Best Tail Lights: 3 LED Upgrades That Fit Your Truck

A cracked tail light is more than a cosmetic problem. The tail lights on your truck are what the driver behind you reads — brake lights, turn signals, reverse lights — and a dim or dead tail light makes your truck harder to see and harder to predict. New tail lights are one of the simplest upgrades you can make: most assemblies unbolt and swap in with basic tools, and a fresh set of LED tail lights is brighter and sharper than the halogen units most trucks came with.

The short answer: if you drive a 2015–2019 Ford F-150, start with a full LED tail light assembly made for that truck — it replaces the whole housing in one swap. If you drive a 2007–2014 Chevy Silverado, a smoked LED tube assembly gives the same upgrade with a darker look. And if your housings are fine and only the bulbs are dim, a pair of red LED 7443 bulbs is the simplest way to brighten the rear of your truck without touching the housing. The three below cover all three jobs — two assemblies and one bulb upgrade.

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Quick Pick: Tail Lights for Trucks

Kemoto LED Tail Lights: The Tail Lights for the 2015–2019 Ford F-150

The Kemoto pair is the full-assembly pick in this roundup: a pair of LED tail light assemblies — left and right — made to replace the halogen tail lights on a Ford F-150 from 2015 to 2019. The fitment is exact and it is stated plainly on the listing: these assemblies fit the Ford F-150 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018 and 2019, and they do not fit the Ford F-150 Raptor from 2017 to 2019. The assemblies replace the original equipment part numbers FL3Z13404A and FL3Z13405A, and the manufacturer part number is H862045. That is the fitment the listing states — if your truck is a 2015–2019 F-150 that is not a Raptor, these assemblies are made for it. If your truck has factory LED tail lights or BLIS (Blind Spot Information System), check the listing’s compatibility note for that equipment before you order.

The style is what the listing calls a Raptor-style halogen upgrade: LED running light, brake light, turn signal and reverse light in one housing, so the swap replaces every function of the old tail light at once. The backup light uses LED beads, so you do not need to reuse your old reverse bulb. The assemblies are sold as a pair, left and right, which matters — tail lights should match side to side, and buying a pair keeps the brightness, lens and light pattern identical on both sides of the truck.

The Kemoto pair is the pick in this roundup for the F-150 owner who wants the whole job done in one swap: two new LED units, made for the truck, with every light function built in. Check the fitment twice before you order — the Raptor exception is the detail that catches buyers out — and check the listing still shows a live offer, because listings change.

Pair LED Tail Light Assembly For Ford F150 F-150 2015-2019 on Amazon: LED tail lights pair, left and right, for Ford F-150 2015–2019, not for F-150 Raptor 2017–2019, replaces FL3Z13404A and FL3Z13405A, manufacturer part number H862045, LED running, brake, turn signal and reverse lights.

Buy the Kemoto LED tail lights if: you drive a Ford F-150 from 2015 to 2019 that is not a Raptor, and you want a new set as a matched pair with every function built in. Confirm the Raptor exception does not apply to your truck before you order.

AKKON LED Tube Tail Lights: The Tail Lights for the 2007–2014 Chevy Silverado

The AKKON pair is the smoked-lens pick in this roundup: a pair of LED assemblies with a black housing and smoked lens, made for the Chevy Silverado 1500, 2500HD and 3500HD from 2007 to 2014. The model number is A9CSI07BS, and the assemblies replace the original equipment part numbers GM2800207 and GM2801207. The light is a LED tube bar design — a bar of LED light that runs through the housing for the signal, brake and running lights — which gives the rear of the truck a sharper, more modern look than the original halogen units.

The smoked lens is the feature to think about before you buy, and the listing says so in its own words: a smoke lens product will be dimmer and not as bright as a clear lens, and buyers should think twice before placing the order. That is an honest warning, and this article repeats it rather than softening it. A smoked lens looks darker and more aggressive on the truck, but the light coming through it is dimmer than through a clear lens — if maximum visibility matters most to you, the Kemoto clear-lens pair above is the better pick, and the AKKON pair is the pick for the driver who wants the smoked look and accepts the trade.

The AKKON pair is the pick in this roundup for the Silverado owner who wants a smoked LED look: assemblies made for the 2007–2014 Silverado, sold as a matched pair, with a LED tube bar for the brake, signal and running lights. Check the fitment against your truck’s year and model — 2007 Silverado Classic models are not covered by the 2007–2014 fitment — and check the listing still shows a live offer before you order.

