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Urban Light Company
Wall lightsBedside wall lights →Hallway wall lights →
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43 combinations · from £95.00 each

Hallway Wall Lights

A run of swan necks along a hall or up a stairwell does more for the feel of a house than any ceiling light. Handmade on solid oak, beech or walnut, in the metal that suits the front door.

Wall lights for a hall, landing or stairwell

A hallway is the one room in the house nobody sits in, so a single ceiling light in the middle of it lights the middle of it and leaves the walls, the door and the stairs in shadow. Wall lights fix that by putting the light where the walls are: a run of them along one side turns a corridor into a sequence of warm pools, and a pair at the foot and turn of a stair makes the stair safe as well as handsome.

A swan neck does this better than a flush fitting because the bulb sits 28 cm out from the wall and points down, so each light throws a wash down the wall and across the floor rather than a spot straight out. The wall itself becomes the surface that is lit, which is what makes a narrow hall feel longer and a dark one feel lived in.

Each one is a 14 cm back plate turned from solid oak, beech or walnut with a swan neck arm in brass, black, copper, chrome or white and a bulb holder you choose separately. Order three from one batch and the timber matches down the length of the hall. It arrives ready to wire and takes an ordinary E27 bulb.

The questions people ask before fitting hallway lights

How high should hallway wall lights be?
Higher than a bedside light, because nobody is sitting down. Around 1.5–1.7 m from the floor to the centre of the back plate is the usual band — roughly eye level for someone standing — so the bulb sits just above the eyeline and lights the wall and the floor rather than dazzling whoever walks past. In a hall with a low ceiling, keep it towards the lower end; the arm reaches 28 cm out, 30–34 cm with a bulb in, so in a narrow passage check you can still pass without catching it.
How many wall lights does a hallway need?
One every 2.5–3 m of wall is the rule of thumb, and an odd number reads better than an even one. A short hall wants one, placed where it does the most — beside the front door or opposite a mirror. A long corridor wants a run of them at even spacing on one wall, so the pools of light overlap and there are no dark stretches. On stairs, one at the bottom, one at the turn and one at the top does more than any single ceiling light.
Is a swan neck right for a narrow hallway?
It depends on the width. The arm projects 28 cm from the wall, so in a passage under about a metre wide it will be in the way; a hall of 1.2 m or more is fine. Because the light comes from the tip of the arm rather than a flush plate, a swan neck throws light forward along the wall, which is what makes a narrow space feel longer rather than smaller.
Which bulb for a hallway?
Brighter than a bedroom, warmer than a kitchen. A 6–8 W LED filament in warm white (2700 K) per light is about right; go dimmable and put the run on one dimmer so the hall can be bright when you're finding keys and low when you're going to bed. The light is supplied without a bulb and takes any standard E27 screw-fit — a large clear globe is what's photographed.
Which finish for a hallway?
The hall is the room that sets the tone for the rest of the house, and the one place a bolder finish earns its keep. Brass on oak is the classic and suits a period house. Black on beech is the sharpest line and the one to pick if the front door or the stair spindles are dark. White on oak all but disappears, which is the right answer in a small, already-busy hall.
How long does a set take?
Each light is built when you order it — 5–7 working days, then tracked delivery by Royal Mail or a tracked courier. Order a run of three together and you pay one delivery charge, and they arrive from the same batch of timber.

Not sure how many, or how far apart? Tell me the length of the wall and I’ll tell you what I’d do.

Choose the finish

Hallway wall lights by finish.

Every combination, £95.00 each

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