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Design 101
Best Floor Lamps for Every Room, Every Occasion
September 12, 2024
Floor lamps provide ambient light, focused light for reading and other task-oriented work, or light up a corner. They also come in styles to complement any design style, such as brightening a modern home office space with a sleek, black arc floor lamp. Or warming a rustic living room from the ambient light of a floor lamp with an iron base and a dark, linen lamp shade.
Whether searching for a sturdy, colorful floor lamp for your child's room or an elegant torch light to accentuate the dark corners of your entry area, the best floor lamp for you is just around the bend.
How To Choose a Floor Lamp
Choose a height and placement
Many factors impact optimal floor lamp height.
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Type of lighting: Taller lamps provide wider coverage for ambient lighting. For task lighting, lower floor lamps provide focused light.
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Potential for glare: To prevent too much light in your eyes, ensure that lightbulbs are not visible when sitting or standing near lamps.
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Style: Achieve a cohesive aesthetic by keeping all table and floor lamps about the same height.
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Furniture size: Ensure that your lamps complement the proportions of other furniture in the room.
The best floor lamp for your space may be influenced by where you intend to place the lamp.
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The best floor lamps for living rooms are often placed between two chairs, in the corner between a sofa and a loveseat, or alongside a table or seating area.
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A solitary torch lamp brightens a dark corner.
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To avoid the glare on a television screen, place your floor lamp behind the TV.
Select a finish and style
The best floor lamps come in a wide variety of styles and finishes.
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Finish: The pole and base of a floor lamp can be made of wood, marble, or ceramic, but most are metal. Choose a metal finish that complements the other metals in the room.
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Shade shape: Traditional floor lamp shades are flat or pleated fabric in a drum or cone shape. However, many other shapes complement other styles, including mushroom, globe, and orb shapes.
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Shade materials: While traditionally linen and cotton, shades can be metal or even paper.
Choose a bulb and wattage
LED bulbs:
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Energy efficient
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More expensive at the outset but less expensive in the long run due to a long lifespan
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Color temperature options from cool, bright white to warm
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Unique shapes, colors, and multi-color options
Incandescent bulbs:
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Warm but not bright
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Compatible with many lamps
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Less expensive initial purchase but must be replaced more often than LEDs
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Less energy efficient
Halogen bulbs:
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Common floor lamp bulb
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Bright
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Produce a lot of heat
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Energy efficient
Wattage measures the electricity used by the bulb while lumens indicate brightness. Select bulbs with more lumens for task-oriented lighting and bulbs with less lumens for ambient and accent light. Some bulbs, like LEDs, provide brighter light than incandescent bulbs of the same wattage.
Style Tips for Choosing the Best Floor Lamp for Your Space
Find the right fit
Think about the scale of your room and the other furniture pieces within it. Opt for a lamp that complements the size and balances well with your existing decor. For example, if you have high ceilings, choose a taller lamp to fill vertical space. In smaller rooms, a more compact option will help avoid overwhelming the area. In rooms with large furniture pieces, like sectional sofas or oversized armchairs, a floor lamp that is proportional in size will prevent it from overwhelming the space.
Balance Style and Substance
From sleek and modern to vintage-inspired or minimalist, there’s a floor lamp for every style preference. Take cues from your existing decor and architectural elements in your space. Choose a lamp with a style, material, and color that compliments what you already have. A well-chosen floor lamp can serve as a statement piece or seamlessly blend into the background.
Think About Functionality First
While style is important, don’t forget about functionality. Consider how you’ll be using your floor lamp on a day-to-day basis. Do you need adjustable height or swivel capabilities for task lighting? Are you looking for a lamp with built-in shelves or USB ports for added convenience?
Think about the practical aspects that will enhance your day-to-day experience with the lamp.
Different Types of Floor Lamps
The Best Floor Lamps: By Room
Best living room floor lamps
The best floor lamps for living rooms are typically floor lamps that provide ambient light to brighten a larger area and torch floor lamps to illuminate darker corners. If you read, work on your computer, or enjoy puzzles, crafts, or games in your living room, the best living room floor lamps may be those that provide focused light for tasks.
Best bedroom floor lamps
The best bedroom floor lamps may also be the most versatile, like those with dimmers or three-stage switches. Brighter light can make it easier to wake up on a dark morning while dimmer, warmer light is more pleasant when settling down at night.
Adjustable floor lamps can help direct task lighting for reading while not disturbing your partner.
Best floor lamps for kids rooms
The best floor lamps for kids rooms place safety above style. Cordless floor lamps prevent kids from tripping. Floor lamps with LED bulbs do not become hot to the touch like more traditional bulbs.
As children get older and spend more time reading and working on computers, task lighting gives them a more focused light.
Best floor lamps for small spaces
The best floor lamps for small spaces use space efficiently and add depth to the room with light. Narrow lamps fit well into smaller rooms. Lamps with attached tables or shelves take up less space by merging two furnishings into one.
The Best Floor Lamps: By Task
Best floor lamps for reading
Reading requires focused, direct light. When creating a cozy reading nook, include a lamp with a stem or arm that can be adjusted to direct the light on your reading materials. Arc floor lamps, tree floor lamps, and wing floor lamps work well for reading.
Best task floor lamps
Like the best floor lamps for reading, you can adjust the best task floor lamps to focus light directly on your work, craft, or project. To protect your eye health, choose enough lumens for appropriate brightness while taking care to avoid too much glare.
The Best Floor Lamps: By Style
Best mid century style floor lamps
The best mid century style floor lamps use natural materials like wood bases and linen shades. While slim posts and minimalist shapes complement the style, functionality reigns, making tree lamps and other multi-armed floor lamps strong options as well.
Best traditional style floor lamps
The simple but versatile look of a standard floor lamp with a metal base topped by a linen shade works well in a traditional-style room. Another style of floor lamp to consider when searching for the best traditional style floor lamps is the vintage look of a pharmacy floor lamp.
Best modern floor lamps
Arc lamps, tripod lamps, and lamps with unique features like an LED base that serves as the light source complement the modern design style. The best modern floor lamps are typically sleek and shiny and feature black, gold, and polished steel.
Bonus Tips
These additional pieces of advice will help you make the most out of the floor lamp you invest in:
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Layer your lighting
Don’t rely solely on your floor lamp to light up the room. Stack your lighting with overhead fixtures, table lamps, and other sources of light to create depth and dimension.
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Think long-term
It is worth it in the long run to invest in a quality floor lamp. Look for durable materials and solid construction that will withstand the test of time and a few inevitable bumps along the way.
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Don’t forget the shade
The shade for your floor lamp could totally alter the look and feel of the lamp, not to mention the difference it will make in the quality and direction of light. Try to find a shade that complements your style while also diffusing light evenly throughout the room.
The Flip of a Switch
When choosing the right lighting for your home, the best floor lights, table lights, chandeliers, and more brighten dark corners, warm cozy reading nooks, and add style to our homes with a flip of a switch.
If you're not familiar with the different kinds of bulbs, here's a guide to keep in mind: