H4 vs H11 vs 9005 — Which LED Headlight Bulb Should You Buy in India?
Auxbeam India — LED Headlight Buying Guide 2026 H4 vs H11 vs 9005 — Which LED Headlight Bulb Should You Buy in India? Three bulbs. Three completely different jobs. Whether your car uses H4, H11, or 9005 — picking the wrong one means it either won't fit, won't work, or delivers poor visibility. This guide settles the comparison for good. By Auxbeam India · Headlight Guide · June 2026 · 9 min read H4 vs H11 vs 9005 Full Specs Table Indian Vehicle Fitment 3 Head-to-Head Comparisons Buyer Decision Guide FAQ + Schema ⚡ Direct Answer H4 is a dual-beam bulb (high + low in one unit) used in most Indian motorcycles and older cars. H11 is a single-beam low-beam or fog-light bulb used in modern Indian hatchbacks and SUVs. 9005 (HB3) is a single-beam high-beam bulb, paired with H11 in newer cars. They are not interchangeable — different sockets, different connectors, different roles. Table of Contents At a Glance — Full Specs Comparison Table What Is the H4 Bulb? (Dual-Beam, Bikes & Older Cars) What Is the H11 Bulb? (Low Beam & Fog Lights) What Is the 9005 / HB3 Bulb? (High Beam) H4 vs H11 — Head-to-Head H11 vs 9005 — Can They Be Swapped? H4 vs 9005 — Are They the Same? Indian Vehicle Fitment Guide Why Upgrade to LED in 2026? Which Bulb Should You Buy? Frequently Asked Questions Section 1 — At a Glance: Full Specs Comparison Before we go deep, here is the complete side-by-side breakdown so you can spot the difference quickly. Feature H4 (HB2 / 9003) H11 9005 (HB3) Beam Type Dual Beam (Hi + Lo) Single (Low / Fog) Single (High only) Base / Socket P43t (3-pin) PGJ19-2 (2-pin) P20d (2-pin) Connector Pins 3 pins 2 narrow pins 2 wide-set pins Halogen Wattage 60W hi / 55W lo 55W 65W Halogen Lumens ~1,000–1,650 lm ~1,200–1,350 lm ~1,700 lm LED Lumens (pair) 6,000–10,000 lm 6,000–8,000 lm 8,000–12,000 lm Ideal LED Colour Temp 5,500K–6,500K 5,000K–6,000K 5,000K–6,500K Halogen Lifespan ~500–800 hrs ~270 hrs ~320 hrs LED Lifespan 30,000–50,000 hrs 30,000–50,000 hrs 30,000–50,000 hrs Also Known As HB2, 9003 H8, H9, H16 (compatible) HB3, H10, H12, 9040, 9055 Interchangeable? No No No Indian Vehicle Examples RE Bullet, Splendor, Alto, Bolero Creta, Swift, Seltos, i20 Fortuner, Innova, XUV500 Always verify your vehicle's bulb type via the owner's manual or original bulb before ordering. Section 2 — What Is the H4 Bulb? 🔦 H4 / HB2 / 9003 Dual-Beam Bulb One bulb · Both high and low beam · 3-pin P43t connector The H4 (also called HB2 or 9003) is the most widely used headlight bulb in India, fitted in the majority of motorcycles and millions of older cars. What makes it unique is its dual-beam design — a single H4 unit handles both your high beam and low beam. Inside the bulb, there are two filaments (halogen) or two separate LED positions (LED version). When you flash between low and high beam, the same bulb switches between them. This is why the H4 uses a 3-pin connector — one pin for low beam, one for high beam, and a shared ground. The H11 and 9005, by contrast, each have only 2 pins because they do only one job. For Indian riders and older SUV owners, this is a major convenience: one upgrade replaces both beams at once. There is no separate high-beam socket to worry about. Base: P43t Pins: 3 Halogen: 60W/55W Beams: High + Low LED Lumens: 6,000–10,000 lm/pair 🏍️ Motorcycles That Use H4 Most Indian Bikes — H4 Fitment Hero: Splendor, Passion, Glamour, HF Deluxe (most models) Honda: CB Shine, Activa (older), CB Unicorn, SP125 Bajaj: Pulsar (older variants), Platina, CT100 Royal Enfield: Classic 350, Bullet 350, Meteor 350, Interceptor 650 KTM: Duke 200, Duke 250 (older models) 🚗 Cars & 4x4 That Use H4 Indian Cars With H4 Headlight Socket Maruti Suzuki: Alto (older), WagonR (pre-2019), Zen Mahindra: Bolero, older Scorpio, older Thar Force: Gurkha (older versions) Tata: Sumo, older Safari Maruti Suzuki Jimny (verify variant — some use H4) H4 LED upgrade tip: When upgrading to LED, ensure the bulb you buy maintains a proper 1:1 filament position match. A good H4 LED has two separate LED chip positions for hi and lo beam — not just one chip running at full brightness for both. Brands that cut corners use one chip for both, which destroys your beam pattern and blinds oncoming traffic. Section 3 — What Is the H11 Bulb? 