9 best solar lights for the garden 2024 UK; tried and tested
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LIGHTING can transform a garden at night, adding a cosy glow, illuminating paths or conjuring up an air of fantasy with twinkling fairy lights – and choosing solar options mean you’re not forking out for electricity.
The best solar lights will lift your outdoor space, no matter how large or small and will continue to shine for hours, many lasting all night.
Some work hard as security lights while others can even be operated remotely from your phone. You can add them to flower beds as a feature, sink them into the ground, position them along the edge of your lawn, lace them through balcony railings or string them among tree branches.
Solar lights are a simple way to create beautiful effects, with a wealth of different colours and shades of white, not to mention myriad dancing patterns.
Not sure where to start? Don’t worry, we’ve tested a range of different products – designs, sizes and price levels – so if you want to know more about the best solar lights available in the UK right now, then read on.
Best solar lights for the garden at a glance:
- Best overall:
- Best budget:
- Best for brightness:
- Best waterproof:
Solar Centre Festoon Lights
Solar Centre Festoon Lights, £44.99
Pros: Look great, last over winter, two brightness levels
Cons: Rather expensive
Rating: 4.5/5
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I have been buying solar-powered bulbs for many, many years and this is the first time I’ve come across a string that not only lasts over winter and looks stunning, but also appears as bright as mains-powered lights and shines well into the night.
Although at the higher end of the budget, they are worth every single penny. They look fab - a sort of vintage vibe with glass LED bulbs spaced along a strong, black 8m cable - which means you can use them across a pergola or along a fence without worrying too much about having to buy multiples.
You can choose from two brightness levels, the slightly dimmer ones last a bit longer - but there’s not much difference between the two. They also have clever hooks on each bulb, so they can be attached to wire if needs be.
Their brightness is their main attraction - they honestly look like they’ve just been plugged in. And I’ve got a set from last summer still going strong.
A pleasing find in the world of solar lights.
Size: 25 lights, Weight: 1kg, Assembly required: Unknown
HETP Solar Motion Sensor Security Lights
HETP Solar Motion Sensor Security Lights, £20.35
Pros: Easy to install, very bright, longlasting
Cons: None
Rating: 5/5
These are hands down the best solar-powered sensor security lights I’ve come across. First spotted at my brother-in-law's house, who uses them as proper security lights, it took him a great deal of effort to convince me these didn’t have some sort of plug-in backup.
Bright, if not brighter than any standard security light attached to the mains, these are triggered at just the right moment and last for a very long time.
Easy to attach, they look techy and cool and happily, the solar strip is part of the whole light, so carefully placed, these are just as good, if not better, than the mains equivalent and will definitely save you money on electricity costs.
Size: 2 lights, Weight: Unknown, Assembly required: No
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yiyicas 2-Pack Solar String Lights
yiyicas 2-Pack Solar String Lights Outdoor, £13.99
Pros: Longlasting, price, copper wiring so can attach to anything, reliable, bright
Cons: None
Rating: 5/5
I have had these in my garden since last summer and what’s mindblowing, is that without fail they have twinkled every single night.
And, if you know how tricky it is to find long-lasting reliable lights, you’ll know what an incredible boast this is. I have two strings of them wrapped around a bay tree trunk, and even in the depths of winter, they are still turned on. Even if there hadn’t been any sun that day!
They must just have really good energy storage, and soak up the morning sunlight they receive - as where I’ve placed them, they’re in the shade all afternoon. The copper wiring means they can be attached to anything, whether you wrap them around a pergola, a tree trunk or along a fence, they’re lightweight, reliable and bright.
Size: 2 x 10m strings with 100 lights on each, Weight: 284g, Assembly required: No
SolarCentre Smart Festoon Lights
SolarCentre Smart Festoon Lights, £65.99
Pros: Control from your phone or by remote control, loads of colour combinations, large solar panel, can by charged via USB
Cons: Price, solar panel needs to be in view for remote control
Rating: 4/5
It was only a matter of time before we got solar lights controlled by an app. And these boast 16 million different colour combinations. I must confess I haven’t managed to work out all of them yet, but I’ve certainly had fun trying.
Depending on the set you select, you get 25 or 50 bulbs and using the Hello Fairy app, or a remote control provided, you can literally whizz through all the different combinations, set different scenes, and even sync them to music; that justifies throwing a garden party!
The solar panel is reassuringly large, but if you’re using the remote control rather than the app, it can’t be too hidden away. In our London garden, the lights are five metres away from the house, and you can sit at the kitchen table and still control them with the Hello Fairy App. They can also be USB-charged if you want to ensure they stay bright for an all-nighter.
They’re an ideal way to shake up your garden lights and bring a really strong disco vibe to the garden.
