What is a Foot Candle?
A foot-candle measures light intensity, equivalent to one lumen of light per square foot. It measures the light that reaches a surface, while lumens measure the quantity of light produced by a fixture.
Footcandles, equivalent to approximately 10.764 lux, are vital for measuring light intensity in commercial, industrial, and sports lighting. They define the required lighting levels for various environments, ensuring safety and functionality.
As set by organizations like OSHA, compliance with footcandle and lighting standards is essential for safe and adequately lit workplaces. In sports lighting, footcandles ensure optimal visibility for players and spectators.
Recommended Foot Candles for Commercial Projects
Recommended Foot Candles for Airplane Hangars
| General Work / Storage |
30 fc |
| Aircraft Maintenance with some detailed tasks |
30-50 fc |
| Aircraft Maintenance with fine detailed tasks |
70-100 fc |
| Drilling, Riveting, Screw Fastening |
75 fc |
| Final Assembly |
100 fc |
| Inspection |
50-200 fc |
| Welding |
50 fc |
Get your free Aircraft Hangar Lighting Plan
Recommended Foot Candles for Banks
| ATM |
10-40 fc |
| Lobby |
10-50 fc |
| Writing Areas |
20-70 fc |
| Teller Stations, Posting and Keypunch |
50-150 fc |
Recommended Foot Candles for Billboards
| Level 1 Billboard |
20 fc |
| Level 2 Billboard |
50-60 fc |
| Level 2 Billboard |
100 fc |
* Note: Average / Minimum Foot Candle Ratio should be < 4.0. A better target of 2.0 would mean the billboard is uniformly lit.
Recommended Foot Candles for Convention Centers & Exhibition Halls
| Main Convention Area |
30-90 fc |
| Smaller Meeting Rooms |
30-50 fc |
| Stairways |
5 fc |
| Washrooms and Restrooms |
5 fc |
Recommended Foot Candles for Commercial Kitchens
| General Kitchen Area |
50-75 fc |
| Specialized Work Stations |
50-150 fc |
| Cooking Stations and Grills |
100-200 fc |
| Storage and Refrigeration |
20-50 fc |
Get your Free Commercial Kitchen Lighting Plan
Recommended Foot Candles for Data Centers
| Server Rooms |
30-50 fc |
| Repair Areas |
50-75 fc |
| Storage Areas |
20-30 fc |
| Hallways and Corridors |
20-30 fc |
Get your Free Data Center Lighting Plan
Recommended Foot Candles for Food Service Facilities
| Cashier Stand |
20-50 fc |
| Cleaning Areas |
10-20 fc |
| Dining Areas |
5-20 fc |
| Food Courts |
30 fc |
| Food Displays |
30-100 fc |
| Kitchen, Food Prep |
50-100 fc |
Recommended Foot Candles For Garage / Workshops
| Hobby Work |
30 fc |
| Work with limited detailed tasks |
30-50 fc |
| Work with fine-detailed tasks |
70 fc |
Get your Free Garage / Workshop Lighting Plan
Recommended Foot Candles for Hospitals – Medical Facilities
| Hallways |
5-30 fc |
| Patient Waiting Areas |
10 fc |
| Nurse Stations |
30 fc |
| Hospital Lobby Areas |
5 fc |
| Medical Record Areas |
50 fc |
| Stair Areas |
10 fc |
| Rooms |
10-30 fc |
| Emergency Rooms |
50-100 fc |
| General Nursing Station |
30 |
| Operating Rooms |
100-200 |
Recommended Foot Candles for Hotels
| Bathrooms |
20-50 fc |
| Bedrooms – Reading |
20-50 fc |
| Corridors, Elevators, Stairs |
10-20 fc |
| Front Desk |
50-100 fc |
| Linen Room – General |
10-20 fc |
| Linen Room – Sewing |
100-200 fc |
| Lobby, General |
10-20 fc |
| Reading and Working Areas |
20-50 fc |
Recommended Foot Candles for Laundries
| Washing |
20-50 fc |
| Ironing |
20-100 fc |
Recommended Foot Candles for Libraries
| Ordinary Reading, Stacks |
20-50 fc |
| Book Repair and Binding |
20-50 fc |
| Study and Note Taking, Cataloging, Card Files, Checkout Desk |
20-100 fc |
Recommended Foot Candles for Machine Shops
| Rough Bench |
20-50 fc |
| Medium Bench, Rough Grinding, Buffing |
50-100 fc |
| Fine Bench |
200-500 fc |
Recommended Foot Candles For Offices
| Open Cubicle Space |
30 fc |
| Private |
50 fc |
| Reception Areas |
10 fc |
