How we score red light panels

We review red light therapy panels from the brands' published specifications, warranty and returns pages and prices, read on the date shown on each page (last on November 12, 2026). Every panel gets one score out of 10, and that score is the same on every page of the site.

The seven criteria

How each criterion is scored

Each criterion is turned into a score out of 10 by straight-line interpolation between the anchor points below, capped at both ends.

• Price per square inch of LED face: the dated US price divided by the panel's LED face (width × height), compared with the median of our list ($2.74 per sq in). Ratio to the median: 0.5× → 10, 0.75× → 9, 1× → 7.5, 1.5× → 5.5, 2.2× → 3.5.
• Wavelengths: the number of distinct peak wavelengths published: 1 → 3, 2 → 6, 4 → 8, 6 → 9.5, 8 → 10. A panel without both red (600 to 699 nm) and near-infrared (780 to 1,100 nm) loses 2 points.
• Irradiance disclosure: we don't score the size of the output number, because consumer meters and lab spectrometers can disagree by a factor of two. We score how much the brand tells you: a headline figure with its distance and lab data → 10; lab data only → 8; a figure with its distance → 7; a figure without a distance → 4.5.
• Warranty (years): 1 → 3, 2 → 6, 3 → 8.5, 5 → 10.
• Return window (days): 0 → 1, 30 → 6, 60 → 9, 90 → 10.
• EMF and flicker, half each: an EMF figure with its distance → 5, a figure without a distance → 3.5, a claim without a figure → 3; "flicker-free" stated → 5, "low flicker" → 3.
• Controls: one point each for a timer, separate red and near-infrared control, an app, linking panels together and pulsing: 0 → 3, 1 → 5, 2 → 6.5, 3 → 8, 4 → 9, 5 → 10.

When a figure isn't published

A criterion the brand doesn't publish scores 2/10. We can't credit what isn't stated, and a panel should not win on silence. A panel with no published price, or fewer than 5 published criteria, gets no score at all.

From raw score to displayed score

The raw score is the weighted average of the seven criteria. Every panel we list is a serious, current option, so we show it on an editorial scale: displayed score = 7.5 + 0.5 × (raw score − 4.5), kept between 7.5 and 9.6. The order of the raw scores never changes. Labels: Excellent from 9.0, Very good from 8.5, Good from 8.0, Fair below 8.0.

Rankings by need

Each ranking puts the same criteria in a different order of importance. The weights change the order of the list, never the score: each panel keeps its one overall score everywhere.

Where the data comes from

• Specs and prices come from the brand's official US product page and its warranty and returns pages. Every review links its sources.
• Prices are the price you could pay on the date shown, in US dollars. When a brand shows a discount, we use the discounted price and say so.
• Irradiance, EMF, flicker and FDA wording are quoted from the brand; we don't measure panels ourselves and we don't repeat health claims.
• We don't use user ratings or star averages from stores.

Current scores

Questions about the method? Write to [email protected].