Garden lighting is not one product. It is four different products doing four different jobs, and most British gardens want two of them at most. The mistake people make is buying a set of solar spike lights (cheapest), being underwhelmed, and giving up on outdoor lighting altogether, when a £40 set of festoon lights would have transformed the same garden in an evening.
Festoon, the workhorse for evenings outside
Festoon lights are the cable-strung bulb sets that hang across patios, between trees, or along a fence line. They do the heavy lifting in any garden you actually use after sunset. Run them across the back wall above where the dining table sits and the patio reads warm without overhead glare.
Look for IP65 rating, end-to-end connectability (so you can chain two sets), and 2700K warm-white bulbs. Garden lighting from John Lewis, Lights4Fun and B&Q all stock decent IP65 festoon sets in the £40 to £120 band. Avoid cool-white "daylight" festoon, it reads clinical even outside.
Spike lights, path edges and bed lighting
Spike lights push into the soil and uplight from low. They are the right choice for path safety along garden steps and for grazing light up against a fence or hedge to add depth after dusk. They do nothing useful in the middle of a lawn.
Brightness for path safety wants 100 to 200 lumens per spike at 1 to 2 metre spacing. For decorative bed lighting (uplighting plants, fences), 50 to 100 lumens is enough. Low-voltage 12V systems plug into a single transformer; a professional 230V install costs £200 to £600 in labour but lasts decades.
Solar, the convenience tax, and the lifespan reality
Solar lights need no wiring, no installation, no decision. That is their entire selling point and the reason most British gardens have at least one set bought from a hardware shop in May.
The honest reality is that cheap solar (£20 to £40 for a string) lasts 12 to 18 months before the lithium battery fades and the panel yellows enough that the lights stop reaching usable brightness. Mid-range solar (£60 to £150) with a separate 1-2W panel and replaceable batteries lasts 3 to 5 years and is genuinely useful. The £20 set is a single-summer purchase that you replace each spring.
Wired, when it earns its keep
Permanently-wired lighting is the long game. It costs more upfront (£200 to £1500 for a small garden install with a UK electrician), but it lasts 15 to 20 years, runs from your mains, and gives you brightness that solar cannot match.
Wired earns its keep if you genuinely use the garden after dark from October to March. For occasional summer-evening use, festoon and mid-range solar are the more honest spend.
The brightness, temperature, and IP-rating cheat sheet
Three numbers to read on any product page before you click buy. Brightness in lumens (50-200 for ambient and path; over 400 for security floods, which are a different category). Colour temperature in Kelvin: 2700K (warm white) for ambient and dining, 3000K-3500K for general path lighting, never 5000K+ in a domestic garden. IP rating: IP44 sheltered, IP65 exposed, IP67 submerged.
So pick festoon for the patio, spike or wired for the path, mid-range solar if you do not want to commit to either. Most British gardens are done with two of those.
Garden lighting types at a glance
| Type | Best for | IP rating | Brightness (lumens) | Lifespan | Price band |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Festoon | Patio overhead, evening dining | IP44 sheltered, IP65 open | 50-100 per bulb | 5-10 years | £40-£200 |
| Spike (low-voltage 12V) | Path edges, bed uplighting | IP65 | 50-200 per spike | 10-15 years | £60-£400 (kit) |
| Solar (cheap) | Convenience, no wiring | IP44-65 | 20-50 per light | 1-2 years | £20-£60 |
| Solar (mid-range) | Convenience, decent brightness | IP65 | 100-200 per light | 3-5 years | £60-£250 |
| Wired (mains 230V) | Permanent install, heavy use | IP65+ | 200-1000+ | 15-20 years | £200-£1,500 install |
Common questions
- Are solar garden lights actually any good?
- The cheap end (£20-£40 for a string) gives you 12-18 months before the batteries fade and the panel yellows. Mid-range solar (£60-£150) lasts 3-5 years and reaches genuinely useful brightness. For ambient evening light, mid-range solar is fine; for path safety, wired is the better answer.
