COB vs SMD Strip Lights: A Simple Comparison

Strip lights are a fantastic way to elevate almost any room in your home. However, knowing the right kind of strip light to buy can also be a stumbling block. Many of our customers ask us whether COB Strip Lights are better than SMD, and the answer is not as simple as you’d think. 

Both LED Strip Light technologies have their own advantages and disadvantages, making them ideal for different applications. Below, you’ll find all the answers you’re looking for when trying to decide between COB and SMD Strip Lights. Keep reading to make an informed decision. 

COB vs SMD Strip Lights

One of the main differences between COB and SMD Strip Lights is how they’re designed. 

• COB, stands for “chip on board”. These have tons of small LED chips that are packed close together and mounted directly on a board, providing a smooth-looking light with no visible dots.
• SMD stands for “surface-mounted device”. These have individual LED bulbs that are spread out along the strip. Small dots of light are visible and the lighting degree is about 33% narrower compared to COB Strip Lights. 

Naturally, there are a lot more differences between one and the other. Up next, we’ll expand on them to make the concept a lot simpler to understand. 

SMDs typically have a light angle of about 120 degrees due to their design, whereas COB Strip Lights can go closer to 180. There are many other differences between one LED Light Strip and the other, which we will dive deeper into. 

Strip Light Price

Due to their packaging and design processes, COB Strip Lights are marginally more expensive than their SMD counterparts. That said, the price escalation is justified by the fact that COB LED Light Strips can produce a more uniform and bright light output, which makes them ideal for situations where you need powerful illumination. 

Products like our 5 metre, 24V Single Colour COB LED Strip, which goes for £33.60 including VAT, feature colour temperatures of 3000K/4000K/6000K, an efficacy of 90 Lumens per watt, a beam angle of 180 degrees, and a dimmable driver to adjust brightness. 

Other alternatives, like our 5 metre, 24V SMD LED Strip Light with 60 LED per metre, which goes for £30.00 including VAT, share the same colour temperatures as its COB counterpart, a slightly lower output of 85 Lumens per watt, and a beam angle of 120 degrees. Both products have an estimated lifespan of 30,000 hours, a 3-year warranty, and a money-back guarantee of 28 days.  

As you can see, the price difference between one technology and the other is often rather small. In this particular case, what should drive your decision isn’t cost, but rather the application you need the LED Light Strip for. COB Strip Lights are usually better for applications where a brighter light with better angle coverage is needed. 

Strip Light Power Efficiency

One of the most popular questions we get from customers is which technology is more efficient, and while it’s similar, COB lights are the clear winners in this category. 

Due to their LED distribution and chip integration, COB LED Strip lights typically produce more Lumens per watt, which directly translates into more brightness and better illumination while using less power. That said, you can trust our products to be as efficient as possible, regardless of the technology inside them. 

This is proven by the minimal 5 Lumens per watt difference between our COB and SMD Strip lights. So, in terms of power efficiency, we recommend either technology and would suggest basing your decision on the angle of lighting coverage you’re looking for. 

Strip Light Durability

One of the most important aspects of making any kind of purchase is how long the item you’re buying will last. Naturally, the longer something lasts, the cheaper the investment is per year. Fortunately, both COB and SMD LED Strip Lights have incredibly long lifespans, as they can last approximately 30,000 hours if used as instructed. 

COB Strip Lights have a slight advantage over SMD Strip Lights because they’re better at dissipating heat. Over time, this can add to a few more hours of useful life; however, the difference is marginal at best, so it shouldn’t drive your decision either. 

As long as you keep your LED Light Strips in good condition, they should last you a very long time without ever giving you trouble. 

COB and SMD Strip Light History

As mentioned before, SMD technology has been around for much longer than COB. The earliest record of SMD LED lights dates back to the 1960s, and by 1986, it accounted for about 10% of the market, which isn’t much. 

However, since then, LED technology has advanced significantly, expanding the industries it can be used in, resulting in a much greater market share and many more application possibilities. COB technology, on the other hand, was neither widely available, nor popular among consumers until the late 2000s. 

For one, COB Light Strips were much more expensive to produce back then due to the production process they required, which was still being hashed out. Luckily, these days COB Light Strip manufacturing processes have become more streamlined, allowing for cheaper prices and considerably more widespread availability. 

So, Should You Pick COB or SMD Strip Lights?

While both technologies typically have their advantages and disadvantages, we hope we’ve helped you get a clearer understanding of the fact that, at the end of the day, both technologies are fairly similar in terms of pricing, estimated lifespan, and power efficiency. 

If you’re looking for the latest technology, higher brightness output, better Lumen per watt performance, and a considerably wider lighting angle, COB Light Strips should be your go-to. On the other hand, if the space you’re trying to light isn’t too dark and you want to save a few pounds for a very similar result, SMD Light Strips are a great choice too. 

If you have any questions regarding our products, please do not hesitate to email us at enquiries@ledsave.co.uk, or give us a ring at 01652 638840. We’re open Monday–Friday, 9 a.m.–5 p.m. Please check out our contact page for more information.