Weapon Lights & Laser Sights – Compare Prices

Last updated and checked October 29, 2026 · By Nick Hall

A weapon light is the most important accessory on a defensive firearm. You have to identify what you’re pointing at, and ambient light isn’t always enough. From compact pistol lights like the Streamlight TLR-7 X to rifle lights like the SureFire Scout Light Pro and Modlite OKW v2, there’s a light at every price and output level.

We compare weapon lights and laser sights from 200+ retailers. Browse pistol lights, rifle lights, scout lights, laser sights, light/laser combos and handheld flashlights, and filter by brand, output and price. Below the finder, I’ve laid out what the specs mean and what’s current, with every number checked on the maker’s own site.

Table of Contents

Pistol Light, Rifle Light or Laser?

Type	What it does	Best for
Compact pistol light	500 to 725 lumens, short body	Carry guns, small light-bearing holsters
Full-size pistol light	1,000+ lumens, longer body	Duty and home-defense pistols
Rifle (scout) light	1,000 to 1,500 lumens, high candela	AR-15s and shotguns, outdoor distance
Light/laser combo	White light plus a red or green laser	One-unit setups, unconventional positions
Laser sight	Visible aiming dot, no illumination	Aiming without a sight picture
IR laser/illuminator	Invisible aiming beam for night vision	Night vision setups

If you only buy one, buy a white light. A laser puts a dot where the gun points, but it doesn’t light up the target, and you still have to see what you’re aiming at.

Lumens vs Candela: The Spec That Matters

Both numbers come from the ANSI/PLATO FL 1 flashlight standard, and Streamlight’s own definitions are the clearest. Lumens measure “the total quantity of emitted overall light energy.” Candela measures peak beam intensity, “the brightest part of the beam.” Beam distance is “the distance from the device at which the light beam is 0.25 lux,” and it comes from candela, not lumens.

That’s why a 650-lumen SureFire X300T (66,000 candela) is rated to 514 meters while the 1,000-lumen X300U-A (11,300 candela) reaches 213 meters. Lumens give you the flood that fills a hallway; candela gives you reach and the punch to cut through glass, haze and dark-colored walls. Indoors, you want a usable flood with decent candela. On a rifle outdoors, chase candela: Cloud Defensive’s REIN 3.0 is rated at 100,000 candela.

Pistol Lights: What Is Current in 2026

Light	Lumens	Candela	Runtime (high)	Maker price
Streamlight TLR-7 X	725 (550 on CR123A)	9,500	1 h / 1.5 h	Not published
Streamlight TLR-1 HL	1,000	20,000	1.5 h	Not published
SureFire X300U-A	1,000	11,300	1.25 h	$379 to $399
SureFire X300T	650	66,000	1.5 h	$379 to $399
Holosun P.ID	1,000	23,000	Not stated	$135.28
Inforce WILD2	1,000	25,000	1.5 h	$179.97
Cloud Defensive EPL Duty	1,200	52,000	40 min	$299.99
Modlite PL350 + PLHv3	1,500	60,000	30 min	$319 to $329

A few older names have changed. Streamlight’s TLR-7A has been replaced by the TLR-7 X, and the TLR-8 A by the TLR-8 X. Inforce’s APL and Cloud Defensive’s OWL no longer appear in their makers’ stores, and Modlite’s PLHv2 head is now the PLHv3. Streamlight doesn’t publish prices on its product pages, so check the finder above for what they actually sell for. For our ranked picks, see best weapon lights and the Streamlight vs SureFire comparison.

Match the Light to the Job

Concealed carry. Size wins. A compact light like the TLR-7 X (2.58 inches, 725 lumens on its rechargeable pack) or the Inforce WILD1 (500 lumens, 5,000 candela, $149.97) keeps the gun short enough for an appendix holster. You give up reach, but inside a parking lot or a house, 500 to 725 lumens is plenty to identify a threat.

Home defense pistol. Size doesn’t matter on a nightstand gun, so go full-size: a 1,000-lumen light with 20,000 candela or more, like the TLR-1 HL or Holosun P.ID, punches through dark rooms and bounces enough light off white walls to see the whole hallway. If you live somewhere with long sight lines, the high-candela X300T or EPL Duty earns its price.

Duty and range. Battery logistics start to matter. If your department or match bag already runs CR123As, stick with a light that takes them. If you charge gear every night anyway, an 18350 or 18650 rechargeable light like Modlite’s or Cloud’s gives you more output per ounce.

Rifle and shotgun. Chase candela and mount it forward. See the rifle light section below, and our best concealed carry flashlights if you’d rather carry a handheld.

Rifle Lights

On a rifle you have room for a bigger battery and a deeper reflector, so candela climbs. Streamlight’s ProTac Rail Mount HL-X makes 1,000 lumens and 50,000 candela with Picatinny and M-LOK mounts included. SureFire’s Scout Light Pro Dual Fuel ($379 to $439) runs 1,500 lumens on its 18650 or 1,200 on two 123As, and the older M600DF is now “available On-Demand only.” Cloud Defensive’s REIN 3.0 ($369.99) pushes 100,000 candela, and Modlite’s OKW v2 18650 package ($279 to $309, mount extra) is rated at 1,300 lumens and 95,000 candela.

