Top 15 Best Bike Tail Lights Reviews In 2020

Nobody likes being pushed from behind. Unpleasant enough if those involved were on foot, but can be nasty if, say, the pusher the pushed were on bicycles.

So how do you make sure people see you pedaling on your bike? Or at least, can’t use that ‘but it was too dark’ excuse? Obviously, you install a tail light.

What tail light to choose? And I have just what you need: the best tail lights for bicycle in 2020.

Top 15 Best Bike Tail Lights Reviews In 2020

Garmin Varia RTL515 Bike Tail Lights

For those of you who haven’t knew it yet, bicycle tail lights nowadays are more than just lights. They are called smart lights for a reason. And for those of you who think you knew it, Garmin has a surprise in store for you: introduce radar tail light. Yes, you read that right. Radar, that can detect and notify you of vehicles coming up on your rear up to 153 yards away.

With visibility up to a mile away in broad daylight, you can rest assured that other drivers can clearly spot you from a distance, thereby increasing the safety of your trip. The light’s intensity can be adjusted, so you know you won’t be troubling your friends when cycling in group.

Its rechargeable battery lasts 16 hours in flash mode, and up to 6 hours in solid mode. Let’s be honest, how many of us have the stamina to ride for 16 hours straight?

Product Specs

See also:

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• Top 20 Best Hybrid Bikes Under $500: August 2020 Update!
• Top 15 Best Hitch Bike Racks Reviews In 2020

Cyclepartner Bike Tail Lights

The Gernet 75/100 offers impressive brightness, be in day or night. But the special kick comes in the form of a 270-degree visibility design, which allows other drivers to see you even from the sides.

The battery lasts up to 13 hours, allowing you to ride from dusk till dawn. What’s more, it can endure even longer trips if you manage its modes accordingly. There are High, Medium, Low, Fast Flash, Flash and Slow Flash for you to choose from.

The product features a universal mount, so you can mount it pretty much everywhere. From fenders, seat post, etc. If it fits, then you can mount it there.

Product Specs

CANWAY Bike Tail Lights

This product from CANWAY offers 168 lumens (!) bright light. Some may say that’s a little bit too intense; but hey, it’s better to be seen than sorry. Speaking of being seen, a 260-degree wide visual angle will make sure you are seen even from the sides.

It is also worth noting that installation is easy. Designed with vertical and horizontal mounting, as well as a 360-degree rotation feature, you can attach this tail light to just about anywhere on your bike in seconds, without any other tools.

Battery lasts only 2-4 hours depending on the mode, so you may want to keep that in mind before you go for an overnight ride.

Product Specs

Nkomax Smart Bike Tail Lights

If you are a fond of going on longer journey, you will love this Nkomax Smart Tail Light. Its battery will run for 20 hours (30 hours for the 2nd Generation). That means from dusk, till dawn, and then till dusk again. If you have the stamina to pedal for such a long duration.

Utilizing a sophisticated comb lens design, this product offers good – yet not dazzling – brightness. 180-degree visibility cone will make sure you are seen from the back as well as the sides.

Featuring a smart sensor, your light will turns on automatically for you when the sun goes down or when you enter a low-visibility area, and turn off again when you ride through areas with more lights. It will also automatically turn itself on when you engage the brake or decelerate. Of course, there is a manual switch for you if you prefer to take matters into your own hand.

Product Specs

Ascher USB Bike Tail Lights

The small and compact tail light are part of Ascher Light Set. Built for versatility, this is truly the jack-of-all-trades. If you are looking for a tail light that can performs in other lighting-related roles, then this is what you are looking for.

The light is fastened with silicone mount. And that means they can be mounted just about anywhere you can think of, and not just on your bike. It takes only seconds to get this set up on your bike’s riser, seat post, or even rear fender. Then a few more seconds to take it off and mount it on your helmet or backpack. In a pinch, the light’s design allows you to use it as an emergency flashlight.

The battery lasts  from over 2 hours to 9 hours, depending on your selection of the mode. Those modes are Full Brightness, Half Brightness, Fast Flashing or Slow Flashing, or in a more practical sense: Day Riding, Night Riding, Light Traffic or Heavy Traffic, respectively.

Product Specs

Serfas Thunderbolt Bike Tail Lights

The Serfas Thunderbolt is for those who wants a simple and compact tail light. It doesn’t get much easier to operate. You just need to mount this tail light, which is easy enough thanks to the easy to use silicone mount. The mounting design allows for a wide variety of options as to where you can mount your tail light.

