Great LED tea lights for your 3D printed lanterns

Availability, quality, and cost of LED tea lights change regularly. The global supply chain shifts rapidly as COVID-19 impacts these variables. Below you’ll find a few of my favorite LED tea lights paired with different color lantern shells. These recommendations are not an official endorsement and I do not receive any incentives should you choose to use them. Instead, these references are provided to simplify your search for LED tea lights. If you notice some are no longer available or want to share your recommendations, let me know and I’ll update this post.
Warm white lanterns
- (Preferred in 2025) AGPTEK warm yellow LED on Amazon. Flickering LED with auto-timer: 6 hours on, 18 hours off on a 24 hour cycle.
- (Alternate) Warm white LED tea lights (same options detailed below)
- (Original preferred, may not available as of Jan 2025) Youngerbaby 24 amber LED tea lights on Amazon (flickering)
- (Alternate, may not available as of Jan 2025) Youngerbaby 24 amber LED tea lights on Amazon (steady)
Amber LED with auto-timer: 6 hours on, 18 hours off on a 24 hour cycle.
Tan / “woody” lanterns
- (Preferred) Beichi 24 warm white LED tea lights on Amazon
Flickering warm white LED with auto-timer: 6 hours on, 18 hours off on a 24-hour cycle. - (Alternate) AGPTEK 24 warm white tea lights on Amazon
No flicker / steady warm white LED with auto-timer: 6 hours on, 18 hours off on a 24-hour cycle. - (Alternate, not currently available) Youngerbaby 24 warm white LED tea lights on Amazon
- Flickering warm white LED with auto-timer: 6 hours on, 18 hours off on a 24-hour cycle.
For glitter purple, pink, and other lantern colors
- (Preferred) Beichi set of 24 warm white LED tea lights on Amazon
Flickering warm white LED with auto-timer: 6 hours on, 18 hours off on a 24-hour cycle. - (Alternate) Beichi set of 24 warm white LED tea lights (no timer option)
Flickering bright white LED tea lights. No timer. On/Off switch allows for continuous light for about ~100 hours. - (YMMV) Warm white tea lights are not bright enough for glitter purple but may work with other colors.
- (YMMV) After trying many brands, I found the cool white hue made purple tea lights navy blue and white tea lights too cool for my taste. Full disclosure: I prefer warm white LEDs in all standard household lighting too. The only exceptions are when a room has cool-colored walls such as blue or gray.