Philips Hue Vs. Hue Essentials: Which smart bulb is right for you?

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Philips Hue has been a leader in smart home lighting for some time. Designed for plug-and-play connectivity, setting up a Hue system takes no more than a few minutes, and once your lighting technology is activated, you can start adjusting brightness and changing colors almost immediately. But if you’ve been researching Philips Hue and aren’t a fan of the prices (it’s one of the most expensive smart lighting solutions on the market), we have some good news: the company also offers a line of budget lighting products, called the Hue Essentials line.

One of the biggest differences between the flagship Philips Hue family and the cheaper Hue Essentials line is that the former offers deeper lighting customization. For starters, the dimming range of the flagship Philips Hue range is greater than that offered through Hue Essentials; the former can be reduced to just 0.2% brightness, while the latter is capped at 2% brightness. Traditional Hue bulbs also have a wider white light range (1000-20,000K vs. 2200-6500K with Hue Essentials).

Think of it this way: If you’re new to smart home devices and smart lighting is your first foray into automations, the Hue Essentials line is a great introduction. While not as bright or colorful as the flagship Hue line, the Essentials technology doesn’t lag behind when it comes to lighting. Additionally, both Philips Hue families are 100% compatible with the Hue Bridge and Bridge Pro, which you’ll need if you plan to control your lighting technology when you’re away from home.

It’s also worth mentioning that no matter which Philips Hue product line you choose, both lines are supported by assistive tools like Alexa, Google Home, and Apple HomeKit. That said, these ecosystem controllers require a Hue Bridge to put all your tech on the same page, and at $70, even the standard bridge isn’t that cheap. If you prefer to wait to invest in a Hue bridge, you can still integrate up to 10 Hue bulbs (of each type) via Bluetooth and the Hue app.

Fortunately, you’ll often be able to find Hue starter kits and smart home bundles on Amazon, Best Buy, and several other retailers. While writing this article, we came across this $143 Hue Starter Kit (discounted to $80 at the time of writing), which includes a Hue Bridge and two A19 bulbs, as well as this $100 Essentials Kit. The latter comes with a Hue Bridge and four E26 bulbs. Setting up a bridge isn’t a big challenge either; just connect it to your router, add it to your Philips Hue account, and that’s it.

Before the Hue Essentials line was added to Philips’ larger arsenal, the manufacturer took on many budget-friendly smart lights. Companies like TP-Link, Govee, and even Amazon Basics are all solid alternatives, but the Hue Essentials line is just as worth your hard-earned money, especially if you already use Hue lighting technology.