AKKON Fit 2007-2014 Chevy Silverado LED Tube Bar Tail Lights Pair on Amazon: LED tail lights pair, black housing with smoked lens, for Chevy Silverado 1500/2500HD/3500HD 2007–2014, model A9CSI07BS, replaces GM2800207 and GM2801207, LED tube bar for signal, brake and running lights.

Buy the AKKON LED tube tail lights if: you drive a Chevy Silverado 1500, 2500HD or 3500HD from 2007 to 2014, and you want a smoked look with a LED tube bar. Accept the listing’s own warning that a smoked lens is dimmer than a clear lens.

AUXITO 7443 LED Bulbs: The Tail Lights Upgrade Without a New Assembly

The AUXITO bulbs are the no-assembly pick in this roundup: a pair of red LED bulbs in the 7443 size, made to replace the halogen bulbs inside your existing housings. The model number is 7443-54H-DD-R2, and each bulb carries 54 pieces of 4014-SMD LED chips arranged to give 360-degree light, which the listing says makes the red light easier to notice. The bulbs are non-polarity, so either way round in the socket works, and they fit US standard and CK sockets — the two socket types used in most American trucks.

The fitment for a bulb is a size, not a truck: these bulbs fit the 7443 socket and the sizes the listing names alongside it — 7440, 7441, 7443, 7442, 7444, W21W and WY21W. Check your owner’s manual or the old bulb for the size before you order — a 7443 bulb will not fit a 3157 socket, and no bulb upgrade fixes a cracked housing. The bulbs are made for tail, brake and stop lights, parking lights and daytime running lights, so one pair covers the red functions at the rear of the truck. Some sensitive vehicles can show a dashboard warning or fast flashing with LED bulbs, and the listing says load resistors or a flasher relay will fix it — that is a known LED trade, covered in the questions below.

The AUXITO bulbs are the pick in this roundup for the driver whose housings are fine and whose bulbs are dim: red LED bulbs that swap in with no tools beyond opening the housing, in the 7443 size, sold as a pair. They are the simplest of the three upgrades here, and the only one that leaves your original tail light housings on the truck.

AUXITO Upgraded 7440 7443 LED Bulb Red for Tail Lights Brake Lights on Amazon: red LED tail lights bulbs, 7443 size, model 7443-54H-DD-R2, 54 pieces of 4014-SMD LED chips, 360-degree light, non-polarity, fits US standard and CK sockets, fits 7440, 7441, 7443, 7442, 7444, W21W and WY21W, pack of 2.

Buy the AUXITO 7443 LED bulbs if: your tail light housings are in good shape, your truck takes a 7443-size bulb, and you want brighter red light without replacing the whole assembly. Check the bulb size in your owner’s manual first.

Tail Light Assembly vs Bulb: Which Tail Lights Upgrade Fits Your Job

The three products in this roundup split into two kinds of upgrade, and the right kind depends on what is wrong with your tail lights. A full assembly — the Kemoto pair or the AKKON pair — replaces the whole housing: lens, reflector, wiring and lights in one unit. That is the fix for a cracked lens, a faded housing, a broken seal that lets water in, or a truck that still runs its original halogen lights and needs a full LED conversion. An assembly swap is a bigger job, but it fixes everything at once.

A bulb — the AUXITO pair — replaces only the light source inside a housing that is still in good shape. That is the fix for dim bulbs, a burned-out bulb, or a driver who wants brighter brake lights without touching the housing. A bulb swap takes minutes and changes nothing about the lens or the seal. The test is simple: if the housing is cracked, cloudy or leaking, buy the assembly; if the housing is sound and only the light is weak, buy the bulb. The same logic applies at the front of the truck — our LED headlight bulbs guide covers the same assembly-versus-bulb choice for headlights, and the reasoning is identical.

Fitment First: How to Check Tail Lights Before You Buy

Tail light assemblies are vehicle-specific, and there is no universal fit — a pair made for a 2015–2019 F-150 will not bolt onto a Silverado, and a pair made for a 2007–2014 Silverado will not bolt onto a 2019 Silverado. Before you order any assembly, check three things: the year of your truck, the exact model and trim, and the exceptions on the listing. The Kemoto pair fits the F-150 2015–2019 but not the Raptor 2017–2019; the AKKON pair fits the Silverado 1500, 2500HD and 3500HD 2007–2014 but not the 2007 Silverado Classic. Those exceptions are where wrong orders happen.

