All categories/Everyday Carry/Flashlights/Sofirn/Sofirn SP36
Sofirn SP36

Sofirn SP36

Scored on 88 verified owner verdicts, from 1,512 comments read across 4 communities
TL;DR
Owners rave about the SP36's brightness, long runtime, and value, especially as a stable bedside or emergency flooder, but it gets hot quickly on turbo, is too bulky to pocket, and shouldn't be trusted underwater.

77% of 88 verified owners recommend the Sofirn SP36, based on real owner verdicts aggregated from Reddit, enthusiast forums, and YouTube.

See the problems 9 owners report →

What 88 owners say
1,512 comments reviewed · scored on the 88 clearest verdicts
77%
Recommend
68 owners
13%
Neutral
11 owners
10%
Don't recommend
9 owners
Source
Score
N
Counted in the score
Reddit
78%
85
Other forums
67%
3
Reviewed, but not counted — and why
YouTubeiowner comments
87%
15
Affiliate blogsipaid commission
100%
4
No clear verdictiSetup, tips & quirks
10

Affiliate blogs here say 100% recommend, while the owner-based score is 77%. They earn a commission on every sale — so we show them for transparency but never let them move the score.

The headline score reflects owners (Reddit, enthusiast forums), independent lab tests, blogs with no affiliate links, and YouTube owner-comments when they line up with owners. YouTube and Affiliate blogs are shown for perspective but kept out here — hover the i for why.

What owners like
  • Very bright, floods a whole yard · 35 · 40%
  • Huge runtime on three 18650s · 22 · 25%
  • Ideal bedside light, hard to knock over · 20 · 23%
  • Excellent value, cheap on sale · 18 · 20%
  • Holds high sustained output well · 12 · 14%
What owners flag
  • Heats up fast on turbo, throttles · 18 · 20%
  • Chunky soda-can size, not pocketable · 15 · 17%
  • Died despite waterproof rating · 5 · 6%
  • Anduril interface confuses beginners · 4 · 5%
  • Petal beam with strong hotspot · 4 · 5%
Who it's for
A great fit if
  • People wanting a stable bedside or emergency light
  • Homeowners lighting up a whole yard or room
  • Budget buyers wanting big output and long runtime
  • Enthusiasts who enjoy Anduril ramping and candle mode
Look elsewhere if
  • Anyone needing a pocketable everyday-carry light
  • Users wanting sustained turbo without heat throttling
  • Beginners who want a simple interface

Synthesized from what Sofirn SP36 owners say — not a spec sheet.

How buyers rate it elsewhere

Retailers' own star averages, for comparison — separate from our vetted owner-verdict score above.

Top quotes, sourced

1,512 reviewed · 107 shown
Sentiment
Community
Sort
Reddit▲ recommend

So far my Sofrin SP36 (for lighting up a room) and SP10 (for task specific lighting) have gotten me through.

Reddit▼ don’t recommend

I used my sp36 underwater and killed it. Fortunately they sent me a new one free, but I'm only trusting my dive light underwater

YouTube— neutral

I found out that the side switch can turn on low mode even when charging.

YouTube— neutral

I didn't even notice the outer corona "band" when I tested my SK30 outdoors.

YouTube▲ recommend

I have this light and love it.

Reddit▼ don’t recommend

I had a Sp36 then it disappeared. I suspect it rolled away, since the SP36 is just too round and has no retention options.

Reddit— neutral

The only one I did regret was the Sofirn SP36 which is just too big to carry in a pocket and has no lanyard. The light itself was pretty good.

Reddit▼ don’t recommend

I've previously owned the SP40, IF25A and SP36 - and the more I used them the more I wished for stable output, ended up selling them and waiting for something new.

YouTube▲ recommend

i got my sk30 a week ago, i'd say it is a beast for its price range, now i carry it everyday

Reddit— neutral

SP36 is great if using at medium but gets hot and isn’t efficient if you want sustained higher lumens. Mine sits by the back door to quickly light up the backyard if need be. I much prefer my sc33 for a flooder due to size driver.

