How many puck lights per cabinet?

Two for a 24-inch cabinet, three for a 30 to 36-inch cabinet, and four for a 48-inch run — spaced 12 to 20 inches apart and centered so the pools overlap slightly at the counter. Pucks placed further apart than about 20 inches leave visible dark gaps and scalloped shadows on the backsplash. If even, shadow-free light across the whole counter is the goal, linkable bars or continuous tape do it better than any puck spacing.

What length light bar for a 30 inch cabinet?

A 24 to 28-inch bar. The rule of thumb is to fill within 2 to 4 inches of the cabinet width, since a bar much shorter than the cabinet leaves dark ends where the counter meets the next section. Manufacturers sell bars in 9, 12, 18, 24, 30 and 40-inch lengths precisely to match common cabinet sizes, and most are linkable, so two shorter bars can fill an awkward run as well as one long one.

Do you need under cabinet lights above the sink or stove?

Usually not, because there is rarely a cabinet there. The sink typically has a dedicated recessed or pendant fixture above it, and the range has the hood light. Check that the hood light is actually adequate — many builder-grade hood lamps are dim and poorly rendered, and replacing the bulb with a higher-output LED of the correct type is a cheap upgrade. Under-cabinet lighting covers the runs on either side.

Should you light every cabinet or just the work areas?

Light every run you prepare food on, which in most kitchens is nearly all of them. Skipping a section produces an obvious dark patch, and the eye reads a partially lit counter as an unfinished job. The exceptions are short filler cabinets, cabinets over a refrigerator or a tall pantry where there is no counter beneath, and decorative glass cabinets that suit accent lighting instead.

How Many Under Cabinet Lights Do I Need? Count by Cabinet

Q: How many under cabinet lights do I need?

Enough to cover two-thirds to three-quarters of each cabinet run. In practice that means one light bar per cabinet section, sized to within about 4 inches of the cabinet width, or a puck light every 12 to 20 inches. A standard 10-foot run of upper cabinets typically takes three light bars or six to eight pucks. Continuous LED tape sidesteps the counting entirely by covering the full length.

Written & researched by Derek Holt Home & Appliances Editor

Updated October 2026

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Plan on covering two-thirds to three-quarters of each cabinet run with fixtures. In practical terms that means one light bar per cabinet section, sized to within 2 to 4 inches of that cabinet width, or a puck light every 12 to 20 inches. A typical 10-foot run of upper cabinets takes three light bars or six to eight pucks. Continuous LED tape removes the counting problem entirely by running the full length. Fixture count and brightness are separate decisions — coverage decides how even the light is, output decides how bright it is.

How many fixtures per cabinet?

Cabinet width	Light bar length	Puck lights	LED tape
12 in.	9 in.	1	Continuous
18 in.	12–15 in.	1–2	Continuous
24 in.	18–21 in.	2	Continuous
30 in.	24–28 in.	2–3	Continuous
36 in.	30–33 in.	3	Continuous
48 in.	40 in. or 2 × 21 in.	3–4	Continuous

Bars and pucks are usually linkable, so two shorter fixtures fill an awkward cabinet as well as one long one, and linking keeps the whole run on a single power feed and a single switch.

Three-quarter view of a person switching, in soft early-morning light

What does a real kitchen look like?

Take a common layout: a 6-foot run of uppers to the left of the range, a 4-foot run to the right, and a 3-foot section beside the refrigerator. That is 13 feet of counter needing light. With bars, you would use two 30-inch and one 21-inch on the long wall, one 40-inch on the short run, and one 30-inch beside the fridge — five fixtures. With pucks, you would need roughly 9 to 11 spaced at 16 inches. With tape, three cut lengths on a single driver. At 200 to 300 lumens per foot, the total output for 13 feet comes to 2,600 to 3,900 lumens, which is the sizing worked through in how bright under-cabinet lighting should be.

Over-the-shoulder view of a person switching, in warm late-afternoon light

How much gap is too much?

More than about 6 inches of unlit cabinet between fixtures shows as a visible dark band on the counter, and more than about 20 inches between puck centers produces the scalloped shadow pattern on the backsplash that immediately reads as a cheap installation. The eye is far more sensitive to unevenness than to absolute level — a slightly dim but perfectly even counter looks better than a bright, patchy one. This is the strongest argument for continuous tape or linked bars over pucks in any kitchen where you actually prepare food, and it is reflected in the owner ratings behind our best under-cabinet lighting picks.

Over-the-shoulder view of a person switching, in soft overcast light

How does the count affect wiring?

Each fixture family has a limit on how many units can be linked on one feed, typically stated in the manual as a maximum total wattage or a maximum number of linked pieces — commonly six to ten bars, or a tape run of 16 to 32 feet on a single driver. Exceeding it dims the far end of the run or overheats the driver. If your kitchen needs more than one feed, plan for both to land on the same switch so the whole counter comes on together. A plug-in transformer into an existing outlet is the simplest route; a hardwired install to a wall switch is neater but is electrical work subject to local code, and a licensed electrician should handle anything involving new circuits. The sequence is in how to install under-cabinet lighting.

Does this change the ceiling light plan?

It should. A properly lit counter means the ceiling layer no longer has to carry the task load, so recessed lighting can be planned for even ambient coverage rather than aimed at work surfaces — the approach set out in how far apart recessed lights should be spaced. Total kitchen output and the split between layers is covered in how many lumens for a kitchen.

We do not buy, test or physically handle any product on this site — guidance here comes from manufacturer specifications and installation documentation, with rankings based on aggregated owner reviews. See how we rank.

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How Many Under Cabinet Lights Do I Need?