The surest check is the original equipment part number. The Kemoto pair replaces FL3Z13404A and FL3Z13405A; the AKKON pair replaces GM2800207 and GM2801207. Your old tail light housing carries its part number on a stamp or a sticker, and your owner’s manual lists it too — match it against the listing before you order, and the fitment is settled. For bulbs, the check is the bulb size: pull the old bulb and read the number printed on its base, or check the manual — 7443, 3157 and 1157 are different sizes and do not interchange. Never order on the truck’s year alone; the year, the model, the trim and the part number together are what confirm the fit.

Smoked Lenses and Brightness: What to Know About Tail Lights

A smoked lens changes how the lights look, and it changes how bright they are. The AKKON pair in this roundup has a black housing with a smoked lens, and its listing warns buyers plainly that a smoke lens product will be dimmer and not as bright as a clear lens. The Kemoto pair has a clear lens, and its light passes through unfiltered. The difference is real: a dark lens absorbs some of the light, so the same LED behind a smoked lens reads dimmer from behind than the same LED behind a clear lens.

That does not make smoked tail lights a bad choice — it makes them a choice with a trade. Drivers pick smoked lenses for the look: a dark rear that matches blacked-out trim and dark wheels. What the buyer should weigh is how much of that look is worth trading for brightness, because the tail lights are a safety device first and a styling device second. If your truck is a daily driver in heavy traffic, a clear lens is the safer pick; if the smoked look is what you want, accept the listing’s warning and check that your brake lights are still easy to see from behind in daylight. For the same brightness thinking applied to the front of the truck, our SEALIGHT vs Fahren LED headlight bulbs comparison weighs brightness against beam pattern in the same way.

How to Install Tail Lights

Installing a new set is a straightforward job on most trucks, and it starts with the battery. Disconnect the negative terminal before you touch any wiring — a short across the rear light circuit can blow a fuse or damage the wiring, and the battery disconnect takes a minute. Then open the tailgate and find the screws holding the old assembly: most trucks hold the tail light with two screws on the side of the bed, and the assembly pulls straight back once they are out. Unplug the wiring connector, compare the old assembly with the new one side by side to confirm the fit, then plug the new assembly in, bolt it down, and test every function before you drive: running lights, brake lights, turn signals and reverse lights.

A bulb swap is simpler still: open the housing, twist the old bulb out of its socket, push the new LED bulb in, and test it. LED bulbs are non-polarity in the AUXITO pair, so either way round works — but test before you reassemble, because a bulb that looks seated can still be loose. If the dashboard shows a bulb warning or the turn signal flashes fast after fitting LEDs, that is the CAN bus system noticing the lower power draw of the LED — load resistors or a flasher relay fix it, as the listing notes. If any function does not work after the swap, check the connector first: a plug that is not fully seated is the most common cause, and it costs nothing to fix.

Tail Lights Mistakes to Avoid

The most common mistake is ordering on the truck’s year alone. A 2015–2019 F-150 Raptor takes different tail lights from a standard 2015–2019 F-150, and a 2007 Silverado Classic takes different tail lights from a 2007 Silverado — the exceptions on the listing are the details that matter, and skipping them is how a pair arrives that does not fit. The second mistake is replacing only one side: the two sides should match, and a new LED on one side with a faded halogen on the other looks wrong and lights unevenly. Buy the pair, even if only one side is broken.

The third mistake is choosing a smoked lens without accepting the brightness trade — the AKKON listing warns about it, and this article repeats the warning, because a dimmer brake light is a safety trade, not a styling detail. The fourth is fitting LED bulbs and ignoring the fast-flash warning: a hyper-flashing turn signal is the truck telling you the LED draws less power than the halogen it replaced, and load resistors are the fix, not a fault to live with. The fifth is skipping the function test after the swap — check running, brake, signal and reverse lights before you drive, not after the first car behind you flashes its lights. And the sixth is forgetting the seal: an assembly that is not bolted down tight lets water in, and water in the housing fogs the lens and corrodes the wiring. Our strobe lights review covers a different kind of rear lighting, and the same rule applies there: test every function before you trust the lights on the road.

Who Should Buy New Tail Lights — and Who Should Not

Buy a new set if: your housings are cracked, faded or leaking, or your halogen tail lights are dim enough that drivers behind you react late. A full LED assembly is also the right pick if you want the whole rear of the truck to look modern — the LED tube and Raptor-style housings change the look of the truck from behind in a way a bulb swap cannot.

