Four things, and only four, for a straight run: the track itself, a live end to feed power into it, an end cap to close the other end, and the heads that clip on. Connectors come in only if the run turns a corner, branches, or needs joining end to end. Lamps are almost always extra.
That is the whole answer. Most people arrive at a track page expecting to buy one product and leave with a basket of six part numbers, which is where the questions start. One customer last week spoke to our sales team before ordering because they could not tell which accessories they needed. Their final order ran to four lengths of track, a live end, an end cap, three connectors, eight heads and eight lamps. Nothing on that list was wrong. It was simply never written down anywhere they could read it.
So here it is written down, with live prices from our track lighting range, every one checked on 26 October 2026. The run in the photograph at the top is Astro's matt white track turning a corner and carrying four Koto heads, which is most of this guide in one picture.
The four parts of a straight track run
Think of track as a power rail you hang a lighting scheme from. The rail does nothing on its own.
Track. The rail. Astro's single-phase profile is 18mm high and 36mm deep, so it sits almost flat against the ceiling. The Astro Track 1m in Matt White (£23.10, checked 26 October 2026) and the Astro Track 2m in Matt White (£45.54, checked 26 October 2026) share that profile. Buy whichever combination gets closest to the length you measured, then read the next section before you commit.
A live end. The piece that brings mains power into the rail. Without it you have an expensive aluminium shelf. The Astro Track Live End in Matt White (£6.21, checked 26 October 2026) is the one for a run fixed flat to the ceiling.
An end cap. The piece that closes the far end. The Astro Track End Cap in Matt White (£6.95, checked 26 October 2026) is 24mm by 35.5mm by 18mm. Buy it. It costs less than a sandwich and it is the difference between a finished ceiling and a cut rail with its channel showing.
The heads. The actual lights. These are sold one at a time, and they are the part people underestimate, because a run of five heads costs more than the rail, the feed and the fixings put together.
If a retailer sells you a track kit without telling you the heads and the lamps are extra, they have quoted you about half the job. We would rather tell you now.
How much track, and where to measure from
Measure the area you want lit, not the ceiling. Over a kitchen worktop, measure the worktop. Over a run of pictures, measure from the outside edge of the first frame to the outside edge of the last.
Then take about 150mm off each end. That is our rule of thumb, and the reason is simple: track that runs the full width of a worktop puts its two end heads over the cupboard doors rather than the chopping board, and you have paid for light that lands on a wall. The check is a strip of masking tape on the ceiling for an evening, with a coin where each head would go.
Two metres of track carrying four heads is the pattern we would start from in most kitchens. Astro sells both a single 2m length and a 2x 1m track kit (£49.68, checked 26 October 2026). The single 2m length (£45.54, checked 26 October 2026) is cheaper and has no joint in it, so if the run is genuinely straight, buy that. Buy the kit when you want the option of splitting the run later, or when the ceiling has an obstacle in the middle.
Our opinion, and we will stand behind it: if you are caught between 1m and 2m, buy the 2m. A short run of track with three heads crowded onto it looks like a compromise, because it is one. For an island, our kitchen island lighting guide covers how track sits alongside pendants.
Connectors, and the ones you almost certainly do not need
This is where the basket gets confusing, so here is the whole set in one table, with live prices checked 26 October 2026.
| Part | Price | Buy it when |
|---|---|---|
| Astro Track End to End Connector in Matt White | £10.95 | You are joining two lengths into one longer straight run |
| Astro Track 90 degree Corner Connector Left in Matt White | £13.11 | The run turns a corner. A right-hand version (£14.95) exists too, so check which way yours goes |
| Astro T Connector Left Nearside Earth Track in Matt White | £17.25 | A branch comes off the main run, as in an L of worktop. Eight versions exist, left or right, nearside or farside earth, in each finish |
| Astro X Connector Track in Matt White | £22.08 | Four lengths meet at a crossroads, which in a house is rare |
| Astro Track Support in Bright Zinc Plated | £4.83 | The ceiling structure will not take a direct fixing; this 195mm bracket carries the rail from a wall or beam |
Most domestic runs need none of these. A single straight length over an island, fed at one end and capped at the other, is the commonest track installation we see, and it uses three parts.
The corner and T connectors are the ones to be careful with. There is a left and a right, and they are not interchangeable, because the earth conductor runs down one side of the rail and the connector has to carry it round the turn on the same side. Draw the run on a sheet of paper with the feed end marked and the direction of each turn, and send it to us or to your electrician before you order the connectors. It takes two minutes and it saves a return.
Choosing the heads, and the 6 watt trap
The heads are where the money goes and where the mistakes happen. Three things separate them.
Does it take a lamp, or is the LED built in? The Astro Apollo 100 Track Light in Textured White (£51.06, checked 26 October 2026) and the Astro Ascoli Track Light in Textured White (£50.95, checked 26 October 2026) both take a GU10 lamp you buy separately. The Astro Can 100 Track Light in Matt White (£179.40, checked 26 October 2026) has a 28.5W LED built into it, putting out 2,350 lumens at 3000K with a CRI of 90 and a 30.4 degree beam.
