How Many Watts Are Needed to Light a Room?

Are you redecorating your office or renovating your home and want perfect lighting in every room? We've been through it too and we know well all the advantages of a well-lit environment! It helps you avoid vision problems, can increase productivity by up to 19% and can make every activity more enjoyable! So here's the question that probably came to your mind: How much light do I need to perfectly illuminate a room? If you've ever wondered that, I'd say you've landed on the right article because in a few minutes you'll understand exactly how much light (and therefore the number of bulbs) you need to illuminate your room! Let's start by clarifying a bit on the subject. To understand how many bulbs you need to properly illuminate a space, you need to know a couple of "technical" terms:

• LUMEN. The lumen (symbol: lm) is the unit of measure for luminous flux. In practice, it's the number indicated on the box of the bulb you buy.
• LUX. The lux (symbol: lx) is the unit of measure for illuminance. One lux is equivalent to one lumen per square meter. So we could define lux as the luminous flux per unit of surface (standard UNI EN 12464-1).

If you have doubts, don't worry, we'll resolve them quickly now. There are reference tables that indicate Lux ranges relative to each environment: they allow you to immediately understand the amount of light needed to achieve a perfectly lit room, ideal for your needs.  

Environment	Recommended Lux
Corridor	50-150 Lux
Reading area	200-500 Lux
Writing area / Office	300-750 Lux
Relaxation area	100-200 Lux
Kitchen	200-500 Lux
Bathroom (general)	50-150 Lux
Bathroom mirror area	200-500 Lux
Bedroom	100-200 Lux
Laundry room	500-850 Lux

  An example will clear up any doubts!

• Imagine you have a living room of 20 sqm.
• For the living room, 200 lux are recommended.
• The bulb you have emits 800 lm (the number you read on the box).

Great, here's the calculation to find the LUMEN needed in your living room:

• LUMEN = 200 Lux x 20 sqm = 4,000 lm

  Now let's find the number of bulbs needed to achieve a luminous flux of 4,000 lumens:

• Number of bulbs = 4,000 (lumens needed for your space) / 800 (lumens of one bulb) = 5

  To illuminate your living room you should purchase 5 bulbs in total.   Certainly, the calculation we just did is simple, clear, and direct. However, it remains an approximation intended to give you a reference number in case of need. Every home and individual space has unique characteristics linked to various factors such as the distance of the bulb from the floor, the color of the walls, the arrangement of the bulbs, the room layout, etc.... that's why we recommend consulting an interior designer to find the perfect solution for your environment. Now, however, you know exactly where to start! Remember, a large part of your lighting depends on the light source, so choose your bulbs carefully for your home or office!

---

Useful links:

• Discover the best of CENTURY lighting
• Find the nearest retailer 
• Browse the new 2024 catalogs
• Request our free support