What’s the difference between an incandescent and an LED?

LEDs and incandescent bulbs both produce light using electricity, but the similarities essentially end there. The primary difference between the two lighting sources is how they create light, and this difference in turn results in a number of other relevant differences, such as lower energy consumption and greater flexibility of use like that offered by the flexible LED strip. Incandescent lights use the electricity to heat up the filament inside the bulb and excite its electrons. The process ultimately produces light but most of the energy the light bulb consumes is wasted in the form of heat put into the filament. LEDs produce light through electroluminescence, a process that creates very little heat and wastes little electricity, but otherwise relies on the same general principles of physics that incandescents do.

This difference means that LEDs can be smaller, create the same amount of light using less electricity, are safer because they can’t burn anyone, last longer, and are more durable. All of these advantages come at the cost of being slightly more expensive to produce and install. But in exchange, LEDs use less electricity and are thus less expensive to power, making eco-friendly lighting an easy and affordable upgrade from incandescents for most people.