Business Insider India has updated its Privacy and Cookie policy. We use cookies to ensure that we give you the better experience on our website. If you continue without changing your settings, we\'ll assume that you are happy to receive all cookies on the Business Insider India website. However, you can change your cookie setting at any time by clicking on our Cookie Policy at any time. You can also see our Privacy Policy.
Insider Picks writes about products and services to help you navigate when shopping online. Insider Inc. receives a commission from our affiliate partners when you buy through our links, but our reporting and recommendations are always independent and objective.
A good floor lamp can brighten up an entire room or provide direct light right where you need it most. We've picked out the best floor lamps you can buy to suit your needs.
The Brightech SKY LED Torchiere Floor Lamp is our top pick because it offers versatility with dimmer settings, a lamp socket that pivots, and a few different finishes.
If you grew up at a time when floor lamps were popular, you probably have a few memories of them. You almost certainly knocked one over at some point by running through the house or - even worse - playing ball in the house. Or, if you were lucky enough to have a floor lamp with a three-way bulb, you could spend hours entertaining yourself with the bright/brighter/brightest settings. Admittedly, I may not have had the most exciting childhood.
You may not have thought much about floor lamps lately. Or maybe that 100-year grounding your parents gave you after breaking the lamp as a kid technically remains in place, so you have a mental block about floor lamps. But modern floor lamps offer different and contemporary designs versus their counterparts from a few decades ago. Newer lamps may use LED lighting, which provides a pleasing type of lighting that's also cost-effective and efficient.
How to choose a floor lamp
Selecting a floor lamp becomes an easier process if you understand how you want to use it. Floor lamps come in many different designs and use different types of lighting.
Advertisement
Height: Do you want the lamp to provide task lighting for someone sitting on the couch? Or are you looking to light up an area of the room? Do you have tall ceilings? All of these considerations can help you select the height of the floor lamp you'll want to purchase. For example, as Homeclick says, a short lamp doesn't look great in a room with high ceilings.
Base: The base of the floor lamp plays a role in the sturdiness of the lamp. A lamp with a wide base will be more difficult to tip over than one with a small base. Lamp bases are available in wood, glass, ceramic, or metal.
Finish: The finish on the lamp usually carries through the pole, sockets, and base. Common finishes for floor lamps include antique bronze, oil-rubbed bronze, brushed nickel, and satin nickel, according to Lowe's.
Lampshade: Although some modern style floor lamps don't make use of lamp shades, you can add color and style to the lamp with a custom lampshade, as Pooky explains. The lamp shade also cuts down on the intensity of the light, as it shades your eyes from the light bulb. Different materials will allow different intensities of light to be visible through the lampshade.
Designs of floor lamps
Floor lamps are about more than just the type of lighting they provide. Floor lamps are about style, too. Now, we know we can't tell you what you should or should not like since style is a very subjective matter. The lamp you choose contributes to the décor of your room. However, most lamp designs fall into a few categories. Here are the main designs you can choose from as explained by LampsUSA and Decorated Life.
Classic/Console: The classic or console floor lamp has a single fixture directly above the pole, and it's the most common type of floor lamp. This type of floor lamp provides accent lighting if a lampshade is attached.
Arch/Adjustable: An arch or adjustable style of floor lamp has a curved pole that allows you to direct the light to a specific area. For example, you might place the arch floor lamp behind a chair and then have the fixtures of the arch hang directly over the chair, providing a directed light source. Some arch floor lamps allow you to adjust the positioning of the angle of the arch.
Tree: The tree style of floor lamp has a single pole that leads to several small branch poles, each of which has a light fixture attached to it. With some floor lamps, the branches of the tree lamp are adjustable.
Torchiere lighting: Torchiere lighting mimics overhead lighting by projecting the light from the lamp upward. The shade is shaped like a bowl, which directs the light upward. It enhances the room's ambient light.
We researched buyer reviews and expert opinions on floor lamps to find the best floor lamps you can buy online. We tried to select a number of different styles and types of floor lamps to suit most people's needs. Read on to learn more about our top picks. You should also consult our light bulb buying guide for tips on how to choose the best bulbs for your new lamp.
Disclosure: This post is brought to you by the Insider Picks team. We highlight products and services you might find interesting. If you buy them, we get a small share of the revenue from the sale from our commerce partners. We frequently receive products free of charge from manufacturers to test. This does not drive our decision as to whether or not a product is featured or recommended. We operate independently from our advertising sales team. We welcome your feedback. Email us at insiderpicks@businessinsider.com.
