Owning one of the best ring lights for phones is super important for online content creators wanting to produce professional looking video. But it isn’t just TikTokers, YouTubers and Twitch streamers who can really benefit from one, but anyone who uses their phone for video calls and selfies too.
Ring lights, whether sold as selfie or vlogging lights, all do the same thing. They produce a soft light to evenly illuminate subjects. They’ll work great for selfies, beauty shots and vlogging, providing flattering shadows and a ring-shaped reflection in the eye, but also for product and close up photography too.
Lots of ring lights are designed to work on multiple devices, including cameras (we’ve covered these in our best ring lights guide). This guide, however, focuses solely on the best ring lights for phones.
Whatever handset you’re on, iPhone or Android, our list of the best ring lights for phones will give you the information you need to buy the perfect lighting solution for you and take your smartphone content up a gear.
The best ring lights for phones you can buy today
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The Nanlite Halo 16C is the best ring light for phones, on account of its versatility and build quality.
You get a huge number of settings at your fingertips, since you're able to adjust the light’s color temperature, hue and brightness all independently. We were particularly impressed by its ability to produce many different types of light, including vibrantly colored light, via the RGB settings, which you won't find on every ring light.
What's more, you can adjust these options via two touch pads, dragging your finger over the pad to select the desired output. It’s an intuitive way to change the color of the light in a very subtle — or dramatic — fashion. That said, to get a really precise setting you might want to invest in the optional remote, available for $12.99.
The Nanlite Halo 16C is well kitted out, with a smartphone bracket, mirror and carrying case all included — though not a stand. There's also a USB pass-through feature, so you can charge the phone while it’s in mounted in the center of the ring, plus built-in Wi-Fi so you can control it from other devices. Oh, and build quality is excellent — this is a ring light that will last you. It's pricey, yes, but well worth the outlay if you'll be using it regularly.
The Neewer 18-inch ring light kit is considerably cheaper than the Nanlite above it and is a really great value choice. It comes with 61-inch aluminum stand, Bluetooth receiver and carrying bag, plus it has a 360-degree rotatable smartphone holder. In short, it gives you everything you need to get started.
It's not quite as versatile as the Nanlite though, as the cheaper price might suggest. For instance, it has a fixed color temperature of 5500K — although it does come with two color filters (white and orange), which allow you to easily switch temperature from 5500K to 3200K. There's also a stepless dimming knob, which lets you adjust the brightness.
This 21-inch model from Inkeltech is another great value option in our best ring lights for phones list, since it comes with a large tripod plus two remotes and a carrying case. The ring light's large diameter gives you plenty of room to position your phone, camera or other device and it also offers three hot shoe mounts, complete with metal inserts for screwing in the phone holder or other accessories.
The dual remote controls are particularly useful, allowing you to adjust the brightness and color of the light, without needing to be right next to it. But on the downside, it lacks the wide range in color temperature or an RGB mode that you’ll find on the Nanlite ring light above, and both the tripod and ring light itself could have a sturdier build. Still, at this price it's a fine choice of ring light for your phone.
As you might expect from its name, the Rotolight Ultimate Vlogging Kit is aimed squarely at content creators who spend their days making videos or streaming to YouTube and other platforms. And given the very reasonable price, it does an excellent job in that regard.
One of the standout features of this powerful vlogging ring light kit is that it comes with a mini tripod that can turn into an extended camera grip. That's ideal for those who regularly switch between shooting in a studio setting and capturing footage out on the road. On the flipside, though you can change the light's color temperature to an extent with filters, there's no way to adjust the brightness level. But if you're looking for something small and portable, this could be the right ring light for your phone.
The 10-inch Raya Bendie-Brite is another good option for anyone who wants to get out and about with their ring light — it's small, lightweight and best of all, folds in the middle so you can easily carry it in a small bag.
It's a pretty good performer, too, particularly given that you can find it for less than $50 online. It offers a decent amount of versatility, in that you can change both the brightness and the color temperature of the light, while mounting options include both a flexible phone holder that fits most smartphones and a ball head that screws onto a tripod — though you'll have to supply that separately.
Like the Nanlite it has touch-sensitive control pads for changing the settings, but in our testing these weren’t quite as precise as other models in its class.
The UBeesize 10" Selfie Ring Light and Tripod is another ring light that — you guessed it — comes with a tripod, in this case a decent medium-sized one that extends from 16 to 50 inches. It's not the sturdiest you'll ever use, but it features a 3-way tripod head that gives you plenty of flexibility over how you angle it, plus a helpful level gauge and, of course, a smartphone mount.
You also get a good amount of control over the light it emits, with the ability to change both the brightness and the color temperature; as a further plus point, each of these settings can be selected via a remote handily attached to the included USB cable. It lacks the finer control you get on our top picks, but it's certainly worth considering that you should be able to find it for less than $30. That's a lot of kit at that price.
If budget, rather than quality, is your primary concern then look no further than the Xinbaohong Rechargeable Clip-on ring light — it's available for just $11. No, you won't get the wealth of options available on the best ring lights for phones — let alone the best ring lights overall — but it's cheap enough that if you just want something to improve your selfies, it's worth considering.
Rather than having a separate mount for the phone, it simply clips on to the top of the device; you can also use it on tablets, or even a laptop’s webcam. It's small enough to fit into a jacket pocket, comes with a micro USB cable and has three settings for brightness — though color temperature is fixed. Just be aware that if your phone has a multi-cam setup, the Xinbaohong's design may cover one or more of the lenses.
The second Inkeltech entry in our list of the best ring lights for phones is another good low-value option if you're prioritizing portability. Like several other options here, it folds in the middle so you can easily carry it around with you, and at just 10 inches in diameter it won't take up too much space on your desk, either. It comes with a tripod and carrying case, too.
You get a good amount of control over the light, with both color temperature and brightness adjustable either via buttons on the ring light or the included Bluetooth remote, but the buttons aren't as easy to use as the touch pads or knobs found on some options and in our testing we felt the tripod was a little flimsy.
How to choose the best ring light for your phone
With so many ring lights available at so many different price points, how do you choose which model is right for you, and your phone?
Price
First, consider how much you’re willing to spend. Our guide gives you a good idea of the price range of ring lights for phones, which can run as little as $6.99 or as much as $199.99. Also factor in that you might need to buy a tripod or stand separately, as not all ring lights come with one — although all in this list will include a mount for the phone itself.
Use cases
If you're just capturing casual photos on your phone, then you won’t need to spend a fortune here. But if you're regularly shooting for a YouTube channel or similar, you’ll want to pay more for a ring light that offers better quality and will last longer.
Features
Some of the best ring lights for phones will offer advanced features, such as the ability to adjust the light’s color temperature or RGB output. Some are also powered by an AC adapter, whereas others use batteries — or have both options. Consider your needs.
Size
Additionally, consider the size of the light: some are quite small and portable, which means you can take them on the road with you; others are larger and heavier, which may weigh you down.
Apps
When using a ring light, you may get frustrated when you adjust a setting on the light. Let's say you reduced the brightness by 25 per cent: what many phones will do is autocorrect the exposure. So, in effect, although you’ve adjusted the brightness level, your phone has “autocorrected” itself and made the image look like nothing’s changed. So, you may want to consider downloading a pro-style photo or video app on your phone that will allow you to manually set exposure settings; this will allow you to then make adjustments to the ring light… and actually see the results.