Mount it where your support thumb can reach the switch without changing your grip, and keep it forward of the barrel so the muzzle doesn’t cast a shadow.

Light-Bearing Holsters

This is where most people get burned. A light-bearing holster is molded to one gun-and-light pair, and lights vary in length: the TLR-7 X is 2.58 inches, the SIG FOXTROT2R 2.79, the TLR-2 G 3.39, the Inforce WILD2 3.5 and the SureFire X300U-A 3.76. A Glock 19 holster cut for a TLR-7 X won’t take an X300U-A.

Some lights are designed to share a footprint. Cloud Defensive says its EPL “will drop right in to all X300 and TLR-1 style light bearing duty holsters” in most cases. Streamlight’s advice applies to all of them: a proper holster should “fully cover the trigger guard area.” Use our holster finder to match your gun and light, and browse gun holsters.

Mounting: Glock Rail, Picatinny and M-LOK

Picatinny (MIL-STD-1913) has evenly spaced cross slots and is the standard on rifles and many pistols. Gen 3 and Gen 4 Glocks use a single-slot “Glock Universal” rail, so pistol lights ship with keys or reversible crossbars. Inforce says you can move the WILD2 between a 1913 rail and a Glock Universal rail “by reversing the patented INFORCE crossbar,” and Streamlight’s TLR-2 G includes keys for Glock, Picatinny, Beretta, S&W and SIG P320 rails.

M-LOK is the slot system cut into rifle handguards. The ProTac HL-X and the Scout Light Pro both include M-LOK mounts; Modlite sells its mounts separately.

Laser Sights: Red vs Green

Crimson Trace explains the federal limit: civilian laser sights are capped at 5 milliwatts and classed as 3R devices. Within that cap, green is “significantly more visible than red light in bright sun,” but “the two colors are both easily discernable in darker lighting conditions.” Red units cost less and run longer: Streamlight rates the red TLR-8 X laser at 60 hours on a CR123A and the green TLR-8 X G at 11 hours.

Lasers earn their place when you can’t get a sight picture, such as shooting from the floor or around cover. Crimson Trace’s LG-105 Lasergrips for the S&W J-Frame ($219.99) put a 5 mW red laser in the grip with instinctive activation. Light/laser combos like the Holosun P.ID-PLUS ($199.99, 520 nm green) and Olight Baldr Pro R ($169.95) do both jobs in one unit. More at Crimson Trace.

IR Lasers and Night Vision

An infrared laser is invisible to the naked eye and only shows through night vision. Civilian units are sold at Class 1 power: Steiner’s DBAL-A4 lists civilian models with a “<0.7 mW, Class 1" IR pointer, while the Class 3B versions are sold to defense and law enforcement. The Holosun P.ID-PRO ($411.75) packs a Class 1 IR laser and a 350 mW IR illuminator into a pistol light. Pair them with a device from our night vision and thermal hub.

Runtime and Batteries

Under the ANSI standard, runtime ends when output drops to 10% of where it started, so a light can glow for a while after its rated time is up. Maker ratings on high: the X300U-A runs 1.25 hours, the TLR-1 HL 1.5 hours, the TLR-7 X 1.5 hours on a CR123A or 1 hour on its rechargeable pack. Small 18350 lights trade runtime for output: Cloud’s EPL runs 40 minutes and Modlite’s PL350 30 minutes. 18650 rifle lights run longer: Modlite’s OKW v2 is rated at 75 minutes.

Treat batteries like ammo. Replace CR123As on a schedule, top off rechargeables after every range trip, and keep a spare in the gun safe.

First Weapon Light Checklist

Before you click buy, run through these five questions. I’ve watched people skip every one of them and end up with a light that doesn’t fit their holster or their gun.

• Does it fit my rail? Check that the light ships with a key or crossbar for your gun’s rail: Glock Universal, Picatinny or a SIG P320 rail.
• Is there a holster for this exact gun and light? Look it up in the holster finder before you buy the light, not after.
• Candela or lumens? Inside a home, 500 lumens or more with a usable flood. Outside, look for 20,000 candela or more.
• What battery? CR123A lights store well for years in a nightstand. Rechargeable 18350 and 18650 lights give more output but need charging.
• Can I reach the switch with my normal grip? If you have to shift your hand to turn it on, you won’t use it under stress.

If you can answer all five, you’ve picked the right light. If you can’t, the finder at the top of this page lets you filter by brand, rail type and output until you can.

Facts and Figures

• Beam distance is where the beam falls to 0.25 lux, so it comes from candela, per Streamlight’s ANSI guide
• Longest throw on a pistol light here: SureFire X300T, 66,000 candela and 514 meters, per SureFire
• Civilian laser limit: 5 milliwatts, Class 3R
• Red vs green laser runtime: Streamlight TLR-8 X red 60 hours, green 11 hours on a CR123A
• Discontinued or replaced: TLR-7A (now TLR-7 X), Inforce APL, Cloud OWL, Modlite PLHv2 (now PLHv3)

Our Weapon Light Guides

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• Streamlight vs SureFire
• Streamlight vs Olight
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• Olight

Frequently Asked Questions