| Conference Rooms |
30 fc |
| Video Conferences |
50 fc |
Get your Free Commercial Office Lighting Plan
Recommended Foot Candles for Parking Lots and Parking Garages
| Entrances |
5 fc |
| Parking Garage – Basic |
1 fc |
| Parking Garage – Ramps |
1-2 fc |
| Parking Lots |
2-5 fc |
| Vehicle Storage |
2-5 fc |
Get your free Parking Lot Lighting Plan and Design
Recommended Foot Candles for Retail Stores
| Circulation Area Stockroom |
10-30 fc |
| Department Store |
20-80 fc |
| Discount Warehouse, Drug/Convenience |
25-100 fc |
| Merchandising, Self-Service |
200 fc |
| Shopping Mall |
30 fc |
Recommended Foot Candles for Schools
| Classrooms |
30-50 fc |
| College Lecture Halls |
50-100 fc |
| Hallways |
10 fc |
| Smaller School Gymnasiums |
30-50 fc |
| Larger School Gymnasiums |
50-100 fc |
Recommended Foot Candles for Security Fences
| High-Security Areas (Prisons – for example) |
5 fc |
| Low-Security Areas |
1-2 fc |
Recommended Foot Candles For Warehouses
| Coarse Material Processing |
10 fc |
| Medium Material Processing |
30 fc |
| Fine Material Processing |
50 fc |
| Extra Fine Material Processing |
50-100 fc |
| Wrapping, Packaging and Labeling |
30 fc |
| Picking Stock |
30 fc |
| Simple Assembly |
15-60 fc |
| Medium Assembly |
25-100 fc |
| Difficult Assembly |
50-200 fc |
| Complicated Assembly |
50-200 fc |
| Exacting Assembly and Inspection |
150-600 fc |
| General Food Processing |
75 fc |
| Warehousing – Inactive Area |
5-10 fc |
| Warehousing – Active – Large Items |
10-20 fc |
| Warehousing – Active – Small Items |
15-60 fc |
| Warehousing – Active – Medium Items |
20 fc |
| Warehousing – Active – Fine Items |
20-50 fc |
| Shipping and Receiving Area |
30 fc |
| Receiving and Shipping Dock |
5-20 fc |
| Receiving and Staging |
15-60 fc |
| Maintenance and Shop Areas |
50 fc |
| Cold Storage |
10-30 fc |
| Open Warehouse |
10-30 fc |
| Warehouse with Aisles |
10-30 fc |
Get your Free Warehouse Lighting Plan and Design
Recommended Warehouse Lighting Levels
Recommended Foot Candles for Woodworking
| Rough Sawing and Bench Work |
20-50 fc |
| Sizing, Planning, Rough Sanding, Medium Quality Machine and Bench Work, Gluing, Veneering, Cooperage |
20-50 fc |
| Fine Bench and Machine Work, Fine Sanding, and Finishing |
50-100 fc |
| Workshop |
30-75 fc |
Recommended Foot Candles for Pole Barns
| Storage or light duty occasional work and maintenance |
20-30 fc |
| Pole barn used as work shop / mechanical area |
30-50 fc |
| Fine Detail Work |
50-75 fc |
Get your Free Pole Barn Lighting Plan and Design
Recommended Foot Candle for Industrial Projects
Recommended Foot Candles for Automobile Manufacturing and Sales
| Final Assembly, Finishing, Inspection |
200 fc |
| Body and Chassis Assembly |
100 fc |
| Body Parts Manufacturing |
100 fc |
| Frame Assembly |
50 fc |
| Showroom |
25-100 fc |
| Service Area |
25-100 fc |
| Sales Lot (Exterior) – Lighting Zone 3 (urban) |
10-40 fc |
| Sales Lot (Exterior) – Lighting Zone 2 (suburban) |
10-30 fc |
Recommended Foot Candles for Clothing Manufacturers
| Receiving, Storage, Shipping, Winding, Measuring |
20-50 fc |
| Pattern Making, Trimming |
50-100 fc |
| Shops, Marking |
50-200 fc |
| Cutting, Pressing |
100-500 fc |
| Sewing, Inspection |
200-500 fc |
Recommended Foot Candles for Distilleries
| Malting |
20-30 fc |
| Barrel Filling |
20-30 fc |
| Sorting, Washing, Packing |
30-40 fc |
| Filtering |
50 fc |
| Bottling |
50 fc |
| Inspection |
100 fc |
Recommended Foot Candles for Manufacturing and Warehouse Facilities
| Coarse Material Processing |
10 fc |
| Medium Material Processing |
30 fc |
| Fine Material Processing |
50 fc |
| Extra Fine Material Processing |
50-100 fc |
| Wrapping, Packaging and Labeling |
30 fc |
| Picking Stock |
30 fc |
| Simple Assembly |
15-60 fc |
| Medium Assembly |
25-100 fc |
