By Reece Knight, KES Lighting & Home. Last updated 15 September 2026.
Mount staircase wall lights with the centre of each fitting 165 to 170cm above the tread directly below it, stepped up the wall so they follow the rake of the stairs, one every five to seven treads, with one at the bottom and one at the top or on the landing. Shade every one of them, put them on two-way switches, and dim them. Those five decisions are the difference between stairs you can see and a wall of glare you fall down.
Wall lights are the workhorse of a staircase, because a ceiling light at the top of a flight lights the landing and throws the treads into shadow, and a pendant in the void lights everything except the steps. The wall is the only place the light can be at the height it is needed. Here is how to put it there.
How high should staircase wall lights be?
Centre of the fitting 165 to 170cm above the tread it sits over. That is roughly eye level for the person standing on that step, which is the whole point of the so-called 5 foot 7 rule you will see quoted: the light sits where the eye is, so it lights the wall and the treads ahead without shining down into your face from above or up into it from below. On a landing or in the hall at the foot of the stairs, use the same 165 to 170cm from the floor.
Measure from the tread, not from the hall floor, and not from an average. A wall light set at 170cm above the hall floor is at knee height by the sixth step. Mark the tread below each fitting position, measure up from it, and check the run of marks with a straight edge: they should form a line parallel to the handrail. If the marks do not follow the rail, one of the measurements is wrong.
How far apart should staircase wall lights be?
One fitting every five to seven treads, which on a standard 220mm going is roughly every 1.1 to 1.5 metres along the rake, plus one at the bottom and one at the top. A straight domestic flight of thirteen treads takes three: at the second or third tread, around the eighth, and at the top or on the landing. A flight with a half landing takes one on the half landing wall and one on each flight either side. Fewer than that and the middle of the flight is dark; more and the wall looks like a runway.
| Staircase | Number of wall lights | Where |
|---|---|---|
| Straight flight, 12 to 14 treads | 3 | Tread 2 or 3, tread 7 or 8, top or landing |
| Straight flight, 15 to 18 treads (tall Victorian house) | 4 | Every five treads, plus the landing |
| Two flights with a half landing | 3 | One on each flight at mid-height, one on the half landing wall |
| Winder or spiral stair | 2 to 3 | One at the start of the turn, one at the end, one on the landing |
| Open stair with no wall on one side | As above on the one wall, brighter | The open side gets nothing, so the wall side does the whole job |
Light the first and last steps hardest. The top and bottom treads are where people fall, because that is where the fittings are usually missing. If you can only afford two wall lights, put them at the top and the bottom, not in the middle.
Shade the source, always
A bare or clear-glass wall light at 165cm on a staircase does not light your way; it blinds you mid-step, which is worse than no light at all. Every staircase wall light should hide its lamp: an opal or frosted glass shade, a fabric shade, or a plaster up-and-down light that throws the light onto the wall and shows you none of the source. The plaster fittings are the quiet answer for a painted stairwell, because they paint to match the wall and disappear by day. A traditional shaded sconce in brass or nickel is the period answer. What you should never fit on a staircase is a candle sconce with a bare bulb, however pretty it looked in the catalogue.
Up, down or both? Up-and-down lights on a staircase are the most useful, because the down-throw lights the treads and the up-throw lights the wall above, which is what makes the stairwell feel taller. A down-only light is fine where the ceiling is low. An up-only light is for atmosphere and gives the treads nothing. Up or down covers the choice in detail.
How bright, and what colour
Less than you think per fitting, more fittings. Each staircase wall light needs to give perhaps 200 to 400 lumens onto the wall and treads; a small step or marker light set into the wall near tread level needs only 50 to 100 lumens to mark a step clearly. The eye reads the edge of a tread by contrast, so warm to neutral white, 2700K to 3000K, works better than very warm amber that blurs the tread into the riser, and far better than cool white, which makes a stairwell look like a fire escape. Match the Kelvin number to the hall and landing either side (warm white or cool white), and put the lot on a dimmer so that the 11pm setting is a glow, not a floodlight.
Switching: two-way is the minimum, a sensor is the answer
Two-way switching, a switch at the top and one at the bottom, is basic on any flight, and if yours only has one, that is the first job. The better answer is a motion sensor that brings the wall lights up to a low level as you approach, because the fall on the stairs happens at 2am, in the dark, on the way to the bathroom, when nobody wants to find a switch. A PIR sensor on the landing and one in the hall, wired to the wall lights or to low-level marker lights, means the stairs light themselves and go off again. Put the chandelier or ceiling light on the ordinary two-way switch and leave the safety layer to the sensor.
