2025 Ford Explorer Headlight Bulb Size
The 2025 Ford Explorer comes with factory LED headlights (not bulb-replaceable) on equipped trims.
Key takeaways
- Low beam: LED. High beam: 9005.
- This trim has factory LED headlights - the low beam is not a replaceable bulb.
- Fog, signal, and reverse bulbs use different sizes - check each before buying.
- Front turn signal
- 3157
- Brake / tail
- LED
- Rear turn signal
- 7443
- Reverse / backup
- 7443
- License plate
- 168
Low beam and brake/tail are factory LED (non-replaceable) across trims. High beam is 9005 halogen on some trims (LED on higher trims). Reverse, rear/front turn and license remain replaceable bulbs. Fog not confirmed (many trims omit fog), left null. Bulb sizes can vary by trim and headlight type, so confirm against your existing bulb.
Headlights for the 2025 Ford Explorer
This vehicle uses factory LED headlights on equipped trims. If one fails, the part is a headlight assembly, not a bulb, so it is usually a dealer or body-shop job rather than a DIY swap.
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There is no bulb to replace on this one
What to buy
This vehicle uses separate bulbs for low and high beam: 9005 for the high beam. They are different parts, so check which one has actually failed before buying. Replace them in pairs regardless. Bulbs from the same batch age at the same rate, so when one goes the other is usually close behind, and a fresh bulb beside a tired one is visibly brighter and unevenly aimed. Doing both at once costs a few dollars more and saves doing the job twice.
| Bulb | Covers | Type | Buy |
|---|---|---|---|
| 9005 | high beam | Halogen | a pair |
Factory LED is where the industry went: it was 0% of the 2000s vehicles we hold specs for and it is 59% of the 2025-and-newer ones. Longer life is the upside; the tradeoff is that a failure is no longer a cheap bulb.
Every bulb on this vehicle
Headlights get the attention, but the small bulbs are what fail an inspection. A burnt-out brake or turn bulb is also the cheapest ticket you will ever get, and most of these are a few dollars and a twist to change.
| Position | Bulb | Type |
|---|---|---|
| Low beam (headlight) | LED | LED |
| High beam | 9005 | Halogen |
| Front turn signal | 3157 | Miniature |
| Brake / tail | LED | LED |
| Rear turn signal | 7443 | Miniature |
| Reverse / backup | 7443 | Miniature |
| License plate | 168 | Miniature |
Low beam and brake/tail are factory LED (non-replaceable) across trims. High beam is 9005 halogen on some trims (LED on higher trims). Reverse, rear/front turn and license remain replaceable bulbs. Fog not confirmed (many trims omit fog), left null.
6th gen (RWD CD6 platform); factory LED low beam standard across trims
Why this keeps getting harder
Headlight bulbs used to be a commodity: a handful of codes covered most cars and any of them cost a few dollars. That is ending. Across the vehicles we hold specs for, factory LED low beams went from 0% of 2000s cars to 59% of 2025-and-newer ones. LEDs last far longer, which is the upside and a real one. The tradeoff is that when they do fail, it is often not a bulb you can buy at all, and the fix moves from a $20 part to a headlight assembly.
- The full LED adoption study - how fast the fleet switched, measured across our own data.
- Halogen vs LED vs HID - what actually differs, beyond the marketing.
- The most common headlight bulb types
Frequently asked
What headlight bulb does a 2025 Ford Explorer take?
It uses a LED low-beam bulb and a 9005 high-beam bulb.
Can you replace the headlight bulb on a 2025 Ford Explorer?
Before you shop: the 2025 Ford Explorer has factory LED low beams, and on this vehicle they are not a replaceable bulb. The LEDs are built into the headlight assembly, so there is no part number to buy and no bulb to swap. If a low beam has failed, the fix is a new headlight assembly, which is an order of magnitude more expensive than a bulb and worth getting a diagnosis on first - LED headlights usually fail at the driver or a connector rather than at the diodes themselves, and that is often repairable.
See where this ranks in our study of the most common headlight bulb types in the US.