| Difficult Assembly |
50-200 fc |
| Complicated Assembly |
50-200 fc |
| Exacting Assembly and Inspection |
150-600 fc |
| General Food Processing |
75 fc |
| Warehousing – Inactive Area |
5-10 fc |
| Warehousing – Active – Large Items |
10-20 fc |
| Warehousing – Active – Small Items |
15-60 fc |
| Warehousing – Active – Medium Items |
20 fc |
| Warehousing – Active – Fine Items |
20-50 fc |
| Shipping and Receiving Area |
30 fc |
| Receiving and Shipping Dock |
5-20 fc |
| Receiving and Staging |
15-60 fc |
| Maintenance and Shop Areas |
50 fc |
| Cold Storage |
10-30 fc |
| Open Warehouse |
10-30 fc |
| Warehouse with Aisles |
10-30 fc |
Recommended Foot Candles for Electrical Equipment Manufacturing
| Impregnating |
20-50 fc |
| Insulating, Coil Winding, Testing |
50-100 fc |
Recommended Foot Candles for Foundries
| Annealing Furnaces |
20-50 fc |
| Cleaning |
20-50 fc |
| Core Making |
50-200 fc |
| Inspection – Fine |
100-500 fc |
| Inspection – Medium |
50-100 fc |
| Molding |
50-200 fc |
| Pouring, Sorting |
50-100 fc |
Recommended Foot Candles for Iron & Steel Manufacturing
| Stock, Hot Top, Checker Cellar, Calcining |
10-30 fc |
| Building, Slag Pits, Stripping Yard |
20 fc |
| Control Platforms, Repairs, Mixer Building |
30 fc |
| Rolling Mills |
30-50 fc |
| Shearing |
50 fc |
| Tin Plate |
50 fc |
| Motor Room, Machine Room |
30 fc |
| Inspection |
100 fc |
Recommended Foot Candles for Paint Shops
| Spraying, Hand Art, Stencil |
20-50 fc |
| Fine Hand Painting and Finishing |
50-100 fc |
Recommended Foot Candles for Paper Manufacturing
| Beaters, Grinding |
20-50 fc |
| Finishing, Cutting |
50-100 fc |
| Hand Counting |
50-100 fc |
| Paper Machine Reel, Inspection |
100-200 fc |
| Rewinder |
100-200 fc |
Recommended Foot Candles for Printing
| Photo Engraving, Etching, Blocking |
20-50 fc |
| Color Inspecting |
100-200 fc |
| Presses |
50-100 fc |
| Proofreading |
100-200 fc |
| Composing Room |
50-100 fc |
Recommended Foot Candles for Sheet Metal Works
| General |
100 fc |
| Tin Plate Inspection, Galvanized, Scribing |
100-200 fc |
Recommended Foot Candles for Textile Mills
| Cotton Picking, Carding, Roving, Spinning |
50 fc |
| Beaming and Slashing |
150 fc |
| Drawing |
200 fc |
Recommended Foot Candles for Water Treatment Plant
| General Work Areas |
20-30 foot candles |
| Control Rooms |
50-75 foot candles |
| Chemical Handling Areas |
30-50 foot candles |
| Maintenance Areas / Workshops |
50-100 foot candles |
| Labs |
75-100 foot candles |
Recommended Foot Candles for Sports Projects
Recommended Foot Candles for Baseball and Softball Fields
|
Infield |
Outfield |
| Collegiate (Televised) |
100 fc |
70 fc |
| Collegiate |
70 fc |
50 fc |
| High School |
50 fc |
30 fc |
| Little League |
50 fc |
30 fc |
| Recreational |
30 fc |
20 fc |
Get Your Free Baseball Field Lighting Design
Get Your Free Softball Field Lighting Design
Recommended Foot Candles for Basketball Courts
| Indoors |
| Recreational |
30-50 fc |
| High School Level |
40-70 fc |
| College and Professional Level |
70-120 fc |
| Outdoors |
| Recreational |
10-30 fc |
| Competitive Play |
20-60 fc |
Get Your Free Basketball Court Lighting Design
Recommended Foot Candles for Batting Cages
| Professional Level |
65-100 fc |
| Training |
40-50 fc |
| Recreation Level |
20-30 fc |
Get Your Free Batting Cage Lighting Design
Recommended Foot Candles for Tennis Courts
| College Televised |
90-120 fc |
| Competition Level |
50-80 fc |
| Club Level |
30-60 fc |
| Recreation Level |
20-35 fc |
Get your free Tennis Court Lighting Design
Recommended Foot Candles for Pickleball Courts
| Competition Level |
50-80 fc |
| Club Level |
30-60 fc |
| Recreation Level |
20-30 fc |
Get your free Pickleball Court Lighting Design
Recommended Foot Candles for Paddleball Courts
Recommended Foot Candles for Horse Riding Arenas
