Choose lights you will still be pleased with next year. Most of the range comes down to a handful of decisions, and once you know which ones matter for your space the right set usually picks itself. Here they are, in the order we would take them.
Which power source
This decides where a set can go more than anything else, so settle it first.
Mains gives you length, brightness and timers. Most mains sets run from a low voltage transformer on a 5 m lead, so check that lead reaches a socket from where you want the lights to sit. The plug and transformer always stay indoors or under cover.
Battery goes wherever there is no socket, with no cable to hide. It is the right choice for a table centre, a mantelpiece, a windowsill or a wreath. Batteries are usually not included, and the type and number are on every product page.
Rechargeable gives you mains-length runs with nothing to plug in, and a remote to switch and dim from across the room. It suits a large tree or a staircase where a cable would have to cross a walkway.
Browse by battery or mains if you already know which you need.
Indoors or outdoors
Every product carries an IP rating in its Additional information, and you only need to remember two. IP44 is happy outside when used with a weatherproof socket or box. IP20 stays indoors, however sheltered the spot looks. If a set is going anywhere near weather, check that line before anything else. The outdoor range is IP44 throughout.
How long a set you need
Measure the run you want to cover, then check the lit length on the product page rather than the total. The lead cable does not count towards it. A 5 m lead and a 2 m lit length is a 2 m display, not a 7 m one.
Then look at the LED count against that length. More LEDs on a shorter wire gives a denser sparkle. Cluster sets pack far more light into the same run and fill a mantelpiece or a doorway without gaps, where a conventional string with wide spacing suits draping across a big space.
Warm white, cool white or colour
The colour of the light sets the whole mood. Warm white is soft and golden, sits with candles and firelight, and is what most of the range uses, so pieces bought separately still look like they belong together. Cool white is crisp and reads as frost against glass and silver. Multicoloured brings energy for parties and children's rooms, and a few festoon sets switch between multicoloured and warm white on the lead, which is worth knowing if you want one set for the whole year.
Connectable sets
If you are lighting a whole garden, a roofline or a marquee, look for connectable. These sets join end to end and run from a single plug, and each one says how many you can link. Our connectable string lights join up to twelve sets from one socket, and the festoon sets join three to five. A set that does not say connectable is a single run. See the festoon range.
Timers, memory and remotes
A timer is the feature people are most glad they bought. The common one runs six hours on and eighteen off, so once you set it on the first evening it comes back on at the same time every night for the season. Memory hold means a multi-function set returns to the mode you chose rather than resetting. A remote matters on anything you have put somewhere awkward to reach, which is why the LumaBrights candles have one. All three are listed in the Additional information where a product has them.
Choosing a pre-lit tree
Height and width come first, and a 7 ft tree at 130 cm across needs the floor space to match. After that, tip count is what separates one tree from another. It is the number of branch ends, and it is what gives an artificial tree its density: the balsam fir carries 2177, the Douglas 1136. A pencil tree at 58 cm across gives you the height without the footprint for a hallway or a flat. Every tree here arrives with the lights fitted, a timer with memory hold, and a metal stand. Compare them in the tree range.
Choosing flameless candles
Think in groups rather than singles. The pool candles come in 10, 12.5 and 15 cm and step deliberately, so three heights together read as arranged where three of the same read as stock. Tapers at 23 cm give you proper candlestick height for a table. All are moulded in a real wax effect with a flickering flame-shaped tip, most run a daily timer, and the LumaBrights range adds a remote. Start with the candle range.
Still deciding
Our FAQs answer the questions we hear most, and our guide to choosing string lights walks through the six questions above with examples. If it is still not clear, email help@sparklelights.com and tell us about the space. We reply within one working day.