What Are DLC Lights, and Why Should You Choose DLC Listed Lighting?

More Details to Consider

DLC Lights and Why They are Important. Have you heard of DLC lights and don't know what it means? We are here to tell you more about DLC lights and why you should choose them. Let's take a closer look at DLC lights. The DesignLights Consortium (DLC) is a non-profit group that focuses on quality and energy efficient lighting, especially for the commercial industry. In simple words, DLC is a rating system that identifies, through testing and manufacturer data, which lighting products are acceptable for their intended uses.

They are an independent agency that certifies LED lights and LED light bulbs. DLC is much like the Energy Star program, which more people are familiar with. Energy Star ratings are for lamps, whereas DLC is for fixtures. The objective of the DLC is to accelerate the use of energy efficient lighting in the construction sector. The method to achieve their objective is through influencing public policy, spreading education, and teaching strategies. DLC maintains a list of products that have greater quality, efficiency, and high standards.

The list is called Quality Products List (QPL). DLC has strict testing requirements to make sure the LED Light fixtures provide great performance. So DLC listed lights are the ones that are certified and tested by DLC. Why Should you Choose a DLC Light? The DLC lights are a better choice because you know that the products have passed a series of tests. The tests are proof that the lights are efficient and high-quality, but most importantly they meet their claims of lumen output and light quality.

DLC listed lights are individually tested at their lab and the results are published online. This is an assurance that you are getting the specified amount of lumens, CRI and THD. It was started in 1998 as a regional certification for the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. Their aim was to solve the disparity between the energy efficient lighting products and high-quality products. Another reason was to make sure that available rebate money was going to light fixtures that were not misrepresenting their light output.

The DLC is operated by a collaboration of utility companies and regional efficiency organizations. This group is committed to create public awareness about energy efficient lighting. The DLC began under the Northeast Energy Efficiency Partnerships (NEEP) and now operates as an independent non-profit. What is the Energy Rebate Program? The Energy Rebate Program is an incentive program that offers a cash rebate to users who change their high-pressure sodium or other bulbs for LED retrofit lights, LED Corn Bulbs or other LED fixtures. When you change these bulbs, the energy company pays you a rebate for the shift.

The funding for this is usually in utility bills. So collectively we all pay for the rebates to help reduce our collective demand, thus providing price and environmental benefits. Who decides the rebate amount and availability? Every utility sets their own rates under state laws. In most states, all the programs are similar, but you need to check. There is a set amount of funds and when exhausted they stop approving rebates. Most states have extended rebate programs well into the future. The most common rebate program is $0.30 for every watt reduced.

So if you take out 10x 400-watt Metal Halide bulbs at 18,000 lumens and replace them with 10x 150-watt UFO high bay lights, you save 250 watts each or 2,500 total. Typically if they are DLC listed high bay lights then you qualify for a $750 rebate, or about 40% of the cost of a new fixture. DLC 4.1 is a technical requirement that focuses on the product's efficiency. As LEDs got better, DLC raised the bar to push LED lights to be even better.

It became required for rebates around 2017-2018 and generally requires a higher lumen to watt ratio than was normally in the market. 5.1 followed in June of 2022; more than efficiency, it put a bigger emphasis on light quality. SSL V6.0 took over for new applications in January 2026. Less glare, more dimming, more dark sky, less flicker etc are all now important parts of DLC listings. DLC Premium is a higher-performance classification for lights. The biggest issue is lumen maintenance. DLC Premium products are certified to hold at least 90 percent of their output through 36,000 hours of operation.

LED Light Expert is already carrying some LED wall packs and other fixtures that meet the DLC Premium requirement. Short answer: The items that are submitted to the DLC Premium classification are required to meet higher efficiency and lumen maintenance requirements. All types of commercial light bulbs and light fixtures are rated; they include:

• High bay lights.
• E39 light bulbs / retrofit kits.
• LED wall packs.
• Parking lot lights.
• LED stadium Lights.
• LED can lights.
• and more. Note that E26 standard socket bulbs are not included.

Even if you are replacing a jumbo incandescent it just is not eligible. Thanks to the hard work of DLC and others, the energy efficiency and quality of LEDs have vastly improved. Without DLC we would be much farther behind and there would be a higher rate of poor quality LEDs in the market.