Best floodlight cameras 2023: Light up the night

Floodlight cameras are a great way to ensure that you can see whatever you're recording.

If you're looking to install a smart camera somewhere outdoors on your property, you might have already thought about picking up a model that includes floodlighting.

These powerful lights can light up when the camera detects motion and make it far easier to get clear footage of whatever's being recorded, reducing your reliance on night-vision modes.

We've tested a wide range of smart home cameras, including many with floodlights and have gathered some of the very best options for you, right here.

Bright light

A great floodlight camera that's easy to use and set up, making it a great pick.

This camera from Ring is exactly what you imagine when you hear "floodlight camera", with its huge twin floodlights, each of which you can pose independently. This means you can get it arranged just right for whatever area you're point in towards.

The camera quality is superb, with a really good wide-angle lens, and Ring's suite of software is extremely easy to use, making the setup process a doddle as well. We think this will work perfectly for what most people need from a floodlight camera.

Unique design

A great camera from Netatmo that has a really fun design.

Amazon

A camera that looks a little bit more stylish than Ring's option, we think the Netatmo Smart Outdoor Camera with Siren is a great pick, too. It's got a great design that's nice and modern and builds the floodlight right into the camera itself.

The installation process is actually a little more complicated than we'd like, but once you have the camera installed it's really easy to use and control, while the recording quality is excellent. That floodlight is nice and bright, and the siren is also hugely loud as a deterrent.

Good looking

This sleek camera is ideal if you're a big Android and Google Assistant user.

WalmartBest Buy

Google's lineup of Nest cameras includes this great option with dual floodlights that we think is really nicely designed. It's got a rounded, futuristic look but still a clear sense of deterrent for any potential thieves.

The floodlighting is nice and bright, and the camera is perfect for Google Home users thanks to its really tight integration with that platform, unsurprisingly.

Very bright

This beast of a camera will get you great footage, but it's a little unwieldy.

Another pretty unique-looking floodlight camera, this piece from Arlo looks like something from the space race, with a curved LED panel surrounding its excellent camera's actual lenses.

You get really bright illumination and clear video, although it's worth noting that Arlo's subscriptions are a little pricy, adding some extra costs to your package. It's also a pretty chunk unit to mount!

Very responsive

It might not have true floodlighting, but these spotlights do work solidly, too.

This is basically the camera at the heart of Ring's floodlight system in our top spot, but without the dedicated floodlights. Instead, you get some impressively bright built-in LED spotlighting.

It's not the same, of course, but you might find that it's enough to illuminate a smaller area without needing to flood it in light, and your neighbours and wallet might just thank you. We definitely think it's one to consider if you don't necessarily need the brightest lights out there.

Max is an avid gamer, but writes about whatever is newsworthy, and works across features, reviews, buyer's guides and more for the site.Max joined Pocket-lint after a fruitful spell writing about wearable and smart home tech for Wareable and The Ambient as a magazine journalism graduate from City, University of London.He's also contributed to Kotaku UK, The Sunday Times, the Press Association and MUNDIAL. When he's not working, his time is divided worryingly evenly between football, culture and sleeping.