| Outdoor Recreational Arena (Recreational) |
5-10 fc |
| Outdoor Recreational Arena (Mid-Level) |
10-20 fc |
| Outdoor Recreational Arena (Professional Level) |
20-50 fc |
| Indoor Recreational Arena (Recreation) |
10-20 fc |
| Indoor Recreational Arena (Professional) |
20-40 fc |
Get Your Free Indoor or Outdoor Horse Arena / Riding Arena Lighting Design
Recommended Foot Candles for Polo Fields
| Professional Polo Matches |
30-60 fc |
| Training and Recreational Use |
10-30 fc |
Get Your Free Polo Field Lighting Design
Recommended Foot Candles for Natatoriums and Swimming Pools
| Recreational Swimming |
20-50 fc |
| Competitive Swimming / Diving Competitions |
50-100 fc |
Get Your Free Natatorium Lighting Design
Recommended Foot Candles for Indoor and Outdoor Track and Field Events
| Indoors |
Foot Candles |
| Recreational and Training Use |
30-50 fc |
| Competition Levels |
50-100 fc |
| Outdoors |
|
| Recreational and Training Use |
20-30 fc |
| Competition Levels |
30-70 fc |
| Professional Levels |
100-150 fc |
Get Your Free Track and Field Lighting Design
Recommended Foot Candles for Field Hockey
|
Foot Candles |
| Recreational and Training Use |
20-30 fc |
| Competition Levels (High School) |
30-50 fc |
| Professional Levels |
50-75 fc |
| International Competitions |
100-150 fc |
Get Your Free Field Hockey Lighting Design
Recommended Foot Candles for Polo Fields
| Polo Field (Recreational) |
20-35 fc |
| Polo Field (Competitive) |
35-50 fc |
Get your Free Polo Field Lighting Plan and Design
Recommended Foot Candles for Football Fields
| College Televised |
80-150 fc |
| College |
70-100 fc |
| Large High School |
50-70 fc |
| Smaller High School |
30-50 fc |
| Pop Warner |
30-50 fc |
| Recreational |
20-40 fc |
Get your Free Football Field Lighting Plan and Design
Recommended Foot Candles for Ice Rinks
Indoor Hockey Rinks
|
|
| Practice / General Use |
30-50 fc |
| Competition Level (College / Junior Hockey) |
50–100 fc |
| Professional Level (Televised |
100-150 fc |
Indoor Figure Skating Rinks
|
|
| Practice / General Use |
30-50 fc |
| Competition Level |
50–100 fc |
| Televised |
100-150 fc |
Indoor Curling Rinks
|
|
| Practice / General Use |
30-50 fc |
| Competition Level |
50–100 fc |
Outdoor Hockey Rinks
|
|
| Practice / General Use |
20-50 fc |
| Competition Level |
50–100 fc |
Get your Free Ice and Hockey Rink Lighting Plan
Recommended Foot Candles for Gymnasiums and Fitness Center
Gymnasiums
|
|
| Assemblies |
10-20 fc |
| General Exercise and Recreation |
20-50 fc |
| Locker Rooms |
10-30 fc |
| Exhibitions, Matches |
40-60 fc |
| School Gyms |
30-70 fc |
| Public Gyms |
40-70 fc |
Fitness Centers
|
|
| General Workout Areas |
30-50 fc |
| Group Exercise Rooms |
20-40 fc |
| Locker Rooms |
10-30 fc |
| Reception and Lobby Areas |
20-50 fc |
| Specialized Training Areas |
30-50 fc |
| Pool Areas |
50–100 fc |
Get your free Gymnasium and Fitness Center Lighting Plan
Recommended Foot Candles for Soccer Fields
| Recreational |
5-20 fc |
| Middle School |
20-30 fc |
| Small High School |
20-40 fc |
| Larger High School |
40-50 fc |
| College |
60-120 fc |
Get your free Soccer Field Lighting Plan
Recommended Foot Candles for Shooting Ranges
| Indoors |
| Firing Line and Shooting Stalls |
50-100 fc |
| Target Area |
50-100 fc |
| Instruction Areas |
30-50 fc |
| Ammunition and Equipment Handling |
50-75 fc |
| Outdoors |
| Shooting Range (General Area) |
20-50 fc |
| Shooting Range (Target Area) |
40-100 fc |
| Trap Shooting (Shooting Stations) |
20-40 fc |
| Trap Shooting (Target Area) |
40-100 fc |
Get your free Shooting Range Lighting Plan
OSHA Lighting Requirements
OSHA, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration was created to protect workers by ensuring that working conditions were safe and as risk-free as possible.