YouTube▲ recommend

Great light, it is. I call it the budget version of my also well loved Olight Warrior X4.

Reddit▼ don’t recommend

I also killed my SP36 submerging under a foot of water for about 20 seconds. It fogged up next day and a few days later it died. Sofirn did replace it free also.

Reddit▼ don’t recommend

My Sp36 pro just burnt up here in TN after a hot summer, plugged charging cable in last night and it started smoking and shorted out my trucks outlet too smh.

Reddit▲ recommend

I’ve used my SP36 the last time we lost power (thankfully only for about two days) on moonlight and standing on its tail.

Reddit— neutral

tbh, my Wuben X1 has replaced my SP36. Insane amount of light in a smaller and handier package with far better regulation. Just have to lose the High CRI and battery bank part for 12,000lm (measured 10,000 @ turn on) insano' flood.

Reddit— neutral

I personally rock a Sofirn SP36 for my nightrides, gets the job done but sometimes I wish it was just slightly brighter.

Reddit▲ recommend

Then I went for a Sofirn SP36 as a splurge and loved it.

Reddit▼ don’t recommend

The SP36 is a budget light. It uses a simple and cheap FET driver, which overheats quickly and forces the flashlight to reduce brightness due to the heat.

Reddit— neutral

I have away my sp36 and kinda miss it as it is a bit more usable due to size and the q8 plus is mainly for show off.

YouTube▲ recommend

Sofirn has one of the best torches for the money and I couldn't agree more!

Reddit▼ don’t recommend

I bought a Sofirn SP36 BLF and assumed it would have a lot of light and good runtime. However, when I tried using it on a walk, I realized that it still heats up quickly and doesn’t cool down easily. My 5000 lumen light turned into a giant, heavy 2000 lumen flashlight.

CandlePowerForums▼ don’t recommend

I noticed that some very dim LED's on the power button stay lit when the light is off. Has anyone experienced this? How do I turn it off? Can I even turn it off? This was going to go in my truck, but this seems like a dealbreaking design flaw as it will surely drain the cells

YouTube▲ recommend

I got one of these a couple of weeks ago and completely agree with your comments, it is an upgraded Fenix PD36r pro for 1/2 to 1/3 of the price.

Reddit— neutral

The soda can light I ended up buying (Sofirn SP36 BLF) can't touch that! (but it was only $40 US)

Showing 124 of 107

Common problems & things to know

Practical notes owners raise — setup, quirks, and issues to watch for. They don't say whether the person likes the product, so they're not counted in the score, but they inform the pros, cons, and who it's for.

Redditⓘ good to know

My 6k lumen sp36 pro can light up a field but it tops out at around 100-200m of meaningful illumination.

Redditⓘ good to know

I have 2 of the lights listed here the ts22 and sp36 blf. I would recommend the ts22 since the sp36 is 3x larger in size. You really dont need a monster size light for indoors.

Redditⓘ good to know

My sofirn sp36 blf sometimes has its blue light turn on randomly (often after a turbo, which is weird). Apparently it's a bug with the driver, and not a big deal.

Redditⓘ good to know

I can tell you that the color difference between 3500K and 3000K isn't enough for me to use my Sofirn SP36 BLF over the D4SV2. The size difference of the D4SV2 means a lot more to me than that 500K difference.

Redditⓘ good to know

that's a characteristic of the SP36, every single one of them that has ever been produced, in every single spec, has this beam profile. If you don't like this artifact, you can go for another multi emitter flashlight with more LEDs

Redditⓘ good to know

With my SP36 with diffuser, it could light up the whole room but i could only use it for few mins because it gets so hot.

Redditⓘ good to know

I have an sp36 blf and it would definitely light up that area but you would not be able to sustain it for "activities".

Redditⓘ good to know

The SP36 I’m still trying to make my mind up on. It gets very hot very quickly on max.

Redditⓘ good to know

I've had a Sofirn SP36 for about a year now and haven't had any problems with it.

Redditⓘ good to know

doesn't quite seem 5000k, probably more like 4000k. Not necessarily a bad thing.