Rising Material and Labor Costs to Lift 1Q26 UV LED Prices by 5% QoQ

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TrendForce’s latest analysis of the UV LED market reveals that increasing precious metal prices, rising raw material costs, and growing labor expenses are providing price support for UV LEDs in the first quarter of 2026. In particular, customized products are expected to see quarter-on-quarter price gains of up to 5%.

Amid steady growth in global UV curing and sterilization applications, TrendForce forecasts that the UV LED market will expand to approximately US$215 million in 2026, representing annual growth of at least 10%.

Across applications for UV LED, demand from UV curing, tanning, solar simulators, medical, and life science segments continues to grow steadily. This trend has prompted manufacturers such as HPLighting, Seoul Viosys, Violumas, and UVT to expand into customized designs and integrated optical solutions. By offering customized services, suppliers can maintain both order revenue and pricing momentum for UV-A LEDs.

UV-C LED, primarily used for sterilization and purification, has seen a rise in optical power, driving a shift from consumer appliance applications toward customized industrial and commercial projects—particularly in surface sterilization and flowing water disinfection systems. As a result, most suppliers have been able to sustain product pricing.

TrendForce’s survey indicates that manufacturers capable of supplying more than 100 mW UV-C LED single-chip packages in 2026 include ams OSRAM, Nichia, Violumas, NKFG, UVT, and LITEON.

Single-chip packages offer several advantages, including smaller form factors, improved current spreading, higher radiation uniformity, and lower heat dissipation costs. End customers are increasingly favoring single-chip solutions as UV-C LED prices gradually decline.

Currently, products from ams OSRAM and Nichia have been successfully deployed in industrial and commercial flowing water sterilization projects. This positions UV-C LEDs as viable alternatives to traditional mercury lamps, whose costs continue to rise due to material constraints. ams OSRAM is expected to launch a 200mW UV-C LED product in 4Q26 to further meet market demand.

TrendForce concludes that ongoing technological improvements will gradually accelerate the replacement of mercury lamps by UV LEDs. Applications in flowing water disinfection and large-scale surface sterilization are expected to gain further momentum in the upcoming years.