- Lumens.com wins for designer brand access and modern lighting expertise, but Wayfair beats it on returns and budget options, and Build.com is the strongest all-rounder for most shoppers.
- If you want Flos, Moooi, or Louis Poulsen, Lumens is your best bet. If you want the easiest buying experience, Wayfair is hard to argue with.
- Build.com splits the difference with decent brand selection, solid customer service, and competitive pricing on mid-range fixtures.
Why This Comparison Matters
Buying lighting online is a different game than buying, say, a pair of shoes. You're dealing with fragile products, electrical compatibility questions, sizing that's hard to judge from photos, and price tags that can hit four figures. The retailer you choose affects not just the price but the entire experience, from finding the right fixture to dealing with problems if something arrives broken.
Lumens.com, Wayfair, and Build.com are three of the biggest players in online lighting. But they serve different shoppers in different ways. Here's an honest breakdown of where each one wins and where it falls short.
Brand Selection and Style Range
Lumens.com
Lumens is the specialist. They carry over 300 designer and premium lighting brands with a strong emphasis on modern, contemporary, and mid-century styles. This is the place to find Flos, Louis Poulsen, Moooi, Artemide, Tom Dixon, Foscarini, Visual Comfort, Tech Lighting, Modern Forms, and other high-end names that aren't widely available elsewhere online.
The downside is the narrow style range. If you need traditional, farmhouse, rustic, or transitional fixtures, Lumens has almost nothing for you. And budget options below $100 are thin. This is a store for people who know they want modern design and are willing to pay for it.
Wayfair
Wayfair is the opposite approach: cast the widest net possible. They list hundreds of thousands of lighting products across every style imaginable. Farmhouse pendants, glam chandeliers, modern sconces, industrial floor lamps, you name it. The selection is enormous.
But here's the tradeoff: Wayfair's strength is mid-range and budget lighting, not high-end designer brands. You won't find Flos or Louis Poulsen on Wayfair. Many of their fixtures come from house brands or lesser-known manufacturers. The quality is hit or miss. Some pieces look great and hold up well. Others look like they cost exactly what they cost ($49). If you're shopping by price and style rather than by designer name, Wayfair gives you plenty to work with. If you care about brand pedigree, it's not the right place.
Build.com
Build.com (owned by Ferguson, one of the largest plumbing and lighting distributors in the US) sits between Lumens and Wayfair. They carry a solid range of established mid-tier and premium brands: Kichler, Hinkley, Progress Lighting, Sea Gull, Minka Lavery, Hudson Valley, Troy Lighting, and some Visual Comfort. The style range is broader than Lumens, covering traditional, transitional, and modern options.
Build.com doesn't carry the ultra-high-end European designers that Lumens stocks. No Flos, no Moooi, no Louis Poulsen. But for the $150 to $1,000 range where most people actually shop, their selection is strong and the brands are reputable.
Winner: Lumens for modern designer brands. Wayfair for overall selection breadth. Build.com for mid-range variety across styles.
Pricing: Who's Actually Cheaper?
This one depends heavily on what you're buying.
Budget Lighting (Under $150)
Wayfair wins easily. They have thousands of fixtures in the $30 to $150 range from their house brands and budget-friendly suppliers. A three-light kitchen island pendant might cost $89 on Wayfair. You'd struggle to find anything comparable on Lumens under $200. Build.com has decent budget options too, particularly from Progress Lighting and Sea Gull, but Wayfair's selection and pricing at this tier are hard to beat.
Mid-Range Lighting ($150 to $800)
Build.com and Lumens are competitive with each other here. For brands they both carry (like Kichler, Hinkley, and WAC Lighting), prices are usually within a few dollars. Both are authorized dealers, so manufacturer-imposed minimum pricing keeps things fairly even. Build.com occasionally edges ahead with bundle discounts if you're buying multiple fixtures.
Wayfair can sometimes undercut both in this range, but often with different brands. A Wayfair “equivalent” might look similar but use cheaper materials or simpler construction. You get what you pay for.
