73 Marvelous Kitchen Lighting Ideas | Find Your Personal Lighting Style

KITCHEN LIGHTING IDEAS – Lighting is a great decorative accent, but in the kitchen, it’s especially important to get the lighting balance right for your safety and comfort. Here’s a quick overview of kitchen lighting types.

Contents

• 1 Basic Types of Kitchen Lighting Ideas
  • 1.1 General Lighting – Kitchen Lighting Ideas
  • 1.2 Natural Lighting – Kitchen Lighting Ideas
  • 1.3 Task Lighting – Kitchen Lighting Ideas
  • 1.4 Under-Cabinet Lighting – Kitchen Lighting Ideas
  • 1.5 Accent Lighting – Kitchen Lighting Ideas
• 2 10 Ideas for Kitchen Ceiling Lights
  • 2.1 Kitchen Pendant Lights
  • 2.2 Kitchen Island Lighting
  • 2.3 Exposed Wires
  • 2.4 Hanging Edison Bulbs
  • 2.5 Industrial Loft
  • 2.6 Large Pendant Lights
  • 2.7 Reclaimed Lights
  • 2.8 Light over the Kitchen Sink
  • 2.9 Simple Ceiling Light
  • 2.10 Vintage Ceiling Lights
• 3 7 Ideas for Kitchen Spotlights
  • 3.1 Bright Country Kitchen
  • 3.2 Luxury Kitchen Downlights
  • 3.3 Exposed Beams and Spotlights
  • 3.4 Downlights in a Galley Kitchen
  • 3.5 Downlights and Chandeliers
  • 3.6 Framing the Kitchen Island
• 4 9 Kitchen Chandelier Ideas – Kitchen Lighting Ideas
  • 4.1 Bring the Outdoors In
  • 4.2 Silver Chandeliers
  • 4.3 Shabby Chic Chandelier
  • 4.4 Edison Bulb Chandelier
  • 4.5 Brass Chandeliers
  • 4.6 Capiz Chandelier
  • 4.7 Gold Chandeliers
  • 4.8 Glam Kitchen Chandeliers
  • 4.9 Mason Jar Chandelier
• 5 Kitchen Worktop Lighting – Kitchen Lighting Ideas
  • 5.1 Lighting Under Kitchen Worktop
  • 5.2 Under Cabinet Kitchen Lighting
  • 5.3 Bright Under Cabinet Lighting
  • 5.4 Cabinets with LED Lighting
  • 5.5 Large Desk Lamp
  • 5.6 Lighting in Cabinets
  • 5.7 Lamps and Open Shelving
• 6 Trendy Kitchen Lighting Ideas to Try
  • 6.1 Basket Textures – Kitchen Lighting Ideas
  • 6.2 Creative Lighting Design – Kitchen Lighting Ideas
  • 6.3 Minimalist Lighting – Kitchen Lighting Ideas
  • 6.4 Mixed Up Fixtures – Kitchen Lighting Ideas
  • 6.5 Elegant Fixtures – Kitchen Lighting Ideas
  • 6.6 Hang Pendants Low – Kitchen Lighting Ideas
  • 6.7 Warm Metal Finishes – Kitchen Lighting Ideas
  • 6.8 Color Behind Glass Doors – Kitchen Lighting Ideas
  • 6.9 Industrial Lighting Design – Kitchen Lighting Ideas
  • 6.10 Architectural Lighting – Kitchen Lighting Ideas
  • 6.11 Vintage Light Fixtures – Kitchen Lighting Ideas
• 7 Awesome Kitchen Lighting Ideas
  • 7.1 White Kitchen with Lamps
  • 7.2 Orbit Pendant from CLC Lighting Design over Kitchcen Island
  • 7.3 Gorgeous Lighting Under Wood Ceiling Beams
  • 7.4 Modern White Kitchen with Global Penants
  • 7.5 White Kitchen with Good Light
  • 7.6 Modern Steel Chisholm Hall Lights over a Kitchen
  • 7.7 Copper Pendant Lights over the Kitchen Island
  • 7.8 Traditional Kitchen with Industrial Chic Lights
  • 7.9 Modern White Kitchen with Wooden Pendants
  • 7.10 Pendant Light For Kitchen
  • 7.11 Orleans Pendant for Kitchen Inspired by Sleek Industrial Lighting of a Parisian Brasserie
  • 7.12 Glass Hanging Lamps for Kitchen Decorating
  • 7.13 Stunning Lantern Style Kitchen Pendant Lighting Over Island
  • 7.14 Modern White and Gray Kitchen with Lanterns
  • 7.15 Share this:
  • 7.16 Related

Basic Types of Kitchen Lighting Ideas

Here are the basic types of kitchen lighting ideas:

General Lighting – Kitchen Lighting Ideas

General lighting provides overall illumination to a space. Use decorative ceiling fixtures supplemented by recessed lights for style and even light.

