Our 8 Favorite Bedside Lamps of 2025

This is not a comprehensive list of everything we’ve tested in previous iterations of this guide— just what’s still available.

The Crate & Kids Pixie Metal and Wood Kids’ Swivel Plug-In Wall Sconce would be great if it weren’t for a fatal flaw—the cord sticks out slightly from the back, preventing a fully flush mount against the wall. We hoped it might just be a defect with our lamp, but we saw reviews on the site reporting the same issue. (We also saw other reviewers claiming their lamps were just fine.)

We like the idea of a clip-on lamp for headboards, so we looked at the IKEA Ranarp Wall/Clamp Spotlight, which can be mounted either as a corded sconce or as a clamp. But the clamp isn’t strong enough to stay in place unless you also attach some confusing additional hardware. A clamp should be able to clamp.

We used to recommend the Loftie Lamp, but with a recent tariff-related price increase of 65% we think you’re better off using a smart bulb inside a regular lamp if you’re interested in a bedside light that changes colors. Plus, three of our long term testers experienced various glitches with the Loftie turning on and off at random. To the company’s credit, they were transparent about the price increase and gave consumers advance warning that it was coming via emails and social media ads.

The inexpensive ONEWISH Touch Bedside Lamp has a cute genie-bottle-shaped base and three touch-toggle settings. But the shade, which comes rolled in a tube and attaches via Velcro and plastic clips, looks terribly cheap. And, annoyingly, the dimming function toggles from low to high. But if you don’t mind that, you can easily swap out the shade for a new one (an inexpensive option from Target will do), and you’ll have a nice-looking lamp at a good price.

In photos, we thought the milky glass finish on the West Elm Cleo would provide enough light diffusion to meet our criteria. But we could clearly see lines from the recommended T9L bulb through it, and we found the white glare too strong for bedside use. This detail might not bother some, though, and this is a cute lamp that comes in three shade colors.

This guide was edited by Daniela Gorny and Joanne Chen.