The 8 Best Color Flashlights

Most of the flashlights you are probably familiar with are going to be white lights. Yes, these are those normal flashlights that we use daily for a variety of purposes. However, there are also color flashlights out there. These can come in red, green, blue, white, yellow, UV, and other colors. Sometimes they even allow for multiple colors.

You might think that color flashlights are nothing more than a novelty; however, as you will soon find out, this is not true at all. Different colored lights have unique purposes which you may have never thought of before. At any rate, let’s get right to it and help you find the best color flashlights out there right now.

When you’re in the market for a color flashlight, the most important initial question to ask yourself is what you need to get out of it. While they may not be the most complex or have the most variations out of outdoor products on the market, there are a few differences that are worth paying attention to when you’re making your decision.

Hunting is one particular example where a color flashlight will really be able to enhance your efficiency. The reason for this is that many animals see differently from humans, and the use of a color flashlight can protect you from being detected by your prey. Red light is the most efficient at this for most animals, though green can also work for some species.

Historically color flashlights often suffered a lack of power due to the filter being attached. However, technological advances in lighting gave us LEDs that can display red light directly from the diode without attaching filters. This has allowed the flashlights to also be more powerful in turn.

When purchasing a flashlight for hunting purposes where a red beam is of the most importance, we recommend prioritizing flashlights that don’t use additional filters and the old-school mechanic of providing red light but instead opt for an LED-based light that provides direct red light from the diode. Our list offers both of these examples, and we’re sure you’ll be able to find something that will meet all your demands.

Our Selection of the 9 Best Color Flashlights:

The main purpose here today is to talk about the very best color flashlights out there right now. We want to help you find the best model for your specific purpose. We have 9 of the very best color LED flashlights for you to take a look at right here. So, let’s get right to it and see what each of these top 9 options has in store for you.

What Are Color Flashlights Used For?

Now, color flashlights are not only fun for parties and such. They actually have some pretty cool uses that come in handy in a variety of situations. Color flashlights usually come with different filters including projecting multiple colors with the switch of a button. This comes in especially handy for outdoorsy people that spend a lot of time in the woods, fishing, hunting, camping, boating, and more. Let’s talk about the different uses of white, yellow, red, green, blue, and UV light.

White Light

First off, most color flashlights have the option to project simple white light, just like any other regular flashlight does. This, of course, comes with all of the general purposes that you would expect from any normal flashlight. Normal white light is good for finding your path in the woods, cooking around the campfire, locating targets, locating prey, and for simple lighting purposes too. However, multicolor flashlights usually also come with red, blue, green, and sometimes UV light.

Red Light

Red light is good for some different things, primarily for maintaining good night vision. You see, white light does illuminate an area better than red light, but the problem is that it ruins your night vision. Using a white light means that you can see what is being illuminated, but you are out of luck when it comes to seeing in the dark. Red light is bright enough to see what is going on, but it also helps you maintain your night vision.

This is why police often use red lights, the armed forces, inside submarines, bunkers, and other military installations. Some people also like to use it for hunting. Being able to look at a map close to you with some illumination while also seeing adequately in the dark is a pretty big deal. Red light is also convenient because it creates a higher amount of color contrast than white light. This means that using a red light to examine something up close will reveal more details than white light ever can.

Green Light

The next color widely used in color flashlights is green, which also has its own specific uses. Green is somewhat similar to white light. The most common use for green light is for hunting and fishing. There are two specific reasons for this. First off, animals are sensitive to light, so some bright white light will scare away deer, rabbits, fish, and birds alike. However, animals tend not to get spooked by green light.

This makes it ideal for hunters and fishermen to illuminate the area and look for targets without scaring the animals away. Also, green beams of light cannot be seen from the side, yet another advantage. Another big advantage of green light is that it does not attract insects. Mosquitos and flies can definitely be a nuisance when hunting, or fishing, but at least the green light lets you see everything around you without attracting those little bloodsuckers.

