Oct 02, 2026 / By the Lumibox team / in LED Guides
Tool: try our recessed lighting calculator to get the number of pot lights and the spacing for your room.
How many pot lights do I need? It is the first question of every basement finish, kitchen renovation or new build. A good recessed lighting layout comes from two checks: a pot light spacing rule tied to ceiling height, and a lumen count tied to the room. This guide covers both, with worked examples (living room, kitchen, basement), then 4 inch vs 6 inch pot lights, slim panels versus housings, gimbals, colour temperature, dimming, insulated ceilings and wet locations. Every lumen figure comes from recessed LED fixtures in our recessed lighting category.
The rule of thumb electricians and lighting designers use is simple:
These are general rules, not code requirements, and they describe an even grid for ambient light. Wide-beam slim panels (110° on several models) tolerate wider spacing; narrow-beam downlights (36° to 40°) need tighter spacing or a task to aim at.
Counting pot lights per square foot is a shortcut; the real unit is lumens per square foot (foot-candles). General recommendations derived from IES (Illuminating Engineering Society) residential tables:
| Room | Lumens per sq ft (general level) |
|---|---|
| Living room, bedroom | 10 to 20 |
| Hallway, stairs | 5 to 10 |
| Kitchen (general) | 30 to 40 |
| Kitchen counters, bathroom vanity (task) | 70 to 80 |
| Home office, workshop | 50 to 80 |
| Finished basement, rec room | 20 to 30 |
The method itself works like a recessed lighting calculator:
Typical outputs in our recessed range: 3 in slim panel, 440 lm; 4 in slim panels, 650 to 800 lm at 8 to 9 W; 6 in slim panels, 1 000 to 1 400 lm at 12 to 15 W; 8 in panels, 1 350 to 1 500 lm at 16 W. A 6 in commercial regressed downlight is selectable from 1 300 to 2 300 lm.
| 4 in (and 3 to 3.5 in) | 6 in (and 8 in) | |
|---|---|---|
| Output in our range | 650 to 800 lm (slim), up to 1 200 lm (high-lumen gimbal) | 1 000 to 1 400 lm (slim), 1 300 to 2 300 lm (commercial) |
| Best for | Ceilings up to 9 ft, kitchens, hallways, bathrooms, accent and task | Living rooms, basements, open plans, 9 ft ceilings and up |
| Look | Discreet, more fixtures, uniform light | Fewer holes, more output per fixture |
A common mix: 6 in for ambient light, 4 in or 3 in gimbals for walls, art and counters.
A gimbal (adjustable) pot light tilts, typically with a 38° to 40° beam at 550 to 1 200 lm. Use it to wash a feature wall, graze a stone fireplace, light a painting or correct a sloped ceiling. Place it 2 to 3 ft from the wall it lights and tilt about 30° to keep glare out of the viewer's eyes.
Most recessed LED fixtures today are 5-CCT selectable (2 700 K, 3 000 K, 3 500 K, 4 000 K, 5 000 K) by a switch on the fixture: you decide at installation.
One CCT per room, ideally per floor. Choose 90 CRI in kitchens, bathrooms and wherever skin tones and food matter. Dim-to-warm models (3 000 K down to 2 200 K) suit dining rooms and bedrooms.
Still weighing the options? Read pot lights vs recessed lights in Canada, then browse the recessed lighting selection: slim panels, gimbals, housings, trims and commercial downlights.
144 sq ft at 15 to 20 lm/sq ft gives 2 200 to 2 900 lm: three 6 in panels at 1 100 lm or four 4 in panels at 750 lm, usually a 2 × 2 grid at 4 ft on an 8 ft ceiling, on a dimmer.
About half the ceiling height: 4 ft on an 8 ft ceiling, 4.5 ft on 9 ft, 5 ft on 10 ft, with the first row about half that distance from the wall.
Roughly half the spacing, so 2 ft on an 8 ft ceiling; 2 to 3 ft when the fixture is meant to light the wall, cabinets or a counter.
Neither: 6 in gives more lumens per hole and suits ambient light in large rooms; 4 in is discreet and suits kitchens, hallways, bathrooms and accent lighting. Many layouts use both.
In our range, 4 in slim panels deliver 650 to 800 lm and 6 in panels 1 000 to 1 400 lm. Divide the room's target lumens by that figure, then confirm with the spacing rule.
