Whether it's movie night or time to work, shine a light on whatever you need.
Whether you're hosting an Oscars watch party or reading solo, ensuring that your living room has the right lighting is crucial for both aesthetics and function. The best living room lighting ideas ensure that the space is visible at all hours of use while also highlighting the very best of the room. From sconces to table lamps up to the ceiling flush mount, light fixture possibilities are versatile. There are plenty of stylish options for every taste and budget.
There are an infinite number of ways to set up a living room lighting scheme: For example, if you host regular game nights, be sure your coffee table is in focus with a pendant directing light right above it. For cozy nights in, opt for dimmable sconces or a table lamp with a heavy linen shade to help diffuse the bulb's brightness. If you ever feel that the space is too loud or boring, make adjustments to your living room lighting ideas before rethinking the paint color.
Unsure of where to start? We've gathered the 20 best living room lighting ideas straight from designer spaces to spark your inspiration. These ideas, beginning with focused picture lights on built-in bookcases and ending with a customizable movie-night solution, are sure to solve any living room lighting woes. Read on for our favorite living room lighting ideas.
If you'd prefer to highlight certain areas of your living room, like a piece of art or your bookshelves, opt for picture sconces instead of an overhead fixture. In this living room lighting idea, the design firm Kemble Interiors chose to direct the light toward the built-ins and book spines, casting a softer glow across the rest of the living room.
In Toronto, designer Allison Willson added drama to a neutral living room with a tree-branch-like chandelier. “The concept was laidback living, inspired by the great outdoors,” Willson says. The fixture adds a rustic air to the family space, tying the indoors to the wooded setting outdoors.
In this den designed by Cecilia Casagrande, a sole pendant helps to illuminate this corner. Rather than a plain electric cord running to the fixture, a tactile tassel helps to elevate the piece.
When adding another color to your living room's palette, use it in multiple places to keep the cohesion. Here, designer Colleen Simonds chose a cheerful chartreuse for not only the lampshades but the artwork and throw pillows as well.
For this Chicago home by Wendy Labrum, textured walls add softness to a subdued palette. “We needed a neutral color to unify it, but that can feel a bit blank. Plaster makes it more layered and nuanced and finished,” she says. To continue the effect, she chose a ceiling light fixture with similar tactility to illuminate the room.
If minimalism is more your speed, stick to the bare bones of living room lighting ideas with tonal fixtures like Jeremiah Brent did here. A subtle wall sconce blends in with the white paint, while the paper lantern adds a natural texture to the alpine-inspired space.
A fixed sconce or ceiling light only casts light in the direction they've been pointed toward. For a more well-rounded illumination, take inspiration from designer Chenault James and choose a lamp with multiple shades, arms, and bulbs to ensure there's a path of light right where you need it.
Having multiple, smaller lighting options in one room can help to cast a more even glow across the space. Here, Colleen Simonds uses the same bronze finish to help bring cohesion to the living room.
Mixing metal finishes may be a fashion faux pas, but in interior design, it's highly encouraged. Here, design firm Kobel + Co combines iron chandeliers and bronze floor lamps for a dynamic living room.
Whether you're the first to wake up or the last to go to bed, ensuring your loved one can still sleep soundly is crucial when turning on the lights. Rather than overhead or whole-room fixtures, focus your lighting in an intimate way. Super directional lamps and sconces help to keep light only where you need it.
A sunroom rarely needs additional light thanks to the traditional walls of windows, but when night rolls around, the fun shouldn't stop. In this living room lighting idea by designer Sarah Vaile, evenly spaced sconces, paired with a ceiling fixture, ensure even lighting around the entire space.
Sometimes, the coziest lighting is candlelight. But because it's a bit unpredictable, pairing candlesticks with a dimmable table lamp can help cast a more sustainable glow.
In this Vermont living room, designer Jeremiah Brent made an open layout feel cozier by placing a floor lamp at each of the room's four corners. This also helps to separate the area from the rest of the former schoolhouse's ground floor areas.
In this Seattle Tudor by Allison Lind, the decor embraces the building's 1920s roots. Even the living room lighting, a pair of Art Deco flush-mounts, pay homage to the property's original details.
Ultra-tall ceilings can be difficult to fill with the right living room lighting ideas. Take inspiration from Serena Dugan and hang multiple to help it feel intentional. The woven fixtures tie in the room's other natural textures.
Lampshades don't have to be boring. Spruce up your living room lighting with an inventive topper, like this fringed and scalloped lampshade. Fort Design Studio used a velvet textile to add more texture.
In this Palmer Weiss–designed living room, ceiling fixtures, sconces, and table lamps all work in tandem to ensure a well-lit space. To add visual interest, each of the units incorporates a different color and texture, complementing the various parts of the room they light.
In an Emilie Munroe–designed San Francisco home, a pair of midcentury sconces help accentuate the symmetry of the space. This living room lighting idea can also calm the eye and create a more restful room.
In a maximalist room, it's important to pick a focal point. In this living room, designed by Charlotte Lucas, the upholstered pink chairs are the star. To ensure nothing takes away from the dramatic space, sleek flush mounts were chosen for the ceiling lighting.
Each person has a different light-level preference when it comes time for movie night. To avoid any squabbling, install plug-in sconces with their own switches at each seat, as designer Alex Reid did in this Bellport, New York, family home.
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