💡 H11 Low Beam / Fog Single beam · PGJ19-2 base · 2 narrow pins The H11 is a single-beam bulb used only for low beam headlights or fog lights. It does not and cannot handle high beam. Vehicles that use H11 have a separate 9005 socket for the high beam — these are called dual-bulb headlight systems. The H11 uses a PGJ19-2 base with two narrowly spaced pins and small plastic tabs on each side of the plug casing. It has an L-shaped body. Because the H11 is designed for low beam, its beam projects downward and forward without throwing light into the eyes of oncoming drivers. When you upgrade to H11 LED, beam pattern quality matters far more than just raw lumen count. Base: PGJ19-2 Pins: 2 (narrow) Halogen: 55W Beam: Low only Also: H8, H9, H16 🚗 Indian Cars With H11 Who Uses H11 in India? Hyundai: Creta (low beam), i20 (low beam), Venue Maruti: Swift (newer models), Baleno, Dzire (verify variant) Kia: Seltos (low beam socket) Toyota: Fortuner (fog lights), Innova Crysta (fog lights) Tata: Nexon (fog lights on some variants) Note: H11 is also the most common fog light bulb across most Indian cars. Section 4 — What Is the 9005 / HB3 Bulb? 🔆 9005 / HB3 High Beam Only Single beam · P20d base · 2 wide pins The 9005 is the counterpart to H11 in dual-bulb headlight systems. It is built exclusively for high beam use — throwing a long, wide, powerful beam down the road ahead when you need maximum distance visibility. It runs at higher wattage (65W halogen vs 55W for H11) and produces more light. The connector has a P20d base with two wide-set pins — visually similar to H11's L-shape, but physically different. You cannot plug one into the other. The 9005 has many cross-reference names you may see on product listings: HB3, H10, H12, 9040, 9055, 9140, 9145, 9150, 9155 — all are the same bulb family. Base: P20d Pins: 2 (wide-set) Halogen: 65W Beam: High only Also: HB3, H10, 9055 🚗 Indian Cars With 9005 Who Uses 9005 in India? Toyota: Fortuner (high beam), Innova Crysta (high beam) Hyundai: Creta (high beam socket in some variants) Ford: EcoSport (high beam) Mahindra: XUV500 (high beam) Maruti: Swift, Vitara Brezza (high beam on some variants) In these cars, H11 handles low beam and 9005 handles high beam — two separate sockets, two separate bulbs. 💡 Important for dual-bulb cars: If your car uses H11 (low) and 9005 (high), you need to upgrade both separately to get consistent colour temperature and brightness. Mixing an LED on one socket with halogen on the other will give you mismatched light colour — white on one side, yellow on the other. Section 5 — H4 vs H11: Head-to-Head This is the most searched comparison in India, because both bulbs are extremely common and they look vaguely similar in product photos. Here is the clear breakdown. H4 vs H11 Side-by-Side The most important difference: H4 is a dual-beam bulb with a 3-pin connector. H11 is a single-beam low-only bulb with a 2-pin connector. These sockets are physically incompatible — an H11 will not fit into an H4 housing, and vice versa. In a vehicle that uses H4, one bulb controls both beams — you switch between high and low using the same unit. In a vehicle that uses H11, that bulb only handles the low beam. A separate 9005 bulb