Improve Your Home's Lighting, Room by Room

1. Recessed Lighting
Sometimes called "can" lights, these appear flush with the ceiling and provide overall illumination. Today’s LED versions can be tiny and unobtrusive. Some come as a single integrated unit (instead of a housing and a removable bulb). Marty Schmidt of System 7, a home lighting company, says to be sure to choose models with replaceable components in case something breaks. If you don’t already have recessed lights, you’ll need an electrician to install them, at a cost of about $200 or more per fixture.

2. Undercabinet Fixtures
Mounted beneath upper cabinets, they brighten countertop work areas. Choose hardwired or plug-in LED strips, or low-profile LEDs that mount with double-sided tape.

Kitchen
Here you’ll need plenty of overall brightness, accented with focused task lighting on surfaces (counters, cooktop, sink) for the work of meal prep and cleanup. Achieve these lighting layers by using either existing or replacement recessed, flush, semi-flush, or pendant ceiling fixtures, updated with 2,700 or 3,000 Kelvin LED bulbs. Then add undercabinet LED task strips in a Kelvin of 4,000 or above for sharper acuity.

Bathrooms
Provide general illumination with overhead fixtures so that you can see well in the whole room (including inside the shower and above the tub), then add extra lighting at the vanity for grooming. A pair of frosted glass sconces on either side of the mirror—or a mirror with a built-in LED "frame"—will do the trick. If you’re calling in an electrician, consider adding LED strip lighting to the toe kick at the base of a sink cabinet to illuminate the floor. If it’s on its own switch, you can just turn on the kick light at night for safety without glare. When choosing bulbs, stick with a Kelvin number of either 3,000 or 2,700. Schmidt says your choice depends on your complexion and what hue you prefer for applying makeup, shaving, and other grooming tasks. For intensity, especially for the mirror surround, you’ll probably want between 1,200 and 1,600 lumens, depending on personal preference.

Hallways and Staircases
Stairs and hallways can be dangerous without adequate illumination, particularly at night. Jennifer Brons of the Light and Health Research Center also says that no one’s eyes adjust quickly from full darkness to bright light, so motion sensor lighting isn’t ideal in this area. Instead, plan lighting that’s ample but not too glaring. Think shaded wall sconces, table lamps, and night lights placed throughout the space.

Living Room/Family Room
There’s a paradox to these areas, Brons says. You want to create ambience—people tend to like warmth without brightness in rooms where they relax—but you also need greater light intensity for tasks like reading. Schmidt recommends tackling this with table and floor lamps that cast light up to ceilings and walls as well as at your lap for reading or hobby work. To create a cozier vibe, try experimenting with Kelvin temperatures as low as 1,800. The lumen count you’ll need will vary because a room with only sconces and table and floor lamps could still be bright enough if each fixture uses higher lumen bulbs, while more light sources enables lowering the lumen production of select fixtures.

Bedrooms
You’re here to sleep. To encourage that, you want bulbs with Kelvin numbers in the range of 1,700 to 1,800, ideally at a relatively dim 600 lumens or so. In a bedside table lamp, that’s enough warm light for bedtime reading at a temperature that encourages rest. Brons says not to sleep with the lights on, either. "Our eyelids are translucent, so they do allow light penetration," she says. If you’re worried about getting out of bed in the middle of the night, it’s better for sleep to have plug-in night lights in the hallway or bath than leaving a bedside lamp switched on.

Editor’s Note: This article also appeared in the January 2024 issue of Consumer Reports magazine.