Wiring, chasing and whether you need an electrician
Wall lights on a staircase mean cables in the wall, so the time to fit them is when the stairwell is being decorated anyway, because the chases have to be plastered over. Adding wall lights to an existing lighting circuit is not notifiable work under Part P in England, but a new circuit from the consumer unit is, and in practice a stairwell is a two-storey wall reached from a tower, not a ladder, so this is an electrician's job. Ask for the fittings to be wired as a separate switched group from the ceiling light, so they can be dimmed and sensored independently.
Staircase wall lights we would fit
- Astro Serifos 220 and Kymi 220: plaster up-and-down lights that paint to match the wall and throw light both ways. The default for a modern or painted stairwell.
- Endon Marietta wall light: a single glass-rod fitting in antique brass that matches the Marietta flush and pendant, so hall, stairs and landing read as one scheme.
- Endon Ridgeton: a two-light ribbed-glass sconce in antique brass, traditional and shaded, for a period staircase.
- Quintiesse Linara: natural brass with a slatted black shade, a sharper, more graphic sconce for a contemporary house.
- Elstead Provence: an aged brass sconce with a shade, for the period stair that wants a lantern feel without the glare.
- Low-level marker lights: a near-invisible LED set into the wall near tread level, such as Astro's Borgo, for the sensor-driven night layer along a flight. They need a driver, so plan them with the electrician.
Buy the flight's wall lights as a set from one range, in the finish of the handrail brackets and the door furniture. The indoor wall lights range is sorted by style, and plaster wall lights has the up-and-down fittings on their own. The chandelier above the flight is a separate decision: how to size and hang a stairwell chandelier. The whole hall-and-stairs scheme is in the best lighting for a staircase or hallway.
The short version
- Centre of each fitting 165 to 170cm above the tread below it, stepped to follow the handrail.
- One every five to seven treads, plus one at the bottom and one at the top. Light the first and last steps hardest.
- Shade every source. Plaster up-and-down lights or shaded sconces, never a bare bulb at eye level.
- 200 to 400 lumens per fitting, 2700K to 3000K, on a dimmer. Marker lights at tread level need only 50 to 100.
- Two-way switching as a minimum; a PIR sensor on the wall lights or marker lights so the stairs light themselves at 2am.
Frequently asked questions
How high should wall lights be on a staircase?
With the centre of the fitting 165 to 170cm above the tread directly below it, which puts the light at eye level for someone on that step. Step the fittings up the wall so they follow the rake of the staircase, parallel to the handrail, rather than sitting in a level line measured from the hall floor.
How far apart should stair wall lights be?
One every five to seven treads, roughly 1.1 to 1.5 metres along the rake, plus one at the bottom and one at the top. A straight flight of thirteen treads takes three wall lights. Fewer leaves the middle dark; more looks like a runway.
What are some good lights for stairway walls?
Shaded fittings that hide the lamp: plaster up-and-down wall lights such as the Astro Serifos or Kymi, opal or ribbed glass sconces such as the Endon Ridgeton, or low-level LED marker lights set into the wall near tread level. Avoid clear glass and bare bulbs at eye level on a staircase.
What is the best type of lighting for a stairwell?
Wall lights following the rake of the stairs for the treads, a pendant or chandelier in the void for the landing and the look, and a sensor-driven low-level layer for the night. Warm white 2700K to 3000K, everything dimmable, and two-way switching at top and bottom.
What are common stair lighting mistakes?
Wall lights measured from the hall floor rather than the tread below each one; a bare bulb at eye level; only a ceiling light at the top, which shadows the treads; missing the first and last steps; cool white bulbs; and a single switch at one end of the flight.
How do you light up a dark stairway?
Add wall lights every five to seven treads at 165 to 170cm above the tread below, in warm white, on a dimmer, and fit a motion sensor so they come on at a low level as you approach. If the wall cannot be chased, low-level LED marker lights or a battery sensor light at the top and bottom step are the fallback.
Do I need an electrician to install stair wall lights?
In practice yes: the cables are chased into a two-storey wall and the work is done from a tower. Adding wall lights to an existing lighting circuit is not notifiable under Part P in England, but a new circuit is, and the fittings should be wired as their own switched group so they can be dimmed and put on a sensor.