in a different socket handles the high beam. On brightness: For high beam, the H4 is brighter because it is running a dedicated high-beam filament. On low beam, the two are comparable — though the H11 typically projects a slightly more focused downward spread, which is why it is also preferred for fog lights. For LED upgrades: Upgrading an H4 replaces both beams in one step. Upgrading H11 only upgrades the low beam — you must separately upgrade the 9005 for consistent results. Bottom line: Check which socket your vehicle actually uses before buying. H4 and H11 are not interchangeable under any circumstances. If your vehicle has a single headlight housing that does both beams, it is almost certainly H4. If it has two separate sockets, one is likely H11 and the other 9005. Feature H4 H11 Beam Dual (Hi + Lo) Single (Lo only) Connector 3-pin P43t 2-pin PGJ19-2 Interchangeable? No No High Beam Brightness Brighter N/A (no high beam) Low Beam Brightness Comparable Slightly more focused Used In Bikes, older cars (single housing) Modern cars (low beam socket) Upgrade Covers Both beams at once Low beam only Also Used For Fog? Rarely Yes — common fog fitment Section 6 — H11 vs 9005: Can They Be Swapped? H11 vs 9005 Partners, Not Alternatives Short answer: No. H11 and 9005 cannot be swapped. They look similar on the outside — both have an L-shaped body — but the base and connector designs are completely different. H11 uses a PGJ19-2 base with two closely spaced pins and small plastic side tabs. 9005 uses a P20d base with two wide-set pins. You cannot physically plug one into the other socket. They are designed to work together, not replace each other. In a dual-bulb headlight system, H11 goes in the low beam socket and 9005 goes in the high beam socket. This combination is standard on many popular Indian cars including the Hyundai Creta, Kia Seltos, and Toyota Fortuner. Wattage difference: H11 runs at 55W and produces around 1,350 lumens. 9005 runs at 65W and produces around 1,700 lumens. The extra brightness on 9005 is by design — high beams need more throw distance. Bottom line: If your car uses both H11 and 9005, upgrade both together. Mixing LED on one and halogen on the other gives you mismatched white-and-yellow light output — it looks bad and reduces overall visibility. Auxbeam India offers matched LED kits for both sockets. Feature H11 9005 Role Low beam / fog light High beam Base PGJ19-2 P20d Pin Spacing Narrow Wide Halogen Wattage 55W 65W Halogen Lumens ~1,350 lm ~1,700 lm Halogen Lifespan ~270 hrs ~320 hrs Interchangeable? No No Same as H8, H9, H16 HB3, H10, H12, 9055 Ideal Use City, suburbs, fog Highway, rural, dark roads Section 7 — H4 vs 9005: Are They the Same? H4 vs 9005 Completely Different No — H4 and 9005 are completely different bulbs. The H4 is a dual-beam bulb with a 3-pin P43t connector that handles both high and low beam in one unit. The 9005 is a single-beam high-only bulb with a 2-pin P20d connector. Different shapes, different sockets, different jobs. A vehicle that uses H4 does not have a separate high-beam socket — the H4 itself does both. A vehicle that uses 9005 has a separate H11 socket for low beam, and the 9005 only provides the high beam. Brightness comparison: On high beam, the H4 and 9005 are fairly close in raw output for halogen. But in LED form, the 9005 socket — being high-beam-only — can be paired with a higher-output LED chip specifically optimized for distance throw, giving it an edge at range on dark highways. Bottom line: H4 gives you both beams from one socket (simpler system, common on bikes). 9005 gives you a dedicated high beam socket that can be optimized purely for throw distance (common on modern SUVs). Neither is
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