If you want plenty of versatility in a floor lamp, the Brightech SKY LED Torchiere Floor Lamp offers four dimmer settings, a pivoting light source, and four different finishes.
The versatile Brightech SKY LED Torchiere Floor Lamp has four dimmer settings to provide the perfect mood lighting and adjust to your lighting needs as natural light dissipates. The torchiere design of the Brightech lamp aims the light upward, providing light that spreads through the room.
Even though the base of the SKY LED Torchiere floor lamp doesn't look very big, it has a solid weight that keeps this tall lamp sturdily in place, according to Geek News Central. As Hooked To Books points out in its review, the small base and thin pole mean that the unit won't occupy much space in your living room, either.
It's a simple, minimalist lamp that fits in anywhere. Brightech's lamp is also very practical and has smart design features that make it easy to place in your home. The Home Lights review highlights the SKY LED Torchiere Lamp's long cord, which runs longer than 7 feet to reach far away outlets.
One Amazon buyer liked this LED floor lamp so much he purchased two more for his home. Although this is a very popular model among Amazon reviewers, one customer reported problems with the power switch not working after a few days. If you run into problems, contact Amazon or the seller right away.
Additionally, the thin LED segment at the top of the lamp can pivot to an angle, allowing you to direct the extremely bright 30-watt LED light wherever it's needed. It's available in four different finishes, black, brushed nickel, silver, and white.
Pros: Extremely bright torchiere-style floor lamp, minimal design that doesn't occupy much floor space, available in four finishes, offers four dimmer settings, head of lamp can slightly pivot to redirect light
Cons: Some customers report problems with power switch, doesn't use a lampshade
The Brayden Studio Morrill Tree Floor Lamp has a stylish and graceful look that'll mesh with almost any décor, but it doesn't sacrifice usability or versatility.
The stylish Brayden Studio Morrill Tree Floor Lamp has a simple design that will look great in any room in your home. The thin stem of the Utecht floor lamp splits into three smaller branches that each hold a drum-style lampshade and a socket.
The lamp shades have a 12-inch diameter, and the lamp measures 82-inches tall. It's in an antique bronze metal finish. The Brayden Studio Morrill Tree Floor Lamp has an E26/E27 bulb base. You can decide how bright or dim you want the lamp to be based on which bulbs you choose. For help with choosing a great light bulb for your lamp, check out our light bulb buying guide here.
As far as downsides go, there aren't many. Some buyers on Wayfair said the lamp's assembly was difficult, while others didn't like the quality or had issues with damage. However, the product has received 5 stars from more than 2,700 commenters.
Editors' note: This lamp replaces our previous pick, the Utecht Tree Floor Lamp, also from Brayden Studio and sold by Wayfair. Both lamps are similar in style and function.
Pros: Nice-looking design, simple drum lamp shades provide a great look, four-way switch for turning on individual lamp sockets
Cons: Price is a little high, some customers complain of difficult assembly and workmanship
If you have an image in your mind of what a traditional floor lamp should look like, there's a good chance the Barnes and Ivy Florencio Antique Gold Floor Lamp matches the image in your head. This classy lamp makes use of an antique gold finish with black accents to look classy and traditional in any room.
The thick lamp pole and the heavy, ornate base provide a perfect look for a traditional décor. The top of the lamp contains a torchiere style light socket, which directs the light upward using a 5-inch height and 18-inch diameter amber glass shade.
The 72-inch lamp can accept incandescent light bulbs of up to 150 watts or lower wattage CFL or LED bulbs. For help with choosing a great light bulb for your lamp, check out our light bulb buying guide here.
One Amazon buyer appreciated the sturdy build quality and feel of this Barnes and Ivy floor lamp, which weighs more than 40 pounds. You shouldn't have to worry about knocking this lamp over. Another Amazon reviewer liked the style of the Florencio floor lamp, even though it was more bright gold than the antique gold color they expected.
Pros: Ornate design on the base and near the light socket, antique gold and black finish looks stylish, torchiere light design aims light upward, up to 150-watt bulbs accepted, traditional design looks great
We love the look of the Trent Austin Design Kaibab Task Floor Lamp, which includes an all-metal design that extends to the lampshade. It has an aged dark zinc finish that looks sharp to match almost any room.
