13 Of The Best Lighting Fixtures For Your New Kitchen

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There was a time when lighting an entire kitchen with a single overhead light was not just common, but trendy. Today, however, letting the lonely ceiling boob do all the heavy lifting is one of the biggest kitchen lighting mistakes you can make. Poor lighting can make the space look smaller, cast inconvenient shadows around the room, and leave parts of your kitchen unlit, which is more than just unattractive — it's unsafe.

To really light up the room, you need four essential layers of kitchen lighting: task, accent, decorative, and ambient. Ambient lighting, like the overhead light, fills the space, but it's not enough on its own. You also need task lights close to your work surfaces so you can see what you're doing, accent lights to add nuance and depth to the space, and decorative lights for — well, to be honest, just for fun.

Not sure where to start? Brighten up your kitchen with some of these highly rated lighting fixtures that tick all the boxes.

Authentic Tiffany lamps are made from foiled, stained glass, hand-cut by "The Tiffany Girls", and soldered together at Louis Comfort Tiffany's Tiffany Studios. They were immensely popular from their debut in the late 1800s through the mid-1900s, and they are still highly sought after today. While the real thing could easily cost you tens of thousands of dollars, you can find Tiffany-style lamps and shades in geometric and floral styles much more affordably from other sellers.

You can add a bit of retro, Art Nouveau glam to your kitchen by adding a Tiffany-style shade to your existing fixtures, or swap out the whole thing for a decorative Tiffany-style lamp like this one from Amora. The lamp adds plenty of light to help you see what you're doing in the kitchen, while the stained glass shade diffuses light around the room. It prevents the harsh glare that can come from typical glass lamps, and it's as beautiful off as it is when it's on. This lamp is hardwired, but easy to install in place of an existing fixture.

Even with a big, bright overhead light, shadows in your kitchen can make it hard to see what you're doing. Task lighting is essential, especially when you're slicing and dicing with sharp kitchen knives, and that's where under-cabinet lighting comes in. Good under-cabinet lights are practically invisible when they're off, but with the touch of a button, they illuminate your work surface better than any ceiling fixture possibly could.

The GE Cync Reveal smart under-cabinet lights are a perfect example of what task lighting in the kitchen should be. They produce millions of colors and light temperatures that can be programmed and changed throughout the day through a smartphone app or smart home hubs like Alexa, Google Home, Apple Home, and SamsungSmartThings. They come in four sizes, from as small as 3 inches up to 24 inches, plus a three-pack of pucks, and you can connect up to 10 to work together to illuminate large kitchens. The slim profile disappears under the cabinet face, and the lamps can be hardwired or plugged in — perfect for apartment dwellers and homeowners alike.

A simple pendant light can go a long way toward upgrading the lighting in your kitchen. Globe lights are a timeless staple in lighting fixtures because they can easily fill a room with 360 degrees of light. The clean lines and unobtrusive textures of Mid-century Modern light fixtures like globe pendants are a perfect fit for any size kitchen and any decor style.

This globe pendant light from KoKo&Yukina is a perfect pendant for the middle of your kitchen or over a bar. It comes in two sizes — a 6-inch or 8-inch globe — with clear or frosted glass and black or gold mounting hardware. If you need more ambient light, KoKo&Yukina also offers multi-bulb fixtures with two, three, and six bulbs. The frosted glass shade gives a cozy French café vibe, while the clear shade — paired with the included Edison-style LED filament bulb — is delightfully industrial. This pendant is hardwired, so it requires some work to install. Even if you're renting, the installation is simple enough that you could replace the old fixture when you move out and take this stylish piece with you to your next place.

For an ultra-cozy kitchen, take a tip from chefs like Ina Garten and add a freestanding lamp on your counter or bar for an extra layer of lighting. They're as pretty as they are functional, giving you extra light when you need it. This is beneficial for detail-oriented kitchen tasks and adding warmth and comfort to the room the rest of the time. 

For many of us, counterspace is at such a premium that we hardly have room for our kitchen essentials, much less a table lamp. The Dawnwake dimmable mushroom lamp is the perfect solution for small kitchens in need of a bit of extra decorative light. It's corded and small, so it won't take up a ton of space on your counter, and the ceramic sphere base and hand-blown glass shade are easy to wipe down if you accidentally splatter them while working. It has step-less dimming from 0 to 100 percent, so it can go from task light to nightlight in a snap. The unique included bulb lasts a long time, even when lit 24/7. It comes in a range of colors, including a one-piece hand-blown style, to match just about any decor.

