Petzl Headlamps

What Petzl makes for hunters and campers

On this site, Petzl covers one type: headlamps. Petzl also makes climbing and work-at-height equipment, and this site doesn't list those.

The headlamps in the grid sort into five groups:

• The everyday lamps: Tikkina, Tikka, Tikka CORE, Actik and Actik CORE
• IKO CORE: a hybrid lamp with a different headband
• ARIA 1 RGB and ARIA 2 RGB: red and green light, built for low-profile use
• The high-output rechargeables: Swift RL, Swift RL Classic and NAO RL
• The small ones: Swift LT and e+LITE

The grid filters by type and changes as listings come and go. I'll write about the families and what separates them, not this week's count. Some lamps appear more than once in different colors. Same lamp, different paint. (Renee counted the ARIA listings and asked if I'd already ordered one of each. I had not. Out loud.)

Most specs in the grid come from Amazon listings, and the grid marks them. Where Petzl's own page adds a weight or a feature, I say so and it's from the maker. Where nobody says, you get a dash. A dash beats a guess, especially on lumens.

The two ideas that explain the Petzl headlamp lineup

HYBRID CONCEPT: AAA cells or the CORE battery

Petzl's HYBRID CONCEPT means the lamp runs on either its CORE rechargeable battery or three AAA cells, with no adapter. Some lamps ship with AAA cells and take CORE as an accessory; the CORE versions ship with the rechargeable and still take AAA cells. Petzl's tech tip lays out the differences:

• At switch-on: brightness is about the same either way, within about 10 percent
• Over the night: with CORE, brightness generally stays constant over the rated burn time; with AAA cells, it fades as they drain
• Burn time: the rated burn time for CORE is shorter than with standard batteries
• Shelf life: CORE self-discharge is very low; for AAA cells it's negligible

The CORE battery page lists the lamps it fits: TIKKINA, TIKKA, TIKKA CORE, ACTIK, ACTIK CORE (post-2017 versions), the ARIA rechargeable versions, IKO and IKO CORE. Petzl also says one CORE battery's whole life equals about 900 standard batteries. That's a lot of trips to the gas station I didn't make.

REACTIVE LIGHTING: the lamp sets its own brightness

The Swift RL and NAO RL carry the RL for Reactive Lighting. Petzl says the system uses a light sensor and an accelerometer to read your activity and the ambient light, then sets brightness and beam pattern on its own. Petzl's example: raise your head to see farther and the brightness goes up and the beam focuses. Petzl says you can switch back to fixed STANDARD LIGHTING levels when you want them.

For a hunter, that matters on the walk in, when you go from reading a trail marker to looking at your feet a hundred times. In the stand, most hunters want the light off or on red anyway.

Lineup notes: the Petzl headlamps

Tikkina, Tikka and Actik: the everyday family

These three share a body style and step up in output:

• Tikkina: 300 lumens and a tilting head per its listing; Petzl says it ships with three AAA cells, weighs 92 g and takes CORE as an option
• Tikka: 350 lumens, red light and a listed beam distance of 230 ft, hybrid power
• Actik: 450 lumens, red light, spot and flood beams and a tilting head; Petzl says 98 g with AAA cells included

Petzl's pages for the Tikka CORE and Actik describe three white levels (max burn time, standard and max power), a single button, a LOCK function to stop the lamp turning on in a pack, and a phosphorescent reflector that glows so you can find the lamp in the dark. The Tikka and Actik add red light, continuous or strobe. The Actik's mixed beam is the one to pick if you need to see down a trail and not only at your feet.

Tikka CORE and Actik CORE: the same lamps, rechargeable out of the box

• Tikka CORE: 450 lumens, red light and tilt per its listing; Petzl says it charges by USB-C, shows the battery level each time you switch it on or off, and also runs on three AAA cells
• Actik CORE: rechargeable, red light, spot and flood beams and tilt per its listing

If you already own a plain Tikka or Actik, the CORE battery fits it. If you're starting fresh, the CORE version saves you buying the battery separately.

IKO CORE

The IKO CORE lists hybrid power and 500 lumens. Petzl's CORE battery page names it among the lamps the CORE fits. Check the photos for the headband before you buy if you wear it over a hat.

ARIA 1 RGB and ARIA 2 RGB: color for the stand

The ARIA lamps are the ones in the lineup most aimed at people who sit in the dark on purpose. Petzl describes the ARIA 1 RGB as designed for activities where stealth is key, with red, green or blue light, and green or blue for night vision. The listings in the grid give hybrid power, 450 lumens, red light and green light for both; the ARIA 2 RGB adds spot and flood beams.

