which is the best HPS grow bulb out there. And hey, even if it’s not a Yield Lab grow light bulb we still want to make sure you get the grow light you need. No matter if you grow weed or grow white roses, the flowering stage of a plant will get you the buds, flowers, and fruit you want. Getting the best HPS bulb is vital in making sure you get the spectrum of light necessary to bloom flowers, grow flowering sites, grow big buds, and harvest in a big way. If you have any more questions just give us a call at (888) 621-0062

Devin Martinez

Thank you for taking the time out to read out review! When you’re in the market for new high pressure sodium grow lights bulbs give us a shout. We’ll get you the best HPS bulb for your plants and your budget.

Marilyn Gallop

“It’s nearly impossible to find educated people in this particular subject, however,
you seem like you know what you’re talking about!

Thanks"

Selina

Wonderful site. Plenty of useful info here. I am sending it to some buddies and also sharing this. And obviously, thank you for your effort!

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Super useful!

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Pretty sure he will have a good read. Many thanks for sharing!”

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