Room Planning guide
How many lumens do I need for a room?
The amount of light a room needs depends on what you do in it. Lighting guides express that as foot-candles, and because one foot-candle is one lumen per square foot, turning it into a shopping list is one multiplication.
Lumens needed = floor area (sq ft) × target foot-candles
Brightness by room
| Room | Foot-candles | Lumens for 150 sq ft |
|---|---|---|
| Hallway | 5–10 | 750–1,500 |
| Living room | 10–20 | 1,500–3,000 |
| Bedroom | 10–20 | 1,500–3,000 |
| Kitchen (general) | 30–40 | 4,500–6,000 |
| Kitchen work areas | 70–80 | 10,500–12,000 |
| Bathroom | 70–80 | 10,500–12,000 |
From lumens to bulbs
Divide the lumens needed by the lumens on each bulb or fixture and round up. A 14 × 12 ft living room at 20 foot-candles needs 3,360 lumens; with 800-lumen bulbs that is 4.2, so five bulbs.
Layer the light
- Ambient: overall light, the number this calculation gives.
- Task: brighter light where you work, such as counters, desks, and vanity mirrors. Calculate those zones separately at a higher level.
- Accent: lower-level light on art or architecture.
What makes a room feel darker
- Dark walls and floors absorb light; light colors reflect it.
- High ceilings put fixtures farther from the surfaces you use.
- Narrow-beam downlights leave dark gaps if they are spaced too far apart.
Use lumens, not watts, to compare bulbs. LED packaging lists lumens on the front.
Reference: The Home Depot: Lumens per square foot