Blue Light

Blue light is another common color when it comes to color flashlights, and yes, it too has its own specific advantages. First off, just like red light, blue is not nearly as detrimental to our night vision as white light. Therefore, many people, including campers, hunters, hikers, the police, armed forces, and security guards, use blue light. It allows them to see maps and other things while also maintaining visual alertness about what is going on in the dark around them.

Blue light is also good for signaling. Many different security elements, armed forces, and nature experts use blue light to create signals. Another useful thing that blue light can do for you is to make it much easier to see blood and bodily fluids. Blue light, especially when combined with those special CSI goggles, is excellent for illuminating and tracking all manners of blood and bodily fluids. This is why it is often used by hunters who have injured, but not killed, their prey.

It’s a good way to track down injured prey. For this same reason, blue light is also used by law enforcement officials and forensic teams to analyze crime scenes.

UV Light (Black Light)

The final common color or type of light used in flashlights is UV or black light. While black light is not ideal for illuminating a room or for creating brightness, it does have a certain benefit of fluorescence. This type of light reacts with certain colors, especially white, and several chemicals are found in bodily fluids. Therefore, police and forensic investigators often use UV light to locate and identify bodily fluids like blood, saliva, and semen.

You are also probably familiar with glow-in-the-dark lights, such as in glow-in-the-dark bowling, in clubs, or at raves. UV light is what makes the white in your clothes and your teeth glow in the dark.

Yellow Light

Yellow light is also a fairly common one. Yellow is usually used for traffic signals as it tends to cut through the fog and must do quite well. Therefore, yellow lights are often used for signalings, such as signaling flashlights, the lights on trains, and those little signal batons that armed forces on aircraft carriers use to signal the pilots.

At the same time, the actual light source of yellow light can be hard to see, especially for bugs. Hunters and campers often like to use yellow light because insects are not as attracted to it as white light. Below is a video of the different uses of various colored flashlights.

Buying A Color Flashlight: A Buying Guide

Before you go out and spend any amount of money on a color flashlight, there are some things that you are going to want to keep in mind. Please don’t go out and purchase before considering the following things we are about to talk about.

1. Your Purpose

The very first thing that you need to consider before buying any color flashlight is the purpose you intend to use it. To determine this, refer to our above section on the specific purposes and advantages of each of the different colored lights. Just as a reminder, green light is best for hunting, blue light for signaling and tracking blood, white light for general illumination, and so on.

This is really important because you do not want to be using the wrong color. Using red lights for hunting probably is not the best choice. Some color flashlights come with the ability to project multiple colors, which is great if you will be using the color flashlight for many different things. Do keep in mind that flashlights with more than one color will be more expensive than a single-color flashlight.

2. Size & Weight

The size and weight of the flashlight in question are also important considerations to keep in mind. Generally speaking, the smaller and lighter the color flashlight is, the better off you are. This is true for tactical purposes, hunting, camping, and pretty much everything else in between. The lighter the flashlight is, the less weight you have to carry on you, which comes in handy if you already have a lot of gear to lug around. The same is true for the size of the flashlight.

Having a tactical belt or camping pack with you means that you already have a ton of equipment. Therefore, the more space you can preserve for other essential gear, the better off you are. Now, what should be kept in mind is that smaller flashlights are often less powerful and bright than larger ones, but this is not always the case. If you want a color flashlight that features a good combination of a compact build with lots of power, you will have to invest a little more money than you otherwise would.

3. Power & Distance

Perhaps one of the most important considerations to keep in mind is how bright the flashlight in question is and how far the beam can reach. In many cases, these may not be very bright flashlights. Now, it might not be quite as important for colored lights as it is for illuminating with white light, but it is still an essential feature to think about. Generally speaking, colored lights will not have as much power and distance as white lights, but they can still be pretty powerful nonetheless.

