12 Best Floor Lamps for Your Home of 2023

Floor lamps come in many different designs and use different types of lighting. If you’re looking online, there are a dizzying array of choices to choose from that you may just want to give up your search.

Or you may just buy one blindly without knowing much about the lamp just to get some light source in your room.

But selecting a floor lamp doesn’t have to be hard if you understand how you want to use it.

Are you looking for a floor lamp that can light the entire room?

Or maybe just an area of your room?

Or maybe you need a task light, which allows you to be closer to it so you can study, read and even just mellow out after a hard day at work with an illumination entirely without glare.

The Best Floor Lamps

• Brightech Mason Arc Lamp: Best Arc Floor Lamp
• Dorchester Swing Arm Pharmacy Lamp: Best Task Floor Pharmacy Lamp
• Sendo: Best Affordable Traditional Floor Lamp
• Big Bell by Antonangeli: Best For High Ceilings
• Staggs 73" Torchiere Floor Lamp: Best Low-Cost Torchiere Floor Lamp
• Curzon Adjustable Floor Lamp: Best Showstopper Tripod Floor Lamp
• Spotlight End Table Floor Lamp: Best Floor Lamp That Doubles As an End Table
• Georges 2-Light Reading Room Torchiere Lamp: Best All-in-One Floor Lamp
• Brightech Maxwell Modern Shelf Floor Lamp: Best Floor Lamp with a Charging Station
• Elise Floor Lamp by Pablo Pardo: Best Floor Lamp For Small Spaces
• Ball LED Indoor/Outdoor Lamp by Smart & Green: Best Outdoor Floor Lamp

Compare Floor Lamp Styles

Brightech Mason 80" LED Arc Floor Lamp: Best Arc Floor Lamp

The arc lamp is famously iconic, with a marble base that holds a vertical pole that dramatically arches over to provide task lighting beside a couch or behind a chair. Most arc lamps are about style and don’t come with any features. But we found a multi-function arc.

The Mason Arc Floor Lamp allows the user to change the color temperature with touch button. The lamp is lit with an energy efficient super long-lasting LED bulb which guarantees 20,000 hours of light. Not only is the light adjustable but the lamp is smart home-enabled and compatible with Alexa and Google Home assistant.

Unlike many other arc lamps out there on the market, this one is quality and won't wobble like the competition. Just make sure you have plenty of space for this lamp.

Dorchester Swing Arm Pharmacy Lamp: Best Task Floor Pharmacy Lamp:

We love the pharmacy floor lamp look. That’s why we included it in our round-up. This traditional pharmacy lamp is classic in design with its iconic metal rectangular shade and its all-metal parts and body.

As for its function, the lamp has a convenient swing arm that allows for adjustable illumination at different angles. The pharmacy task lamp will give you the right light for reading and the ability to find the right angle to complete specific tasks.

This classic pharmacy lamp, in antique nickel or antique-burnished brass, is like those used in 19th-century apothecaries and looks best in wood-paneled home libraries or anywhere in your home where warmth resides. Polished nickel is also available and is great to use when you need a touch of elegance in your room from its high shine and its beautiful glowing hue.

Sendo: Best Affordable Traditional Floor Lamp

The Sendo Floor Lamp is simple in design and is often referred to as a “traditional” floor lamp. This no-nonsense lamp can complement any room, as it’s made to blend into almost any space.

This traditional floor lamp has a drum-shaped white fabric shade, which means that it gives off a lot of life, both from above and below the shade. Unlike cheaper traditional floor lamps, this one has a steel base that’s heavy enough not to tip over.

Big Bell Floor Lamp by Antonangeli: Best For High Ceilings

Many homeowners who have high ceilings—they are usually in the formal living room or in a double-height foyer—don’t know how to furnish their rooms to make their spaces more intimate. Sofas, chairs, and coffee tables in the living room are usually low and near the ground. So you need proportion, which is why this high-scale floor lamp is recommended, as it can balance the room. The aluminum Big Bell Floor Lamp has an adjustable height of 62.99” that goes all the way up to 102.36”. The anodized aluminum shade can be repositioned to where you most need light.

You can also have fun with the Big Bell by selecting different finishes.

Staggs 73" Torchiere Floor Lamp: Best Low-Cost Torchiere Lamp

Torchiere floor lamps are the most popular type of light, known for its ubiquity, budget-friendly cost, and its ability to blend in with all sorts of décor. If you need an accent lamp or want more lighting in a room, a torchiere can be your supplement. This white bowl shade is designed to cast light upward and offers ambient lighting.

You can get a torchiere for even cheaper from many online retailers, but be aware that cheaper models are flimsy, made with plastic bases that tend to tip over. At less than $60, this torchiere lamp's price is hard to beat but actually comes with a heavy metal base for stability and a three-way switch.

