Chandelier placement height & size for different ceiling heights.

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A nice and big chandelier on a high ceiling high can completely change the look of that area. But first, it is important to determine what’s the correct height at which the chandelier must hang.

Chandelier placement height for 8 ft ceiling

Generally speaking, from an 8 ft ceiling, the chandelier should be installed at a height of 6.5 ft to 7 ft from the floor. This height allows light fixture to distribute light properly without causing bright spots on the floor.

However different rooms have different requirement of lighting and thus the placement of chandelier in each room like living room, kitchen, bedroom is also slightly different.

Lets discuss the placement height of chandelier in different rooms in detail.

Living room with 8 ft ceiling

In a living room with 8 ft ceiling the placement height of the chandelier should be such that it complements the furniture above which it hangs.

Therefore, the chandelier should be placed at a height of 6.3 ft from the floor. Chandeliers in living rooms can be placed slightly lower compared to any other room as the chandelier best compliments the table when the distance between chandelier and table underneath is between 50 inches to 65 inches .

Bedroom with 8 ft ceiling

In a bedroom with 8 ft ceiling the chandelier should be placed at a height of 6.5 feet to 7 from the from the floor of bedroom.

To be more precise the placement of chandelier in bedroom should be such that it does not come in the way or gets touched unintentionally while on bed. Therefore, a gap of at least 4.5 feet must be kept between the top of bed and the bottom of chandelier.

kitchen with 8 ft ceiling

If there is not island in the kitchen the chandelier should be installed at a height of 6.7 feet from the floor whereas if there is island in the kitchen then the chandelier should be placed over the island at a height of 6 ft to 6.3 from the floor.

The placement over the island must be done in a way that the chandelier illuminates the island properly without coming in the way while performing the activities near island.

To precisely calculate the placement height of chandelier over kitchen island, a good rule of thumb is to always place the chandelier 5 to 6 above one’s head level.

Dining area with 8 ft ceiling

Chandelier in dining area with 8 ft ceiling should be placed at a distance of 30 to 35 inches from the top of the table.

below is a helpful table that shows chandlier placement height in dining area based over the height of dining table

Dining table height	chandelier placement height from floor
28 inches	58″ to 63″
29 inches	59″ to 64″
30 inches	60″ to 65″
31 inches	61″ to 66″
32 inches	62″ to 65″

How to size chandelier for 8 ft ceiling

To size chandelier for any room with 8 ft ceiling, simply add the length of the room in ft and width of the room in feet. The result is the width of chandelier in inches.

Chandelier placement height for 10 ft ceiling

Generally speaking, for a 10 ft ceiling, the chandelier should be placed at a height of 7.5 to 8ft from the floor. Lighitng designers however for a particular room may attribute a slightly varying height for the placement of chandelier based on the type of ambience that is to be created.

Let’s discuss the placement of chandelier in different areas like living room, dining room and bedroom with 10 ft ceiling

Living room with 10 ft ceiling

A living room requires a relaxing ambience and to create a relaxing ambiance in a 10 ft ceiling, the chandelier should be placed over the coffee table at a height of 6.3 to 6.8 ft from the floor i.e a gap of 53 inches to 68 inches should be kept between the top of coffee table and the bottom of chandelier.

For longer chandeliers without adjustable length, maintaining proper height is not possible. Therefore in such situation just make sure that there is least 1 feet of space between one’s own height and the bottom of the chandelier.

Bedroom with 10 ft ceiling

Bedroom is also a place where relaxing ambience is required. Chandelier, therefore, should be placed at a height of 8 ft from the floor i.e the bottom of chandelier should be at a distance of 24 inches from the ceiling.

By placing the chandelier at that height, the light from chandelier can spread more evenly throughout the room as well as the point right above the chandelier would also not get too bright which may cause glare.

Dining area with 10 ft ceiling

Whenever chandelier is installed over dining area, irrespective of the ceiling height, the gap that is to be maintained between the chandelier and top of the table is same i.e 30 inches to 35 inches.

Therefore, for a 10 ft ceiling, the chandelier over dining table should be placed at height of around 60 inches from the floor.

The table below shows different dining table dimensions and how much distance chandelier should maintain from the ceiling.