The product is also highly water-resistance, and will keep you safe on the ride regardless of weather conditions. And all that comes in a lightweight, affordable packet. As the manufacturer says: charge up, light up and get riding safely with the Thunderbolt

Product Specs

REFUN  Bike Tail Lights

The problem with recharger lights is that once you run out of battery, you must wait for it to recharge: Even the fastest ones take an hour or two. And then again, how do you recharge if your light runs dry on the middle of the road? Should the above be your concern, then you are advised to select REFUN’s Tail Light.

The product is powered by 2 CR2032 batteries each, that is, those small ones that you can find in any electronic store. You can carry dozens of these battery around with you, but that won’t be necessary, as 2 of those batteries will last your light for around 45 hours. So all you need to lug around while riding is an extra set of CR2032 batteries, which happen to be included in the Tail Light’s package.

The silicone mount strap allows you to stick this tail light in a wide variety of places: seat post, backpack, on the back of your helmet, etc. What’s more, REFUN took care to design their product with a slight upwards angle, making sure that those driving from a higher elevation than you (let’s say, an eighteen-wheeler for example) can clearly see you.

Product Specs

CYGOLITE Hotshot Bike Tail Lights

If you think ‘all tail lights are the same’, then CYGOLITE is here to make you rethink. Their product features an exclusive patent-pending DayLightning Flash mode. As the name suggests, this mode is designed specifically for daylight condition. Coupled with four other modes to choose from, you know that this tail light will ensure your safety.

As is common nowadays, you can adjust the light’s brightness and flash tempo. What is uncommon, however, is the 500 hours of battery runtime (provided that you select the correct mode). Of course, 500-hour runtime sounds unreal, and hardly will a mode that lasts the battery that long will be practical; but that serves well to give you an example of how tough the Hotshot’s battery can be.

Product Specs

KNOG Blinder Road R70 Bike Tail Lights

KNOG is an Australian brand, and with them being from the country with a harsh and vast outback, you know their product is highly resistant against many kinds of weather. In fact, the KNOG Blinder Road R70 is up to IP67 standard. That is, waterproof at up to 1m-deep underwater and completely dust proof.

Runtime ranges from 3.5 hours in steady mode and upto 20 hours in EcoFlash mode. The product also features a low battery indicator, so you will know when to top it up, lest you find yourself with a dry light on a night ride.

Product Specs

Volcano Eye Bike Tail Lights

While most Tail Light only offer you one color (mostly red), and just a very few offers you two, Volcano Eye takes it to a new level and gives you three: Red, Blue and Green.If you are wondering why would you need different colours, it is argued that Red is suitable for night riding, Blue is suitable as a headlight and Green is suitable for foggy days.

Three different light colours also allow you up to 7 modes of lightning to choose from. Beside the one-color modes, you can set the light to flash in multiple colors, giving you versatility under complicated weather.

Product Specs

Cycliq Fly6 Bike Tail Lights

Remember when I told you that ‘some tail lights are not just tail light’? Well, the Cycliq Fly6 takes it to the higher level. No, it’s not another radar, this time it’s an HD Camera. The Cycliq Fly6 features a Full HD Camera that can record 1920 x 1080p videos with sound. Designed with take action shots, the camera is 6-axis stabilized. You can take footages of your trip from the back or the front of your bike; and who knows, maybe some of these would come in handy to verify certain incidents.

Another distinguishing feature is the Bike Alarm. The built-in alarm system will notify you via your smartphone the instance your bike moves. The light would then start flashing and the camera would automatically start recording everything.

And all the above are additional features to an amazing 100-lumen tail light with 3 different lightning modes. It impresses one to think that the battery has to power all those functions and could still run for 7 hours.

Product Specs

Bontrager Bike Tail Lights

The two most distinguishing feature this compact design from Bontrager brings to the table is the battery saving mode which automatically kicks in when battery level is below 5% (and inform you so, of course), allowing you some extra time to ride home safely even with a depleted battery. The second one is the 16-degree offset in the mounting to compensate for when you want to mount the Bontrager on non-vertical surfaces, such as an angled seat post.

Other noteworthy features are 270-degree wide visibility, making sure that you are seen even from the sides. The light includes day mode and night mode, which are then further divided into three and two more modes, respectively.