You can find a few great ways to glow up your garden here too - including disco balls.
Size: 25 or 50 bulbs, Weight: Unknown, Assembly required: No
Mushroom string lights
Mushroom string lights, £10
Pros: Price, hide the wires in soil, fairytale vibe
Cons: None
Rating: 4/5
These are just pure fun - and unlike the usual strings, which hang from trees and pergolas etc, these are for sticking in the ground - creating an enchanting fairyland-style vibe.
There's ten of them, they only cost a tenner, and you can bury the wires in the soil between lights, so they really do add a touch of magic around the base of trees or plants.
Size: 10 lights along 2.84m cable, Weight: Unknown, Assembly required: No
Carnival Solar Festoon Lights
Carnival Solar Festoon Lights, £29.99
Pros: Large bulbs, bright, eight functions, perspex, price
Cons: None
Rating: 5/5
These are really large bulbs with the clever hooks again, so you can attach them to the wire if needs be. And because of the bigger globes - they also look good during the day, which can’t be said for all solar string lights.
One of my favourite things about them is that they have eight different functions, including what the website calls a funky flash, chase or static glow. And because they’re perspex, you feel safer handling them and they’re far less likely to break.
They look great on a pergola or any kind of frame you have in the garden and they emit a warm glow, which adds a subtle, charming energy to any area.
Size: 20 bulbs along 4.75m cable, Weight: Unknown, Assembly required: No
Wilko Solar String Lights
Wilko Solar String Lights, £4
Pros: Price, bright, flashing function
Cons: None
Rating: 5/5
For just £4 you can’t really go wrong with these LED solars. I have them wound around a bamboo cane that honeysuckle is growing up. My aim is for the lights to peep out from behind the leaves, but even though they’re still exposed at the moment, they’re light, bright, and fun to look at.
It has 50 lights on a 6.9m cable, so again, they could be wrapped around a pergola, placed along a fence, or around branches and tree trunks. They have flashing options as well if you really want to draw attention to them and they switch on even after the dullest day.
A real bargain.
Size: 50 lights on a 6.9m cable, Weight: Unknown, Assembly required: No
Maroc Lantern string lights
Maroc Lantern string lights, £21.95
Pros: Stylish, waterproof, warm light
Cons: Not the brightest
Rating: 3.5/5
I had to include these as often solar lights can be more functional than pretty. This Moroccan-style string of mini-lamps adds a real sense of style to the garden and lasts long into the night. They’re not going to light up an area like some other string lights, but they look great strung from branches or as part of a wider Middle-Eastern look in the garden.
They’re also waterproof, but because of their shape, they won't ever fill with rainwater. They emit a cosy warm glow and are a lovely addition to the garden.
Size: 10 lanterns on 2.7m string, Weight: Unknown, Assembly required: No
Solar Powered LED Curtain
Solar Powered LED Curtain, £15
Pros: Price, bright, can last all night
Cons: The wires don't hang straight
Rating: 4/5
I was worried that at this price, these lights would look nothing like they do on the B&M website, but although they don’t hang anywhere near as straight as the picture suggests, they still look fab.
The curtain looks like hundreds of lights dangling down - which for just £15 is an absolute bargain. They shine bright and often last through the whole night. At times, as I'm getting ready for work at 5 am, they’ve still been glowing away in the garden, turning off as dawn breaks.
They're a real bargain and if you were really obsessed with the straight lines, I'm sure you could weigh them down. I've got them hanging down our back fence, behind our sofa area, and they really do make the area feel special.
Size: 266 lights on a 1.8m x 1.8m curtain, Weight: 310g, Assembly required: No
Where can I buy solar garden lights in the UK?
You can find solar lights both online and in high-street stores. During the summer you’re also likely to find them in supermarkets, in the seasonal aisle, and don’t forget to check out discount chains like B&M or .
Garden centres and DIY stores often stock a selection in summer, while online Amazon always has a great choice.
Other online options include department stores, such as , chains such as or and furniture retailers, including , Dunelm and .
We found the products reviewed in our feature at:
How much do solar garden lights cost?
There are solar garden lights to suit all budgets, from the very cheap, costing just a few pounds up to the eye wateringly expensive, costing several hundred pounds, even thousands of pounds for designer brands.
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Expect to pay between £5 and £15 for a set of fairy lights, depending on where you shop. Larger festoon lights will cost more but they can still come in at a good price – we’ve seen a pack of 10 for less than £20 at Wayfair. Large, freestanding outdoor lamps are probably the most expensive solar lighting options, but these tend to be furniture items rather than fun, outdoor décor.
If you’re not sure what you’re looking for or you’re after inspiration for your outdoor space, then do your research and look at several websites before buying.