The 17 Very Best Desk Lamps

Adjustability: Articulated arm, head | Base: Standard | Style: Task, 10 colors

British company Anglepoise has been making task lamps since the 1930s, and its various styles are the runaway favorite among the architects and interior designers we spoke to. As architect Mei Lun Xue puts it, “Anglepoise lamps are super-classic and look good everywhere.” The two most popular models are the Original 1227 Task light designed in 1935, and the more modern Type 75, which is a bit more streamlined and received slightly more nods from our panelists. Ming Thompson, a co-founder of architecture and interior-design firm Atelier Cho Thompson, is a fan of Anglepoise’s Type 75 lamp, noting it strikes “a balance between simple, modern forms and exposed mechanical elements,” and would be at home on both “an architect’s drafting table and a work-from-home desk.”

When I tested the Anglepoise lamp at a Design Within Reach store in Manhattan, I was incredulous at how smoothly and easily it moved with no wobbling or sticking, a sign of great engineering. (I wrote that it feels “almost like it’s floating” in my notes.) It can adjust in several directions — the base, arms, and head spin and pivot, and the base can rotate 360 degrees. It comes with a 13 watt CFL bulb and is available in several colors, including yellow ochre and three Memphis-inspired multicolored finishes.

Adjustability: Articulated arm, head | Base: Standard | Style: Task

If you like the look of the task lamps above but want something compact and affordable, consider this one from Ikea, which architect Páll Hjaltason, the owner and founder of Plús Arkitektar, recommends for its practicality and affordability. “I bought a lot of them for my growing studio, so they’re everywhere,” he says. Made of nickel-plated steel coated in acrylic, the lamp’s head has an LED light, and its adjustable arm allows you to direct the glow as you please. Hjaltason likes that the design is “generic” and that the lamp sits on the desk as opposed to being fastened to it. The low price, he adds, means “I can always buy more of them” should he need a replacement.

Adjustability: Articulated arm, 360-degree rotating head | Base: Standard, clamp, in-set pivot | Style: Task, 3 colors

Another architect favorite is the Tolomeo table lamp, designed in 1989 by Michele De Lucchi and Giancarlo Fassina and made in Italy for Artemide. Jane Greenwood, a principal at Kostow Greenwood Architects, says that its design sits “at the cusp of the technology boom” thanks to details like its aluminum material, fully adjustable articulated arm with polished die-cast aluminum joints, and tension-control knobs. The shade also rotates 360 degrees. Taken together, the piece is “a wonderful blend of clean lines, circular hinges, and exposed cabling,” according to Greenwood. Lane Rick and Can Bui, co-founders and principals of collaborative architecture and design studio Office of Things, also use the Tolomeo in their office. They particularly appreciate that its adjustability is “very precise,” says Bui, and that “materially, the aluminum is pleasant to touch and the weight feels substantial, an unexpectedly nice thing to find in a desk lamp.” Plus, adds Bui, “The series has been around since the ’80s, and we think it has just about attained a classic design status.”

Adjustability: Articulated arm, 360-degree rotating head | Base: Standard | Style: Task, 22 colors

For another investment-worthy, adjustable desk lamp with a design pedigree, Margie Lavender, a principal architect at Ike Kligerman Barkley, recommends the Signal SI333 that French industrial designer Jean-Louis Domecq created for Jieldé back in 1950. Manufactured in Lyon, France, the lamp is “great for drawing or project tables when you need to adjust the light over a large surface,” says Lavender. Each comes with its own serial number (so no two are exactly alike), and Lavender likes that the lamp has “multiple arms that give it a whimsical touch.” It also has an adjustable shade. Desk lamps can skew austere, but not the Signal: It’s available in dozens of bright colors, including orange, Barbie pink, robin’s-egg blue, and the “water green” shown.

