If you drive a halogen-equipped car built in the last 15 years, there's a better-than-even chance your headlights take H11 for low beam and 9005 for high beam. Across our 179-vehicle fitment database, that single combo shows up in 55.6% of all halogen models — Toyota, Honda, Ford, Chevy, Hyundai, Kia, Subaru. Once you know this, picking the right LED upgrade gets a lot easier.
Here's the bulb-size lay of the land — what's most common, what's a holdout, and what's already factory LED.
The Dominant Combo: H11 Low + 9005 High
Why this pair won the modern US halogen market:
- H11 is a single-filament bulb (introduced late 1990s). Compact, optimized for projector and reflector low-beam housings. Replaced 9006 as low-beam standard around 2005-2010.
- 9005 (HB3) is a single-filament high-beam bulb. Higher wattage, hotter color, designed for reach. It's been a US standard since the 1990s.
When automakers split the headlight into separate low and high beam bulbs (vs. dual-filament types like H4 or 9007), this is the pair they settled on.
What you'll find with this combo: - Most Toyota cars 2010+ (Camry, Corolla, RAV4, Highlander) - Most Honda 2010+ (Civic, Accord, CR-V, Pilot) - Most Ford 2010+ (F-150, Escape, Explorer) - Most Chevy / GMC mid-size (Silverado 1500 SR/SR5, Sierra 1500 base) - Most Hyundai / Kia 2010+ - Subaru Outback, Forester, Crosstrek (most years)
One catch: newer trims of these models often switch to factory LED. Always verify your year + trim before buying.
All Halogen Bulb Sizes by Frequency (Our 99-Vehicle Halogen Sample)
| Combo | % of halogen fitments | Typical vehicles |
|---|---|---|
| H11 low + 9005 high | 55.6% | Modern US sedans, SUVs, trucks |
| 9005 single (dual beam) | 11.1% | Some Chevy / older trucks |
| 9006 low + 9005 high | 5.1% | Pre-2010 vehicles |
| 9012 / HIR2 single | 5.1% | Toyota Tacoma, Tundra (some), Acura |
| H11 single (dual beam) | 5.1% | A few SUVs |
| H13 / 9008 single | 4.0% | Jeep Wrangler JK, some Ford |
| H4 / 9003 single | 4.0% | Older imports, Toyota Tundra SR, Honda CR-V |
| H7 single | 3.0% | Mazda, some European imports |
| H7 low + 9005 high | 3.0% | Older Mazda, some Subaru |
| H11 low + H7 high | 2.0% | Some Mazda |
A Brief Era Timeline
The plug-type your car uses is a clue to its era. Here's the rough timeline of US halogen evolution:
| Era | Dominant plug | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Pre-1985 | Sealed beam | One-piece glass + filament unit, no replaceable bulb |
| 1985 – mid 90s | 9004 / HB1 | First dual-filament replaceable bulb |
| 1991 – mid 2000s | 9007 / HB5 | Ford and GM dual-filament workhorse |
| 1990s – 2000s | H4 / 9003 | Toyota / Honda imports, older trucks (Tacoma 1st gen, Honda CR-V, Toyota Tundra SR) |
| 1990s – present | 9005 / 9006 | Split high/low beam, still in use today |
| 1999 – present | H11 | The current dominant low beam in US cars |
| 2010 – present | 9012 / HIR2 | Premium halogen for Toyota, Acura, RAM (brighter, longer-lived) |
| 2010 – present | Factory LED | High-end trims (no replaceable bulb — projector retrofit only) |
| 2018 – present | Laser / matrix | High-end European factory headlights |
If your car was built before 2005, expect 9004, 9007, H4, 9006 + 9005, or sealed beam. If it's 2005 or newer halogen, H11 + 9005 is the safe bet until proven otherwise.
Less Common Sizes Still in Active Use
These show up in smaller numbers, but you'll still run into them:
- H4 (9003) — Older Toyota and Honda imports, current Toyota Tundra SR/SR5 base trim, Honda CR-V 2007-2014, JDM imports (Sienta, Vanguard).
- H7 — European imports (Mazda CX-5, some VW / BMW / Audi base trims).
- H13 / 9008 — Jeep Wrangler JK (2007–2018), some Ford pre-2018.
- H1, H3 — Projector low-beams and fog lights. Still common in the fog-light socket on many trucks.
- 9012 / HIR2 — Toyota Tacoma 2016+, Tundra Limited+ trim, some RAM 1500, some Acura — premium halogen with output close to early HID.
What's Not Halogen (And Therefore Not LED-Bulb Replaceable)
Two categories you can't swap with a direct LED bulb:
-
Factory HID (D2S / D3S / D4S / D5S) — Premium 2000s–2010s vehicles. Designed for ballasts and arc tubes, can't be swapped with LED bulbs without retrofit work.
-
Factory LED — Most modern premium trims (2018+ luxury, many Toyota / Honda top trims). The "bulb" is a fixed module in the housing. The only swap is a full projector retrofit — like our Vista Bi-LED projector for H4-housing vehicles, or a housing replacement.
About 9% of our fitment database is HID and 2.5% is factory LED — non-trivial, but the halogen majority is where 88% of the LED-upgrade market lives.
How to Find Your Car's Bulb Size
Three ways:
- Owner's manual — usually has a "Specifications" or "Maintenance" section with bulb part numbers. Most reliable.
- Look at the bulb itself — pull the dust cap off the back of the headlight, twist the bulb out, read the size off the base. Numbers like "H11", "9005", "H4" are stamped on the metal connector.
- Use our Find My Bulb tool — pick year, make, model, and we'll show you exactly which bulbs your vehicle uses for low beam, high beam, and fog. Zero guessing.
The Bundle Argument
If you've confirmed your car uses H11 low + 9005 high, you're in the 55.6% majority. Buying both bulbs together makes sense:
- One consistent color temperature — both bulbs match (we've seen people upgrade just the low and end up with mismatched-looking headlights)
- Bundle pricing — when you bundle two pairs together at checkout, you save 5%
- Same install session — pop the dust caps once, swap both, done
Driveon's two LED series cover this combo:
- Coast — 23W per bulb, $29.89 per pair. The plug-and-play upgrade for older halogen cars and budget-friendly daily drivers.
- Summit — 50W per bulb, $64.99 per pair, with built-in CANBUS decoder. For 2019+ trucks and modern vehicles that throw "bulb out" warnings.
Both fit the H11 low + 9005 high combo. Pair them with our 5%-off automatic bundle discount.
TL;DR
If your car was built in the last 15 years and is halogen-equipped, bet on H11 + 9005. It's the single most common combo across modern US cars by a wide margin. If you're not sure, the Find My Bulb tool will tell you in under a minute.
Drive on with confidence.