Recessed Lighting Installation Cost Calculator

How many
6 fixtures
What is going in
What is already there
Ceiling height
Your ZIP code

Showing the national average. Enter your ZIP code for local cost estimates.

Low $825
Typical $1,025
High $1,250

National average

Where these figures come from
  • Electrical contractors, United States: $43.61/hour, August 2026 (BLS CES CES2023821003)
  • Box, bracing, connectors and wire: $18.00 per fixture (price recorded October 2026, not index-adjusted)
  • LED downlight and trim: $32.00 per light (price recorded October 2026, not index-adjusted)

Recessed Lighting Installation costs $825 to $1,250 for a typical 6 fixtures job in 2026, against a national benchmark of $1,025. Labor runs 8.6 crew hours at $43.61 an hour. Enter a ZIP code to apply that area's measured wages for this work and its regional price level.

What makes up the price

Labor $449 7.4 hours at $43.61/hour, 40% burden, 1.00x regional
Box, bracing, connectors and wire $65 3.6 fixture at $18.00 each
LED downlight and trim $192 6 light at $32.00 each
The call-out $45
Contractor overhead and profit $263 35% applied to the work above
Typical total $1,025 $825 to $1,250 depending on contractor

Cost by size

National averages, before any local adjustment. Computed from the same model as the calculator above, so the two always agree.

How many Fixtures Typical Range
3 fixtures 3 $575 $465 to $700
5 fixtures 5 $875 $700 to $1,075
6 fixtures 6 $1,025 $825 to $1,250
8 fixtures 8 $1,300 $1,075 to $1,625
10 fixtures 10 $1,600 $1,325 to $2,000

Layout is the part you cannot change your mind about

Every downlight is a hole cut in a finished ceiling. The fittings are cheap and the labor is the job, but the thing you actually live with is where they are — and that decision is made once.

Two rules get you most of the way:

And the two mistakes worth naming:

Too many lights. The commonest error by a distance. People think in terms of brightness and end up with a ceiling that looks like a runway, costs more to install, and gives flat shadowless light that flattens a room. Six lights in a typical kitchen is usually right; ten is usually somebody panicking.

Lighting the room instead of the work. A symmetrical grid centered on the room centers the light on the floor — which is where nothing happens. In a kitchen the lights want to be over the front edge of the counter, roughly 24 to 30 inches off the wall, so you are not standing in your own shadow while chopping. That single adjustment is the difference between a kitchen that works and a kitchen that is evenly lit and annoying.

Layer it rather than relying on downlights alone: cans for general light, under-cabinet for the work surface, a pendant or two where people gather.

Joists decide, not the drawing

Downlights go between joists, and joists are usually 16 inches apart and not where you would like them. A layout agreed on paper will shift by a few inches in reality, and occasionally a light cannot go where it was drawn at all — over a beam, under an HVAC duct, next to a plumbing stack.

So: have the positions marked on the ceiling and look at them before anything is cut. It takes ten minutes, it is the last moment the layout is free to change, and it is far better than discovering the compromise after there are holes.

Ask also what is above the ceiling. An attic makes this straightforward — the electrician works from above and the ceiling takes only the hole. A second story means fishing cable blind through a joist bay from below, which is slower and sometimes means opening the ceiling to get across a joist.

IC and airtight, which matter more than the brand

Two ratings, both invisible once the trim is on, both worth asking about.

IC rating — insulation contact. A non-IC fixture must be kept 3 inches clear of insulation. In a modern attic with blown insulation, an old non-IC can gets buried by the next person who tops up the insulation, and then it runs hot against it. This is a genuine fire risk and it is why IC-rated fittings exist. Anything going into an insulated ceiling should be IC rated.

Airtight — often marked ICAT. A non-airtight can is a hole between a heated room and a cold attic, and six of them is a meaningful draft. In an older house with original cans, replacing them with airtight LEDs is one of the better small energy jobs available, and you get better light as a side effect.

Modern canless LED wafers — the thin round fittings with a separate junction box — are usually IC and airtight rated as standard, which is most of why they have taken over. They are also shallower, so they fit where a housed can will not.

Color temperature, and why people are unhappy with new lights

More complaints come from this than from anything electrical.

Reads as Good for
2700K Warm, like an old bulb Living rooms, bedrooms
3000K Warm white, slightly crisper Kitchens, bathrooms, most of a house
4000K Neutral, noticeably cooler Garages, workshops, task areas
5000K Daylight, blue, harsh indoors Rarely right in a home

3000K is the safe choice for most rooms and 2700K where you want it cozy. A 4000K kitchen looks clinical in the evening even if it photographs well.

Two more things worth specifying:

And make sure they are dimmable, paired with an LED-rated dimmer. Downlights at full brightness all evening is the other half of the runway problem.

What you are paying for

For six canless LED downlights in a kitchen, existing circuit, standard ceiling, at $1,025:
Labor, about 7.4 hours around $449
Six LED downlights and trim $192
Boxes, connectors and wire around $65
The call-out $45
Overhead and margin the balance

That is $171 a light, against a commonly reported $125 to $300 for a downlight in an existing ceiling.

Note that the fittings are about a fifth of it. Buying better lights barely moves the total, which is the opposite of how most people assume this works — spending $55 a light instead of $32 on a higher-CRI selectable fitting adds about $140 to a six-light job and is usually the best money on it.