What is the maximum lamp it will take? This is the trap. The Apollo 100's Details table says 1 x 6W Max LED GU10. The Ascoli's says 1 x 50W Max GU10. Both cost about £51, both from the same maker, and one of them will take roughly eight times the lamp the other will. Read the maximum wattage on the head you are buying, every time, and buy the lamp to suit the head rather than the other way round. The Ascoli's 50W figure is the halogen limit, and Astro's own listing recommends a 6W LED GU10 as the practical choice, so in use the two heads take the same lamp.
How far does it move? Both the Apollo 100 and the Ascoli tilt through 90 degrees and rotate through 330 degrees on the adaptor. That is enough to aim one head at a worktop and the one beside it at a picture on the end wall, which is most of the reason to buy track in the first place. Both are 57mm across; the Apollo stands 204mm at full height, the Ascoli 141mm.
One opinion on the Can 100. At £179.40 it costs more than three Apollo heads, and the case for it has little to do with brightness for its own sake. The case is CRI 90 against a lamp-dependent figure, which is the difference between food that looks like food on a worktop and food that looks grey. In a kitchen we would spend the money. Over a hallway we would not.
The lamps, which are not in the box
Unless the head has an integral LED, no lamp comes with it. On a run of five heads that is a line most people forget, and it is the part nobody itemises when they compare two quotes.
The Astro Lamp GU10 LED 4.1W 2700K Dimmable (£8.76, checked 26 October 2026) gives 500 lumens and sits inside the 6W ceiling the Apollo 100 sets. Five of them is £43.80 on top of the heads. If you are unsure which GU10 to choose, or whether a lamp will dim, our guide to what bulbs your new light needs walks through it.
Buy the same lamp for every head on the run. Mixing a 2700K lamp with a 3000K lamp on one rail is visible from across the room, and it reads as a fault rather than a choice.
Hanging track below a high ceiling
If the ceiling is high, or sloped, or you want the light closer to the work, the track can hang rather than sit flat.
The Astro Track Suspension Kit in Matt White (£20.01, checked 26 October 2026) gives you a rod to drop the rail away from the ceiling. The Astro Track Suspension Live End Supply in Matt White (£53.82, checked 26 October 2026) does the same job for the feed end, with a 100mm ceiling canopy, and replaces the flat live end on a hung run.
There is also an Astro Track Pendant Connector in White (£8.28, checked 26 October 2026) that lets a track-compatible pendant hang off the rail, rated to 2kg. It is a neat answer over an island where you want two spots and one pendant on the same circuit. Check the pendant's weight against that 2kg before you buy, because most glass pendants are heavier than people expect.
What your electrician needs to know
We sell the parts. We do not fit them, and anything that connects to the mains is a job for a registered electrician.
What to hand them: the length and layout of the run, where you want the feed to come in, and the total load of the heads. Five Apollo 100 heads with 4.1W lamps is 20.5W, which is nothing. Five Can 100 heads is 142.5W, which still is not much, but the electrician will want the figure rather than a guess.
Tell them whether you want it dimmed before they wire it. The Can 100 dims on a leading or trailing edge dimmer with no separate driver. A GU10 head dims only if the lamp in it dims, and when dimmed LEDs flicker the usual culprit is a dimmer that was fitted for halogen in another decade; our guide to dimming LED lights explains which dimmer to ask for.
The short version
- A straight run needs four part types: track, a live end, an end cap and the heads.
- Measure the worktop or the artwork, then take 150mm off each end.
- Connectors are only for corners, branches and joins. Most houses need none.
- Read the maximum wattage on the head. Two Astro heads at the same price differ by 44 watts on paper, and take the same 6W LED in practice.
- Lamps are extra on everything except the integral-LED heads.
- The rail is the cheap part. Budget for the heads.
Frequently asked questions
Do people still use track lighting?
Yes. What fell out of favour was bare commercial track carrying 50W halogen spots aimed at a magnolia wall. Modern domestic track is an 18mm profile in a finish chosen to disappear, carrying small adjustable heads. We sell 57 active track parts and the collection took over 3,500 Google impressions in the quarter to 23 October 2026, which is not a product in decline.
What are the disadvantages of track lighting?
Two real ones. It is visible, so it suits a ceiling you are happy to see hardware on rather than a formal room. And the heads all sit on one circuit, so every head switches together unless your electrician splits the feed. Against that, you can re-aim every head in ten seconds without a plasterer, which recessed downlights cannot do.
Is track lighting cheaper than downlights?
Usually, in our view, once you count the whole job. Track needs no holes cut, no fire hoods and no plastering, so the fitting cost is lower, and because nothing goes through the ceiling the question of whether a downlight has to be fire rated never comes up. Compare the parts on price yourself: a 2m rail with four GU10 heads and four lamps is a sum you can do from this page.
Do I need an electrician to fit track lighting?
For the mains connection, yes. Track is fixed wiring on a lighting circuit, so it is work for a registered electrician, and we would always have one do it. Clipping the heads onto an already installed and powered rail is not electrical work and you can do that yourself.
Can I add to a track run later?
Yes, provided you buy the same profile. Astro's single-phase track takes an end to end connector to join a further length. Keep a note of the finish, because matt white and matt black are not interchangeable and a joined run in two finishes looks like a repair.
