Home lighting: recessed, landscape and smart controls

Three lighting jobs, three sets of rules

Most lighting work in Southern California homes falls into one of three groups. Each has its own page.

A ceiling fan is a related job, and the ceiling fan installation cost page lists what moves the price.

Job	What decides the cost	Page
Recessed (can) lights	Ceiling access, number of lights, insulation, airtight housings	Recessed lighting
Landscape lighting	Low-voltage or line voltage, trenching, GFCI power	Landscape lighting
Switches, dimmers and smart controls	Neutral wire in the box, 3-way wiring, bulb type	Smart switches and dimmers

If you are adding a ceiling fan with a light, see ceiling fans. That job has its own box and wiring rules.

Start with the wiring, not the fixture

Fixtures are the easy part. The questions that decide the job are:

1. Where does power come from? A nearby switch, outlet or junction box can be extended, but only if the circuit has room. A 15-amp circuit with LED lights has plenty of room. One that also feeds a space heater does not.
2. Can the wire reach the new location? Attic access makes ceiling work simple. A second-floor ceiling or a slab-on-grade house can take longer.
3. What switch controls it? Adding a new light usually means a new switch or a change to an existing one. The switch box may or may not have a neutral.
4. What does the city require? New wiring generally needs a permit and an inspection.

California’s energy rules for lighting

California’s Energy Code (Title 24, Part 6) sets how residential lighting must work. The basics for homes are:

• Most light sources must be high efficacy, which means LED or similar and certified under a standard called JA8. Look for a JA8 marking on the lamp or fixture.
• Recessed downlights in the ceiling must be rated for insulation contact (IC), airtight, and use a certified source with no screw-in base.
• Bathrooms, garages, laundry rooms, utility rooms and walk-in closets need at least one light controlled by an occupancy or vacancy sensor (auto-off).
• Lighting in habitable rooms needs a readily accessible wall-mounted dimming control, with exceptions such as ceiling fan lights on a remote and circuits under 20 watts of lighting.
• All lighting needs a readily accessible wall-mounted manual on and off control.

These rules come from the Energy Code, not the electrical code, so an inspector may check them even when the wiring is fine. These points are from the 2022 Energy Code summary, section 150.0(k). The Energy Code is updated every three years and the 2025 edition took effect in 2026, so check the current section numbers and wording with your electrician or city before work begins. The recessed lighting page and the smart switches page go through the parts that apply to each job.

Choosing fixtures that pass

A fixture that is sold in California should be marked for JA8 when it is a screw-in lamp or a light source in a ceiling fixture. If a fixture comes without that marking, it may fail an inspection even if it works. Ask the electrician to supply fixtures that meet the Energy Code, or check each box before you buy.

Dimmable bulbs need a compatible dimmer, so match them. LED bulbs in enclosed fixtures need a rating for enclosed use, because heat shortens their life.

Permits and inspection

A new circuit, new recessed lights, new switch locations and landscape lighting that adds a transformer or line-voltage wiring generally need a permit. Like-for-like swaps of a fixture or switch usually do not. The inspector checks the wiring, the box fill, the connections, grounding and GFCI protection where needed, and may check fixture markings for Title 24. The electrical permits guide covers how this works across cities.

Costs

As of October 2026, typical published ranges are:

• Recessed lights: about $125 to $300 per light in an existing ceiling. Fixr’s national guide (January 2025) puts the average at $1,467 for six lights. See the recessed lighting cost page.
• Switch or dimmer swaps: Fixr lists about $75 to replace a single-pole switch, and an outlet install runs $120 to $200 nationally. A dedicated circuit costs more and is quoted by the run. See the outlet and GFCI cost page.

Landscape lighting prices vary too much by yard and fixture count to quote one range. Get a written quote that lists the transformer size, the number of fixtures, cable length and whether trenching is included.

What to prepare for the visit

Take photos of the room and any attic access. Note where you want lights, and which switch should control them. If you have a bulb type in mind, say so. For smart switches, open one switch plate with the power off at the breaker and look for a white wire, or ask the electrician to check. Send the details through the quote form and the electrician can tell you what is possible before arriving.