Lighting plan maker
A free lighting plan maker for lighting plans and reflected ceiling plans: fixtures on a ceiling grid or floor plan, switch legs, a fixture schedule and a legend, with PNG, PDF and SVG export. US (NEC) practice only.
What a lighting plan is
A lighting plan is a drawing that locates every luminaire in a space, identifies each one by type and shows which switch or control operates it. It is drawn over the floor plan or the ceiling plan, with fixture tags keyed to a fixture schedule and dashed switch legs from each switch to its lights.
Lighting plans are produced for houses, offices, shops and warehouses. In residential work the lighting often shares a sheet with the receptacles; commercial drawing sets usually give lighting its own sheets so that fixture types, circuits and controls can be read without clutter.
What a reflected ceiling plan is
A reflected ceiling plan (RCP) shows the ceiling of a room as if it were reflected in a mirror lying on the floor. Drawing the ceiling this way keeps its left and right the same as on the floor plan below it, so a light drawn near the north-east corner of the RCP is in the north-east corner of the room. A ceiling drawn as seen from below would be flipped and would not line up with the floor plan.
An RCP shows everything on the ceiling: the ceiling grid or gypsum areas, ceiling heights and soffits, light fixtures, exit signs, diffusers and grilles, sprinkler heads and access panels. Electrical drawings use it as the base for lighting so that fixtures fall in ceiling tiles rather than on grid lines or ducts.
Lighting plan symbols
These symbols come from the workspace's own symbol set and appear in the template's legend.
| Symbol | Name | On the plan |
|---|---|---|
| Recessed light | Recessed downlight in the ceiling; its tag gives the type in the fixture schedule. | |
| Lighting outlet | Ceiling or wall lighting outlet, used here for surface-mounted fixtures. | |
| Light fixture | Luminaire shown by its own symbol, such as a pendant or decorative fixture. | |
| Single-pole switch | Single-pole switch controlling one group of fixtures from one place. | |
| Three-way switch | One of a pair of three-way switches controlling the same fixtures from two places. | |
| Junction box | Junction box, for example above a fixture fed from a splice in the ceiling. | |
| Smoke alarm | Smoke alarm location, coordinated with fixtures on the ceiling. |
How to draw a lighting plan
- Start from the template or a background. The lighting plan template opens an office and corridor on a 2 ft by 2 ft ceiling grid. For another space, a floor plan or ceiling plan image is inserted and set with Use as background.
- Set the scale from the top bar's More menu by tapping both ends of a known length and entering it in feet and inches.
- Place the fixtures. Recessed lights go in the centers of ceiling tiles or on the layout grid; surface fixtures go where the ceiling and room use call for them. Each fixture's note records its type letter.
- Place the controls. Single-pole switches at the room entrance, three-way switches at both ends of a corridor, dimmers or occupancy sensors where they are used.
- Draw switch legs as dashed connectors from each switch to the first fixture it controls and from fixture to fixture, with a lowercase letter where several groups share a room.
- Complete the schedule and legend, then dimension the fixture spacing with the dimension line tool and export the sheet.
Recessed lighting layout
Recessed lights are usually laid out in an even grid: spacing between fixtures about equal to the ceiling height for general lighting, and about half that spacing from the walls, then adjusted for the light output needed. The recessed lighting calculator works out the fixture count from the room size, ceiling height and lumens per fixture, gives the spacing in feet and inches, and opens the result as a lighting plan in the workspace.
On a ceiling grid the calculated positions are moved to the nearest tile centers. Fixtures near beams, ducts or sprinkler heads are shifted along their row so the rows stay straight; a dimension line from the wall to the first row records the final spacing for the installer.
The fixture schedule
The fixture schedule is a table that defines each fixture type shown on the plan. Every fixture on the drawing carries a type letter or tag, and the schedule gives that type's description, manufacturer and catalog number, lamp or lumen output, wattage, color temperature, mounting, voltage and quantity, with notes such as dimming method or an IC rating for recessed housings in insulation.
The schedule keeps the plan readable: the drawing shows only tags, and any change to a fixture type is made once in the table. In the template, the schedule is an editable table placed under the plan, with placeholders in brackets for the values to fill in.
Lighting plan vs reflected ceiling plan
| Lighting plan | Reflected ceiling plan | |
|---|---|---|
| Purpose | Locate and control the lighting | Coordinate everything on the ceiling |
| Base | Floor plan or ceiling plan | The ceiling, mirrored to match the floor plan |
| Shows | Fixtures, tags, switches, switch legs, circuits | Ceiling grid and heights, fixtures, diffusers, sprinklers, access panels |
| Prepared by | Electrical or lighting designer | Architect, then used by every trade |
| Typical use | Residential plans, electrical sheets | Commercial interiors with suspended ceilings |
In practice the two meet: a commercial lighting plan is often drawn on the architect's RCP, and a residential lighting plan is drawn on the floor plan because the ceiling has nothing else to coordinate.
Limitations
A lighting plan from the workspace records fixture positions, types and switching; it does not calculate illuminance, check spacing against a fixture's photometrics or confirm energy-code lighting power limits and controls. Recessed spacing from the calculator is a starting layout. Permit and construction drawings follow the local building department's requirements and, for commercial work, are often prepared or sealed by a registered design professional.
Fixture schedules in the template hold placeholders rather than products or prices. Plans are stored in the browser on the device where they were drawn, and a JSON export keeps an editable copy.
Frequently asked questions
Why is it called a reflected ceiling plan?
Because the ceiling is drawn as it would appear reflected in a mirror on the floor. That keeps it oriented the same way as the floor plan, so ceiling items line up with the walls and rooms beneath them.
What goes in a fixture schedule?
One row per fixture type: its tag, description, manufacturer and catalog number, lumens or lamp, wattage, color temperature, mounting, voltage and quantity, with notes such as dimming or an IC rating.
How far apart should recessed lights be?
A common starting point is a spacing about equal to the ceiling height, with half that spacing from the walls, adjusted for the lumens needed. The recessed lighting calculator gives the count and spacing for a room.
How are switch legs drawn on a lighting plan?
As dashed lines from a switch to the first fixture it controls and from fixture to fixture in the group. Where several groups share a room, a lowercase letter beside the switch and fixtures shows which belong together.
Can a lighting plan be exported?
Yes. The plan exports as PDF, PNG at several resolutions or SVG, with the background, ceiling grid, legend and schedule included, and as a JSON file that reopens for editing.