15 Dining Room Light Fixtures That Instantly Elevate Your Space

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If you're trying to create a specific vibe in your dining room, don't rely only on harsh overhead lighting. Instead, take a tip from how interior designers use restaurant lighting to influence diners, and incorporate layered lighting design. Layered lighting integrates a variety of lighting fixtures to create the perfect ambience. Using the right combination can enhance aesthetics and provide the right level of light for specific tasks or to highlight unique or interesting artwork, decor, and architectural or design features. 

If you're decorating a dining room for the first time, don't make the rookie mistake of overlooking its existing interior design. Before you start searching for the best lighting fixtures for your dining room, consider the decor, architectural style, and your personal aesthetics. Take a look at different lighting styles and designs so that you can figure out which ones best complement your home and your personal taste. The most popular light fixtures to use in dining rooms are pendant lights, wall sconces, chandeliers, and recessed lighting. You can also look at social media accounts and blogs to see how interior designers use layered lighting to create a rich, inviting, and comforting atmosphere. 

Ready to stop living with bad kitchen and dining room lighting and elevate your dining room with the perfect light fixtures? Take a look at these 15 lighting options from Amazon, Target, World Market, Wayfair, and more. While they aren't expensive, they can instantly add glamour, drama, and elegance to your dining room and create the perfect mood for any occasion.

If your dining room incorporates British-inspired design trends, this is the perfect lighting option for you. Available on Amazon, this green glass wall sconce is modeled after vintage milk glass light fixtures. It has a perfect 5-star rating and a price of $129. Installing a pair of these sconces on your dining room wall will add diffused, directional light that is soft and romantic.

After spending hours in thrift stores and antique shops hunting down valuable vintage decor items for your dining room, you need the perfect way to illuminate them. This brass gallery light from Hearth & Hand with Magnolia is available at Target for just $69.99. It can be installed on your wall to highlight your favorite dining room artwork and decor.

One of the most outdated lighting trends is flush-mounted ceiling light fixtures. Replace your dining room's flush-mounted light with this gorgeous glass pendant light and add a touch of elegance to your decor. Available on Amazon for just under $200, it features delicate flowers in pink, green, and clear glass.

A big, bright, overhead fluorescent light in your dining room can instantly kill the vibe. If you want a more intimate and romantic dining experience, ditch the harsh overhead fluorescent lighting that really ages your kitchen in favor of a hanging pendant lamp or chandelier. This eclectic beaded chandelier from Wayfair is perfect for a dining room with a boho-chic aesthetic, and only $183 at the time this article was written.

If you love decor elements that remind you of the '70s, this hanging rattan pendant light from Better Homes & Gardens was made for you. Its simple, no-frills design will integrate seamlessly with almost any dining room decor, but it's perfect for vintage or vintage-style homes with '70s-style design elements. Best of all, it's available at Walmart for just under $50.

If you have already designed the retro kitchen of your dreams, it's time to move onto your dining room. This $160 vintage-inspired handblown glass ceiling light from World Market will add soft overhead light without creating harsh shadows. It's the perfect complement for mid-century modern style dining rooms, Victorian-era homes, and post-war architecture.

A statement dining room lighting fixture will instantly become a talking point for anyone who dines at your home. This dimmable, tiered crystal chandelier from Wayfair is the very definition of statement lighting, and for under $200. Statement lighting is a light fixture that is designed to be the focal point of your dining room design. Rather than simply providing necessary illumination, it incorporates your own personal style in a bold, show-stopping design.

Like a minimalist kitchen design, a minimalist dining room should be sleek, simple, and functional. This delicate textured glass wall sconce from World Market is the perfect blend of elegant and functional for just $130. Installing two on each wall will elevate your dining room's minimalist design and add layered, directional lighting that highlights your decor.

Mid-century modern homes are a joy to decorate. You have a near endless range of options for mid-century-inspired lighting design. This $87 light from Wayfair is a simple flush-mount ceiling light with a little extra oomph. Although its brass starburst design is unique, it's also subtle enough that it can be incorporated into your existing dining room decor without clashing.

If your dining room decor uses bold colors, busy patterns, or a mix of design styles, you should keep your light fixtures simple. This elegant flush-mount ceiling light from Heart & Hand with Magnolia is available at Target for under $100. It features a modern polished brass body and a textured, linen-style shade in a neutral oatmeal color.

Give your farmhouse-style dining room an elevated, modern touch with a hanging chandelier. This $260 gold flower chandelier from Amazon is both rustic and chic. Hang it over your dining table, buffet, or credenza to replace an outdated overhead lighting fixture. Because it is dimmable and can support LED bulbs, you can create the perfect dining room lighting design for any mood or occasion.

A dining room with a rustic or country-style design needs a few statement lighting fixtures to elevate it from simple to chic. This hanging metal pendant lamp can add a pop of color over your dining table. Its simple, industrial-style design will complement almost any retro dining room decor, but it's perfect for rustic and country-style dining rooms. Get it from Wayfair for just $61.

There is a reason that Ina Garten loves rattan decor. It is simple, timeless, and elegant. This $200 brass and rattan pendant lantern designed by Studio McGee for Target features a brass four-bulb candle-style chandelier surrounded by a rattan cage. It's the perfect way to elevate literally any dining room design or decor.

A dining room with a romantic, intimate vibe needs a hanging chandelier or ceiling light that matches its energy. This $117 stunning crystal and bronze light on Amazon perfectly captures an enchanted forest aesthetic. It features delicate branches and hanging crystals that will diffuse light into soft patterns over your dining table.

For the same reason it's important to consider overhead lighting when installing a new kitchen island, you need to choose the lighting fixture over your dining room table carefully. This art deco-style chandelier featuring ginkgo leaves on Amazon is a dining room showstopper for just $200, creating an elegant focal point around which to build your overall dining room design.