Organic, natural shapes are very on-trend right now, with fluid curves and nature-inspired colors and materials taking center stage. Pendant lights — another vintage aesthetic making a comeback in our kitchens — are ideal for expressing this style, and these fabulously colorful glass pendant lights from Yisuro are a perfect example of how to do it right.

They're made from hammered glass that give them the look of a precariously dangling water droplet when turned off. When you turn them on, they light up with dazzling, fluid-like colors reminiscent of a lava lamp. The open bottom of the pendant casts a puddle of light below — perfect for lighting your cutting board while you chop or putting a spotlight on your perfectly plated dishes at the bar. They come in three arrangements of one, two, or three pendants and are height-adjustable to fit in any room. You can use any bulb you like, including smart bulbs, allowing you to further customize your lighting scene.

When you're renting your space, it can feel like your renovation options are limited. While your landlord may frown on you hiring a contractor to rewire the property, a little bit of stick-on magic can go a long way. Removable under-cabinet lighting is one of the best kitchen upgrades you can make with no renovations, and that's where the MCGOR motion-sensing under-cabinet lights come in.

These under-cabinet light bars are magnetic, clinging to the underside of your cabinets from an adhesive metal plate. That makes them easy to remove and recharge via USB. They can also double as an easy-to-grab flashlight that you never have to go digging through your junk drawer to find. Because the plates are adhesive and the lights are battery-operated, you don't have to worry about where the nearest outlet is. This means you can also install them in hard-to-light areas, like inside your drawers and the toe-kick space under your cabinets.

These stick-on lights are motion-activated, turning on automatically when motion is detected in a dark environment, and they turn off after 20 seconds of no motion to save battery power. The brightness is adjustable from super-bright task lighting to a low-level nightlight, and the battery lasts several days before needing to be recharged, even with heavy use.

The vintage aesthetic never truly goes out of style, and this gorgeous beaded chandelier from Newrays is a perfect example. It takes the classic beaded waterfall chandelier design and gives it an eclectic twist with its distressed turquoise wooden beads and rustic, farmhouse-style metal hardware. The beads are coated with lime to prevent scorching, and they cast moody, dramatic shadows when the lamp is illuminated at night. It is definitely a vibe, but you'll want to make sure you have plenty of other lighting layers when you're working in the kitchen.

The Newrays beaded chandelier comes in a range of sizes from 12 to 20 inches and multiple colors and styles, including plug-in and hardwired installations to satisfy renters and homeowners alike. Think your space is too small for a chandelier? Think again — large chandeliers can actually make small spaces look bigger by drawing the eye upward, creating the illusion of more open space.

Modern kitchens — especially in the big cities — can be small to the point of unusable. That being said, even the tiniest of them all can benefit from the added light and cozy vibes of a small table lamp on the counter. The THAUSDAS portable touch lamp is a perfect solution, with its itty-bitty 3.5-inch footprint and battery-operated portability. You can plop it down where you need it, when you need it, and slide it out of the way when you need extra space to work. Because it's battery operated (and rechargeable via USB), you don't have to worry about where the nearest outlet is.

This touch lamp is bright enough for a work light, but it can be dimmed for a night light, and it has a sleep timer to help you extend the time between recharges. It can be operated with a tap, and it also has a remote control that allows you to change between different colors and brightness options to functionally decorate your kitchen counter. If you're looking to add a touch of coziness to your small kitchen, this lamp might be just what you need.

For maximum control over the lighting landscape of your kitchen, check out the Nanoleaf Skylight. This flush-mount modular lighting fixture allows you to configure lights in just about any shape, size, and color you can imagine. The main controller is hardwired, but from there, you can connect up to 99 additional panels. At roughly 12 inches per panel, that can cover a monstrous amount of space.

The lights themselves are insanely bright — up to 1400 lumens per panel when set to white — but they're dimmable if that's too much for you, and can be programmed to any of over 16 million colors. The Nanoleaf mobile app features scenes for multicolor applications, like colors bouncing from one light to the next, so you can go from an energetic party vibe to ultra-bright work lighting to a comfy, cozy sanctuary with just a few taps.