Natural Lighting – Kitchen Lighting Ideas

Windows are a healthy and energy-efficient way to add light to your kitchen. Traditionally, there is a window located above the sink.

Task Lighting – Kitchen Lighting Ideas

Directional downlighting illuminates your work surface to make your time in the kitchen safer and easier on your eyes.

Under-Cabinet Lighting – Kitchen Lighting Ideas

The counterspace under upper cabinets is often dim without the addition of under-cabinet fixture. There are a variety of hard-wired, plug-in, and battery-operated options available.

Accent Lighting – Kitchen Lighting Ideas

Use accent lighting to highlight collections and artwork in your kitchen.

10 Ideas for Kitchen Ceiling Lights

Kitchen Pendant Lights

This simple lighting arrangement will work in any type of kitchen. These black pendant lights work perfectly in this farmhouse kitchen, but they would also look great in a modern or traditional kitchen. With three pendants, it’s important to hire a professional to install your ceiling lights. After all, you want to make sure the kitchen lights are spaced evenly and hung at the same height.

Kitchen Island Lighting

If you’re lucky enough to have enough space for a kitchen island, you’ll want to accent it with ceiling lights. These hanging lights have a bit of an industrial vibe to them but look great in this modern kitchen. We love the contrast between the black lights and splashback and the white cabinets and worktops.

Exposed Wires

This is a pretty trendy kitchen lighting idea, but it’s not overly expensive. That means that you can install it in your home now and then update it when the trends change. This kitchen features light bulbs hanging from cords wrapped around a brass pole. This industrial look is the perfect way to add a personal touch to your flat if you can’t install a whole new light fixture.

Hanging Edison Bulbs

To add a vintage touch to your modern kitchen, we recommend installing hanging Edison bulbs above your island. You can even drape them around a brass pole like the previous idea to create a more intricate focal point. These Edison bulbs are spaced perfectly above the island and allow for a clear sight line throughout the space. The great thing about exposed Edison bulbs is the fact that they won’t impede your field of vision.

Industrial Loft

This beautiful industrial loft features fourteen Edison bulbs at two different height levels. This means that people using the ladder to access the bar as well as people at ground level will both have ample lighting. To ensure your safety, it’s best to hire a professional if you want to achieve a similar effect in your kitchen.

Large Pendant Lights

The large pendant lights made of steel, along with the high-end appliances, make this kitchen feel like a professional kitchen. These heavy metal pendant would need to be installed by a professional given their weight and risk of falling on your family members. If you’re searching for an industrial and professional look, though, these lights are perfect for you!

Reclaimed Lights

If you want to bring the farm into your vintage farmhouse kitchen, we recommend looking for reclaimed pieces that can be transformed into lights. You can scout out pieces at charity shops or flea markets and then use a bit of creativity and your DIY skills to fashion them into lights. If you need some help with the DIY portion, you can hire a professional handyman to help out.

Light over the Kitchen Sink

While you may think that a window will provide enough light for your dishwashing, you’ll likely find yourself needing a bit more brightness. For this reason, it’s smart to install a ceiling light over your sink. This kitchen features traditional ceiling lights, with two large lights over the island and a smaller one over the sink. It’s smart to keep the design of the lights in your kitchen the same in order to ensure cohesion throughout the room.

Simple Ceiling Light

If you’re not ready to splash out for an extravagant light fixture or fancy chandelier, worry not! You can find many budget-friendly options that provide plenty of light to your kitchen. The light fixture pictured features four bulbs pointing in different directions, making sure that the light covers the whole room. This light is modern enough to update a kitchen, but not too modern that it would look out of place in a simple kitchen.

Vintage Ceiling Lights

This traditional kitchen features white cabinets and worktops, as well as a white brick splashback throughout the kitchen. The lightness of the kitchen is contrasted by the dark wood island and vintage ceiling lights. These lights look like they were taken directly from a castle or medieval town! We love the way the vintage lights look with the shaker-style cabinets and the clean lines of the range hood.

7 Ideas for Kitchen Spotlights

Bright Country Kitchen

Unlike many kitchens on this list, this bright country kitchen does not feature a main light fixture. Instead, the kitchen is lit with a series of downlights around the perimeter of the room. Since the kitchen is relatively small, the downlights do a great job at lighting the entire room. If the kitchen were a bit bigger, it would be smart to add a ceiling light or alternative light source to the kitchen.

Luxury Kitchen Downlights

What’s a luxury kitchen without enough light to truly appreciate it? This high-end kitchen is illuminated by downlights along the perimeter of the room and hanging pendant lights over the island. There is also task lighting under the cabinets, providing extra light to the worktop surrounding the cooker.

