Every Day Carry lifestyle never gets old. Different people carry different things for different reasons, and the choices are limitless.
In this article, we break down the top 5 best EDC flashlights under $100 to take with you on the go. For this price range you can very much expect a high quality product that you wont regret.
Our two top picks are Olight M2R Warrior Pro & Surefire G2X Pro Dual-Output. Both are tactical flashlights that have been drop tested & water-resistant. M2R comes with more advanced tactical modes than G2X Pro.
The core difference among them will be brands, lumen intensity, advanced features & sizes.
Since all of them are under $100 we dont put too much emphasis on price, only on unique features.
Check them out & find what you like…
Best EDC Flashlights Under $100
“Handheld light is a necessity, and it's a must even if you have weapon mounted light on your handgun” – Aaron Cowan, Sage Dynamics
Olight M2R Warrior Pro
The Olight M2R Pro Warrior is the best solid tactical flashlight featuring more advanced functionality that other products don't have:
- An aggressive pointy bezel profile for personal defense
- Reversible carrying clip for flexibility
- Different lumen intensity & strobe mode
- Tail cap 50% press & full press activation & secondary button for adjusting lumen levels & enable Strobe mode
- Memorize the last mode before shutting off
- Magnetic charge port & remote switch compatible (No battery removal required)
- Lightweight & Durable
This new light has improved so many features that tactical flashlight users have been waiting for.
If you are interested in more Olight products, please check out our complete Olight buyer's guide.
As far as its illumination capabilities go, the M2R Warrior Pro offers 6 lumen intensity modes & able to reach up to 300 meters:
- Turbo – 1800 lumens, lasts up 160 mins
- High – 750 lumens, up to 160 mins
- Med 1 – 250 lumens, up to 10 hrs
- Low – 15 lumens
- Moonlight – 1 lumens, lasts up to 50 days
This light is the ultimate EDC light & it can also be used as a rifle weapon mounted light.
If this is your first time buying a tactical flashlight with bezel, we highly recommend shopping by going off the specs.
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Surefire G2X PRO
The G2X Pro is a dual-output (CR123A battery), lightweight Nitrolon polymer body (Made in USA) flashlight that is very easy to operate & carry.
It can project up to 600 lumens of high-output, but it also features a useful low-output of 15 lumens for low profile/low light tasks.
To maximize low light situational awareness. The Surefire precision reflector creates smooth, optimized wide flood beam with plenty of reach and surrounding illumination.
The G2X Pro comes with a press/click tailcap switch. One click to activate the light, every on/off button click switches the lumen intensity.
The G2X Pro is simple without fancy mode features. If simplicity is what you want out of a EDC light for a great price, the Surefire G2X Pro will get your money worth!
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SureFire G2X Pro 600 Lumen Tactical EDC Flashlight Bundle with 4 Extra CR123A Batteries and... | 629 Reviews | Check Latest Price |
Thrunite TC12 V2
The Thrunite TC12 is one of our best EDC item pick for its size. One of the advanced tac flashlights that require no battery, and it can be charged using the micro USB cord.
As smartphone technologies have taken our world, USB is everywhere & the flashlight industry has definitely caught onto that trend.
The TC12 can make up to 1100 lumens, providing 6 modes:
- Firefly (0.5 lumens)
- Low (21 lumens)
- Medium (200 lumens)
- High (470 lumens)
- Turbo (1100 lumens)
- Strobe (1100 lumens)
The light is bit more complex to operate than a simple flashlight with a tail cap. In just couple mins you can quickly adapt to the design of the TC12. Watch the video below:
The body is made aerospace grade aluminum, virtually indestructible like the Surefire products.
In addition, the light has ThruNite's ITC technology to prevent overheating. As you can tell this light can do a lot & the ITC is there to protect your purchase.
If you have never heard of the ThruNite brand, please think of ThruNite is a Chinese made product in Shenzhen (Silicon Valley of China).
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Streamlight Microstream USB Pocket Light
Streamlight makes great weapon-mounted tactical lights, and they also make great EDC style lights like the MicroStream USB pocket light.
