Brightest Flashlight of 2023

Olight i3T

We see that still many people look for bright AAA flashlights. But the fact is, AAA flashlights aren’t very bright compared to their bigger counterparts. But still, if you’re looking for a bright small keychain light, look at the Olight i3T. Most of the flashlights in this category have similar outputs, but this light is specced at 180 lumens, but we’ve measured over 190 lumens. That’s quite a bit higher than other flashlights in this category, which usually don’t surpass 120 lumens.

That still makes it one of the brightest AAA flashlights available. BTW we don’t recommend using the included Alkaline battery, but rather get some rechargeable NiMH batteries, like the Panasonic Eneloop AAA. This will save you money in the long run, and work much better than Alkaline batteries

Mateminco CSF05

Mateminco has taken a risk with the SFS80 LED and I think it’s paid off. Whilst this LED isn’t as high CRI as a Nichia, it certainly looks nicer than some CREE LEDs, whilst providing good output and plenty of throw for its size, and great output on AA.

The clip is loose but this is easy to remedy by squeezing it with some pliers.

The AA Eneloop hit 435 lumens then dropped to about 300 lm after a couple of minutes. It held this for a bit over half an hour before dropping suddenly. AA on Medium starts at 183 lm and holds it steady for almost an hour and a half.

With the 14500 cell on High starts at over 700 lm then drops to about 450 lm in a couple of minutes. It then lasts about an hour, dropping down to 300 lm by the end. Medium with the 14500 starts at 266 lm, dropping to around 175 lm over 2 and a bit hours. The light gets a bit warm with the 14500 but not too hot.

The only downside of this light is the UI.. Please read all the details in our Astrolux A03 review (which is the same as the Mateminco CSF05)

Olight i5T Plus

Dual AA cell flashlight with over 500 lumens

If you’re looking for one of the brightest 2AA flashlights, this is it.

The Olight i5R Plus is available with 3 different LEDs. You can choose between a cold white, neutral white, and warm white emitter.

If you’re not very familiar with these types of LEDs, I’d recommend getting the NW or CW. The WW is a bit too warm for most people.

During our test, we measured High mode to reach 529 lumens at turn-on (which is a bit lower than specifications), and 525 after 30 seconds for the neutral white LED version.

No flashlight really holds the highest output for very long. And the i5T Plus drops to roughly 300 lumens and continues running for 2 hours. Low mode, on the other hand, runs at roughly 17 lumens for 43 hours straight! That would be 1 week’s worth of camping light at night.

Check out our full review of the Olight i5T Plus.

Nitecore EA81

The Nitecore EA81 with 2150 lumens on 8 AA batteries, making it the most powerful AA-powered flashlights on the market, even in 2023.

A few years ago, I owned the Nitecore EA8, which was the most powerful 8xAA flashlight, with an XML2 LED. This time, Nitecore used the XHP50 LED. The XHP50 allows the light to hit 2150 lumens from its 8 (yes, 8!) AA batteries. Again, these numbers are only achieved with high-quality NiMH batteries and not Alkaline batteries. Personally, I wouldn’t say I like to use 8 AA batteries, but this is definitely the most powerful AA-powered flashlight currently available. Also, this is not a tactical flashlight, like some suggest. It’s large and quite heavy with its 8 AAs.

Anyone who buys this light should make sure to get the latest CREE XHP50 version and not the older CREE XML2.

Sofirn SP36 Pro (Anduril 2)

One of the best budget flashlights available for around $50.

This is an extremely bright light, that brings the most bang for the buck. This results in the brightest budget flashlight with multi-battery configuration made today, named the Sofirn SP36PRO. Check out our full review of the Sofirn SP36Pro here. 

It is the successor of the very popular BLF Q8, which has been a very popular light amongst flashaholics and has been a hit amongst flashlight enthusiasts from all around the world.

Using 4x Luminus SST40 LEDs to produce a mind-blowing 5000+ lumens, this flashlight is a monster to be reckoned with and a must-have for all flashlights users. The SP36PRO is an all-purpose light and can be used for anything, from lighting up the road in front of you to be used while camping to even being a great night light for some.

Good high drain 18650 cells like the NCR18650GA, Samsung 30Q, LG HG2, Sony VTC6, Samsung 25R, and many others have to be used to get the maximum performance. All of the cells are in parallel, so they need to be kept at the same charge level to prevent problems, and they need to be kept in the same group as well.
So, buy 4×18650s at once, and keep them only for 4×18650 lights. Do not separate them.