Petzl rates the ARIA's white output separately for AAA cells and the CORE battery, so the lumen number depends on what's inside. Several ARIA listings are the same lamp in black, desert or camouflage. Pick the color that doesn't shine back at you in the truck window.

Colored light rules for hunting vary by state. Check your state wildlife agency before you use any light on game.

Swift RL and Swift RL Classic

The Swift RL is Petzl's compact high-output lamp. One listing in the grid gives 900 lumens, a 492-ft beam and a 100-hour maximum runtime, another 1200 lumens; the Swift RL Classic also lists 1200. Petzl's page for the current Swift RL lists:

• Output and weight: 1200 lumens and 92 g
• Burn time: at least 7 hours at medium brightness in Reactive Lighting mode
• Battery: a 2250 mAh lithium-ion battery, USB-C charging, five-level gauge
• Extras: a six-second BOOST on a double tap, continuous or strobe red light, a LOCK function

Read which version a listing is selling. The lumen numbers differ between generations, and the grid shows each one as listed.

NAO RL

The NAO RL lists 1500 lumens, a 656-ft beam, a rechargeable battery and red light. Petzl says it weighs 145 g, puts the battery at the back of the head for balance, and has a red light at the rear with its own button. Petzl rates it for at least 5 hours in Reactive Lighting mode at the standard level. It's built for long nights moving: trail running on Petzl's page, a long ridge walk in yours.

Swift LT and e+LITE: the small ones

• Swift LT: 380 lumens, rechargeable, red light per its listing; Petzl says 43 g and small enough to fit in your palm
• e+LITE: 30 lumens and red light per its listing, sold as an ultra-compact emergency lamp

Neither is your main light for a long walk in. Both are the lamp that lives in the pack lid or the glove box until the night the main one quits.

How to choose within the Petzl lineup

Power source first

My one opinion on this page: whatever Petzl you pick, carry a way to run it on spare batteries. Here's the reason you can check: Petzl's HYBRID CONCEPT lamps take three AAA cells or the CORE battery with no adapter. A Tikka CORE or Actik CORE with three AAA cells in the pack covers both nights. The Swift RL, NAO RL and Swift LT run on their own built-in rechargeable batteries, so a spare light is the backup there. The rechargeable headlamp page covers the trade across brands.

Then output for the walk you actually make

A short walk to a stand on a field edge doesn't need 1500 lumens. The everyday family covers that. A long walk in on an unmarked ridge is where the Actik's mixed beam or a Swift RL earns its keep. More lumens means more battery spent, unless the lamp is managing it for you.

Then red light and how it turns on

Most of the grid lists red light. On the Tikka CORE, Actik and Swift RL it's on the same single button, per Petzl; on the NAO RL it's at the back with its own switch. The ARIA adds green. If you're the first one up at camp, red light is how you stay popular. The red light headlamp page has the across-brand view.

Then the lock

A lamp that switches on in your pack is a dead lamp by morning. The Tikka CORE, Actik, Swift RL, Swift LT and NAO RL all list a LOCK function on Petzl's pages. Learn how yours locks before opening day, in the kitchen, with the lights on.

Battery care, cold and charging

Petzl's advice on the two power sources applies to every hybrid lamp here:

• Cold: both AAA cells and CORE lose capacity below 0 °C; between 0 and -20 °C, burn time can drop by up to 50 percent
• In the stand: keep the lamp warm when it's not on your head, in an inside pocket
• Storage: take the batteries out, store them cool and dry, and recharge a CORE battery about every 6 months
• Spares: check the date on your AAA cells; Petzl's ratings use new cells

Charge lithium batteries the way the maker's instructions say. Petzl's pages ask you to read and follow its instructions for use.

Petzl facts

Verified from Petzl's own pages:

• Founded: Petzl was created in 1970, per its 2025 pro catalog
• First headlamp: introduced in 1973, per the same catalog
• Production: sites in Crolles, Eybens and Rotherens in France and Rawang in Malaysia
• Warranty: five years on the lamp and two years or 300 cycles on the rechargeable battery, per the SWIFT RL, NAO RL and TIKKA CORE pages

The Black Diamond brand page covers another headlamp lineup from a company that also makes climbing gear, and the best headlamp list compares across brands.

Top it off before the drive, pack three AAA cells anyway, and lock it before it goes in the bag.