Product Specs

CatEye Red Rapid X3 Bike Tail Lights

CatEye Red Rapid X3 gives you insane brightness (at 150 Lumens!) for a compact packet. It also features a battery-saver mode that automatically turns on when your battery is low on power. The battery itself is tough, and can run for 30 hours in the right mode.

The Rapid X3 comes with two independence LED strips, and as such features 6 different modes from solid to flashing. Furthermore, the product also features a mode-memory function, and you won’t have to select modes all over again everytime you get on your bike.

Product Specs

JISAM TRADE Bike Tail Lights

The JISAM Trade Moonlight Nebula has remarkable battery runtime. Your light will shine for up to 20 hours in the right mode. If you want some intense brightness, this product can give you 100 Lumen’s worth. And there is also a USB Remote Control to boost.

Furthermore, there are 8 different lightning modes for you to select according to your ride’s need. Comes with many mounting options, from helmet bracket, belt clip to mounting silicone rings, installation possibilities are quite remarkable.

Product Specs

LEZYNE Strip Bike Tail Lights

LEZYNE’s Strip Drive Pro is just insane, but in a very positive way. The thing can go as bright as 300 Lumens. Yes, you read that right, three hundreds lumens. They may even see that tail light of yours from helicopter.

Featuring ten different lightning modes, you will surely find the mode you need among these. And to boost, with the correct mode, the battery will last up to 53 hours. That’s 2 days and a half. I mean, who even have the strength to ride that long? What’s more, once your battery is dry, you can recharge it in just 2 hours. More than 26 minutes of usage for every minute’s charge. You rarely see any tail light even comes close to such ratio, let alone surpass.

And that’s not to mention the 270-degree visibility and the simple-to-use mountings.

Product Specs

The Ultimate Guide To Choosing Best Bike Tail Lights In 2020

First off, there are something you should know:

1. There might be laws regulating tail lights where you live (as in, how bright they should be, how should they be mounted, what colors are allowed/not allowed…). Please refer to these law carefully before you select a tail light
2. Light brightness is usually measured in lumens. For those who don’t know, 10 lumens is equal to a normal bedroom night lamp, 100 lumens is equal to a single AA-battery powered LED flashlight, 250 lumens equal a double AA-battery powered LED flashlight, and 500 lumens is equal to a 40 watt light bulb.

And then, there are the things you need to consider before actually buying one:

• Brightness: Local laws should be considered first. Secondly, think about how do you plan to use your tail light? If it is for general everyday use, then you need at least 50 lumens. If you want something for more extreme occasions, consider getting a brighter tail light. But remember this: a 100 lumens light can usually be adjusted to 50 lumens, a 50 lumens light cannot be adjusted to 100 lumens, however.
• Battery runtime: Consider what kind of bike trips you usually go on, and how long those trip usually takes. Then add in a couple hours to compensate for unexpected incidents.
• Type of bulbs: Just go with LED ones.
• Mounting options: As you can see from the review aboves, the vast majority of ‘Cons’ are that the mounting systems break after a while. Sometimes this may result in losing your light as it falls off mid-trip. Check your mounting, and adds extra measure to keep the tail light in place if needed.

FAQs

What is the brightest bicycle tail light?

On the list it’s the LEZYNE Strip Drive Pro (at 300 Lumens). Off the list, you can find tail light that offers brightness at thousands of lumes. Bear in mind, however, that you want your light to be bright enough to helps other drivers notice you, not too bright you dazzle them.

How bright should my rear bike light be?

As stated above, your light should just be bright enough to allow other drivers to notice you. In many areas there are laws that regulate how bright your light should be. You can refer to such laws to select a light of appreciable brightness. However, if there is no such law where you live, then 50 lumens should be enough for most situations.

Are LED tail lights worth it?

Are bike helmets worth it? Are your body worth protecting? How much does your safety is to you? You see, you can never be too safe. You don’t wanna be that person who wishes he HAD bought a tail light now, do you?

What are the best LED tail lights?

There are the good ones and there are the bad ones, but it is difficult to pinpoint the outright best one. I have always maintained the opinion that the best tail light is the one that suits your need most. But if you would want be to point out my personal top 3, they are the LEZYNE Strip Drive Pro, the Volcano Eye and the Garmin Varia RTL515.

How many lumens should a good bike light have?

Please refer to the lumens comparison section in the Buying Guide and to Question 2 of the FAQ section.