Luminous Efficacy (Watts ↔ Lumens) Calculator
Bulb wattage is no longer a brightness label — incandescent, CFL and LED efficacies differ by nearly 10×. This tool converts in both directions with the basic lm = W × η formula, so you can ask "how many lumens does a 10 W LED give" or "how many watts of CFL match an 800-lumen output?" Built-in preset efficacies for incandescent, halogen, CFL, LED and fluorescent tubes make it easy to compare like-for-like.
Enter value ≥ 0 and efficacy in 0.1–1000 lm/W.
Luminous flux
—
lm
Equivalent incandescent
—
Divide lumens by 12 lm/W to express brightness as the equivalent old-incandescent wattage — handy when shopping for LEDs.
lm = W × η. Higher efficacy means more visible light per watt. A typical LED is ~100 lm/W vs ~12 lm/W for incandescent, so a 10 W LED matches the brightness of a 60–75 W classic bulb.
Formula
lumens = watts × η (η = luminous efficacy in lm/W) watts = lumens ÷ η Incandescent-equivalent W = lumens ÷ 12 (legacy bulb ≈ 12 lm/W)
- · Typical efficacy ranges (lm/W): incandescent 10–17; halogen 15–25; CFL 50–70; LED bulb 80–120; commercial / high-efficacy LED 150–180; T5/T8 fluorescent tube 70–100; high-pressure sodium 80–140.
- · Thermodynamic ceiling: monochromatic 555 nm green (peak photopic sensitivity) at 100 % wall-plug efficiency = 683 lm/W. For useful white-spectrum light the physical ceiling is roughly 300–400 lm/W, so a 250 lm/W LED is already near the practical limit.
- · US Energy Star LED replacement guide: 800 lm ≈ 60 W incandescent; 1100 lm ≈ 75 W; 1600 lm ≈ 100 W; 450 lm ≈ 40 W.
- · Luminous flux (lm) is not the same as illuminance (lux): 1 lux = 1 lm/m². A 1000 lm fixture mounted 2 m above a 4 m² floor area gives ~250 lux — enough for general reading.
- · This tool reports the fixture's total luminous output. Real-room brightness also depends on shade losses, surface reflectance and distance (inverse-square). For commercial lighting design use DIALux or IES photometric files.
- · References: U.S. DOE "Solid-State Lighting R&D Plan"; IES "Lighting Handbook" 10th ed.; Energy Star Lumen Equivalency Chart; Philips / Osram product catalogues 2020–2024.
Frequently asked
My old fixture used a 60 W incandescent — how many lumens of LED do I need to match it?
About 800 lm. The Energy Star lumen-equivalency chart maps 40 W → 450 lm; 60 W → 800 lm; 75 W → 1100 lm; 100 W → 1600 lm. The maths: 60 W × 12 lm/W ≈ 720 lm at incandescent efficacy → round to the next standard LED rating of 800 lm. Power side: 800 lm ÷ 100 lm/W (LED) = 8 W, an 87 % power saving for the same brightness. Tip: colour temperature also matters for "feel" — 2700 K warm-white most closely matches an old incandescent; 4000 K is neutral; 5000 K+ is daylight-cool.
Why do advertised LED lumens often feel different from what I see at home?
Three common reasons. (1) Shade / diffuser losses — a 1000 lm A-bulb behind a frosted globe may emit only 700–800 lm out of the fixture. (2) Beam angle: LEDs can be highly directional (spotlight, 30°) or omnidirectional (A-shape, 360°). At the same 1000 lm, the lux 1 m directly below the spot is ~10× that of the omnidirectional version. (3) Lumen depreciation (L70): LEDs typically drop to 70 % of initial output after 25 000 hours, so a "1000 lm" bulb gives meaningfully less after a few years. This tool reports theoretical output. When buying, look at the LM-79 test report — "fixture lumens" (out of the shade) is what matters, not raw "chip lumens".
How many lumens does a room need — when do I want 1000 lm vs 3000 lm?
IES Handbook recommendations: living room / corridor 100–200 lux; kitchen / study desk 300–500 lux; workshop / fine assembly 750–1000 lux; embroidery / surgery 2000+ lux. Conversion: required lumens ≈ required lux × room area (m²) × 1.5 (the 1.5 covers maintenance — lumen depreciation, shade losses). Example: a 12 m² living room at 150 lux → 12 × 150 × 1.5 ≈ 2700 lm total, split across 2–3 fixtures. Combine that with this tool: estimate total lumens first, then back-calculate the wattage per fixture.
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