LED downlights are the standard ceiling light in modern UK homes. They're also where I see the biggest range of quality — from £4 specials that fail in 18 months to £30 fittings rated for 25 years. Here's what actually matters when choosing them.
GU10 vs Integrated LED
GU10 is the screw-in bulb type — the bulb is replaceable, the fitting itself is a generic holder.
Integrated LED is a single unit where the LED is sealed inside the fitting — when it fails, the whole fitting goes.
Counterintuitively, integrated LED is usually the better choice. Why? The driver electronics are matched to the LED, the heat dissipation is engineered together, and the rated lifespan is properly validated. A good integrated unit (£15-£30 fitted) lasts 20-30 years. A GU10 setup with cheap bulbs lasts 18 months on the bulbs.
Replacement cost when an integrated unit eventually fails: £15-£25 plus 10 minutes of an electrician's time. Hardly worth optimising for.
Brands I Install (and Why)
Aurora (Aurora Lighting): UK manufacturer, 25-year warranty on most ranges, fire-rated as standard, sensible price (£12-£20 each). My default.
Collingwood: also UK-made, slightly more expensive, very good colour rendering for kitchens / bathrooms where colour matters. £20-£30.
Ovia: good budget option for renovations on a budget, 5-year warranty. £8-£15.
Saxby: aesthetically the nicest range — cleaner bezels, better trim options. £15-£35.
JCC Lighting: solid mid-range, good for IP65 (bathroom) installations.
Brands I Won't Install
Anything from a no-name Amazon listing under £5. The driver electronics are short-life, the heatsinks are inadequate so the LED runs too hot, and the warranty is unenforceable. I've replaced thousands of these in old install jobs.
Some major DIY-store own-brand ranges. Quality varies wildly — the £4 packs are usually no better than the no-name Amazon ones, but the £15+ ranges (specifically Wickes Pro range, Screwfix LAP for some products) are reasonable.
Specs That Actually Matter
Colour temperature: 3000K is warm white (the right choice for bedrooms, living rooms, hallways). 4000K is neutral (kitchens, bathrooms, offices). 6000K is cold daylight — hospitals, retail. Don't mix temperatures across a single room.
Lumens (brightness): for general lighting, 500-700 lumens per fitting in a typical 2.4m ceiling. For task lighting (kitchen worktops), 800+ lumens.
IP rating: IP65 minimum for bathrooms / wet zones. IP44 acceptable for kitchen ceilings. IP20 fine for rest of the house.
Fire-rated: required by Building Regs in any ceiling that's a floor for the room above. All fitted as standard from the brands I use.
Dimmable: not all LEDs are. Check the spec, and use a trailing-edge LED-compatible dimmer (see my smart lighting post).
How Many Do You Need?
Rule of thumb: one downlight per 1.5-2 m² of floor area for general lighting. So a 4m × 5m kitchen (20m²) needs 10-12 downlights. A 3m × 3m bedroom (9m²) needs 4-5.
I do free design walk-throughs before quoting — happy to walk through any room and tell you exactly how many you need and where they go. Saves you over- or under-buying.
Cost to Install
Replacing existing fittings (1-for-1 swap): £15-£25 per fitting plus £30 labour per ceiling area. Typical 12-fitting kitchen swap-out: £400-£500 in a day.
New install (no existing downlights, ceiling void to wire from scratch): £25-£40 per fitting plus more labour for the cable runs. Typical 12-fitting kitchen new-install: £700-£1,000.
Pinner, Hemel Hempstead, Harrow, Watford and surrounding area. Call 07405 629 940 or use the contact form.