How Much Light Do You Need In A Room?

You’ve probably never thought about this. Lights are just there, doing what they do. You turn them on, and then, eventually, you turn them off. You’ve never thought about what goes on backstage. But now, starting your home renovation or upgrade, you’re forced to think about lighting logistics, including how much light you actually need in your living rooms, bedrooms and bathrooms. How much light do you need to make everything visible, but not dazzlingly visible, and definitely not too dim, all while remaining energy efficient and cost-effective? 

It all seems to be rather tricky, we know, but it’s not. Follow our quick guide below to find out how to cost-effective calculate your room’s lighting requirements, so you can get your lighting scheme spot on, with zero fuss. Let’s go!

How To Calculate The Amount Of Light You Need 

1. Work Out The Square Footage Of Your Space

Put simply, the size of your room determines how much light it requires. So, the first step is to measure your room, establishing both its length and width. Then you need to multiply these figures together, which will tell you the square footage. For example, if your living space is 8 metres wide and 8 metres long, you’ll multiply 8 by 8 and end up with a square footage total of 64. 

2. Determine The Amount Of Foot-candles 

Different rooms within your home will have different lighting needs, depending on the activity that goes on inside them. Whether you’re using the space in question for tasks that require optimum visibility (studying, painting etc.), or for relaxation, where minimal lighting is preferred, you can gauge how bright a space should ideally be by using a unit called a foot-candle. A foot-candle is defined by the number of lumens cast across one square foot. A larger number of foot-candles indicates a higher light intensity, and a smaller number indicates a lower light intensity. 

Here we’ve suggested the approximate light intensity ranges (amount of foot-candles) necessary for your main living spaces:

• Living Room: 10-20 

• Kitchen (general area): 30-40

• Kitchen (above sink/stove):70-80

• Dining Room: 30-40

• Bedroom: 10-20

• Hallway: 5-10

• Bathroom: 70-80

3. Figure Out How Many Lumens You’ll Need To Light Your Space

Now you have to calculate the amount of lumens you’ll need. Lumens are the amount of light emitted per second by a light source, and it is this detail, among others, that marks a distinction between light bulbs. To establish which light bulb you need to power your light sources, you have to determine how many lumens you require. 

To establish this, multiply the square footage of the room (e.g. 64) by the number of foot-candles required for the space (e.g. 10-20, if you’re lighting up a living room). To continue our example, 64 square foot x 10-20 foot-candles equals 640 - 1280 lumens. So, in this case, you would need to find a light bulb within the range of 640 - 1280 to power your light source.

4. Choose The Best Fixtures And Bulbs For Your Room’s Lighting Requirements 

Now, there are few ways you can go about meeting a room’s lumens target. The first is to stock up on your light sources, and spread the responsibility among them, or choose light sources that host numerous bulbs, like chandeliers or sputnik ceiling lights. Alternatively, you can use just one or two fixtures, and power them with brighter bulbs. We’d argue that the first option is better, because super bright light bulbs can be harmful to the eyes. Also, having more fixtures as opposed to less allows you to play around with the ambience and aesthetic of a room, and to incorporate both mood and task lighting within one space. Ultimately, though, the decision is yours. Consider what you get up to in the respective space, how often you’re in there, and what kind of look you wish to create — only then will you have your answer. 

Charcoal grey sputnik flush ceiling light

Use A Dimmer Switch To Adjust Lighting Accordingly 

There are other solutions, though. Light intensity can be adjusted, regardless of a bulb’s quantity of lumens. Luckily, some bright spark invented dimmer switches, which means you can control the level of light a source emits (providing the lighting source and its bulb are capable of being dimmed!). You’ll need to check that. This feature would make your lighting scheme much more flexible — and perhaps less dependent on the conclusions brought by all the measurements you’ve made above. 

What Kind Of Lighting Can Provide The Right Amount Of Light?

As we’ve mentioned, it’s best to spread lighting responsibility across fixtures, so this means you’ll need more than just a ceiling light in your living spaces. Instead, opt for multiple ceiling lights, like a series of pendants along the hallway ceiling, or, even better, a whole team of ceiling lights, wall lights, table lamps and floor lamps, dotted around the room. 

We’ve waxed lyrical about layered lighting schemes here, and consistently throughout our blog posts, as it’s the only way to go! Not only will an investment in numerous lighting fixtures provide you with the correct amount of light for your room’s requirements, it’ll also ensure you have all types of lighting for different activities, too. 

To gather some ideas for your lighting dream team, take a look at our collections on houseof.com. We’ve an extensive variety of all kinds of lighting, available in a range of colours and materials, ready and waiting to make your home shine.