We have talked about many of the flashlights above, from a couple of hundred lumens up to 1000 lumens and more. The point here is that the more lumens the colored light emits, the brighter and more powerful its effects will be. At the same time, more lumens also mean a farther-reaching beam. Also, for example, if you are using blue light to track blood, a stronger and further-reaching light will allow you to spot blood and bodily fluids further away. Generally speaking, the more power the flashlight has, the better off you are. Do keep in mind that a higher output also means that more battery power is needed.

4. Zoom

One really convenient function that many modern color flashlights come with is the zoom function. A variable zoom function is pretty convenient if you are outdoors a lot for hunting, camping, and tactical purposes. On the one hand, you can zoom the light in to create a really bright, powerful, and concentrated beam of light. This is great for finding a path, signaling, and for finding specific targets too.

On the other hand, you can also zoom out to create more of a floodlight effect, which is best for illuminating the space around you or for examining a whole room, as a forensic investigator would do. It also comes in handy for sweeping the surrounding area for blood from injured prey trying to get away.

5. Durability & Construction

Yet another critical point to consider, especially if you are outdoors a lot or are using the flashlight for tactical purposes, is how strong and durable the color flashlight in question is. You need a durable flashlight if you plan to use it for hunting, camping, and tactical purposes. You might fall, you might drop the flashlight, or bang it on something too. This means that it needs to have a solid casing. Most modern flashlights, especially high-quality ones, are made of aircraft-grade aluminum alloy and usually feature some kind of hard-anodized finish.

This will make any flashlight very resistant to impact, and scratching, and it helps with shock resistance too. At the same time, you should look for a color flashlight that has a good waterproof rating. This is especially important for hunting, camping, and fishing. At the least, the model you get should have a waterproof rating of IPX-6, which means that it will do fine if it gets a little wet, but cannot be submerged.

Even better is a rating of IPX-8, which means that it can be submerged under a few feet of water for a decent amount of time without fear of water damage.

6. Light Modes

It would help if you also considered the various light modes here. It would be best if you looked for a model that has a high, medium, and low light mode at the least. The high modes are obviously great for maximum illumination, but they also use the most battery power. The lower modes are great for up-close purposes where battery conservation is essential. The other modes to look out for are the SOS and strobe modes.

The SOS mode is awesome if you get lost or stranded somewhere because it sends out the Morse code signal for SOS, thus making it much easier for rescue crews to find you. Also, the strobe feature is always good for disorienting prey when hunting and blinding your enemies.

7. Grip

Having a good grip is always important for any flashlight, whether colored or not. The flashlight in question should have a fairly rough texture combined with an ergonomic design to provide you with a good grip. When the flashlight gets wet or slippery, this will come in handy, so you do not drop it.

8. Emergency & Defense

This does have to do with durability somewhat, but the point is that a flashlight can make for a good self-defense tool when the time calls for it. Some flashlights, especially tactical ones, come with a head that is specially designed for these purposes. A glass-shattering flashlight head can save your life if you are trapped in your car and need to smash through the window. This same glass-shattering head can also be used for self-defense if someone attacks you.

9. Battery Life

The final thing that we want to talk about when it comes to color flashlights is how good the battery life is. Generally speaking, no matter the color, in the high mode, if there is a high mode, the flashlight should last for a couple of hours at the least. After all, you don’t want to be doing whatever you are doing just for the flashlight to die. At the same time, being able to use multiple kinds of batteries is handy too. Rechargeable batteries are great for conserving money and the environment, but you won’t always have a power source close to you for charging.

This is why it is good if your color flashlight can also handle normal disposable batteries for emergencies.

Conclusion

At the end of the day, all 10 of the above options are definitely top contenders for the best color flashlights. They each have their own specific features and advantages, which make them ideal for various tasks. Do try to keep in mind all of the considerations we have talked about above, as they will go a long way in helping you find the right flashlight for whatever purpose you need it for. We hope that our guide on the best color flashlights has helped you come closer to a conclusion about which one is right for you.