Its driver is running the Anduril2 firmware, with the standard UI being ramping and direct turbo accessible with a double click. Press and hold for ramping up, and same for ramping down. It’s also very advanced and configurable. It can ramp all the way down to a sub lumen output, to a mind-boggling 5,000+ lumens on maximum. You also have access to standard modes if you don’t like ramping and strobes. But keep in mind that this firmware is pretty sophisticated and may not fit everyone’s needs. Definitely check out our review we linked above.

Acebeam X80-GT

32,500 lumens

The Acebeam X80-GT is the predecessor of the X80-GT2 and claims an output of a maximum of 32,500 lumens. If you have big pockets in your coat, you could probably carry the X80-GT….lol

The X80-GT has been replaced with the X80-GT2, but in terms of output, they are pretty close! So if you want to save a few bucks, get the X80-GT if you can get a good deal on it. Small like a soda can, but powerful like a boring 747, this little monster is a real pocket monster. Oh, and if you forgot a lighter during your trip, use this little monster to set paper on fire, it’s that powerful.

We reviewed this (just like all the others) extensively, please check out the full review here: https://1lumen.com/review/acebeam-x80-gt/

Imalent MS08

34,000 lumens

Although it has a shared #6 on the list, the MS08 is actually less powerful than the Acebeam X80-GT2. This is the reason why you shouldn’t trust other websites. They don’t test them, and just put garbage out. 

Imalent has many flashlights on this list, and for a good reason. They try to build the brightest handheld flashlights for consumers. And with the MS08 they thought to increase their lineup with yet another crazy bright flashlight.

During testing, we learned that its specs are a bit exaggerated, and it didn’t even reach 30,000 lumens, let alone 34,000 lumens. In order to reach that output, you need something bigger and more powerful.

If you want to read more about our testing results, check out our in-depth review of the Imalent MS08.

Acebeam X80-GT2

34,000 lumens

The Acebeam X80-GT2 is rated at 34,000 Lumens. It even fits in your (large) pockets. This is the smallest powerhouse on this list!

Since we reviewed the Acebeam X80-GT with 32,500 lumens, we couldn’t lose out and reviewed the X80-GT2 as well. This has the size of a soda can and can fit in your pocket. But don’t even think this isn’t one of the most powerful flashlights on planet earth. Just like the X80-GT, the newer X80-GT2 also includes a tripod screw hole, for either the included carry handle or to attach to a tripod. That way, you have both hands free to help with work, etc. A great feature for a wide variety of applications.

Imalent R90TS

36,000 lumens

The R90TS with 36,000 Lumens is not just an extremely, extremely bright flashlight, it also is a great thrower!

We were really excited when the R90TS and MS18 were announced. Both are in the top brightest flashlights of the world! We decided to get both of them, the moment they came out. During the review of the Imalent R90TS, we found that this is such a beast that is not only blinds you; it also throws a beam really, really far. If you doubt between an extremely powerful flashlight and a thrower, check out the R90TS, you wouldn’t believe this is possible without seeing it!

Acebeam X50

40,000 lumens

Acebeam added a powerful little bugger that puts out more lumens than many flashlights that are double its size.

The Acebeam X50 is one of the latest and most powerful flashlights by Acebeam. It’s likely a successor of the X80-GT, which is about the same size but with ‘only’ 32,500 lumens. Although not as powerful as the X70, but at half the size and 3/4 of its power, pretty amazing. 

Besides the XHP70.2 LEDs, it’s also available with high CRI LEDs especially made for photographers and videographers. They will render colors accurately, which helps textures, and color details stand out. If you point the beam onto a white wall, it doesn’t have the prettiest beam pattern, but you won’t notice this at a larger distance, especially not outdoors.

We reviewed the Acebeam X50, and it’s the real deal. Very, very powerful for its size.

Manker MK38

41,500 lumens

Manker’s brightest flashlight built to date.

Manker lets you choose between white, grey, and black anodized aluminum. And besides the color of the flashlight itself, they also provide several LED options and an optional built-in battery. So in that regard, Manker gives a lot of bang for the buck.

Unlike the Acebeam X80-GT2, the MK38 has 2 fans built into the handle, that can be removed with a special screw. It helps to reduce the temperature of the head of the flashlight because it heats up very very quickly.

Imalent MR90

50,000 lumens

Tame the darkness with the MR90! If you want a combination of a wide and narrow beam, this is it.

