12V VS 24V LED Strip Light-Which one is the best one ?

LED light strips are now found in many places in our homes. From refrigerators to under-cabinet lighting, they illuminate the areas where a full recessed fixture just isn’t feasible, or necessary.

But before you buy your next LED strip light, it’s a good idea to understand the differences between the two most popular voltages: 12VDC and 24VDC. This will ensure you get the right type of LED strip light for your particular project.

KayTai is a professional LED strip light factory. The difference between a 12VDC LED strip and a 24VDC LED strip is not too big, as long as you choose the correct power supply.

12V vs 24V at a glance

Still not sure which one to pick? Here is a quick side-by-side summary of everything we compare in this guide:

Following article we will let you know more about LED strip lights.

12VDC LED strip with shorter cut length

Most individual LED chips run on 3VDC power — regardless of whether they are mounted on a 12V strip or a 24V strip.

In fact, the same LED chip that works on a 12V strip could also be mounted on a 24V strip. What makes the difference is how the strip circuitry is designed.

LED strips are wired in groups of LEDs. The size of the group depends on the voltage of the strip:

• 12V strip: 3 LEDs per group → closer cut lines, more flexibility
• 24V strip: 6, 7 or even 8 LEDs per group → longer cut lines

The cut lines are located between the groups. Therefore, the smaller each group of LEDs, the closer together the cut lines can be.

For example, see the diagrams of 12V and 24V strips below:

A lower voltage 12VDC strip with closer cut lines may be good if your installation has many corners with short lengths. This can help to minimize the “dark” zone at the corners.

KayTai offers professional DC12V LED strip lights — feel free to browse the full range.

12V LED strip has a wider range of application scenarios

On the other hand, 12VDC is a common voltage, so LED strip compatibility may eliminate the need for additional power supplies.

There are certainly exceptions to this — always check your existing system before making a purchase.

In many cases, however, 12V LED strips offer a more convenient installation solution.

24V LED strip, longer linear run

What is voltage drop?

Why does voltage drop happen?

So LEDs at the end of a strip always get less voltage than the ones at the beginning.

Make the strip long enough, and the voltage drop becomes significant enough to cause a visible difference in brightness.

How does higher voltage reduce the effects of voltage drop?

First, you have to understand how all the components on an LED strip are connected.

In fact, the same LED chip that works on a 12V strip could also be mounted on a 24V strip. What makes the difference is how the strip circuitry is designed.

Then, each group is wired in parallel and arranged along the length of the strip.

Take notice in the diagrams above: the group size on a 24V strip is 7 LEDs compared to only 3 LEDs for 12V. We will explain why this is significant below.

Notice in the above diagram that the voltage across the LEDs has dropped from 3.0V to 2.75V.

When we switch to 24V, two things happen that reduce the voltage drop:

1. 1Current is halved. When the voltage gets doubled (12V to 24V), the current is halved (Ohm’s law P = U × I). That causes the voltage drop from the long wire to be reduced by half as well — so instead of a 1V drop, it becomes a 0.5V drop.
2. 2The drop is spread across more components. The effect of the 0.5V drop is split between the eight remaining circuit components (compared to 4 on the 12V).

Notice here that the voltage across the LEDs has only dropped to 2.9375V compared to 2.75V with the 12V strip.

24V LED strip can be higher efficiency

Higher voltage can be more efficient.

Any time there is voltage across a resistor, energy is converted to heat instead of light.

So the resistors in the diagrams above are necessary — but they are also a source of wasted energy.

The table below compares how much power is “wasted” on resistors at each voltage:

It’s easy to see that higher voltage strips waste less energy.

LEDs use so little energy that this barely matters for small installations.

But the difference becomes significant for whole-room or commercial installations.

This is the same principle as high-voltage power transmission: the higher the voltage, the smaller the current.

According to Ohm’s law, the voltage drop V_drop = I × R, and the electrical energy converted to heat is P = U × I = (I × R) × I = I² × R.

24V LED strip requires less conductor gauge

Electrical power is determined by the equation P = V × I. To maintain the same power (P), if voltage (V) goes up, current (I) must come down by a proportional amount.

Why is this important?

Total current, rather than voltage, determines the thickness and width of copper conductors needed to transfer power safely.

You can use the voltage drop calculator to make sure you are still using sufficient conductor gauges for your LED strip projects.

Smaller power supplies for 24V LED strip

Like conductor size, power supply size is determined primarily by current rather than voltage.

Much of a power supply unit’s internal wiring is copper, so the same physics applies — less current means a smaller supply.

Power supply size can be important when working with projects such as LED strip lights in under cabinet installations where there may be space constraints.

Conclusion: which one should you choose?

Given the information from these 12V vs 24V LED strip light comparisons, we can see that both of them have their own merits to count on:

• ✓12V LED strips — if you are going to use it inside your room, you may have better results with 12V lighting strips;
• ✓24V LED strips — if you are willing to invest more money for more power, then you may go for 24V lighting strips.

It all comes down to your individual needs and financial status. KayTai is the one you can trust! Welcome here.