How to choose the right beam angle for your LED Downlights ?

How to choose the lighting angle in practical application?

Narrow Beam Angle: 8°~25° Suitable for accent lighting, such as lighting highlighting specific objects decorations or display areas;

Medium Beam Angle: 30°~45° Suitable for local lighting, also called indirect lighting, such as light rubbing against the wall, there is a feeling of raising the ceiling, reducing the sense of depression in the space; at the same time, it can still provide a moderate focusing effect at different angles;

Wide Beam Angle: 50° ~60° Suitable ambient lighting, even lighting, ideal for very large spaces, with more diffuse light hitting the floor, suitable for standard ceiling heights. , to cover a larger area, such as the living room, dining room, etc；

More than 60°, In large commercial areas, shopping centers, plazas, and other places that require a large lighting range, wide-angle spotlights can provide uniform light distribution and create a good shopping and event experience for customers；

More than 90°, Downlights above 90 degrees are suitable for occasions that require large-scale and uniform lighting, such as halls, corridors, galleries, museums, etc., where artworks or performances need to be prominently displayed;

Further, the difference in scene requirements brings about differences in light distribution. The most prominent feeling is the size of the beam angle.

So how do choose a suitable lighting angle for residential applications & commercial applications in lighting design?

How to choose a downlight beam angle for residential lighting applications?

Houses and apartments have lower ceilings and smaller areas. Therefore, the lighting design of the residential environment usually pays more attention to creating a comfortable atmosphere. For example, a wider lighting angle can provide uniform lighting, creating a warm and comfortable home feeling; while a narrower lighting angle can be used to highlight specific objects, decorations, or Details such as artwork, bookshelves, decorative paintings, and more.

In most cases, the wide beam angle of 45°-60° is enough to brighten the room. In practical applications, the living room has a large area and can be covered with an ultra-wide beam angle of 60°-90°, which can also reduce the number of lamps used;

Don’t forget that in residential lighting, accent lighting, and partial lighting are also essential, and they can be used together to create a comfortable and practical lighting environment.

How to choose a downlight beam angle for commercial lighting applications?

Commercial lighting is not the same as residential lighting. The environment of commercial lighting is more complex, including lighting places such as hotels, offices, specialty stores, restaurants, clothing stores, shopping malls, and warehouses.
Commercial applications usually place more emphasis on task lighting in specific areas, such as merchandise display areas in retail stores, work areas in offices. The narrow beam angle concentrates the light and accentuates the illumination of specific areas.

For example:

Hotel:
In the hotel’s lobby, lobby, restaurant, and other high-risk areas, H>6m, the appeal of LED downlights is that large size, high power, and large angle, such as a 90° ultra-wide beam angle, are very suitable for this kind of ultra-high uniformity degree of advanced space venues;

Clothing Store:
Especially commodity windows, signs, cashiers, etc., all need accent lighting, 10°-20° narrow beam angle or 24°-45° wide beam angle,

Whenever, when choosing the luminous angle of LED downlights, residential applications, and commercial applications will have some differences according to their different needs and priorities. Reasonably consider the lighting target, lighting area, and desired effect, and choose the appropriate lighting angle to meet the lighting needs of a specific scene.