Adjustability: Shade | Base: Clamp | Style: Work light

“I’ve used these lamps for years, as I can buy them at my local hardware store,” architect Peter Dumbadze says. While not a proper desk lamp, this just as versatile (and even cheaper), and Dumbadze likes that the lamp’s “utilitarian style” works not only with his industrial shelving but also his desk (an Eames Aluminum Group conference table). “I position the lamps such that I can bounce light off the walls and ceiling, helping to provide even lighting,” Dumbadze says. At under $20, this lamp is affordable enough that you can buy more than one and place them anywhere you may need an extra light source; the clamp also makes them easy to move around as your needs change. It also comes with an adjustable shade so you can focus the light where you please.

Adjustability: Articulated arm, head | Base: Clamp | Style: Task

While Anglepoise’s Type 75 model is a bit more modernized and rounded, Luxo task lamps are more mechanical-looking with exposed springs and knobs — with the L1 model being the apparent inspiration for the Pixar logo. Greenwood calls the L1 “the classic workhorse lamp found in many architectural offices for more than 50 years.” Architecture critic Alexandra Lange is also a fan of the brand’s lamps, particularly this style from its LS series. “This is the desk lamp my architect husband actually has multiples of,” she says, calling it “the black T-shirt of architect desk lamps.” It has adjustable arms with external springs that allow for more flexibility, along with an adjustable shade. It can be customized with an edge-clamp mount, allowing you to attach it to the side of a table (as opposed to sitting on a base).

Adjustability: Counter-weight balanced arms, head, 360-degree rotating base | Base: Standard | Style: Task

For architect Daniel Frisch, the Tizio lamp, designed in 1972 by Richard Sapper for Artemide, is his all-time favorite. Unlike other adjustable lamps in this story, the Tizio is free of visible springs, wires, and knobs, and instead uses two counterweights to change the direction of the light source. This feature gives it a streamlined, almost sculptural appearance. “The sleek lines and expressed counterweight epitomize to me the best in functional Italian design,” says Frisch, who first encountered it while studying abroad in Vicenza. Made of aluminum, it comes with an adjustable head with a reflector and a 360-degree swiveling base, and can take both halogen and LED bulbs. As Frisch puts it, “It may be the only task lamp that is a true pleasure to adjust.” It’s available in two sizes, the original and the micro, which is about 40 percent smaller.

Adjustability: Counter-weight balanced arms, tilting head | Base: Standard | Style: Task, three colors | Dimmable: Yes

This slim LED desk lamp is a more affordable weight-balanced option and has been a constant table-side companion for Noroof Architects partner Scott Oliver. “I bought a version of this halogen model 30-plus years ago — and lo and behold, it is still around,” he says. While he originally bought it as a bedside lamp, “it became my go-to lamp as it left the bedside, and became my drawing lamp when I was in grad school doing design competitions.” The lamp employs a counterbalance to adjust the arm up and down and also has a tilting head for directing the light, which is dimmable. Shown here in black, it comes in silver and white as well.

Adjustability: Tilting stem, 360-degree rotating head | Base: Standard | Style: Task, eight colors | Dimmable: Yes

The Pixo Plus table lamp from Pablo Designs also received multiple mentions, including from interior designer Kendall Wilkinson and Angie Lee, a partner and design director of interiors at FXCollaborative. Lee likes its “friendly, playful silhouette” and “surprisingly warm lighting temperature.” Its head rotates 360 degrees, and its stem rotates and tilts 180 degrees so you can direct light exactly where you want it. More design details, according to Lee, include the “elegant concave base platform that holds various tchotchkes or electronics” (and doubles as a wireless charging base). There’s also a hidden USB charging port under the lip of the base, and it features a full-range dimmer. Wilkinson also loves all the colors and finishes the lamp comes in — which include white, orange, neon yellow, blue, and silver.

