LED vs HPS lighting comparison: efficacy (130-180 lm/W vs 80-140 lm/W), CRI (80+ vs 20-25), lifespan (50,000h L70 vs 24,…
| Comparison | Option A | Option B | Winner |
|---|---|---|---|
| Efficacy | 130-180 lm/W | 80-140 lm/W | LED (30-60% more efficient) |
| CRI (Color Rendering) | 80+ Ra | 20-25 Ra (monochromatic orange) | LED (3-4× better) |
| Lifespan (L70) | 50,000-100,000 hours | 15,000-24,000 hours | LED (3-5× longer) |
| Warm-up Time | Instant on | 3-5 minutes to full brightness | LED (instant) |
| CCT Options | 2200K-6500K full range | 2000-2200K only (yellow-orange) | LED (full spectrum) |
| Dimming | 0-10V / DALI (0-100%) | Limited (special ballast, 50-100%) | LED (full dimming) |
| 5-Year TCO (100 fixtures) | $12,000-22,000 | $28,000-45,000 | LED (50-60% savings) |
| Best Applications Today | Streetlight, area, warehouse, all new installs | Legacy: existing street/area lights being phased out | LED (new standard) |
LED outperforms HPS in every measurable dimension: 30-60% higher efficacy, 3-5× longer lifespan, dramatically better color rendering (CRI 80+ vs 20-25), instant-on, and full CCT flexibility. HPS is effectively obsolete for new installations — most municipalities and industrial facilities are actively replacing HPS with LED. The 5-year TCO advantage of LED is 50-60%. If you have existing HPS fixtures, LED retrofit kits or full fixture replacement both offer ROI within 1-3 years.