This lamp is best for those who don’t want to make a major commitment with lighting and just need an affordable one right now, and as some customers mentioned that it gets the job done.

Curzon Adjustable Lamp: Best Showstopper Tripod Floor Lamp

This floor lamp, inspired by a photographer’s lamp, harkens back to the golden age of cinema. Designed originally to both soften and highlight an actor’s expression in old movies, this showstopper casts a dramatic glow over a room.

It’s best used in a space where you need something striking to complete your design, giving you that extra oomph. The oversized shade casts light upward and is made of shiny chrome for that old Hollywood feel. The black tripod adds elegance to the floor lamp.

Spotlight End Table Floor Lamp: Best Floor Lamp That Doubles As an End Table

If you're furnishing a room, it can be a hassle to have to purchase multiple pieces, such as end tables and desk lamps, or floor lamps. You can have it all with the Spotlight End Table Floor Lamp, which combines the two into one. The best part is that it incorporates two stylish Mid-Century modern concepts into one piece of furniture--a tripod table with an arc lamp.

Because the lamp is asymmetrical, it never occupies space on the table the way a desk lamp would, giving you more room to place cups, books, and other odds and ends. The movable shade allows the user to direct the light as needed and makes it perfect not just for ambient lighting but also for reading.

And the price is just right at under $200, you get a really nice floor lamp along with an end table that will blend in with any style.

Georges Reading Room 2 Light Torchiere by George Kovacs: Best All-in-One Floor Lamp

This floor lamp does double duty, acting as a task lamp and ambient light. The torchiere-style lamp has an etched opal glass bowl shade that points upward for ambient lighting. Also, this weighted metal base floor lamp comes with a downward-facing adjustable lamp that creates the best angle of task lighting.

For design buffs, this lamp is a true delight. Made by the renowned Mid-Century-Modern lighting designer, George Kovacs, this lamp's timeless yet modern appeal will add style to your room.

Brightech Maxwell Modern Shelf Floor Lamp: Best Lamp with a Charging Station

If you have a small room or a tight space and can barely fit an end table and a floor lamp, you’ll love this table with a built-in lamp. The shade creates the perfect lighting ambiance for your living room, den, or bedroom. The stacked shelves offer storage as well as room for decor.

This table does triple duty by including USB charging ports and a wireless charging pad, which means you can simply place your phone on the pad and your phone will start charging without cords. The charger pad, the USB port, and the light can all be used at the same time. If you have a case for your smartphone, you don’t need to remove it for the charger to work. However, the smart lamp doesn’t support metal.

The charging shelf even includes a stand for your tablet or smartphone in case you want to prop it up while charging from one of the USB ports. This shelf floor lamp provides not only functionality but also style.

Elise Floor Lamp by Pablo Pardo: Best For Small Spaces

Due to its slim profile, this contemporary floor lamp is best where space is at a premium. It may seem like the light would be overwhelming from this lamp, but it adds just the right amount as the lumination comes from the base and illuminates throughout the structure rather than directly from the entire structure of the lamp.

This minimalist metal floor lamp bears modern sculptural qualities. The white glass structure holds the bulb, and the soft and serene light emits a warm glow. The lamp works best in a contemporary setting and comes in four different sizes.

Ball LED Indoor/Outdoor Lamp by Smart & Green: Best Outdoor Lamp

This LED Indoor Outdoor Lamp in the shape of a ball works best if you buy a few. You can place these balls in your pool for a nice night effect, or around a large outside table during dinner. The ways you can use this LED lamp are limitless.

The lamp is cordless, rechargeable, and energy-efficient. It’s also waterproof and you can even use it in inclement weather without any electric shocks. These fun mood-changing lighting balls can easily be moved around with their built-in handles and magnets.

Made by forward-thinking Smart & Green, you can use its app that’s compatible with an iPhone or other smartphones like Android to control the color, the dimness, and the scheduling.

Methodology

How We Picked

Trying to pin down the top-rated floor lamps is hard, but we managed to find the “best” based on the following factors:

Customer Ratings

When it comes to ratings the most tell-tale sign that a product is quality is by reviewing customers' ratings and reviews. You, the customer, are the front line when it comes to testing and using the product on a daily basis.

Much of our intelligence on these products come from how customers felt the product held up and their price point satisfaction.

Unique Features Found in Floor Lamps

A lamp may seem like just a lamp, but some of the functionality and design features can make a huge difference in how we use lamps and how they make a certain space look.

We concentrated on lamps with more unique attributes than just conventional and standard lamps because much of the time, they can add more to a given space.

Price

When it comes to product reviews, the price can mean everything.

We looked at how affordable a floor lamp was and compared it to its uniqueness and how it can accentuate a room with its illumination as well as its own design.

