What is the Difference between RGB and RGBW LED strip

RGB LED strips feature Red, Green and Blue diodes to create a full colour spectrum. RGBW LED strips have an additional dedicated white channel. The white diode enables a greater colour mixing ability allowing pastel colours to be achieved.

LED tape lights have become extremally popular in recent years due its flexibility and straight forward installation. When shopping for LED strip lights, you may come across the terms RGB and RGBW. This refers to the colour changing ability of the LED tape.

RGB strips are tri coloured LED strip lights that feature Red, Green and Blue dedicated channels. This enables you to mix and create unique colours. A our white light can be achieved by mixing the colour equally with the same brightness. However, it is difficult to achieve this and often doesn't have a pure white effect.

RGBW strips are quad coloured LED strip lights that feature Red, Green and Blue channels with an additional white channel. This creates a pure white light without the need of mixing colours. It also allows greater colour mixing. The white diode can be added to any colour combination to achieve soft pastel colours.

RGBW LED tapes come in a variety of colour temperatures from Cool White to Warm White. These are often contracted to RGBCW and RGBWW. Colour temperature can have a drastic influence on the colour output. Therefore it is important to select the right strip for your lighting design.

Use our colour temperature slider to view the varying temperatures

LED RGB strip lights are ideal for installations were a pure white light is not required. Choose from IP20, IP67 or IP68 LED lighting strips to fit the space you are lighting.

RGBW LED strip lights are ideal for installations that require a pure white light as well as a colour changing ability. This might include commercial spaces where fun lighting is required for opening hours. Then they can be changed to a pure white light for closing and cleaning.

In dry indoor environments, it is recommended to use IP20 as these are non waterproof. This is perfect for installations within your home or commercial spaces such as retail outlets, restaurants or clubs and bars. The colour changing LED strips are perfect for creating fun and interesting lighting designs. It can also be paired with colour changing modes such as fade and pulse.

In wet and damp environments, it is recommended to use IP67 strips as these are splashproof. This includes areas such as kitchens, bathrooms or outdoors. These strip feature a high quality silicone that seals the entirety of the circuit board to stop water or dust ingress.

It is recommended to use the Marine series that has an IP rating of IP68 for extremally wet installations. Where strips are required to be submerged such as water features such as fountains or waterfalls and pools or ponds. These are completely water proof for a long period of time. This is perfect for creating stunning colour changing lighting effects particularly on moving water as the light bounces off the ripples.

Both LED flexible strips are ideal for many installations. Choosing between the two is a simple case of whether you require a pure white light and pastel colours.

All of our Strip lights are extremally easy to install. They feature a durable adhesive backing that makes it easy to mount the strips. They can also be mounted in LED profiles for a professional finish.

Then simply connect the strip to an LED driver and connect to a suitable mains power supply.

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