Dining table height	Distance of chandelier from ceiling
28 inches	5.2 ft
29 inches	5.1 ft
30 inches	5 ft
31 inches	4.9 ft
32 inches	4.8 ft

kitchen with 10 ft ceiling

A kitchen with 10 ft ceiling without island can also look great when chandelier is installed at proper height . While placing chandelier the bottom of the chandelier should be 8 ft high from the floor.

For kitchen with island, the bottom of chandelier should be at a gap of 1 to 1.5 ft from one’s height such that while working near island, the chandelier illuminates the working areas of island without coming in the way.

Chandelier placement height for 12 ft ceiling

For a room with 12 ft ceiling, ideally he bottom of hanging light fixtures like chandelier and pendant lights should be placed at a height of 8 feet from the floor.

But we know not all rooms have similar lighting requirement and thus the placement of hanging light fixtures is also different.

let’s see in detail,

Living room with 12 ft ceiling

In a living room with 12 ft ceiling, the bottom of chandelier should be placed at a height of around 7.8 ft to 8.2 feet from the floor or a gap of 48 inches to 53 inches should be kept between the ceiling and the bottom of chandelier.

The greater height of ceiling also calls for a wider and longer chandelier. Therefore, ot size chandeleir for a living room with 12 ft ceiling, simply divide the width of the coffee table (in inches) by 2. This would be the width of chandelier to be installed over the coffee table in living room.

Bedroom with 12 ft ceiling

A bedroom with 12 ft ceiling is rather huge and thus the chandelier installed over the bedroom should also complement the greater size of bedroom.

However, the rule of sizing bedroom chandelier in a 12 ft ceiling is same as for other areas with ceiling height less than 12 ft. i.e the sum of length and width of the room in inches gives the width of chandelier to be installed in the bedroom.

The placement of chandelier in a bedroom should be such that a gap of 3 feet is maintained between the ceiling and the bottom of the chandelier.

In other words, the bottom of chandelier should be placed at height of 9 ft from the floor of bedroom.

Dining room with 12 ft ceiling

The chandelier in a dining room with 12 ft ceiling should be placed at a height such that the bottom of chandelier is at a gap of 7 ft from the ceiling or in other words the bottom of chandelier should be placed at a height of at least 4.8 ft from the floor

Dining table height	Distance of chandelier from ceiling
28 inches	7.2 ft
29 inches	7.1 ft
30 inches	6 ft
31 inches	5.9 ft
32 inches	5.8 ft

kitchen with 12 ft ceiling

In a kitchen with 12 ft ceiling, the bottom of chandelier should be placed at a gap of 3.5 ft from the ceiling or in other words the bottom of chandelier should be at a height of 8.5 ft from the floor.

For a 12 ft ceiling kitchen with island the placement is simple. Just make sure that the bottom of the chandelier maintains at least 1 ft of gap from one’s standing height.

Chandelier placement height for 14 ft ceiling

Places with 14 ft ceiling are mainly foyers or an open floor plan living room. Given the large height of the ceiling, there is a variety of chandeliers of varying sizes that can be installed in such living rooms

Let’s see in detail the different size chandelier that can be installed in a living room with 14 ft ceiling and what is the placement height of such chandeliers.

Chandelier length	Minimum distance from 14 ft ceiling in living room
40 – 43 inches	3 ft
45 – 47 inches	2.8 ft
50 – 55 inches	2.7 ft
57 – 60 inches	2.5 ft
65 – 70 inches	2.4 ft
75 – 80 inches	2.2 ft

Chandelier placement height for 16 ft ceiling

The table below shows different sizes of chandeliers that can be used over coffee table in living room and their proper placement height.

Chandelier length	Minimum distance from 16 ft ceiling in living room
40 – 43 inches	5 ft
45 – 47 inches	4.8 ft
50 – 55 inches	4.7 ft
57 – 60 inches	4.5 ft
65 – 70 inches	4.4 ft
75 – 80 inches	4.2 ft
85 – 90 inches	4 ft

Chandelier placement height for 18 ft ceiling

For a ceiling height of 18 ft, the chandelier should be hanged 10 ft down from the ceiling such that the height of chandelier from the floor is 98 inches to 105 inches.

below is a table that shows different chandelier sizes and their placement height from 18 ft ceiling

chandelier length	distance from 18 ft ceiling	height from floor
40 – 43 inches	7 ft	98 to 100 inches
45 – 47 inches	6.8 ft	102 to 104 inches
50 – 55 inches	6.7 ft	105 to 107 inches
57 – 60 inches	6.5 ft	108 inches
65 – 70 inches	6.4 ft	110 inches
80 inches	6.1 to 6.3 ft	115 inches
100 inches and above	6 ft	120 inches

How to size chandelier for living room of any ceiling height.