Buy bulbs only if: your housings are sound and only the light is weak. The AUXITO 7443 pair is the right pick for that job — a quick upgrade that leaves the original housings in place. Check the bulb size first, and be ready for load resistors if your truck’s system flags the LED power draw.

Do not buy a new set if: your current lights are sound, bright and sealed. A working set of tail lights needs no upgrade, and the money is better spent on the rest of the truck. Do not buy an assembly for a truck you have not checked the fitment on either — the year, model, trim and part number all have to match, and a pair ordered on a guess is a pair that comes back.

The Verdict

The best tail lights are the ones made for your truck. The Kemoto LED pair is the pick for the 2015–2019 Ford F-150: a full assembly swap, left and right, with every light function built in and a clear lens that keeps the light bright. The AKKON LED tube pair is the pick for the 2007–2014 Chevy Silverado: the same full swap with a smoked lens and a sharper look, accepting the listing’s own warning that smoked is dimmer than clear. And the AUXITO 7443 red LED bulbs are the pick for the driver whose housings are fine: a quick bulb swap in the 7443 size that brightens the brake and tail lamps without touching the housing.

Whichever you choose, check the fitment before you order — the year, the model, the trim, the exceptions and the part number — and check the listing still shows a live offer, because listings change, and a listing that showed an offer when this roundup was researched may not show one now. Test every function after the swap, and buy the pair, not one side. For the wider picture, our best car accessories for road trips covers the rest of the kit worth packing for the road.

Frequently Asked Questions

Are LED tail lights legal?

LED tail lights are legal when they meet the rules for road use: red light at the rear, bright enough to be seen, and the right functions — running light, brake light, turn signal and reverse light — all working. The assemblies in this roundup are made as replacements for the original tail lights, with the same functions in the same positions. A smoked lens is the detail to watch: if the lens dims the brake light so much that it is hard to see in daylight, it can fail an inspection even though the lights work. Check your local rules before you buy smoked tail lights, and keep the brake lights bright.

Do I need to replace both tail lights at once?

Yes — replace tail lights as a pair, even if only one side is broken. Two new assemblies match in brightness, lens colour and light pattern, and the truck looks right from behind. A new LED on one side with a faded halogen on the other lights unevenly, and the driver behind you reads the two sides differently. Both assemblies in this roundup are sold as left-and-right pairs for exactly this reason, and the bulbs are sold as a pair too.

Will LED tail lights fit my truck?

Only if the assembly is made for your exact truck. Tail light assemblies are vehicle-specific: the Kemoto pair fits the Ford F-150 2015–2019 but not the Raptor 2017–2019, and the AKKON pair fits the Chevy Silverado 1500, 2500HD and 3500HD 2007–2014 but not the 2007 Silverado Classic. Check the year, model, trim and the exceptions on the listing, and match the original equipment part number — FL3Z13404A and FL3Z13405A for the F-150 pair, GM2800207 and GM2801207 for the Silverado pair — against your old housing before you order.

Why do my LED tail lights flicker or throw a warning?

LED bulbs draw less power than the halogen bulbs they replace, and some trucks notice the difference: the dashboard shows a bulb warning, or the turn signal flashes faster than normal. That fast flash is called hyper-flashing, and it is the truck’s system reading the low power draw as a burned-out bulb. The fix is a load resistor or a flasher relay, which the AUXITO listing notes as the answer for sensitive vehicles. The assemblies in this roundup are built as full replacements — but if any LED upgrade throws a warning, resistors are the fix, not a reason to return the lights.

How long does it take to install tail lights?

A tail light assembly swap is a short job on most trucks: open the tailgate, remove the two screws holding the old assembly, unplug it, plug the new one in and bolt it down — allow an unhurried hour for a first attempt, including the function test at the end. A bulb swap is quicker still: open the housing, twist the old bulb out, push the new LED bulb in, and test it — a few minutes per side. The function test is part of the job either way: check the running lights, brake lights, turn signals and reverse lights before you drive.

Can I just replace the bulb instead of the whole tail light assembly?

Yes — if the housing is in good shape, a bulb swap is the right fix. The AUXITO 7443 red LED bulbs in this roundup fit the 7443 socket and the sizes the listing names alongside it, and they brighten the brake and tail lights without touching the housing. A bulb cannot fix a cracked lens, a faded housing or a leaking seal, though — if the housing itself is damaged, buy the assembly. Check the bulb size in your owner’s manual or on the old bulb before you order, because 7443, 3157 and 1157 are different sizes and do not interchange.