The floor lamps listed vary considerably in price but offer a wide range of uses, purpose, and design.

Our Designer(s) Expertise

In addition to researching products online, we also consulted our shortlist of go-to designers and experts on noy only how to shop for a floor lamp, but which products do their job the best, including accentuating a space.

They were able to weigh in on products that were very similar to one another, especially when customer ratings were also similar, and act as a tie-breaker.

What Can a Floor Lamp Do For Your Space?

When choosing a floor lamp, it’s important to think about not just what kind of lighting you need in a room but also what material, color or style of the lamp you need either to accentuate the furniture in a living room or to make an aesthetic statement in your bedroom. In terms of function, the floor lamp can brighten up an entire room or provide direct light right where you need it most.

If you don’t brush up on floor lamps, the ones you buy may stick out and clash with your furniture.

We talked to New York-based interior designer Tiffany Hicks about floor lamps to help us get some insight on the subject. And we’ll give you the lowdown on all you need to know about floor lamps and even give you the best floor lamps to buy based on affordability, function and characteristics, just to name a few.

Do Floor Lamps Provide Different Types of Light?

You should choose a floor lamp based on what type of lighting your space or room needs.

There are two key layers of light to pick from--ambient and task lighting.

Task Light Floor Lamps Help You Focus on Projects

Task lighting is used to light a particular area in order to perform a specific task in an easier manner, such as when reading, writing, working on a computer or sewing, to name a few activities. Task lighting allows for focused lighting where needed and helps relieve eye strain.

They are made with LED (light-emitting diodes) bulbs that are more comfortable to your retinas. A major plus is that most task lights tend to be adjustable, allowing you to position or adjust the light according to your needs and preference.

Ambient Light Floor Lamps Light Up Large Areas

Ambient lighting, more commonly known as general lighting, is the primary source of light for a particular room. Ambient lighting allows for a level of illumination that can light up an entire room with little glare. Often topped with a traditional lampshade, ambient lighting diffuses the light for semi-direct illumination.

It also sheds a soft glow over the entirety of a designated space without glare or harshness.That glow allows you to sit on a couch and have drinks with your loved one or a friend as it creates a relaxing environment. That’s why ambient lighting is also referred to as mood lighting.

What Are The Different Types of Floor Lamps?

A floor lamp is simple in design. It features a sturdy base, which is usually round or square in shape, a tall column or stem that extends from the base to the top of the stem and allows for lighting that’s either direct or diffused. This is the main design of most floor lamps.

What often changes the look of a floor lamp is the lampshade and the pole. For the shade, it’s usually a traditional fabric shade made from linen or an upturned shade made from plastic or metal.

And you’re not stuck with an upright pole. For a modern look, some poles curve at the top to provide lighting above you or, with adjustments, can be flared out to become a major source of lighting in a room.

Floor Lamp Styles for Ambient Lighting

Shaded Floor Lamps

Simple in design but found in many styles, the shade of the lamp is positioned at the top of a pole and, depending on its height, can shed a lot of ambient light over a single room. The shaded floor lamp is also considered a traditional floor lamp.

Torchiere Floor Lamps

The most popular type of floor lamp, the torchiere has a base and a pole. But unlike a traditional shade, the torchiere has an upturned shade, which directs light toward the ceiling, providing ambient light that diffuses throughout your room without glare.

Arc Floor Lamps

An arc floor lamp is a lamp composed of a long arc arm rather than a single upright pole. The shade is at the tip of the arc and takes up little space on the floor. It is best used in rooms that require focal light illumination. It is also used as a main source of lighting in a room as it is strong enough so that you don’t necessarily need to add other light sources.

Floor Lamp Styles for Reading or Task Lighting

Pharmacy Reading Floor Lamps

A pharmacy floor lamp has an eyeball-style shade that swivels to direct lighting when needed. With a dimmer and an adjustable height, it’s best used to boost your lighting in a room.

And, as a task lamp, positioning itself over an armchair or couch allows you to read or write easier. The curved neck adds a touch of elegance, but really this multi-use lamp fits in well with any décor because of its small footprint and its ability to recede into the background.

Tree Torchiere Floor Lamps

Just like a torchiere lamp, the tree torchiere has an upturned shade that directs light upward, toward the ceiling. But this type of torchiere has a pole that branches out to smaller branch poles, each of which has a light attached to it. This style offers both task lighting and ambient lighting at the same time with a few adjustments.

Swing Arm Floor Lamps

The swing arm floor lamp is dedicated to bringing you ambient lighting in your room.It is also perfect as a task light because the swing arm allows you to easily adjust the position of your lamp. It’s the perfect companion to a comfy and cozy club chair.

The most popular type of swing arm is one topped with a drum shade made from fabric. Also popular is a half-moon shape, often finished in metal. The swing arm is traditional and modern at the same time, allowing it to easily fit into rooms with different aesthetics without completely dominating it.