It works very well as a task floor lamp because of the slight curvature at the top of the lamp pole as well as a hinge on the socket, which allows you to direct the light onto someone sitting in a chair when the lamp pole is directly behind the chair. The design lets you raise or lower the lamp socket bar by several inches, too.
Several Wayfair buyers said it was a great lamp for reading. Some others appreciated the ability to adjust the height and angle of the lamp socket.
However, some Wayfair reviewers did not like the way the power cord hangs from the adjustable socket bar, leaving it dangling a few feet off the floor. A few other reviewers questioned the longevity of the Kaibab floor lamp.
The Trent Austin Design Kaibab Task Floor Lamp measures 65 inches in height with a single 60-watt socket that accepts E26 bulbs. You can drop the height of the lamp to as low as 56 inches with the adjustable socket bar. The base has an 11-inch diameter, giving the lamp plenty of stability. The lamp shade has a 9-inch diameter.
Pros: Stylish lamp with aged dark zinc finish, adjustable lamp socket and height is great for reading, slight curve in lamp pole helps direct light, all-metal design, sturdy 11-inch diameter base, good price point
Cons: Only a 60-watt socket, can't use 3-way bulbs, cord hangs from socket bar
The Catalina 3-Way Étagère Floor Lamp has a unique look with four legs to provide a sturdy base, as well as two small shelves that make it a great fit in a corner.
The Catalina 3-Way Étagère Floor Lamp isn't very tall at 58 inches in height, but it works great in the corner of a room, thanks to the two shelves attached to the four legs of the lamp.
The four legs provide a sturdy base to the lamp, and there are 14 inches between each of the legs, meaning the base occupies a little more space than a typical floor lamp. Each shelf is square in shape and sturdy.
The Étagère Floor Lamp has a distressed painted iron finish and a simple linen shade in ivory beige. You can use a 3-way incandescent bulb with this Catalina Lighting lamp up to 150 watts, or you can use lower wattage CFL and LED 3-way bulbs. For help with choosing a great light bulb for your lamp, check out our light bulb buying guide here.
Home Generosity appreciates the unique look of the Catalina floor lamp with its practical shelves. For example, you can put a book and reading glasses on a shelf for easy access or place your mug down between sips. One Amazon buyer loved how easy assembly was with this lamp, and another liked the shelves, even though they are small.
Pros: Great looking lamp, small shelves are handy to have inside the floor lamp base, accepts 3-way bulbs up to 150 watts, works well in the corner of a room, good price point, sturdy base at 14 inches wide
Cons: Lamp is shorter than average at 58 inches, square shelves are very small
The tall Artiva USA Micah Arched Floor Lamp has a contemporary arched style design with five separate light sockets and adjustable shades for spreading the light.
If you're terrified of Medusa-like multi-headed snakes, you may want to pass on this arch style lamp. But if you want an arch style floor lamp that'll fit into a room's contemporary design, the Artiva USA Micah Arched Floor Lamp offers five arms that arch over a chair or couch, providing a great source of light … even if it does look a bit like a multi-headed snake.
The Artiva USA floor lamp is huge, measuring 88 inches in height, so it won't work in low ceiling rooms. Roughly halfway up the silver lamp pole, the pole changes into five arms, each of which have a round lamp socket at the end. Each socket features a 360-degree rotatable shade, helping to angle the shades so you aren't looking directly at the bulbs. Each shade measures 5.5 inches in diameter.
Some Wayfair buyers said assembling the Micah Arched floor lamp was tricky, especially when it comes to putting the base together. Another buyer loved the ability to dim the light with its dimmer switch, as well as the overall look of the lamp.
The Artiva USA Micah Arched Floor Lamp weighs 40 pounds with a 15-inch diameter base, which provides a sturdy build quality, according to the Home Lights review, but it does occupy more floor space than other floor lamps.
You can use 5-watt LED bulbs in each socket, equivalent to 40-watt incandescent candelabra bulbs with an E-12 socket. One Wayfair reviewer decided to replace the incandescent bulbs that shipped with the lamp with LED bulbs to minimize heat buildup. We recommend you do that for energy efficiency as well. For help with choosing a great light bulb for your lamp, check out our light bulb buying guide here.
Pros: Stylish and contemporary look, five light sockets to spread the light, heavy base keeps lamp sturdy, includes dimming feature for the lights, metal design, 88-inch lamp great for high ceiling rooms
Cons: High price, assembly is tricky, only accepts candelabra style bulbs