The size of chandelier depends upon the dimension of room as well as the table above which it hangs. Generally speaking the width of chandelier should not exceed to width of coffee table place in living room.

The rule for sizing the width of chandelier is same for all ceilings greater than 13 inches. i.e simply add the length and width of the living room in feet and then add 2 in the result.

This rule is ideal when the coffee table in living room is of small size. But when bigger size coffee table is used then the widht of chandelier should be such that it also looks in proportion with the table below.

Therefore, a more accurate rule to determine the width of the chandelier is to simply divide the widht of coffee table by 2. This would give the width of the chandelier to be placed over coffee table.

For example, if a coffee table is 60 inches wide then the width of the chandeler would be 30 inches.

Depending over the dimensions of the living room, extra 5 -10 inches can also be added to width of chandelier. Just make sure that the width of chandelier does not exceeds the width of coffee table.

Chandelier placement height for living room with 20 ft ceiling

With 20 foot ceiling, the chandelier should hang a minimum of 13 to 16 feet high from the floor and 80 – 200 inches from the ceiling.

However, based on the length of light fixture greater than 70 inches, it may require to hang a little lower then recommended.

Traditional chandeliers with chains have fixed lengths while chandeliers that are installed without hooks and chains can be extended by length. Such chandeliers come with adjustable cords which can increase the total length of light fixtures upto 50 inches.

Below is a useful table that shows recommended height at which the chandelier should hang from 20 foot ceiling based on the length of the light fixture itself.

chandelier length	Placement from 20′ ceiling	Height from floor
43 inches	3.5 – 4 feet from ceiling	16.5 – 16 feet
47 inches	4 feet from ceiling	16 feet
59 – 60 inches	5 feet from ceiling	15 feet
70 inches	5.8 feet from ceiling	15.2 feet
79 inch	6 feet	14 feet
87 inch	6.5 feet	14.5 feet
100 inch	7 feet	13 feet
120 inch	7.5 feet	13.5 feet
137 inch	8 feet	12 feet

Chandelier placement height for foyer with 20-foot ceiling.

These chandeliers are usually custom made with very large length of the hanging rods as well as a very wide size of the chandelier itself. If one chooses to hang a standard size light fixture to hang over the foyer from a 20-foot ceiling then it must hang a minimum of 8 feet high from the floor.

The reason for this much height is the chandelier has to complement the table below it which is possible only if the chandelier is sufficiently side ( minimum of 20 inches wide) as well as hanged at correct height.

This means chandeliers require extra chains and wirings to be able to hang this low.

A much easier approach is to prefer hanging chandeliers around or over the staircase because around staircases, the height at which one perceives a chandelier is greatly reduced. Even if a chandelier hanging only 2 to 3 feet below the ceiling. It will not look too small in contrast to the large 20-foot ceiling.

Chandelier placement height from 20 feet ceiling near the stairwell

A chandelier can be hanged both over the staircase as well as the empty space around the side of the staircase. Wherever there is enough space to accommodate a light fixture, a standard size 47 inches long chandelier should be hanged 16 feet above the floor.

Depending on the length of light fixture greater than 50 inches, chandeliers must hang anywhere between 13 feet to 16 feet from the floor which means 4 to 7 inches down from a 20-foot ceiling.

Now you know the height at which the chandelier should hang. Let’s see different types of staircase and how light fixture can be placed around them.

There are generally two types of staircase arrangements i.e the continuous helix type stairwell and the fragmented stairwell. As in the image below.

The other type of stairwell i.e the fragmented type may or may not have empty area around them. For example, see the images below.

Stairwell is the area where long chandeliers look elegant. They compliment the length of the stairwell and are a great option to fill the empty area around the stairwell.

These chandeliers are mostly contemporary. If they are flush mount then, they will come with cords of extendable length. While choosing the chandelier make sure the minimum length of chandelier must be 47 inches and above up to 85 inches. Generally speaking the longer the better.

How far apart chandelier must be from stairs of stairwell

To prevent accidental touches and unwanted swings, chandeliers need to maintain a distance of at least 2.5 – 3 feet from the stairs.

