Maglite
Last checked: Oct 23, 2026
The full answer: Is Maglite Made in USA?Verification Summary
American Score
Manufacturing Location
Ontario, CA
Headquarters
Ontario, CA
Founded
1979
Products Verified
14 products
Evidence Breakdown
Factory Location Specificity
Specific factory city identified
Website Claim
The brand's website says it makes its products in the USA
Manufacturing History
Long record of US manufacturing
Known Overseas Production
No imported lines on record
Verification Notes
All flashlights machined and assembled in Ontario, CA since 1979. Strong Made in USA claim across entire product line.
Brand evidence is re-checked on a rolling cycle
Quick Picks
Manufacturing Profile
Maglite manufactures at its factory in Ontario, CA. Founded in 1979, 47 years ago. The 14 Maglite listings here span 3 categories: electronics, tools & hardware, and sports & outdoors.
Verification tier
99% average
Very High: strong brand evidence plus city-level origin statements for the products
Factory evidence
Specific city
Ontario, CA
Catalog breadth
14 products
3 categories
How we verified Maglite
Most recent check: Oct 23, 2026
From the brand's website
“…to product quality, and to the cause of keeping flashlight-industry manufacturing jobs in America.”
maglite.com · checked Oct 10, 2026
Independent source
“And they're made in Ontario, Calif., by Mag Instrument Inc.”
kpbs.org · checked Oct 16, 2026
Store listings
We read the live store listing for 14 of the 14 Maglite products on this page (most recently Oct 23, 2026). 9 of them state US origin on the listing itself:
- “Made in the USA” on Maglite Mini LED 2-Cell AA Flashlight
- “made in America” on Maglite S4D015 Heavy-Duty Incandescent 4-Cell D Flashlight
- “made in the USA” on Maglite ML300L 4-Cell D LED Flashlight 1002 Lumens
Ongoing monitoring
We scan news for factory closures, offshoring and ownership changes. Last scan Oct 16, 2026: no change found.
These checks are run by our software on a schedule: brand websites are re-read about every three weeks, store listings weekly, and news is scanned monthly. Every flag is checked against its original source before anything on this page changes. How the American Score works.
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Maglite was founded in 1979 and makes the products listed here in Ontario, CA. The site lists 14 verified American-made Maglite products.
Ontario, California since 1982
Anthony Maglica came to the United States in 1950 and founded Mag Instrument in 1955. The Maglite flashlight followed in 1979, aimed first at police and other public safety users.
The company has been headquartered in Ontario, California since 1982. It employs several hundred people there across more than 700,000 square feet of factory, office and distribution space. KPBS reported the same Ontario production in 2010.
What "Built In America" means on a Maglite
Maglite explains its own claim in unusual detail. Its flashlights are designed, engineered and assembled in Ontario, in a factory "where all of the body parts and most of the other parts are made." That applies to the full-size D-cell and C-cell lights such as the ML300L and ML50L, the Mini Maglite and the Solitaire.
The company also says "Built In America" does not mean that "no part, component, or accessory of one of our flashlights is ever imported." It notes foreign content on the package label. The ML300L page, for example, reads "Designed and manufactured in the USA with some imported components." The aluminum body is Californian. For the exact parts list on a given model, read its package.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Maglite made in the USA?
Yes, for the 14 products listed here. Maglite manufactures in Ontario, CA. Mag Instrument assembles Maglite flashlights at its only factory, in Ontario, California, where it makes all the body parts and most other parts. Some components are imported.
Where is Maglite manufactured?
Maglite is headquartered in Ontario, CA. Manufacturing takes place in Ontario, CA.
What Maglite products can I buy?
The site lists 14 Maglite products in Electronics, Tools & Hardware and Sports & Outdoors. Each one links to a store that sells it.
When was Maglite founded?
Maglite was founded in 1979. Mag Instrument assembles Maglite flashlights at its only factory, in Ontario, California, where it makes all the body parts and most other parts. Some components are imported.
Where can I buy Maglite products?
Every Maglite product listed here links to a store that sells it, either a large online retailer or the brand's own shop.