Don’t be surprised to see so many Imalent flashlights in the top performers. Their main focus is building the brightest and coolest flashlights on planet earth.

The MR90 combines 2 flashlights in 1, with 2 different kinds of LEDs. There are 8 high-power LEDs in shallow reflectors to give you an extremely wide beam (see our review), and 1 separate LED inside a deep and bigger reflector to throw a beam 1150+ yards.

In our review, we confirm that the MR90 doesn’t throw as far as they claim, but 1150 yards is still a distance many flashlight users would be jealous of.

That by itself is pretty cool, but the coolest is likely the extremely high sustained output! Imalent built 2 fans inside the body, to keep the light as cool as possible, and maintains an output of over 8,000 lumens for over 40 minutes. That’s what I call amazing!

Hungry for all the details? Check out our Imalent MR90 review.

Imalent SR16: 55,000 lumens

Tame the darkness with the SR16! A great thrower and lumenmonster in 1.

Imalent has a prominent place on this list because its goal is to build the brightest and strongest flashlights on the planet.

The SR16 is a little different from the others because it uses 16 LEDs and uses a carry handle with the switch built in. Finally! During our test we measured the SR16 just over 53,000 lumens, which is a little lower than the specced 55,000 lumens. But these are not ANSI FL1 standards, because that would mean they should use the lumen output after 30 seconds. And we measured it at 43,000 lumens. Which is still incredible, but not the rated 55,000 lumens.

Note, most of the flashlights on this list don’t follow the ANSI FL1 standards for their highest output, and just note the maximum available output instead.

Hungry for all the details? Check out our Imalent SR16 review.

Imalent MS12 Mini: 65,000 lumens

The MS12 Mini is the successor of the much larger MS12, but at about 1/2 of its size. I kid you not, this one is even brighter at 65,000 lumens, and may even fit in your cargo or jack pocket.

The Imalent MS12 Mini has been getting quite a coverage on social media. It is extremely bright and can lid a whole acre of land. The MS12 Mini is such a best that it uses a built-in cooling fan to lower the heat while in Turbo. Turbo lasts about 3 minutes when it reduces output to 15,000 lumens. Still an amazing amount of power! 

But like with all other Imalent flashlights we tested, their beam intensity numbers are highly exaggerated. They claim over 268,000 candelas, but we measured only 120,000 cd, which is not even 50%. But besides that, this is still an amazingly bright flashlight!

Check out our in-depth review of the Imalent MS12 Mini.

Acebeam X75: 80,000 lumens

The Acebeam X75 posses 18 XHP70.2 LEDs for pure flood with 80 000-lumen output! Super bright flashlight, with the highest sustainable output!

Buy at Amazon.com

Buy at Amazon.co.uk

There are only a handful of flashlights that can produce over 50,000 lumens, especially with only 4 batteries (inside the battery pack). The X75 is currently the highest-output flashlight, running on just 4 batteries and with a built-in fan. The fan is user-replaceable, and Acebeam includes a spare fan in their package, just in case.

Even though we tested the Neutral White version (which is typically less powerful than the Cool White version) we reached over 80,000 lumens after several seconds. If you care about a high sustained output, look no further. This is one of the best high-sustained performers on the market. It stays over 20,000 lumens for 20 minutes. No other flashlight can do that, not even the MS18.

If you want to read the full test, head over to our Acebeam X75 review.

Imalent MS18

The Imalent MS18 is the #2 strongest flashlight in the world, with a blinding 100000 lumen output.

Buy at Imalentstore.com

This is literally the #1 brightest flashlight in the world with a blinding 100000 lumens. Brighter than other handheld flashlights available anywhere on the planet. With this incredibly high output, you can light up an entire baseball field. We reviewed the Imalent MS18 extensively. Check out our Imalent MS18 review to learn more about this beast, and make sure to double-check our runtime graphs comparison with other bright LED flashlights. And because of how this flashlight is built, with the cooling fans built in, don’t expect this to be a waterproof flashlight.

Even though many eBay sellers claim their flashlights are reaching 100,000 lumens, they are lying. The Imalent MS18 is the first flashlight officially claiming 100K lumens from a major flashlight manufacturer. If you want to have the most powerful handheld flashlight globally, there is only 1, this one.

If you don’t believe me, check out the review and the comparison shots. Nobody else on the internet reviewed as many powerful flashlights as we do.