Dining room chandelier size: it comes from the table width

Updated October 22, 2026

The chandelier or pendant light over a dining table should be one third to one half of the table width. For a 6-seat table of 1.60 x 0.75 m, that is a light 25 to 37 cm in diameter, or two pendants that size, one over each half of the tabletop. On a round table, the math uses the diameter: a 1.20 m table asks for a piece of 40 to 60 cm.

Below you will find the table by table size, how many pendants to use and how far apart, the choice between chandelier, pendant and track, the color of the light, and seven real lights from Brazilian stores, with measures and prices.

The quick rule

Height has its own guide, with the cord math from the ceiling height (in Portuguese): pendant light height (in Portuguese). Here I stick to size, quantity and the space between the lights.

Chandelier size by table width

The sources agree on the idea and differ on the range. The Leroy Merlin blog asks that "the width of the light not go beyond half the width of the table" (my translation, like the other quotes here). In another text, the same Leroy Merlin mentions one third of the tabletop for a round table and half for a rectangular one. Westwing, in its dining room pendant guide, mentions one third of the table; on its lighting page, it gives the chandelier one half to two thirds of the width.

I stay between one third and one half, where the two stores meet. Below one third, the light disappears over the tabletop; above half, it weighs on whoever sits down. I keep Westwing's two thirds for a wide table, 1.10 m or more, in a room with a high ceiling.

In the table, each table size has the measure MadeiraMadeira gives for that number of seats. The example is a light from the app's catalog.

If your table has another size, multiply the width by 0.33 and by 0.5: the light lands between the two numbers. For a table 0.90 m wide, that is 30 to 45 cm. On a square table, I do the round-table math, with the side in place of the diameter.

The 8-shade pendant is 1 cm over half of a 1.50 m table. It stays within Westwing's two thirds, and it is the piece in the table that I would only use on that big table.

How many pendants and how far apart

Westwing sums it up like this: on a long rectangular table, "two or three pendants in a row cover the whole tabletop"; on a round table, "one larger central pendant is enough". Leroy Merlin says the same from the other side: a small table asks for a single pendant, and a bigger rectangular table takes several identical pendants side by side.

By table length, I go with:

• Up to 1.30 m (4 seats): one pendant in the center.
• Over 1.30 m up to 1.80 m (6 seats): two pendants, or one linear piece.
• Over 1.80 m (8 seats or more): three pendants, or one long linear piece.

I did not find a measure in centimeters for the space between pendants in the big sources. Westwing asks that the light cover the whole table, "without creating very dark areas". The math I use: divide the table length by the number of pendants and hang each one in the middle of its section. That way the distance to the end is always half the distance between them, and the light falls evenly.

• 1.60 m table with two pendants: sections of 80 cm. Each pendant sits 40 cm from the end, and the two are 80 cm from each other. With 27.5 cm shades, 52.5 cm is left between them.
• 2.00 m table with three pendants: sections of about 67 cm. The pendants sit 33 cm from the ends and 67 cm from each other, center to center. With 37 cm shades, about 30 cm is left between them.
• 2.00 m table with two pendants: sections of 1 m. Each pendant sits 50 cm from the end, and the two are 1 m from each other.

Check that the shades fit in their sections. Three 55 cm pendants over a 2 m table would be 12 cm apart and read as one block; in that case, use one pendant fewer or smaller shades. All of them hang at the same height, with the bottom 70 to 90 cm above the tabletop.

Round or rectangular table

Over a round or square table, the light comes from a single point, in the center. That is where the chandelier and the big pendant work best, because the shape of the piece repeats the shape of the table.

Over a rectangular table, the light follows the length. This dining corner, which I built for a video, has a 4-seat table of 1.20 x 0.80 m with the Beige rattan pendant, from MadeiraMadeira: 36 cm in diameter, 45% of the table width, from R$ 398.00 on Oct 19, 2026. On a short table, one pendant does the job. Above 1.30 m, I move to two pendants or one linear piece, so the light reaches the ends.

The linear piece stays inside the tabletop, with room at the ends. The Oval 4-light imbuia pendant, at 75 cm, leaves 42.5 cm on each side of a 1.60 m table.

If you have not bought the table yet, see what size fits your room in dining table for a small apartment (in Portuguese).

Chandelier, pendant or track

• Pendant. One or more shades hanging from a cord, with the light falling onto the table. It suits almost any apartment table, because it comes in sizes for 4-seat and 8-seat tables alike.
• Chandelier. The bigger piece, with several bulbs or arms. Westwing recommends a chandelier for rooms with a ceiling higher than 2.60 m. In an apartment with a 2.50 m ceiling, with the bottom at 1.56 m from the floor (76 cm table plus 80 cm), 94 cm is left for the whole piece, cord and canopy included.
• Linear. A long pendant, like the 75 cm one in the table below, with a light bar or several bulbs in a row. It does the job of two or three pendants with a single ceiling light point.
• Track with spotlights. It works when the ceiling light point is far from the table and you do not want to open the false ceiling: the track carries the light to it. Aim the spots at the tabletop.

Whatever the piece, it stays centered on the table. If the ceiling point does not fall over the table, a swag hook (a hook in the ceiling that carries the cord to the center) or a new point made by an electrician solves it.

Warm light and a dimmer

Westwing recommends warm light, from 2,700 K to 3,000 K, for the dining room, and asks for the same color temperature in every bulb in the room, so the light does not look patchy. Neutral light, at 4,000 K, Westwing keeps for an open-plan room; cool light, for the kitchen and the office.

