Best Headlamps for Kids: Our Top 5 Favorites (2023)
Looking for the best headlamps for kids? You’re in luck!
There are a lot of “best headlamp reviews” pages out there and I promise you, I own all of these headlamps and I’m giving you my honest review.
A headlamp is a must-have for campers, hikers, and adventurers of all ages. Children need their own headlamp as much as adults do!
A headlamp allows children to see in the dark without worrying about keeping track of a lantern or flashlight or having something in their hands.
Flashlight games are awesome fun for after dark while camping and headlamps are perfect for young kids! Be sure to have headlamps for the whole family on your packing list.
There are a few key things to keep in mind when shopping for good quality kids headlamps. We share our headlamp shopping tips and provide the 5 best headlamps for kids. Headlamps make great gifts and are perfect stocking stuffers!
What to Consider When Buying the Best Headlamp for Kids
Before you go out and buy just any headlamp for your kids, there are a few things to consider. Keep these tips in mind when shopping for the best headlamp for your child:
Size and Weight of the Light
Most regular-sized or adult headlamps are just too big and bulky for kids’ small heads. The size and weight of the light matters a lot when shopping for a kid’s headlamp.
Children’s headlamps will have a light weight kid-sized light that won’t slip off of their head and get lost!
Size of the Strap
Be sure the size of the strap works for the circumference of your child’s head. Use a measuring tape to get accurate measurements.
You want to be sure that the strap on your chosen headlamp is elastic and adjustable to grow with your child.
Additionally, be sure that the width of the headlamp is small enough to sit snugly on your child’s head.
Brightness
You do not want your child’s headlamp to be too bright. Kids don’t need a narrow beam with a lot of light output. You’ll want to find a light that gives more ambient light over a super bright beam distance.
Lumens tell you how bright the light is, and many headlamps come with high, medium, and low settings. For younger kids especially, you’ll want to look for 30 lumens or less on the high setting.
Lighting Modes and Colors
When shopping for headlamps for kids, it’s important to keep light modes and colors in mind.
A headlamp with red light mode will save everyone’s eyes in the dark, as red light doesn’t affect human night vision like white light does. Some headlamps have a strobe or SOS function which is a flashing light that will be helpful in an emergency.
Some kids’ headlamps come with lights that change different colors like blue and green, too!
Battery Life and Durability
You’ll want headlamps with great battery life or rechargeable batteries. Kids will not only use their headlamps a lot on your camping trip, they’ll play with them at home too.
You’ll want a headlamp with a long battery life and durability so that rough handling won’t destroy their new headlamp.
6 Best Headlamps for Kids
Here are our choices for the best kids headlamps, in order.
1. Black Diamond Wiz
Best Kid-Proof Headlamp, Best All Around Headlamp
Black Diamond makes high quality headlamps and the Wiz is no different. After owning this light it gets my vote for the best headlamp for kids.
They’ve thought of every option to make this light perfect for small children. It has a breakaway safety strap and a child-proof battery compartment. (The battery compartment opens with a special tool that it attached to the strap! No more losing tiny screws or searching for the right size coin!)
The light has an auto-shut off feature that turns the light off after 2 hours to save the batteries. This feature along with a longer battery life make it the best LED headlamp that we own.
The Wiz has a dimmable LED that also can go through the whole rainbow with its color cycle mode or you can pick a single color. It also has a strobe mode your child can use to signal for help if they’re lost.
The white light and the color feature are both dimmable and the strobe works while in color mode as well! The light also remembers what color and dim setting you had when you turned it off, so no more rapidly pressing buttons to try to get to the dim setting in the middle of the night.
The Black Diamond Wiz headlamp has a tiltable feature that works no matter which way your child puts it on and that makes me confident that the people at Black Diamond have actually watched kids use their products.
The strap is fully adjustable with a locking toggle. By fully adjustable I mean you could make it small enough to strap to your child’s arm and on the large side it has a 23″ circumference and will easily fit most adults.
It’s splash-proof and comes with a 3 year warranty. This is a great headlamp and is best for small kids up to teenagers.
Batteries: Two AAA Batteries (batteries included)
Lumens: 30 high, 4 Low
Light Settings: Low, High, Strobe (White), Color Cycle, Single Color
Strap Circumference: 4″-23″
2. Petzl Tikkid
Best Headlamp for Toddlers and Small Kids
The Petzl headlamp is a great head lamp for small kids that is low in lumens but made specifically for small heads. This headlamp comes with batteries included and has easy on/off modes.
It runs up to 110 hours on low mode and is backed by a 5-year guarantee. We’ve had great luck with Petzl headlamps, they’re one of our go-to brands.
