Cheap projectors love to quote "LED lumens" three to five times brighter than reality. This ranks every popular model by cost per ANSI lumen, the honest, standardised brightness number, so you can see true value and spot the dim-but-pricey units in a glance. Filter by resolution and light source to compare like with like.
Prices and ANSI figures reviewed 11 July 2026. Brightness is ANSI lumens only; ignore inflated marketing numbers on the box.
| Projector | Res | Light | Brightness | Type | Price | $/lumen |
|---|
The standardised, honest brightness measure. Cheap projectors quote "LED lumens" three to five times higher than the real ANSI figure. We use ANSI only, so cost per ANSI lumen is the true brightness value.
Dark room: 1500-2000 ANSI. Living room with some light: 2500-3500. Outdoors or bright rooms: 3000-plus. Always check the ANSI number, not the box marketing.
Laser and LED last 20,000-30,000 hours with no fade and instant on; lamps are cheaper up front but need replacing every few thousand hours. Lamp often wins cost per lumen, laser wins running cost.
Not for brightness value, budget and mid-range models give more lumens per dollar. Premium native-4K units cost more per lumen but buy contrast and black levels. Sort by cost per lumen to separate the two.