Red vs. Green Lights for Hog Hunting: Which Color Is Better?

For most hog hunters, I recommend GREEN. Most feral hogs are black or dark colored, and green light makes them much easier for us to see clearly at night.

But if your number-one priority is maximum stealth, I recommend RED.

I've spent decades hunting and observing animals at night, filming nighttime hunts, and developing hunting lights. I've used both colors extensively, and the best choice really depends on what you're trying to accomplish.

Red vs. Green Hunting Lights: Quick Guide

Chad's Bottom Line

If you're buying one light primarily for hog hunting, I recommend GREEN. It's easier for us to see, especially on dark-colored hogs. If your number-one priority is maximum stealth, I recommend RED.

Why Green Is My All-Around Choice for Hog Hunting

There's a simple reason green became so popular for hog hunting: we can see extremely well with it.

Most feral hogs are black or dark colored. A black hog under red illumination can be surprisingly difficult for us to see in detail. Put that same hog under green and it's much easier to distinguish.

There's a physiological reason for this. Human vision is particularly sensitive in the yellow-green portion of the visible spectrum, which helps explain why green illumination appears so bright and effective to us.

Green also makes it easier to see the terrain around you and what's happening around the feeder. Hogs can become completely comfortable underneath a permanent green feeder light, and I've watched entire groups feed normally under green night after night.

That's why most of my own hog-light setups are green, and why green is my normal recommendation for general hog hunting.

When I Choose Red Instead

When maximum stealth matters more than maximum visibility, I choose red.

One of my red setups is along a large creek channel between two ponds where we've historically seen some exceptionally large mature boars traveling through. Those transient boars are exactly the animals I don't want to take chances with.

I've personally watched big mature boars approach green-light setups and hang up just outside the illuminated area for 30 minutes to an hour. Sometimes they eventually come in after watching other animals feed, and sometimes they turn around and leave. These may be hogs that have never encountered that particular feeder or light before.

I don't see that behavior at my red-light setups. In my experience, hogs will walk right into the red illumination and behave normally, as if there were no light at all.

That's why red is my choice when I'm specifically targeting a cautious mature boar or when maximum stealth is the priority.

What I've Seen With Deer

Deer can absolutely become comfortable underneath green lights. I've watched them feed normally under our green feeder lights many times.

But I've also watched individual deer become extremely cautious around green. Some will move so slowly that a motion light barely detects them, and when the brightness increases, they may leave and return after it dims again.

Under red, I've watched deer walk into the illuminated area, move around and feed normally as if there were no light at all.

Over the years, we've also had deer breeders use our red lights around deer in their enclosures when they need nighttime illumination.

I personally like dim red when walking into the woods before daylight because it provides enough light to move around while preserving my night vision. I've even had deer remain bedded while I moved through an area using dim red.

That's also why I like a three-color headlamp. Red is my choice for stealth and preserving night vision, green provides better general visibility, and white is what I want when I need maximum detail - especially for following blood trails, checking tracks or safely navigating difficult terrain.

Why I Prefer Red for Predator Hunting

Predator hunting is another situation where I choose red.

Predator hunters have used our red lights for years, and my preference comes from years of nighttime hunting and filming.

Older television cameras struggled to capture red illumination, so years ago we experimented with green because it looked better on camera. We could locate predators with red, switch to green for the camera and sometimes lose the animal.

Other hunters successfully use green, but based on what I've personally experienced, if I'm predator hunting, I'm taking red.

Red also produces excellent eye reflection from many predators, which makes it very useful for locating eyes at distance.

What About Getting Hogs Used to Green?

Permanent feeder setups are different because hogs can become completely accustomed to green illumination.

Some animals accept a new light immediately. Others may need more time. Once they're comfortable with the setup, they can feed normally underneath green night after night.

That's another reason most of my hog setups are green: I get the visibility advantage of green while the hogs become comfortable with the permanent setup.

If I'm dealing with a particularly cautious animal, a transient mature boar or a situation where I don't have time for acclimation, I prefer red.

Getting hogs accustomed to a new feeder light is a subject by itself, so we cover that in a separate guide.

One Important Rule When Adding More Light

There's one field lesson I think every hunter using multiple lights should know.

If a hog is comfortably feeding underneath a GREEN feeder light and I need more illumination, in my experience I can add either GREEN or RED without causing a problem.

But if that hog is already feeding underneath RED, I stay with red. I don't suddenly introduce green when the reason I chose red in the first place was maximum stealth.

GREEN -> You can add GREEN or RED.
RED -> Stay with RED.

And if stealth is the priority, I avoid suddenly introducing bright white light.

Red Is Less Noticeable at a Distance

There's another reason I use red at certain locations: sometimes I don't want people noticing my setup either.

I have a red feeder-light location relatively close to neighboring property and a county road. I use red there because I don't want a conspicuous green or white glow advertising where my setup is located.

I've noticed the same thing with red driving lights on UTVs. Red simply doesn't create the same obvious glow across the landscape that I've observed with green or white.

The Bottom Line

GREEN - My best all-around choice for hog hunting. It gives us excellent visibility, especially on black or dark-colored hogs, and hogs can become completely comfortable underneath a permanent green feeder light.

RED - My choice for maximum stealth. For cautious mature boars, deer and wildlife observation, predator hunting, or any situation where I want to minimize the animal's awareness of the illumination, I choose red. In my experience, I've watched animals under red behave as if there were no light at all.

WHITE - My choice when I need maximum detail. For following blood trails, examining tracks or sign, locating something on the ground, or safely navigating difficult terrain, white gives me the clearest view.

If you only remember two things from this article:

Best all-around hog hunting light: GREEN.

Maximum stealth: RED.

About the Author

Chad Stevenson is the owner of Elusive Wildlife Technologies and has spent decades hunting and observing wildlife at night, filming nighttime hunts, and developing and testing hunting and wildlife lighting products in real-world conditions. The observations and recommendations in this article are based on that firsthand field experience.