3 Basic Types of Lighting to Know and How to Choose the Right One

As you select lighting for your home, it’s important to understand the difference between ambient lighting, task lighting, and accent lighting and develop a sense of the purpose that each type serves.

Keep in mind, that ideally, your home will contain a mix of ambient, task, and accent lighting in each room. Paying thoughtful attention to the lighting that you select for your space will make a major impact on how your home appears.

“Lighting, when thoughtfully chosen and strategically placed, can transform spaces from ordinary to extraordinary,” Barry Goralnick, who founded an eponymous design firm. “Be it setting the mood, emphasizing design elements, or ensuring functional convenience, the magic of lighting is truly unparalleled.”

Below, we’re defining each of these lighting types. We’re also sharing valuable insights from interior designers on how to best weave ambient, task, and accent lighting into your home.

Ambient Lighting

Ambient lighting, also referred to as general lighting, is what overall brightens up a space. Both recessed and surface-mounted lights are types of ambient lighting, and Linda Hayslett, the founder of LH.Designs, is open to incorporating both types within a single room. This way, you have both options for light and mood, she says.

Hayslett loves recessed lights to brighten a room because you can install a pretty fixture on the ceiling to add more interest to a space.

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Where to Use Ambient Lighting

Ambient lighting should be incorporated into your main living spaces, including the living room, bedroom, hallway, and more.

Task Lighting

Task lighting, as the name suggests, helps you as you focus on specific activities—studying, reading, cooking, and more.

“These types of lights are nice for a space as they can add a piece of jewelry, like an earring to a space, while also creating functionality,” Hayslett says. “Sconces, pendants, chandeliers, and lamps are great accessories for dressing up any room while being able to have purpose as well.”

Zandy Gammons, the founder of Miretta Interiors, likes to go bold with her task lighting choices. Gammons explains how task lighting should not only be visually stunning but also be able to provide enough light for the work area below.

“We tend to keep those fixtures a bit oversized and make sure that they provide enough light to be functional, Gammons says.

However, you will want to supplement your task lighting with ambient lighting. “Use can lighting around the perimeter of a room to help with overall lighting in the space, but a more focused light in specific areas is really important,” Gammons says.

Where to Use Task Lighting

You’ll likely wish to incorporate task lighting in a number of rooms throughout the house, including the bedroom, home office, kitchen, and more. The type of fixture you select will vary depending on the space at hand.

Sconces, for example, look nice hung on either side of the bed and can provide excellent lighting for reading. Task lamps are ideal for desks, while pendants are commonly hung above the kitchen island.

Accent Lighting

Accent lighting helps to illuminate specific areas or objects within a room, drawing attention to special features in your space that deserve to stand out.

According to Katelyn DeSpain, the founder of Makehouse Design Studio, accent lighting is often overlooked but it’s the major key feature for creating a cozy look.

“It’s what makes your space feel more interesting, be it highlighting a cool piece of wall art or calling attention to a structural element of the room,” DeSpain says.

DeSpain notes that when selecting accent lighting, it is best to choose fixtures with a lower light output. If you have the option to install dimmer switches, even better.

Where to Use Accent Lighting

Incorporate accent lighting into your home by hanging a picture light above a favorite art piece in the living room or hallway, adding track lighting above a basement bar,

Tips for Choosing Lighting

Determine Where You Want to Make a Splash

Not every light fixture needs to be expensive or flashy, Gammons says. Instead, she advises choosing a few rooms to really go all in with artful fixtures.

“For example, we might pick something elegant but more simplistic for the foyer, while adding something a little funky for the office and an ornate fixture for the dining room so that they all flow nicely together,” she says.

Try to Use Fixtures Instead of Recessed Lights

When possible, steer clear of tons of recessed lights.

“Opt for fixtures—whether they be general, task, or ambient—with sculptural lines to add interest,” Jeanne Barber, the founder of Camden Grace Interiors, says.