Considerations When Buying Floor Lamps

Floor lamps are great for lighting up corners and removing the gloom, but that's not the only possible placement for them.You can definitely use a floor lamp behind a sofa or to the side of a chair in the middle of the room.

But for smaller rooms, you may have no choice but to stick the floor lamp in a corner to save space. Smaller rooms benefit from floor lamps as they can either give the illusion of more space by illuminating corners or can accentuate and enhance a coziness, as Hicks put it.

Where Should You Place the Floor Lamp?

Hicks also suggests if you’re adding a floor lamp to an already styled room, you should keep within that particular genre. At the same time, rules can be broken and you should buy a floor lamp that appeals to you.

“If you do that within your home it will have much more personality than if you’re buying something to follow the rules,” Hicks added.

Here’s how to determine what floor lamp is best for you.

How Tall Should a Floor Lamp Be?

When deciding on a floor lamp, you need to consider the height of the ceiling. A low or moderate-level ceiling paired with a tall floor lamp will make the room feel out of proportion.

If your ceilings are high and your floor lamp is short (under 58 inches tall), you will risk ending up with glare rather than ambient light. A floor lamp should be between 58 to 64 inches tall. The bottom of the lampshade should be at or above eye level. The average height of a floor lamp should be from 60 to 71 inches.

Task lighting floor lamps intended for reading should be slightly shorter in relation to the average height. This allows the shade to be above the height of your shoulder while seated next to it. Very tall floor lamps are 6 to 8 feet high. These lamps are made for large rooms or rooms with high ceilings and are designed to aim the light upwards.

If you still can’t figure out the scale or height of a floor lamp, your best bet is to get one with an adjustable column. Then you can adjust the height to where you need it.

Floor Lamps Can Provide Different Effects

There are three different effects that floor lampshades give off. A traditional lamp with a silk or linen shade can diffuse light. A lamp with uplights helps to light large areas. And a metal shade often works as a task light.

What Type of Base is Right For Your Floor Lamp?

It’s important to look at the base of a floor lamp. You want one made of a heavy material and you want to avoid any that has a plastic base because they tend to tip over. In short, look for a base with heft.

The most popular base is made of metal because it’s heavy enough to provide stability. Wood is also an option. Small floor lamp bases should be avoided because these can also fall or tip over.

What Kind of Finish Should Your Floor Lamp Have?

The finish on a floor lamp can change or alter a room. Many floor lamps come in metal, and that finish covers most of the floor lamp, which is the pole, the socket and the base. Here are your metal choices:

Chrome and Polished Nickel

Polished nickel and chrome look nearly the same. They both look like silver, shiny and brilliant, but chrome tends to show water spots and fingerprints. In addition, chrome gives off a modern vibe while polished nickel appears warmer and more traditional.

Polished nickel is generally more expensive than chrome and chrome often acts as a substitute for a polished nickel if you’re are on a budget.

Brushed Nickel

Brushed nickel has a matte-like finish and looks good with earth tones or warm colors. In different lights, brushed nickel comes off as blue-black or grey.

Antique Bronze and Oil-Rubbed Bronze

Antique bronze adds warmth to a room and together with oil-rubbed bronze, both give off a dark, rustic sheen. While oil-bronze has a more aged look, both feel and look moody.

Brass or Gold

If you like the brilliant gold look, brass is for you. Brass is sophisticated when used right, and tacky when used with too many pieces of furniture that are covered in that metal. It’s best as a statement piece used sparingly so your home doesn’t look gaudy. For a more modern take on gold or brass, opt for a brushed finished.

Deciding on a Floor Lamp

The metal you choose should complement the color palette of the room. Still can’t decide? Hicks suggests that it will naturally come to you, and you’ll end up gravitating to a tone. As she summed up, chromes are cooler looking, nickels are warmer, and brass is even warmer. And oiled bronze gives off a more industrial feel.

What Lampshades Can Do for Your Floor Lamp

The lampshade serves to lower the intensity of the light, as it shades your eyes from the light bulb. But a lampshade has a purpose besides allowing for the right type of illumination.

A lampshade for a floor lamp can instantly transform the look of a room if you change its shape and color. Various materials will allow for distinct intensities of light that are visible through the shade.

Modern floor lamps are usually minimalist in design and so most of them don’t include lamp shades. But if you aren’t going for a contemporary feel, try infusing your own style by adding a custom lamp shade.

If you’re trying to add pop-up colors to your living room, try shades colored red, moss, or grey. The wrong tone of your shade will throw off the color scheme in your room.

Different colors or prints should serve as accents and not overpower the room. If you are thinking of a statement shade, Hicks suggests it doesn’t have to be large and flashy. “Often the simplest shades are the most striking.”