Free home tool
How many lumens does a room need?
Rooms feel wrong long before you can say why. Usually it's the light — too little, or all from one place.
Total light
4,000 lm
800-lumen bulbs
5
Layers
ambient + accent + task
Now make it happen
Every room has a target brightness. Living rooms and bedrooms are happiest low — around 15 to 20 lumens per square foot — while kitchens and offices need two to three times that on the surfaces where you actually work. Bathrooms need the most, especially at the mirror.
Brightness is only half of it. The rooms that feel finished are layered: soft ambient light from above, accent light that makes shelves and art glow, and task light exactly where you read, chop or type. The calculator tells you the total, and the layers tell you where to put it.
Questions people ask
How many lumens do I need for a living room?+
About 20 lumens per square foot — roughly 4,000 lumens for a 200 sq ft living room, spread across ambient, accent and task lights.
How bright should a home office be?+
Plan around 45 lumens per square foot, with a dedicated desk lamp for task light so the screen isn't the brightest thing in the room.
How many lumens is a 60-watt bulb?+
A traditional 60-watt bulb is about 800 lumens, which is why the calculator counts in 800-lumen bulbs.