Exposed Beams and Spotlights

If hanging ceiling lights aren’t your style, we bet you’ll love these kitchen spotlights! This kitchen features modern cabinets and worktops, but the ceilings are accented with exposed beams. The beams provide framing for a series of spotlights, with added lights above the kitchen island. Installing a similar setup in your kitchen would be quite labour intensive, so hiring a professional is a safe choice.

Downlights in a Galley Kitchen

If you have a galley kitchen, you’re no stranger to needing more light. Galley kitchens don’t have much room for hanging pendant lights, but that doesn’t mean that you can’t install ceiling lights! For a well-lit galley kitchen, look no further than recessed downlights. By installing downlights in your kitchen, you’re making sure there’s enough light to go around. This kitchen also features task lighting on the worktops to add a bit more illumination.

Downlights and Chandeliers

Small chandeliers like the ones pictured don’t emit very much light, so you may need to add extra downlights in your kitchen. This contemporary kitchen features high-end appliances, vintage chandeliers, and recessed downlights. We love the waterfall worktop, as well! If you’re happy with your existing light fixture but want to brighten up your kitchen, consider installing downlights!

Framing the Kitchen Island

This large kitchen features a grand kitchen island with a traditional ceiling light above it. On the ceiling, the island is framed by oversized crown moulding to add visual interest to the space. Since the main ceiling light really only sheds light on the island, there is also a ring of downlights surrounding the island. These lights frame the space and provide light to the entire kitchen.

9 Kitchen Chandelier Ideas – Kitchen Lighting Ideas

Bring the Outdoors In

If you love the look of the outdoors and want to incorporate nature into your kitchen, this chandelier idea is perfect for you. This chandelier is made of reclaimed sticks, and could even be a weekend DIY project! We love that it looks like a tree’s roots are growing from the ceiling, and we bet your woodsy home will compliment it perfectly. Given the weight of the project, we recommend hiring a professional to install this chandelier in your kitchen.

Silver Chandeliers

If you’re lucky enough to have two islands in your kitchen, we recommend highlighting each of them with a glamorous chandelier. This kitchen features more storage than the average person needs, two full-sized kitchen islands, and a large professional cooker. The chandeliers, along with worktop lighting and downlights, bring a warm ambience to the high-end kitchen.

Shabby Chic Chandelier

This shabby chic kitchen full of custom cabinetry looks like it built out of vintage furniture! The cabinets are mismatched enough to add visual interest but still cohesive and expensive looking. The room features classic lighting fixtures, including sconces and a chandelier. The brushed metal pieces have translucent fabric shades and are draped with faux jewels, adding to the shabby chic theme of the kitchen.

Edison Bulb Chandelier

This kitchen features a number of popular trends, making it the perfect kitchen for a photographer or any other creative professional. The walls are covered in both a toned down zebra print wallpaper and white shiplap cladding, which don’t clash as much as you’d expect. The kitchen island chairs are lime green, bringing some colour into the room. And finally, the centrepiece of the kitchen is the large Edison bulb chandelier over the island. The chandelier makes the kitchen look more vintage, especially when paired with the painting over the bar sink.

Brass Chandeliers

This simple kitchen is accented by brass fixtures, high-end appliances, and an extra bar sink. The stars of the room, though, are the dual chandeliers over the centre island. The brass chandeliers make the island the focus of the room and provide extra light to an already bright kitchen.

Capiz Chandelier

For a true showstopper of a chandelier, look no further than this tiered piece made from Capiz shells. These shells are mostly harvested from the Capiz region of the Phillippines. They are the shells of windowpane oysters and have been used as an alternative to glass for years. This chandelier is a showstopping piece that is sure to impress your guests and bring light to your kitchen for years to come.

Gold Chandeliers

This kitchen features pastel cabinets, gold hardware, and a butler sink. It also includes gold and glass chandeliers, which look a bit like terrariums for succulent gardens. The chandeliers are hanging from gold chains above the kitchen island and make the island the focal point of the entire room. We love the rustic flooring and wooden beams framing the space, as they bring a lot of rustic charm to the kitchen.

Glam Kitchen Chandeliers

If you’re looking for a glam kitchen that’s perfect for entertaining, look no further! This beautiful kitchen features a concealed refrigerator and dishwasher, as well as a professional range. The room is centred around a contrasting kitchen island with marble countertops. The room is lit by glamorous chandeliers with hanging gems above the kitchen island.

Mason Jar Chandelier

If you’ve ever spent any time on Pinterest, you’re no stranger to mason jar crafts and DIYs. This mason jar chandelier is a relatively simple DIY and would look great in a rustic kitchen. In the photo, the chandelier hangs above a kitchen island made from reclaimed wood, adding to the farmhouse charm of the kitchen. We love the contrast between the rustic island and the white cabinets along the wall of the kitchen.