High-End Lighting ($800+)
Lumens is the default choice because they're often the only one of these three that carries the brands you'd be shopping at this price point. A Flos IC pendant for $695 or a Moooi chandelier for $3,500 simply aren't available on Wayfair or Build.com. Lumens' pricing on these brands aligns with other authorized retailers (manufacturer pricing is tightly controlled), so you won't find huge price differences between Lumens and other high-end lighting shops.
That said, Lumens' Open Box section can create genuine deals at this tier. A $1,200 pendant for $800 in like-new condition is a real savings that the other two retailers don't consistently offer.
Winner: Wayfair for budget. Build.com for mid-range value. Lumens for high-end (and Open Box deals).
Shipping and Delivery
Free Shipping Thresholds
- Lumens: Free shipping on orders over $75
- Wayfair: Free shipping on orders over $35
- Build.com: Free shipping on most items (no minimum for many products)
All three offer free standard shipping, so this mostly comes down to speed and handling.
Delivery Speed
Wayfair is generally the fastest for in-stock items, often delivering within 3 to 5 business days. Their warehouse and logistics network is massive. Build.com averages 5 to 7 business days for standard shipping. Lumens is similar at 5 to 7 days for in-stock items, but their “in-stock” status isn't always reliable. Some items ship from manufacturers with longer lead times, and this isn't always clear at checkout.
Shipping Damage
This is a major issue across all three retailers because lighting fixtures are inherently fragile. Glass shades, thin metal arms, and decorative finishes don't love being jostled in delivery trucks. But how each company handles damage claims makes a big difference:
- Wayfair has the best damage resolution process. They'll usually send a replacement immediately, sometimes without requiring you to return the damaged item. Their customer service reps have more authority to resolve issues on the spot.
- Build.com handles damage claims reasonably well. You'll need to document the damage with photos, but replacements typically ship within a few days of filing a claim.
- Lumens struggles here. Damage claims can take time to process, communication is slower, and some customers report extended back-and-forth. You must report damage within 5 business days and have photo documentation. It gets resolved eventually, but the process is more frustrating.
Winner: Wayfair for speed and damage handling. Build.com is solid. Lumens lags behind.
Return Policies: The Real Differences
Returns matter more for lighting than for most product categories. It's hard to know if a fixture will look right in your space until it's hanging there. Here's how each retailer handles it:
- Wayfair: 30-day returns, free return shipping on most items. This is the gold standard. If you don't like a fixture, box it up and send it back at no cost. The refund process is fast. Some exceptions apply for oversized items, but for standard lighting fixtures, it's painless.
- Build.com: 90-day returns on most items. That's triple the return window of the other two, which is excellent for renovation projects where timelines shift. Return shipping is the buyer's responsibility on most items, but the extended window gives you more flexibility.
- Lumens: 30-day returns, buyer pays return shipping, possible restocking fee up to 15%. This is the weakest return policy of the three. Return shipping on a large fixture can cost $30 to $80+, and the restocking fee adds insult to injury. Open Box and sale items are often final sale with no returns at all.
Winner: Wayfair for ease and cost. Build.com for the longest return window. Lumens is the least buyer-friendly on returns.
Customer Service and Support
This is where the gap is starkest.
Wayfair has invested heavily in customer service. Phone wait times are usually under 10 minutes, live chat is responsive, and reps have real authority to resolve problems. Their customer service is consistently rated above average for online retail. It's not perfect, but it's reliable.
Build.com benefits from being part of Ferguson, which has a massive support infrastructure. Phone support is solid, and their product specialists actually know lighting (many come from plumbing and electrical distribution backgrounds). Response times are reasonable, and they can often answer detailed technical questions about installation and compatibility.
Lumens has the weakest customer service of the three. Their Trustpilot rating of 1.4 out of 5 is a red flag. Common complaints include slow email responses, difficulty reaching someone by phone, and frustrating experiences with damage claims and returns. Their design consultation team is genuinely knowledgeable and helpful, but the post-purchase support doesn't match up.