Adjustability: Articulated arm, 30-degree tilting head| Base: Standard, clamp, in-set pivot | Style: Task, 4 colors, select color temperature | Dimmable: Yes | Other: 3 light intensities, timer

Clifford Selbert, the founding partner of Selbert Perkins Design, says that he’s owned many desk lamps over the years, including the Luxo, which was his first. Now he uses the NJP lamp, which was designed by Japan’s Nendo studio for Louis Poulsen as a reinterpretation of the classic architect’s lamp. “It updates the Luxo approach with a more elegant design, and it provides beautiful diffused light,” says Selbert. Henry Ng, architect and co-founder of Ideas of Order, loves this lamp for its “minimalist lines, playful geometry, beautifully expressed mechanics, and ease of movement.” You can choose from two color temperatures (warm or cool), and the LED light itself has multiple brightness levels. Selbert adds that he appreciates the lamp’s small footprint and multiple mounting options, including a table base, inset pivot, and clamp.

Adjustability: None | Base: Standard | Style: Pleated shade, seven colors | Dimmable: Yes

If adjustability is less important to you and you prefer the vibe of a library to an industrial-design studio, consider Hay’s Matin lamp, which Liza Curtiss and Corey Kingston, the co-founders of architecture-and-design studio Le Whit, call “sophisticated and fun.” (It’s also our favorite bedside lamp and one of our best gifts for readers.) They love that its conical, pleated cotton shade comes in a wide range of colors like red, green, lavender, and yellow, and they tell us it “pulls the traditional pleated shade into a more playful future.” Strategist contributor Chris Black likes this one too: He says it looks “like something straight out of a dimly lit cocktail bar in Firenze.” While it’s not adjustable, the LED light can adjust to three brightness levels, and the open wire base can serve as an organizer for a stack of books.

Adjustability: None | Base: Standard | Style: Paper shade

Designers love Isamu Noguchi’s Akari light sculptures as both tabletop and floor lamps, so it makes sense to hear that a smaller one like this would work well in an office setting. “I’ve used this specific light for decades,” says Jonathan Marvel, the founder of Marvel Architects. “It is made out of paper and split bamboo and is lightweight and delicate.” Strategist senior editor Simone Kitchens also wrote about how she used a Noguchi lamp to give her desk, which wasn’t “blessed with a ton of natural light,” a “cozy, glow-y living-room feel.” The lamp also appeared in our roundup of stylish people and their Noguchi lamps with writer and curator Andrew Gardner describing it as a “shining little beacon of comfort.”

Adjustability: None | Base: Standard | Style: Portable, six colors | Dimmable: Yes | Other: USB charging

While this lamp doesn’t have adjustable, it’s still useful as a desk lamp because of its portability, which is why it’s no surprise that it received praise from three people: Nina Edwards Anker, the principal and founder of the architecture and interior-design practice nea studio, and architectural agency THIS X THAT’s co-founders Danielle Rago and Honora Shea. (Rago and Shea, along with Anker, Thompson, Curtiss, and Kingston, are members of the Female Design Council.) “It looks like candy for your desk,” say Rago and Shea, and they love its small footprint: “It’s miniature in size, so you can bring it anywhere.” The LED lamp charges via USB and features a 24-hour battery life when charged, according to the manufacturer. Shown in burnt orange, it’s also available in an array of colors, including yellow, white, blue, and brown.

Adjustability: Tilting head | Base: Standard | Style: Contemporary, 3D-printed | Dimmable: Yes

Architectural designer Madelynn Ringo is one of three folks who recommended a desk lamp from the lighting company Gantri, which works on its pieces with various designers. (Other fans of Gantri include Jenny Kaplan, a co-founder of design service An Aesthetic Pursuit, and environments designer Katie Li.) This one, the least expensive of the three recommendations, was created by industrial designer Mona Sharma. The head is not only adjustable (it moves up and down) but dimmable, and the lamp has a “great rounded shape that puts stylish focus on the task at hand,” says Ringo. The Buddy Light — and all of Gantri’s lamps — is 3-D-printed using proprietary plant polymers created specifically for lighting products. It comes with an LED bulb.

[Editor’s note: Gantri’s Buddy lamps are made to order. Delivery is currently estimated for June.]