Light Probes vs. Screen Space Reflections in Unity!

Objective: Define key differences and understand when one is used over the other.

Reflection probe will sample the environment and create reflections around you. To create a reflection probe you must right click in the Hierarchy > light > reflection probe.

Place the probe on the edge of your area, for this tutorial we will use a floor.

Select edit and modify it to take the full length of the area you are reflecting on.

The reflection probe will automatically create environment reflections.

These are known as “cheap reflections,” they look good, but not great. Screen space reflections use the post processing stack.

When you properly set the screen space reflections the results are remarkable.

Why would you use reflection probes instead of screen space reflections? Reflection probes are cheap. Being cheap, reflection probes make good reflections. So, if you are making a mobile game and need to conserve data, reflection probes would work wonders. If you are working on pc or console, then you can spend more and will be able to afford the screen space reflection. As I always say, never be afraid to experiment with your program, and I’ll see you in the next tutorial.