- How bright should garden lights actually be?
- Less bright than you think. 50-100 lumens per festoon bulb is the sweet spot for evening dining. Path lighting wants 100-200 lumens per spike at 1-2 metre spacing. Anything brighter and the patio reads like a car park rather than a relaxed evening space.
- What does IP rating mean on outdoor lights?
- IP44 is the minimum for sheltered outdoor use (under a porch or pergola). IP65 handles direct rain and is the rating to look for on path lights and festoons in open positions. IP67 and IP68 are submersible - more than you need unless the light sits in a pond.
- Do I need an electrician for outdoor wired lighting?
- For low-voltage 12V systems (most spike lights), no - they plug into a transformer that runs from a standard outdoor socket. For 230V mains-wired lighting in the ground or on the wall, yes; UK Building Regulations Part P requires a competent installer for fixed garden circuits.
What each price band buys you
Under £80. A single set of cheap solar string lights or one festoon set. Functional for a season. Useful for occasional summer evenings; replace each spring.
£80-£250. Decent festoon set (Lights4Fun or John Lewis IP65), or a small solar spike kit, or a mid-range solar lantern set. Five years of life if you bring them inside winters. The honest mid-band for most British gardens.
£250-£700. Low-voltage 12V spike kit with transformer, multiple festoon runs, or premium solar from Hue or Philips. Where a properly-lit garden becomes possible without an electrician.
Above £700. Permanent mains-wired installation with a UK electrician. Multi-zone, dimmable, integrated with smart-home control. Twenty years of life.
Three picks worth considering
For under £40: solar string or festoon lights from The Range or Robert Dyas
The entry band that punches above its price. 5-10 metre solar-powered string lights with 50-100 LEDs, IP44-rated for British rain, automatic dusk-to-dawn switching. Both retailers run wide ranges at £15-£40, with end-of-season clearances pushing strong examples below £20. Suits trees, fences, pergolas; replaces every 2-3 seasons rather than 10 years.
For £40-£150: solar spike or path lights from Cherry Lane Garden Centres or Robert Dyas
The mid-band where solar lighting starts doing real work. Spike lights with 200-400 lumens, path lights in stainless steel or copper finish, IP65 weatherproofing for ground-level placement. Cherry Lane Garden Centres covers the classic gardener's range; Robert Dyas covers the modern minimalist styling. 5-7 years of life with the battery the limiting factor.
For £150+: low-voltage wired or premium fittings from Robert Dyas
The end where lighting becomes architectural. Low-voltage 12V plug-and-play kits with multiple spike lights, downlights and bollards from a single transformer, IP67 rated for any placement including planters. Robert Dyas runs strong at this band with kits from Garden Trading and own-brand suppliers. The serious-evening-illumination tier; 10+ years of life and the kind of investment that earns the patio extra months of usable evening time.
Wiring, IP ratings and the bits to plan in early
Outdoor lighting is one of those jobs where decisions made on day one save real money on day fifty. Three things decide everything. How it is powered, where the cables run, and whether the fittings are rated for British weather.
Power first. Mains-wired lighting needs an outdoor RCD-protected socket and is a notifiable Part P job for most installs, so a registered electrician is the safe route. Solar lighting from Lights4fun or Festive Lights skips that entirely but only really works for path lights and string lights, not for serious evening illumination. Low-voltage 12V plug-and-play kits from Garden Trading or In-Lite are the middle ground. Easy to install yourself, no Part P, but you do need an outdoor socket somewhere.
Second, plan cable runs before any planting goes in. Once shrubs and beds are mature, retro-fitting cable becomes a much bigger job. Use armoured cable in conduit for any underground run, and keep at least 50cm of clearance from any future digging zones.
Third, the IP rating. IP44 is the minimum for any fitting that sees rain. IP65 is what you want for anything close to ground level or in a planter. IP67 is for fittings that may sit briefly in standing water, like deck spotlights. Most decent retailers list the rating in the spec sheet. Cheap online listings often do not, which is enough reason to pay £15 more elsewhere.
