Petzl
Petzl Swift RL (1200 lumens)
- Brightness: 9/10 How much light it gives at full power, for finding your way in the dark.
- Runtime: 7/10 How long one charge or set of batteries lasts at a level you can walk and cook by.
- Weight: 6/10 How much it adds to your pack and your head.
Lowest price we found
£109.99 at Ultralight Outdoor Gear
Go to Ultralight Outdoor Gear Compare 2 shopsNight hiking and fast-moving days on the hill where you want a lot of light at 92 g
- Brightness
- 800 lumens (FL1)
- Runtime
- 7 h at 190 lumens
- Weight
- 92 g
- Power
- Rechargeable
- Water rating
- IPX4
Where to buy
Ultralight Outdoor Gear £109.99 In stock. Free delivery. The 1200-lumen version.
View at shop: Ultralight Outdoor GearEllis Brigham £120 In stock. Free delivery. Free delivery over £100.
View at shop: Ellis BrighamRock+Run £102 Out of stock. Only the Jungle Green colour was in stock; black/orange and white were sold out. Free delivery from £100 (England and Wales).
View at shop: Rock+RunPrices checked 8 Nov 2026 on each shop's own page; shops can change them. We earn no commission on these links; shops are listed by price. More
Our ratings (out of 10)
1 to 10, compared with the whole market. Each says what it's based on. How we score
Brightness
From maker's figures 9/10How much light it gives at full power, for finding your way in the dark. 9: Among the best you can buy for this.
Petzl tests to ANSI/PLATO FL1. The 1200-lumen headline is the peak in Reactive Lighting; the highest steady output is 800 lumens (Standard Lighting, max power, 2 hours). Both are in the 800+ band. The 6-second boost mode doesn't count.
Runtime
From maker's figures 7/10How long one charge or set of batteries lasts at a level you can walk and cook by. 7: Better than most.
Standard Lighting at 190 lumens runs 7 hours (FL1), in the 6–9.9 h band. The 800-lumen mode lasts 2 hours. Reactive Lighting times (7 to 55 hours at 20 to 275 lumens) vary with the scene, so we don't count them.
Weight
From maker's figures 6/10How much it adds to your pack and your head. 6: A bit better than average.
92 g with the battery, in the 90–109 g band. Trek & Mountain says the Swift RL Classic, with a conventional stretch headband, weighs a couple of grams more.
What reviewers say (out of 10)
Ratings marked * are from reviews and are not part of the trip score. They are reviewers' scores, not our own measurements. How we score
Comfort*
Reviewers' average 9/10How comfy and steady it sits on your head.
4 reviews on comfort, e.g. "The RL headband is great for wearing directly on your head or on top of a beanie".
Ease of use*
Reviewers' average 7/10How easy the buttons, modes and lock are, with gloves too.
3 reviews on ease of use, e.g. "you very quickly get used to the SWIFT RL’s operation, and accessing the various modes and settings becomes second nature before very long".
In short
Good for
- Night hiking and fast-moving days on the hill where you want a lot of light at 92 g
- Runners, skiers and mountaineers who want the beam to adjust itself (Reactive Lighting)
Strengths
- 800 lumens held for 2 hours (FL1), with a 1200-lumen peak in Reactive mode, at 92 g
- 190 lumens lasts 7 hours in Standard mode, and the 10-lumen mode lasts 100 hours
- Reactive Lighting dims for close work and brightens for distance, which helps stretch the battery
- Headband can be washed or swapped for the Swift RL Classic band, and the battery, band and pouch are sold as spares
- Red light (continuous or strobe), a lock mode and a five-level battery gauge on one button; 5-year warranty on the lamp
Weaknesses
- IPX4 only (splash-proof), so not for heavy rain or submersion
- Trek & Mountain found the cord headband slippy over a climbing helmet
- Trek & Mountain finds it better for single-day trips than multi-day trips, because of the battery
Sources
We haven't tested this ourselves. Every score comes from these specs, tests and reviews.
ShowHide sources (5)
- Petzl UK: Swift RL product page (specifications, ANSI/PLATO FL 1)
- Trek & Mountain: Petzl SWIFT RL review (the 2026 version, tested)
- Trail & Kale: Petzl Swift RL 1200 review (the 2026 version)
- Outside.co.uk (YouTube): Petzl's Most Powerful Compact Headtorch | Review (the 2026 1200-lumen SWIFT RL; a retailer's own channel that sells the lamp; the presenter, James, says Petzl offered him the new lamp to try, and that he has used it climbing and walking into Ben Nevis in winter)
- Rosalia Camargo (YouTube, in Portuguese): Review Petzl Swift RL 1.200 lumens (worn for the night of a 125-mile race; she speaks of it as her own purchase)