Only 50 – 250 lumens, 250 – 1150 Candela flood pattern, this thing is design for everyday people who use their light for non-combat related tasks.
Who is this for?
Well it's for car mechanics, teachers, electricians, engineers, construction workers, office workers and many more. It comes with a carry clip that can go into your pocket and baseball hat (hands free).
The Streamlight Microstream USB is a pen profile EDC light that is extremely easy to carry in your pocket like a pen, and when you activate the light simply just push the tail cap.
To charge the light, simply pull the front part of the light forward to expose the microUSB cord for battery charge. There is a O-ring in place to provide solid water resistant seal.
Overall it's the smallest size EDC light on our list, and it's a handy tool for everyday people.
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Streamlight 66604 MicroStream 250-Lumen EDC Ultra-Compact Flashlight with USB Rechargeable Battery,... | 40,183 Reviews | Check Latest Price |
What To Look For In An EDC Flashlight
When shopping for an EDC light, assuming you use your light alot. You are looking for:
Portability
Does it fit in your pocket? How fast can you smoothly grab the light in & out of your pocket when you need it? This will be different for everyone.
Bigger profile light is easier to grab in and out of the pocket if it doesnt snag on things.
Beam Color & Temperature – Super Important Spec
The color of the beam is divided into:
- White light (6500 Kelvin)
- WARM white light (3000 Kelvin)
- Neutral White (4000 Kelvin) – HIGHLY RECOMMENDED
The color rendering is the term used in the flashlight industry to describe a rating between 0 to 100 on the color rendering index 9 (CRI), which is how much light source makes the color of an object appear to human eyes and how well subtle variations in color shades are revealed.
This is important in low light situation where the user can easily identify the object in the dark.
Too much light can white out everything!
The higher the CRI, the better the color rendering ability. This means in a self defense scenario, the defender can make out the subject contour, which gives them better perception & judgement.
Battery Life
Most EDC light lasts more than just a couple hours on low lumens setting. You can use AA, CR123A, or rechargeable battery.
Rechargeable battery via USB light is recommended for money saving purposes.
However, The only downside is that you can't easily recharge the light QUICKLY without a USB power source.
Battery swap is the fastest way to get your light back to work!
Adjustable Lumen Intensity
For EDC, self defense is a part of the reasons why you carry a light in your pocket. Look for something with at least two modes:
- High
- Low
Highest lumen intensity is for self defense & low lumens is for any low light tasks such as reading a map, looking under the seat type of work without blinding yourself.
When buying an EDC light, its best to buy a dual ouput light at minimum just for that reason alone.
Ergonomics
Different people have different hand sizes and motor skills when it comes to operating the flashlight.
Tactical EDC handheld lights are mostly very easy to operate, but some require the user to be very familiar with mode setting.
In a personal defense situation, the user has to be ergonomically familiar with mode settings & activating the light effectively in a particular grip.
Tactical Features
Many EDC lights allow the user to adjust lumen intensity & mode switch between white light & strobe.
This is helpful in a personal defense scenario where blasting an array of intense light (100 lumens or more) onto an attacker's face can blind him/her, allow you to fight back & escape.
In survival situations, an intense & intelligent strobe mode can be programmed to signal different things to people in the distance, without having to manually tap the activation button.
How Much Lumens Do You Realistically Need?
For looking under the seat, reading a map un the dark or working on cars… all you really need is 5 to 30 lumens.
Anything from 100 to 2000 lumens are used for large scale environmental illumination & self defense.
We have an in-depth explaining Lumen & Candela here on our site. Read it here.
What Type Of LED Beam Pattern To Use For A Handheld EDC Light?
Light beam pattern is important for max peripheral illumination. A high intensity spot light can reach far into the distance. A flood light can illuminate a wider area, but can't reach far.
For most EDC type of tactical flashlight, the light is a hybrid between a spot light & flood. This is great for seeing far in the dark as well as lighting up your surrounding, which means the user doesn't have to pan the light back & forth too much to see everything around him.