Kitchen Worktop Lighting – Kitchen Lighting Ideas

Lighting Under Kitchen Worktop

Do you struggle to find what you’re looking for in your cabinets? If you do, why not install lighting underneath your worktops? Having extra light will help you sort through the drawers and cabinets in order to find your missing spatula. To make sure you don’t stop your drawers or cabinets from opening, it’s smart to hire a professional to install these lights in your kitchen.

Under Cabinet Kitchen Lighting

When you’re in your kitchen late at night, you probably don’t want to turn on a ceiling light or downlights. That’s why under cabinet lighting exists. A professional can install strips of lights under your cabinets to help you see your worktop. This isn’t just helpful during the night, though. Worktop lights can add functionality to your cutting and cooking at any time of the day.

Bright Under Cabinet Lighting

To add a more futuristic vibe to your kitchen, consider installing LED or neon lights along your worktop and under your cabinets. If you have an acrylic or glass splashback, these lights will look especially high-tech. We’re sure your guests will be impressed by your kitchen if you install this type of lighting, especially if you host parties regularly.

Cabinets with LED Lighting

In your kitchen, lighting doesn’t have to just be above the worktop! This kitchen features LED lighting under the cabinets, allowing the floors to stay lit during the night. Think of this as a nightlight for your kitchen! A professional can install these lights and hook them up to a switch so that you don’t have to fiddle around to turn them on and off. Make your midnight trips to the fridge a bit easier with lights along the underside of your cabinets. You could also use kitchen plinth lights to achieve a similar effect.

Large Desk Lamp

If you’re not a fan of chandeliers or even ceiling lights in general, don’t worry! This tiny kitchen has the perfect solution for you. Instead of a ceiling light, this kitchen features an oversized desk lamp that can be manoeuvred to point wherever you need it. It looks right at home with the stainless steel worktops and built-in appliances.

Lighting in Cabinets

Now that you’ve added a number of our kitchen lighting ideas, including lights under your cabinets, along the base of your cabinets, and under your worktops, why not add some inside your upper cabinets? These lights will help you keep your cabinets organised, and will look great if you have glass cabinets like the ones in the photo. If you want to make your kitchen a bit more high-tech, you can install sensors that will turn the lights on when the cabinets are open. That will help you save money on your energy bills!

Lamps and Open Shelving

In this small kitchen, the open shelving is home to lamps that shed light on the dishes and glassware stored on the shelves. There are also downlights in the ceiling, adding some extra light to the narrow room. Thanks to the glass door, this kitchen has plenty of natural light, and the amount of white in the room amplifies the brightness. This is one of our favourite kitchen lighting ideas, as it makes the most of the space it has.

Trendy Kitchen Lighting Ideas to Try

Basket Textures – Kitchen Lighting Ideas

Look to showroom displays for lighting trends. A large grouping of different sizes, shapes, and textures can be translated into a collection of two or more fixtures in your kitchen. Basket textured lighting is the new/refreshed retro lighting trend. It’s easy to get the look!

Creative Lighting Design – Kitchen Lighting Ideas

Lighting fixtures with unusual and voluminous texture becomes a floating sculpture. Trendy for the chic kitchen table, modern elegance is the look.

Minimalist Lighting – Kitchen Lighting Ideas

A simple, iconic light fixture, nearly invisible in white, is all about a minimalist look and feel. Perfect for a small kitchen, the look of a single modern light fixture is easy to appreciate.

Mixed Up Fixtures – Kitchen Lighting Ideas

One of the hottest trends is to select a few light fixtures from a lighting brand’s collection and make your own grouping. Vary heights and sizes for design flexibility and a fun factor.

Elegant Fixtures – Kitchen Lighting Ideas

A kitchen with a fantasy lighting design becomes its own focal point. Both decorative and useful, a creative lighting design makes its own rules for maximum style and impact. LED light bulbs make an abundance of light fixtures look great and still save energy.

Hang Pendants Low – Kitchen Lighting Ideas

Hung low (but not too low) your kitchen pendants will add that very popular cozy trend to the kitchen. Do you think they are too low? Hang them lower!

Warm Metal Finishes – Kitchen Lighting Ideas

Warm finishes in light fixtures are hot! Combine warm light fixture finishes with other warm finishes in hardware, shelf brackets, faucets and more for a coordinated look. Don’t worry about matching finishes, the collective warmth will tell the story.

Color Behind Glass Doors – Kitchen Lighting Ideas

Color can be one of the best ways to create a focal point in the kitchen. Combine basic cabinet lighting with a bright color behind cabinet glass doors and the look will instantly become a modern design statement.