Energy-saving tips with smart light

November 14, 2022

Set the mood? Check. Immerse yourself in TV shows, movies, games, and music? Check. Save energy? Check! 

We’ve always designed our Philips Hue smart lights with sustainability in mind — from long-lasting materials to plastic-free packaging. If you’re wondering just how to save energy at home with Philips Hue smart lighting, we conducted a study comparing various settings on White and color ambiance bulbs — and here are the results.¹

There’s a maximum amount of energy — in terms of watts — that your bulbs can consume. This maximum wattage is used when the bulbs are set to a certain color temperature and 100% brightness. So, does something as simple as dimming lights save energy? The answer is yes, and it can make a big impact.

By dimming your bulb to 70% of its maximum brightness, you can reduce how much energy the bulb consumes by up to 51%.² Even dimming a little bit reduces its energy consumption. For example, dimming a bulb to 90% brightness also reduces its energy consumption by up to 19%. 

There’s more to colorful light than just setting the mood — it’s one of our best energy-saving tips, too! Setting Philips Hue bulbs to colors other than white can reduce their energy consumption by up to 79%.³

Which color is the most energy efficient? It’s blue — not the cool, almost bluish white that you get in warm-to-cool white light, but the deep blues you’ll see on the color wheel when you’re playing with White and color ambiance bulbs. Other energy-efficient lighting colors are, in order of most energy efficient: 

1. Blue
2. Red
3. Green
4. Magenta
5. Cyan
6. Yellow

The Philips Hue scene gallery is packed with scenes that use the millions of colors that White and color ambiance lights offer. Not only are these scenes handcrafted by lighting designers to give you the best atmosphere, but they can also be energy efficient.

Bright idea: Scenes are ready-made, so you can use them right away. Create automations that use these scenes, or program your dimmer switches, smart buttons, and Tap dial switches to use them, too. This way, when you want to be energy-efficient, light bulbs and all your other lights are always set to the right color and brightness. 

There are a few scenes in the Philips Hue scene gallery that are considered the most energy-efficient options. These five scenes are based around dim lighting, and many of them feature the energy-efficient lighting color of blue. 

1. Tokyo
2. Motown
3. Galaxy
4. Blood moon
5. Beginnings 

These scenes can reduce how much energy the bulbs consume by over 85%.⁴ Tokyo and Motown can be found in the Party vibes category. Galaxy and Blood moon are in the Serenity category, while Beginnings is in the Sunrise category. 

Those scenes not your style? Don’t worry — the top five most popular scenes in the Philips Hue scene gallery are also very energy efficient.

1. Savanna sunset 
2. Tropical twilight
3. Arctic aurora
4. Spring blossom
5. Soho 

These scenes can reduce how much energy the bulbs use by over 70%.⁵ The most energy-efficient scene of these five popular scenes is Arctic aurora — which, of course, uses blue as one of its primary colors. You’ll notice how these scenes also feature many of the colors that are the most energy-efficient lighting colors, too — so it’s easy to see why they’re on the list!

Even your everyday lighting can be more energy efficient. All of the scenes in the Defaults category— which are meant to be used throughout the day — use less energy than the bulb’s maximum energy consumption. In order of most energy efficient, these are the scenes:⁶

1. Nightlight
2. Rest
3. Relax
4. Energize
5. Bright and Read (tie)
6. Concentrate

No matter what the mood is or the time of day, you can use Philips Hue as your energy-efficient lighting guide.  

We’re still researching and exploring more ways to use our smart lighting to help you save energy, so keep an eye on the blog and our social media channels for energy-saving ideas. In the meantime, learn more about how Philips Hue works.

¹, ², ³, ⁴, ⁵, ⁶ These figures represent the difference achieved in wattage consumption on new A19 White and color ambiance E26 1100 bulbs at the specified settings compared to 4000 K at 100% brightness. Actual savings will vary depending on product specifications and dimming level.