How much does it cost to install a ceiling light?

The simplest lighting job is swapping an existing ceiling light or pendant for a new fitting. The wiring is already there, so the electrician isolates the circuit, takes down the old fitting, checks the connections, fixes the new one and tests it.

For a standard ceiling light that usually takes 30 minutes to an hour, and most electricians charge £60–£120. Because many have a minimum call-out of £60–£100, it makes sense to do several lights at once. Each extra light on the same visit is often only £30–£60.

Heavier fittings such as chandeliers or large multi-arm lights take longer. They may need a stronger ceiling fixing into a joist or a noggin, and an extra pair of hands to hold the light while it is wired. Expect £100–£250.

Old wiring sometimes turns up surprises. Older rubber-insulated cable, missing earths or scorched connections should be put right before a new fitting goes up, and an electrician may suggest further checks.

Downlights are priced per light because each one needs a hole cut, a connection made and a fitting installed.

Replacing existing halogen downlights with LED ones in the same holes is quick, usually £25–£50 per light in labour, and cuts running costs.

Fitting new downlights where there were none is a bigger job. Holes have to be cut, cable run between them, and the electrician needs access above the ceiling, from a loft or by cutting small access holes. Expect £60–£120 per light, so a kitchen with eight downlights might be £500–£950 in labour.

Use fire-rated downlights where the ceiling separates floors or sits below a loft, and make sure loft insulation is kept clear of fittings that need it. A good electrician will choose the right type without being asked.

Whether the wiring exists. Swapping a fitting is quick. Adding a light where there was none means running new cable and often a new switch, with plaster to make good.

Access. Upstairs ceilings with a loft above are easy to run cable through. Ground floor ceilings with a bedroom above may need floorboards lifted.

Ceiling height. High ceilings, stairwells and vaulted rooms need taller ladders or a tower.

The fitting. Simple pendants are quick. Heavy, complicated or flat-pack fittings that need assembling take longer.

Location. Bathroom lights need fittings with the right IP rating for their zone, and outdoor lights need weatherproof fittings and connections.

In England, electrical work in homes is covered by Part P of the Building Regulations. Replacing a light fitting like-for-like, or adding a light to an existing circuit in an ordinary room, is not usually notifiable, though it must still be done safely and to the wiring regulations.

Installing a new circuit, replacing a consumer unit, or adding to or altering a circuit in a bathroom close to the bath or shower is notifiable. That means using an electrician registered with a competent person scheme, who certifies the work and notifies building control for you. Wales and Scotland have their own rules, which are in some respects stricter.

Whatever the job, the electrician should test the circuit afterwards and give you a certificate for anything beyond a simple swap. Ask for it and keep it; it helps when selling the house.

Count the lights and sort them into simple swaps and new positions.

1. Start with £60–£120 for the first simple swap. 2. Add £30–£60 for each further swap on the same visit. 3. Add £60–£120 for each new downlight, or £150–£350 for a new ceiling light with its own switch. 4. For outside, add £100–£250 per light from a nearby supply, more if a new circuit is needed.

Example: replacing three old pendants with new fittings and adding two outdoor wall lights fed from the kitchen circuit. Pendants £120–£240, outdoor lights £200–£500, so roughly £320–£740 plus the fittings.

On BidMyJob you can post the job with photos of each light and the ceiling, and local electricians bid, so you get prices for your actual house.

A wall light on the outside of the house, fed from an indoor circuit close by, is usually £100–£250 fitted. The electrician drills through the wall, runs cable to the fitting and seals the entry point.

Lights further from the house, such as garden lighting, post lights or lights on an outbuilding, need buried armoured cable or cable in conduit, often on their own protected circuit. That can be £300–£600 or more depending on distance and digging.

PIR sensor and dusk-to-dawn lights cost about the same to fit as ordinary outdoor lights. Low-voltage or solar garden lights are cheaper alternatives where you only need decorative lighting.

Group the work. One visit for several lights is far cheaper per light than several separate call-outs.

Buy the fittings yourself, but check with the electrician that they are suitable, such as fire-rated downlights or IP-rated bathroom lights.

Keep new lights where cable can easily reach them, such as under a loft.

Clear the room and have the fittings unboxed and ready.

And if you are already having rewiring or plastering done, add new lights then, before the ceiling is finished.