To be fair, Lumens' phone support is better than their email support. If you call during business hours, you'll usually get someone. But the gap between Lumens and Wayfair on customer service is significant.
Winner: Wayfair by a clear margin. Build.com is a strong second. Lumens needs work.
Design Support and Expertise
Here's where Lumens claws back some ground.
Lumens offers a free design consultation service with actual lighting specialists who can help with fixture sizing, placement, style coordination, and light output planning. For someone outfitting an entire home or tackling a major renovation, this is genuinely valuable. The designers know the catalog deeply and can suggest specific products based on your space and style preferences. Lumens' trade program is also the best of the three for design professionals.
Build.com has product specialists who can answer technical questions and help with fixture selection. They're more knowledgeable than average retail support, particularly on installation and compatibility questions. Not quite the same level of design consultation as Lumens, but practical and useful.
Wayfair has a room design service and style advisors, but lighting isn't their specialty. Their support team can help with general questions, but they're not going to give you detailed advice about lumen output for a specific room or which pendant sizes work best over a 7-foot island. For lighting-specific expertise, they're the weakest of the three.
Winner: Lumens for design expertise and trade support. Build.com for technical knowledge. Wayfair for general shopping help.
Authenticity and Authorized Dealer Status
This matters more than most people realize, especially for higher-end fixtures.
Lumens is an authorized dealer for virtually every brand they carry. That means genuine products with full manufacturer warranties. If your $600 Tech Lighting pendant has a defect, the manufacturer will stand behind it because you bought from an authorized source.
Build.com is also an authorized dealer for their brands, backed by Ferguson's distribution relationships. Same deal: genuine products, full warranties, manufacturer support.
Wayfair is more complicated. They're authorized for some brands but operate as a marketplace for others. Some products come from third-party sellers with unclear authorization status. This usually isn't an issue for common brands at lower price points, but if you're spending $500+ on a specific designer fixture from a third-party seller on Wayfair, verify the authorization status. A counterfeit or gray-market fixture won't be covered under the manufacturer warranty, and yes, this does happen.
Winner: Lumens and Build.com (tied) for guaranteed authenticity. Wayfair is fine for most purchases but requires more caution on high-end items.
The Verdict: Which One Should You Use?
There's no single “best” retailer here. But there is a best retailer for each type of shopper:
Choose Lumens.com If:
- You want a specific high-end designer brand (Flos, Louis Poulsen, Moooi, Artemide, etc.)
- Your style is firmly modern or contemporary
- You value design expertise and want a free consultation
- You're a trade professional who can access the Pro program
- You're willing to deal with slower customer service in exchange for better products
Choose Wayfair If:
- Budget is your primary concern and you need fixtures under $200
- You want the easiest possible return process
- You're not tied to a specific designer brand
- Fast shipping matters to you
- You want to browse a massive selection across every style
Choose Build.com If:
- You want a balance of quality brands and reasonable prices
- You need a mix of lighting styles (not just modern)
- A 90-day return window would be useful for your project timeline
- You value technical product knowledge from support staff
- You're buying lighting alongside other home improvement products (plumbing, hardware)
The Bottom Line
For most people buying lighting for a home renovation, Build.com is the best all-around choice. They hit the sweet spot of brand quality, pricing, customer service, and return flexibility. You won't find the ultra-high-end European designers, but you'll find everything else you need at fair prices with solid support.
If you're design-obsessed and specifically want modern or contemporary fixtures from premium brands, Lumens.com earns its place despite the customer service shortcomings. The product selection is unmatched, the design consultation is a real perk, and the Open Box section offers genuine savings. Just go in prepared: confirm stock before ordering, document deliveries, and call instead of emailing when issues arise.
Use Wayfair for budget fixtures, Build.com for mid-range renovations, and Lumens for the designer pieces that make a room. The smartest shoppers use all three depending on what they're buying.