For the amount of light, Westwing counts 100 to 150 lumens per m² in the living room. In a 9 m² dining corner, that is 900 to 1,350 lumens in total, adding up the pendant and the other lights in the room. Check on the light's page how many bulbs it takes and the maximum power of each.

A dimmer makes the same light bright at lunch and low at dinner, as Westwing suggests. It is installed on the wall, like a switch, and Leroy Merlin recommends deciding where it goes when you plan the electrical work. Before you buy, check on the package that the bulb, or the light's LED, works with a dimmer.

Real lights by table

These are lights from the catalog the app uses, with measure and price checked in the store on Oct 19, 2026. The percentage is the diameter, or the depth of the linear piece, divided by the table width.

These are Brazilian stores, and most deliver only inside Brazil. Prices are in Brazilian reais (R$) on the dates shown.

The Sabrina is 1.32 m high on Westwing's spec sheet. With the bottom at 1.56 m from the floor (76 cm table plus 80 cm), that whole height asks for a 2.88 m ceiling. For a lower ceiling, check in the store how much of the cord can be shortened before you buy. Do the same math with any chandelier.

Mistakes to avoid

• Choosing by the size of the room. The light over a table is measured by the table. A big room with a 4-seat table asks for a 4-seat pendant.
• One small pendant over a long table. A 30 cm pendant in the center of a 2 m table leaves the ends with little light. Use two or three, or a linear piece.
• Centering on the ceiling point. The ceiling point rules the light, and the table gets light from the side.
• Bulbs of different colors. One shade with warm light and another with cool light leave the table patchy. Buy them all the same.

Where Curvinha comes in

In the app, I build the dining room with the real measure of the table and of the room, because it was measured by the scan (iPhone Pro or Pro Max from the 12 on, or iPad Pro from 2020 on) or from a photo or PDF of the floor plan. When the proposal has a pendant, it goes centered over the table, 80 cm above the tabletop.

The proposal is made with AI, with real furniture and lights from Brazilian stores, curated with architects from Curva Interiores. If you do not like the suggested pendant, Swap shows other options that fit in the same spot. In Finishes, which are part of the paid version, you can pick Warm, Neutral or Cool light. Each piece goes to My list with the View in store button.

The rest of the dining room (table, chairs, sideboard, art and mirror) is in the dining room (in Portuguese) guide. If the dining area shares space with the living area, see also living room decor (in Portuguese) and how to decorate a small living room; for the whole apartment, how to decorate a small apartment (in Portuguese).

Want to see the light at the scale of your table before you buy?

How lighting fits in the budget of a whole room is in cost to furnish an apartment in Brazil.

Sources

Public pages opened on Oct 19, 2026. All are in Portuguese.

• Leroy Merlin, pendant height: width up to half the table width, bottom 70 to 90 cm from the tabletop, light centered
• Leroy Merlin, types of lights: pendant of 1/3 of the tabletop on a round table and half on a rectangular one
• Leroy Merlin, LED pendant for the dining room: several identical pendants on the bigger rectangular table, a single one on the small table
• Leroy Merlin, what a dimmer is: installed on the wall, planned with the electrical work
• Westwing, lighting: chandelier of 1/2 to 2/3 of the table width and for ceilings higher than 2.60 m, two or three pendants in a row on a long table, one central on a round one, 2,700 to 3,000 K, the same color in every bulb, 100 to 150 lumens per m²
• Westwing, dining room lighting: warm light of 2,700 to 3,000 K, neutral at 4,000 K, no dark areas over the table, dimmer
• Westwing, pendant for the dining room: pendant of about 1/3 of the table size
• MadeiraMadeira, how to choose the ideal dining table: size of the rectangular and round table for 4, 6 and 8 seats

Frequently asked questions

What size chandelier for a dining table?

One third to one half of the table width, or of its diameter if it is round. For a 6-seat table of 1.60 x 0.75 m, that is a light of 25 to 37 cm. Westwing accepts a chandelier up to two thirds of the width; Leroy Merlin stops at half.

How many pendant lights over a 6-seat table?

Two, on a 1.60 m rectangular table: each 25 to 37 cm in diameter, 40 cm from the ends and 80 cm from each other. On a 1.20 m round table, one central pendant of 40 to 60 cm is enough.

How high should the chandelier hang over the table?

The bottom of the light sits 70 to 90 cm above the tabletop, according to Leroy Merlin and Westwing. In the app I use 80 cm. With a 76 cm table, the bottom ends up 1.56 m from the floor.

Chandelier or pendant light in the dining room?

Westwing recommends a chandelier for rooms with a ceiling higher than 2.60 m. In an apartment with a 2.50 to 2.60 m ceiling, I go with a pendant or a linear piece, which weigh less over the table.

What color of light for the dining room?

Warm light, from 2,700 K to 3,000 K, as Westwing recommends, with the same color in every bulb in the room. A wall dimmer, installed like a switch, lets you turn the light down at dinner.

Guides

• Small living room decor. How to decorate a small apartment living room: floor plan first, the right sofa, home office and dining table, in a real 15 m² room.
• Small bedroom decor. How to decorate a small bedroom: the clearance beside the bed, the minimum size and a furnished 9 m² double room.
• Cost to furnish an apartment in Brazil. What it costs to furnish an apartment in Brazil: one living room at 3 budgets, piece by piece, and how to price your own.
• Living room dimensions. Sofa to coffee table, walkways, TV by inch, armchair and heights: living room dimensions with the source of every number.