Once you turn it on, you can cycle through from low to high to strobe if you press the button within 2 seconds. It doesn’t remember what setting you had it on, but it always turns back on to the low setting.
This headlamp is splash proof and the adjustable strap has several color options!
Batteries: Three AAA Batteries (batteries included)
Lumens: 20 High, 4 Low
Light Settings: Low, High, Strobe (White)
Strap Circumference: 6″-23″
3. Foxelli USB Rechargeable Headlamp
Best Headlamp Under $20
The Foxelli USB rechargeable headlamp is a great choice for older kids and young adults. This headlamp has powerful brightness settings, is tiltable, and comes with a red-light setting for night vision.
It comes with seven different headband color options and is made for the outdoors. The rechargeable battery in this headlamp will last up to 30 hours on a single charge, which is a better option than needing to have tiny batteries on hand.
This one is the best headlamp under 20 bucks.
Batteries: USB Rechargeable
Lumens: 180
Light Settings: Low, High, Strobe (White), Red & Red Strobe
Strap Circumference: 13″-23″
4. Princeton Tec Headlamp
The Princeton Tec headlamp is a great head lamp for small kids. It comes in several cute and kid-friendly designs and is low in lumens so they don’t blind everyone they look at! This is a perfect first headlamp for your toddler or preschooler.
This headlamp comes with three white light modes including strobe mode and batteries ARE included! Since it’s dimmable, this is the best headlamp for reading at night time.
The light is tiltable like other headlamps, but the cylinder rolls forward in the holder, so it’s kind of confusing and difficult for little kids to manage. It’s a nice light, but my least favorite of the group.
Batteries: Two AAA batteries
Lumens: 30
Light Settings: High, Low, Strobe (White)
Strap Circumference: 13″-23″
5. Kids Beanie With Built In Headlamp
Warmest Headlamp
This light up beanie is one-size-fits all and will fit most small heads. No more worrying about keeping track of a hat and headlamp with this beanie and built-in light!
The light is USB rechargeable and has 3 modes of light. It lasts up to 4 hours of continuous use on a single charge. We live in Minnesota where being warm is a way of life, and we love this combo of stocking cap and light for those chilly nights camping!
Batteries: USB Rechargeable
Lumens: 120
Light Settings: High, Medium, Low (White)
6. Blitzu or Foxelli Headlamps
Cheapest Kids Headlamp
If you see a review of kid’s headlamps and they have these two lights listed separately, you can be confident the reviewers do not own any of the headlamps they’re reviewing for you.
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I own both lights and they are exactly the same. They’re good lights, and if you want one, just take a look at whichever one is on a better sale at the time.
These headlamps are versatile enough to fit both kids and adults while still being small and lightweight enough for small heads.
Batteries: 3 AAA Batteries
Lumens: 165
Light Settings: White Low, Med, High, Strobe. Red SOS, Strobe
Is a Kids Headlamp Worth It?
Kids headlamps are just as essential for camping or after-dark outdoor activities as adult headlamps are.
Headlamps provide hands-free illumination of the environment and, as a bonus, they can help you keep track of your kids, too.
Not just any regular headlamp will do for small heads, though. So just like getting a good kid’s sleeping bag, it’s important to choose a good headlamp that’s specifically made for children. Especially for toddlers and smaller kids!
What Headlamps Should I Avoid?
Not every headlamp on the market today is going to be a great option for kids. Here are things you’ll want to avoid:
- Bright Lights
There are headlamps with a super bright light, and you do NOT want your curious toddler to shine it into their own eyes, or yours for that matter. Anyone who has a toddler KNOWS they will shine it straight into their own eyes, probably within 5 minutes of owning it.
You can get older kids the more powerful versions once they’re aware of campground etiquette.
- Extra features
Cute, gimmicky lights. I’ve seen lights that make animal sounds or have cute plastic animal faces on the lights and that is just more to break.
You’ll also be tempted to break it yourself the millionth time you hear the lion roar or dinosaur sound effect.
- Cheap Headlamps
Yes, you can probably score a 3 pack of headlamps for $20 in a bargain bin, but assume if you do this you’ll be replacing headlamps every few camping trips.
Kids are not gentle with their gear and anything that is cheap is likely cheaply made and will break quickly. If you want ideas on how to score quality camping gear for cheap, check out our guide.
This list of kids headlamps compiles the best headlamps for kids of all ages from toddler to small kid, preteen and beyond.
Go light up the night and scurry around!
Happy Camping!
I’m Molly Foss, aka Momma Critter. I’ve been camping since I was 9 years old and I always wanted to be Robin Hood and live in the forest when I grew up. I’m excited to share my love of camping with my son as he grows up. My favorite thing to do while camping is roast marshmallows over the fire.
