If you've decided to go with LEDs, my LED Bulbs Complete Guide covers shapes, brightness, and dimming. For color temperature, see my Kelvin guide — it explains why 2700K works in bedrooms but not bathrooms.
This article is part of my complete guide to CFL vs LED — check it out for the full overview and related comparisons.
Why CFLs Aren't Worth Buying Anymore (Even Though They're Cheaper)
I bought a 4-pack of CFLs at the hardware store last year for $5. Reasonable price, I thought. Six months later, two had dimmed to half brightness, one was flickering, and the fourth was dead. Meanwhile, the LEDs I installed next to them five years ago are still running at full brightness. CFLs were the bridge technology between incandescent and LED. They're not bad bulbs — but in 2026, there's no reason to choose one over an LED unless you're on a tight same-day budget.
How Do Lifespan and Energy Use Compare?
CFL: 8,000-10,000 hours. LED: 25,000-50,000 hours. A CFL running 6 hours a day lasts about 4 years. An LED lasts 11-22 years. Energy use: a 60W-equivalent CFL uses 13-15 watts. A 60W-equivalent LED uses 8-10 watts. The difference is small on a single bulb — about $0.50 per year — but across 20 bulbs in your house, that's $10 per year. Over 10 years, that's $100 in electricity alone, plus the cost of replacing CFLs 2-3 times. The math favors LEDs at every turn.
Do CFLs Still Have Mercury Issues?
Yes. Every CFL contains 3-5mg of mercury — enough to contaminate 6,000 gallons of water if broken. I broke a CFL in my garage once and had to follow EPA cleanup procedures: open windows, don't vacuum, use sticky tape to collect fragments. It took 30 minutes. When an LED breaks, you sweep it up and move on. CFL disposal is also more complicated — they can't go in the regular trash in most states. LEDs go in the trash or (better) the electronics recycling. Mercury content alone is reason enough to choose LEDs for any household application.
Are There Any Situations Where CFLs Still Make Sense?
Two situations, and only two. First: extremely cold outdoor fixtures. CFLs actually perform better than LEDs at sub-zero temperatures. The CFLs in my unheated garage lasted longer than the LEDs I tried. Second: if you have a dimmer switch that's not LED-compatible and don't want to replace it. CFLs dim better on old dimmers than LEDs do. But both edge cases are disappearing — modern LEDs handle cold well, and LED-compatible dimmers cost $15.
References
- EPA CFL Mercury Cleanup Guide — Official EPA procedure for broken CFLs.
- Energy.gov LED vs CFL Comparison — Official energy efficiency data.
