A guide to LED panel colour temperatures

Replacing fluorescent modular ceiling lights with LED panels is a simple way to cut down both your carbon footprint and electricity bills. LED panels are also a great way to brighten up the environment in a room and require minimal maintenance.

Did you know that LED panels can be supplied in a range of colour temperatures and lumens to suit different needs and applications? Choosing the right colour temperature can have a huge impact on the room so the options available are important to consider before making a purchase.

What does colour temperature mean?

To understand the options available when it comes to LED panel colour temperatures, it’s important to understand what colour temperature is and what it means. Colour temperature is used by lighting manufacturers to classify the colour of light emitted by a light source.

Colour temperature is measured in degrees of Kelvin (K) and the scale ranges from 1,000 to 10,000 and the light is usually described from warmer to cooler.

For residential or commercial applications, lighting typically falls between 2,000k and 6,500k on the scale. The lower down the scale you are, the more red light there is and this has an impact on the effect that the lighting achieves.

What impact can LED panel colour temperature have?

LED panels are available in a wide range of colour temperatures. So, if you are buying LED panels, it’s important to be mindful of how your application of them will impact the space in which they’re installed.

Colour temperature alters the environment of the room. For example, lighting with a lower Kelvin grade tends to feel more warm and cosy, whilst higher up the scale it feels more like daylight, which is cooler and more formal.

When installing lighting at home, a room illuminated with warmer, cosier light will have a relaxing and soothing effect. In a commercial setting, cooler temperatures can help employees to feel more alert and productive.

LED panel colour temperature options

With older, traditional lighting solutions such as fluorescent lights and incandescent bulbs, different light temperatures were simply a bi-product of the bulb design.

LED lighting has, in the past, been limited to just a few colours but this is no longer the case. Modern technology enables LED panel manufacturers to produce lighting that covers the standard light temperatures we’ve all come to recognise.

The number of options available for LED panel colour temperatures is huge so it’s important to understand what each of them are and the impact they can have on the room they’re installed in.

Warm white (3,000k)

Warm white provides a welcoming, warm light temperature that is a great choice for a number of rooms in the home. It’s a common choice for overhead lighting in residential rooms such as bathrooms, entryways and dining rooms.

Warm white light could also be applied to some commercial settings, particularly in areas where employees go to take a break or unwind. It’s not as appropriate in the areas where people work as the colour temperature can have an effect on productivity – other colour temperatures are more suitable for this type of lighting.

Warm white is one of the most popular colours as it’s the closest colour lighting to incandescent and halogen bulbs being replaced by the lighting.

Our best-selling warm white LED panels:

Product	Size	Lumens	Colour Temp	Lifespan
Bright Source 40w LED Panel	600mm x 600mm	3600lm	3000k	30,000 hours	Buy Now
Osram 33w LED panel	1200mm x 300mm	3100lm	3000k	50,000 hours	Buy Now

Cool white (4,000k)

Cool white is crisp and invigorating, perfect for LED panels in commercial settings or areas of the home where work is performed (such as basements or garages).

The red hue of warmer lighting is replaced in cool white lighting by more of a blue light that appears whiter to the human eye. It makes it easy to see everything around you and conjures an ambience that is associated with productivity and energy. As such, it’s also a good option for sports and exercise spaces such as gyms.

Our best-selling cool white LED panels:

Product	Size	Lumens	Colour Temp	Lifespan
Bright Source 40w LED panel c/w driver	600mm x 600mm	3600lm	4000k	30,00 hours	Buy Now
Dimmable 40w LED panel c/w Tridonic Driver	600mm x 600mm	3600lm	4000k	35,000 hours	Buy Now
Osram Ledvance 36w TP (a) panel	600mm x 600mm	3960lm	4000k	50,000 hours	Buy Now
Bright Source Emergency 72w LED panel	1200mm x 600mm	6600lm	4000k	50,000 hours	Buy Now

Daylight (6,000k - 6,500k)

This colour temperature is the ultimate for an environment that feels energised and productive. Many commercial spaces opt for this pure white light as it closely resembles natural sunlight in any environment.

This cool, revitalising light temperature is also great as task lighting in the home, for example in the kitchen or in an artist’s studio. Daylight LED panels are highly energy efficient and provide the perfect lighting choice for a wide range of workplaces.

Product	Size	Lumens	Colour Temp	Lifespan
Bright Source 40w LED panel c/w Driver	600mm x 600mm	3600lm	6000k	30,000 hours	Buy Now
Osram Ledvance 36w LED panel	600mm x 600mm	3600lm	6500k	50,000 hours	Buy Now
Bright Source Emergency 72w LED panel	1200mm x 600mm	6600lm	6000k	50,000 hours	Buy Now
Emergency Dimmable 40w LED panel	600mm x 600mm	3600lm	6000k	35,000 hours	Buy Now

How does LED light colour temperature compare to other lighting?

The visual difference between the colour temperatures emitted by LEDs and other forms of lighting such as an incandescent bulb or fluorescent lighting will be largely imperceptible to the naked eye. However, with LED lighting, the higher the Kelvin, the higher the lumen output. This means cooler temperatures produce brighter lights - another reason they are a good option for commercial environments.

LED lighting also offers the benefit of being better for people's eyes since they emit fewer UV rays than other lighting. This means that, by mimicking daylight in the office through LED panels, employees could be more productive and suffer from fewer eye or health issues.

You can even get LED panels that change their colour temperature to suit different applications in a single room. They are easy to use and come with all the other benefits of LED lighting along with this enhanced versatility.

If you’re switching from fluorescent lighting to LED lighting and you’re not sure what option to choose, we recommend replicating the colour temperature of the existing lighting as closely as possible.

In summary…

There is no doubt that LED panels provide a great way to cut down on energy usage and reduce electricity bills. LED panels tend to be more relevant for commercial areas, though they are sometimes used in the home.

Wherever you use LED panels, it’s important to understand the impact of your choice of colour temperature. You can create the right ambience in a room by choosing an LED panel with the appropriate warmth or coolness of light. It can have a huge impact on whether the room’s occupants feel relaxed or energised, lethargic or productive so it’s important to take this into account when making your choice.

To find out more about LED panel colour temperatures, our team of experts are on-hand to answer your queries and help to choose the right option for your application, please get in touch today.