The Nanoleaf Skylight comes as a three-panel starter pack, and you can add on with expansion packs of one panel each. You can arrange them in a straight line if you want, which is fine when they're set to a multicolor scene. When all the lights are white, though, it tends to look like those rectangular fluorescent light fixtures, and that's one questionable vintage kitchen decor trend that we're definitely not trying to bring back. If you do plan on using the Nanoleaf Skylight for more than just mood lighting, it's best to get a little creative and stagger the panels.

Even with the best ambient and task lighting layers, seeing into the back of your cabinets and drawers can still be a frustrating endeavor. Haven't we all cleaned out our pantries only to find food we'd totally forgotten about hidden in the back? While we can't guarantee you'll never lose something in the abyss of your cabinets again, some automatic cabinet lights are one of the easiest pantry upgrades you can make — no tools or handiness required.

Amagle's battery-operated cabinet and drawer lights use a clever magnetic activation device that ensures they only light up when the door or drawer is open, and shut off as soon as you close it. No need to wave your hand in front of a motion sensor — they activate much like the refrigerator door, so you won't waste any battery life on lighting a closed drawer.

These automatic lights come in a four-pack so you can illuminate multiple cabinets with one kit, or layer them up in one cabinet to brighten up all your shelves. They're super easy to install with the included 3M adhesive tape — just make sure you align the activator with the light so that it turns on and off properly and doesn't drain your batteries.

If there's one thing most kitchens need more of — besides light, of course — it's ventilation. With modern kitchens getting smaller and smaller, however, most of us don't have space for a giant ceiling fan. The LEDIARY caged ceiling fan light brings light and air movement to any size kitchen without giant paddles taking up precious space. The miniature fan blades are enclosed in a cylindrical cage with four light bulbs, adding lots of light and airflow with one beautiful fixture.

The LEDIARY ceiling fan light is available in three sizes, ranging from 18 to 23 inches across, and three colors — distressed white gold, black, and walnut. It has three fan speeds, a reversible motor to adjust airflow seasonally, and a timer to shut off automatically when not in use. This caged ceiling fan moves plenty of air, even with its small size, and unlike most kitchen vent fans, it operates quietly. It requires E26 bulbs — standard bulbs will interfere with the fan blades — but you can choose LEDs, incandescent bulbs, and even smart bulbs for fully customizable brightness, color, temperature, and dimmer compatibility.

Current lighting trends have long moved on from lighting the entire kitchen with a single overhead light. Outdated ornate chandeliers and sconces are out, too, but these industrial farmhouse wall sconces from JONATHAN Y are delightfully in. They've got sleek lines and timeless colors — black, chrome, and brass gold — that blend perfectly with any kitchen decor scheme and never go out of style.

They're perfect for task lighting over the sink or stove, and the adjustable arms feature three pivoting joints that allow you to position the beam of light exactly where you want it. You can lower them when you need extra light for more precision, and raise them when you're finished to provide more ambient light. The only downside is that, because they're hardwired, you'll probably need to hire an electrician to install them if you're not replacing existing sconces. This means they may not be an option for most renters.

Ring lights are a content creator classic for a reason — they provide even, balanced light from all angles, eliminating the harsh shadows that can be caused by more direct lighting. But that flattering light quality isn't just for filming. The TEMINBU modern ceiling ring light brings all the benefits of this streamer staple to your kitchen, too, banishing shadowy corners and uneven light.

This futuristic fixture features interlocking ring lights, available in 4-, 6-, and 8-ring configurations that can illuminate up to 260 square feet with up to 6,200 lumens of light. Keep in mind, though, that the TEMINBU ceiling ring light is non-dimmable, so consider your existing lighting layers when deciding how much overhead light you need before settling on a size. Those ultra-bright LED headlights come in at 4,000 lumens or less, so unless you want to light up the neighborhood through your kitchen windows, less is more when it comes to this fixture.

The kitchen lighting fixtures on this list were selected based on independent reviews, along with ratings and reviews from verified purchasers of the products. Special attention was given to highlighting multiple fixtures to cover all four essential layers of light — ambient, accent, task, and decorative — for renters and homeowners alike.

This included considering plug-in, hardwired, and battery-operated options. The number of lumens, the types of bulbs, and dimmable functionality were all considered when assessing these products.