850nm vs. 940nm IR Hunting Lights: What’s the Difference?

850nm vs. 940nm IR Hunting Lights: What’s the Difference?

If you hunt with night vision, choosing between an 850nm and 940nm IR illuminator usually comes down to two things: how much distance you need and how much visible red glow you want from the LED.

Both wavelengths are invisible downrange to the naked eye and are designed to be viewed through a compatible night vision device. The difference you'll notice most is at the LED itself.

850nm IR: More Distance

For most hunters, 850nm is the best place to start.

An 850nm IR illuminator generally provides more usable distance than 940nm when both are operated at comparable power. The tradeoff is that you can see a faint red glow when looking directly at the LED.

That glow is at the light itself — you aren't seeing an 850nm beam projected across the field like you would with a visible red or green hunting light.

If your priority is getting the most distance and a bright, clear image through your night vision optic, 850nm is usually our recommendation.

940nm IR: Less Visible Glow

The main advantage of 940nm IR is reduced visible glow at the LED.

The tradeoff is distance. A 940nm illuminator generally won't provide the same usable range as an equivalent 850nm setup.

Some hunters prefer 940nm because they're concerned about animals noticing the red glow from an 850nm LED. In our experience, animals reacting to 850nm has not been a common problem, which is one reason we typically recommend starting with 850nm.

What About Beam Focus?

Distance isn't the only thing that matters with an IR illuminator.

When you widen the beam to fill your night vision scope's field of view, you still need enough intensity to produce a useful image. A strong IR illuminator should give you a clear view without forcing you to keep the beam extremely tight just to reach your target.

That's one of the areas we focus on when designing and testing our hunting lights.

How We Test Our IR Lights

We don't like basing distance claims solely on what a light looks like in a hunting video.

Sniper Hog Lights uses an IR-capable light meter to compare output under controlled conditions. We also test our lights in real hunting situations with different night vision setups.

Real-world viewing distance will always vary based on the night vision device, atmospheric conditions, terrain, target and beam adjustment, so we don't believe one distance number tells the entire story.

Can I Switch Between 850nm and 940nm?

One of the biggest advantages of the Sniper Hog Lights system is the interchangeable LED modules.

You don't necessarily have to commit to one wavelength forever. Depending on your light model, you can change LED modules and configure the same light for different hunting situations.

That also means you can start with 850nm and add a 940nm module later if you decide you want less visible glow.

850nm or 940nm: Which Should You Choose?

For most night hunters, we'd start with 850nm because of its greater usable distance and strong performance with night vision.

Choose 940nm when minimizing visible LED glow is more important to you than getting the maximum possible distance.

850nm: Better choice for maximum distance and overall night-vision illumination.
940nm: Better choice when you want the least visible glow at the LED.

Whichever you choose, the right IR illuminator should give your night vision optic enough light to produce a clear image at the distances you actually hunt.

Questions about which IR setup is right for your night vision? Contact Sniper Hog Lights at contact@sniperhoglights.com or 916-276-1385, Monday–Friday, 9 AM–5 PM CST.