How wide should the chandelier be for 20 foot ceiling?

The width of chandelier depends on the length and width of the room.

A general rule of thumb is to measure the values of length and width of the room and directly add the values. The result will be the width of chandelier in inches. This means if a foyer is 10 feet long and 10 feet wide the width of the chandelier should be 10 + 10 = 20 inches

But,

in the case of living room, to determine the correct size of the chandlier the size of coffee table should also be taken into account so that a balanced and geometrically proportional look can be achieved.

Foyer size	Light fixture width
8 feet× 10 feet	20 inches
8 feet × 16 feet	26 inches
10 feet × 10 feet	24 inches – 27 inches
10 feet × 16 feet and above	28 inches – 30 inches

If chandelier is intended to be installed near a stairwell from 20-foot ceiling then the width of the chandelier should be a minimum of 20 inches.

For lower height ceiling like 12 feet or less this width may decrease.

How high to place chandelier in a 20-foot vaulted ceiling.

For 20 foot vaulted ceilings it is good to hang chandeliers 6 to 7 feet below the ceiling. Vaulted ceiling offers many benefits like if the chandelier is of limited length and it cannot be extended still desired height of chandelier can be achieved by inserting supports in the adjacent conical sides of the ceiling.

The height at which a chandelier is to be placed on a vaulted ceiling also depends on how far down the slopes of ceiling goes. If the slope goes more than 8 feet down then it is a good practice to hang the chandeliers at the same length where the slope ends.

This will provide a more uniform look to both light fixture as well as the sloped ceiling.

Foyer size	Light fixture width
8 feet× 10 feet	20 inches
8 feet × 16 feet	26 inches
10 feet × 10 feet	24 inches – 27 inches
10 feet × 16 feet and above	28 inches – 30 inches

If chandelier is intended to be installed near a stairwell from 20-foot ceiling then the width of the chandelier should be a minimum of 20 inches.

For lower height ceiling like 12 feet or less this width may decrease.

How high to place chandelier in a 20-foot vaulted ceiling.

For 20 foot vaulted ceilings it is good to hang chandeliers 6 to 7 feet below the ceiling. Vaulted ceiling offers many benefits like if the chandelier is of limited length and it cannot be extended still desired height of chandelier can be achieved by inserting supports in the adjacent conical sides of the ceiling.

The height at which a chandelier is to be placed on a vaulted ceiling also depends on how far down the slopes of ceiling goes. If the slope goes more than 8 feet down then it is a good practice to hang the chandeliers at the same length where the slope ends.

This will provide a more uniform look to both light fixture as well as the sloped ceiling.

Additional information

How to hang average size chandelier from high ceiling at lower height from floor.

If the length of a chandelier is such that it can only reach a few inches (3″ – 4″) from the ceiling then there are two way by which that chandelier can be hanged at a much lower height.

• By installing a beam on the walls

By simply installing a beam on the walls at a specific height from the floor any small size chandelier can be hanged at lower height without having the need to modify the light fixture.

For example, if a 40 inches (3ft) long chandelier is to be hanged at a height of 8 ft from the floor in a living room with 20 ft ceiling without modifying the light fixture itself, then simply by installing a beam at a height of 11 ft from the floor can solve the problem.

Instead of installing chandelier on the ceiling, the chandelier is installed on the beam and thus without modifying the light fixture, it can be hanged at any height from the floor.

• By extending the length of chandelier wiring.

Chandelier with chain can easily be extended simply by joining extending wires of same gauge value as the gauge value of wiring in the light fixture.

Once chandelier is extended its increased length can also make it to swing more often. Here are some tips that can prevent a chandelier from swinging.

Does chandelier hanging on high ceiling need to be centered?

IN FOYER

In foyer, the chandelier not necessarily needs to be centered. Whether the chandelier on high ceiling needs to be centered or not depends over the arrangement of furniture below. The general recommendation is to keep the chandelier above the furniture.

If the furniture is centered in the room then the chandelier also should be centered and if furniture arrangement is not centered, the chandelier may also need not to be centered.

IN STAIRWELL

In stairwells, the area is rather limited hence instead of centering the chandelier one should try to place the chandelier such that the empty gets covered evenly such that if someone sees it, it does not look too far from one side and too close from another side.