Scale works the usual way, because the call-out and the circuit happen once:

Lights Total Each
4 $725 $181
6 $1,025 $171
8 $1,300 $163

What makes it cost more

Replacing old cans is cheaper than it looks

If you already have housed cans and they are old, swapping them for LED retrofits is one of the better small jobs in a house: better light, far less heat, much less air leakage, and no holes cut.

A retrofit module screws into the existing socket and clips into the housing. It is quick, and it does not need an electrician in many cases — though a non-IC can buried in insulation is worth a professional opinion rather than a module dropped into a known hazard.

Questions worth asking

Common questions

How much does recessed lighting cost to install?

About $1,025 for six downlights in a kitchen running off an existing circuit, which is $171 a light against a commonly reported $125 to $300. Four lights come to $181 each and eight to $163 each. Running new wiring takes six lights to $1,625 and a new circuit from the panel to $2,325. Unlike a ceiling fan or a pendant the fittings are included, because a canless LED is a commodity nobody picks individually.

How far apart should recessed lights be?

Divide the ceiling height by two: an 8 foot ceiling wants lights about 4 feet apart, a 9 foot ceiling about 4.5. Start 2 to 3 feet off the walls rather than at the edge, since lights too close to a wall wash it and leave the middle of the room dim. Closer spacing than the rule gives hot spots and glare; wider gives scallops of dark between the lights.

How many recessed lights do I need in a kitchen?

Usually about six, and too many is by far the commonest mistake. People think in terms of brightness, end up with a ceiling like a runway, pay more to install it, and get flat shadowless light that flattens the room. Ten in a typical kitchen is somebody panicking. The better approach is layering: downlights for general light, under-cabinet for the work surface, and a pendant or two where people gather.

Where should recessed lights go in a kitchen?

Over the front edge of the counter, roughly 24 to 30 inches out from the wall — not in a symmetrical grid centered on the room. A grid centered on the room puts the light on the floor, which is where nothing happens, and leaves you standing in your own shadow while chopping. That single adjustment is the difference between a kitchen that works and one that is evenly lit and annoying.

What does IC rated mean for recessed lighting?

Insulation contact — the fitting is safe to be covered by insulation. A non-IC fixture must be kept 3 inches clear of it, which fails the moment somebody tops up the blown insulation in the attic and buries the can. That is a genuine fire risk, which is why anything going into an insulated ceiling should be IC rated. Look for ICAT, which means IC rated and airtight: a non-airtight can is a hole between a heated room and a cold attic, and six of them is a meaningful draft.

Are canless LED downlights better than traditional cans?

For most retrofits, yes. A canless wafer is a thin disc with a separate junction box, it is usually IC and airtight rated as standard, and it is shallow enough to fit where a housed can will not — which matters under a second story or near ductwork. They are also cheaper and faster to install. Housed cans still have a place where a specific trim, an adjustable gimbal or a particular optic is wanted, but the default has shifted and sensibly so.

What color temperature should recessed lights be?

3000K for most rooms, or 2700K where you want it cozy — living rooms and bedrooms. 4000K reads neutral and belongs in a garage or workshop; a 4000K kitchen looks clinical in the evening even if it photographs well, and 5000K is rarely right indoors. Many canless LEDs now have a small switch for selecting between 2700K and 5000K at installation, which is the safe buy if you are unsure, because you can decide in the room with the furniture in it.

What is CRI and does it matter for downlights?

Color rendering index — how honestly a light shows color, on a scale to 100. Aim for over 90. Cheap LEDs at CRI 80 make food and skin look subtly wrong in a way people notice without being able to name it, which matters most in a kitchen and a bathroom. Since the fittings are only about a fifth of this job, moving from a $32 light to a $55 high-CRI selectable one adds roughly $140 to a six-light install and is usually the best money on it.

Can recessed lights go anywhere on the ceiling?

No — they go between joists, which are usually 16 inches apart and not where you would like them. A layout agreed on paper shifts by a few inches in reality, and occasionally a light cannot go where it was drawn at all, because of a beam, an HVAC duct or a plumbing stack. Have the positions marked on the ceiling and look at them before anything is cut. It takes ten minutes and it is the last moment the layout is free to change.

Is recessed lighting harder to install without attic access?

Yes, and it is worth asking about before you get a quote. With an attic above, the electrician works from there and the ceiling takes only the hole. Under a second story the cable has to be fished blind through a joist bay from below, which is slower and sometimes means opening the ceiling to cross a joist — and then somebody has to patch and paint, which is normally not the electrician. Establish who does that up front.

Should recessed lights be dimmable?

Yes, and make sure the dimmer is LED-rated to match. Downlights at full brightness all evening is the other half of the runway problem — a dimmable set at 40% in the evening is a different room from the same set at full. The fittings have to be marked dimmable, since many LED units are not, and an old incandescent dimmer needs a minimum load that six LED downlights may not reach, which causes the buzzing and flicker people blame on the lights.

Can I just replace old recessed lights with LED?

Usually yes, and it is one of the better small jobs in a house. A retrofit module screws into the existing socket and clips into the housing, giving better light, far less heat, much less air leakage and no new holes. Many homeowners can do it themselves. The exception worth a professional opinion is an old non-IC can that has been buried by blown insulation — that is a known hazard, and dropping a module into it without addressing the burial does not fix the problem.

Where these numbers come from

Nothing here is copied from a contractor directory. Labor is priced from what the trades are actually paid, materials from published producer prices, and both are adjusted to your area using federal cost-of-living data.