To ensure that all industrial and commercial workplaces have effective and adequate lighting without being excessively bright (or without glare), OSHA developed standards as part of its safety initiative.
Glare and excessive lighting can cause headaches and eyestrain to individuals over time. Read more about OSHA guidelines from the United States Department of Labor.
| Coarse Material Processing |
10 FC |
| Medium Material Processing |
30 FC |
| Fine Material Processing |
50 FC |
| Extra Fine Material Processing |
50 – 100 FC |
| Wrapping, Packaging and Labeling |
30 FC |
| Picking Stock |
30 FC |
| Simple Assembly |
15 – 60 FC |
Foot Candles Calculator
What is a Foot Candles Calculator?
A foot candles calculator is a simple tool that allows you to estimate the number of fixtures you will need to properly light an interior space. It’s a starting point to give you a rough estimate of the approximate fixture count.
Another (better) option is to ask us to do a Lighting Plan for you. We can do these for indoor and outdoor spaces. It will also give you a fixture count but will provide you with additional information like light balance and visually show you how well-lit the area will be.
Scroll to the top of this page to ask for yours.
Foot Candles & Lighting Plans
Why are Foot Candles Important?
Foot candles are an extremely important part of designing an effective lighting setup. They are the only way to tell if an area is receiving the intended light levels.
And, although this is important in any type of business, commercial and industrial facilities need to have appropriate lighting levels for both employee safety and efficiency.
It’s so important that OSHA has specific foot candle requirements for certain spaces and industries.
Recommended Light Levels
Lighting systems are not equal. What may be ideal for one location may be unsuitable for another. For instance, a big box store does not need the same amount of light as a packaging warehouse. Even if two facilities have the same square feet, the activities carried out may be different. The work done in a building typically determines the fixtures needed for its associated lighting. This is why choosing lighting for a space should not be a “one size fits all” approach. Foot candles are required by OSHA for workplace lighting measurements. In this article, we’ll give foot candle recommendations for different types of environments.
What is Luminous Flux?
In the science of photometry, it is a measurement of perceived light or brightness by a human. It is sometimes also referred to as scotopic lumens (light perceived by the eye) versus photopic lumens (light measured by a device)
Foot Candles Versus Lux – What’s the Difference?
Foot candles and lux are both light measurement readings. They are just represented by different scales.
Understanding Lighting Plans
A Photometric Study, or Lighting Plan, is a report detailing the light levels and light distribution for a location, either indoors or outdoors. It’s done by software that’s specifically created to do lighting design.
Lighting Plans allow you to simulate space, add lighting fixtures, and set mounting heights and fixture locations within the software model.
The software calculates light levels and how balanced the light is and produces a report showing average, maximum, and minimum foot candles.
For this discussion, the numbers we discuss are the average recommended foot candles. Just as important is the max/min ratio the study calculates. The higher this number is, the spottier the lighting.
So, it’s one thing to hit the recommended average. It’s another to design a lighting solution with even light distribution. A lighting plan study will provide you with this information.
How To Calculate Foot Candles from Lumens?
Understanding Lumens
What is a lumen? A lumen is a measurement of light output created by one bulb, lamp, or fixture. We use lumens to indicate the brightness of a bulb or fixture – how much light it produces. Lumens are a far more accurate representation of the light’s capacity than watts used to make light.
Converting Lumens to Fc – or – Foot Candles to Lumens
A foot candle (also known as fc, ft-c, or lm/ft2) is a light intensity measurement. One foot candle equals 10.76 lumens. You can convert foot candles to lumens by multiplying the number of foot candles by 10.76.
The calculation of foot candles for industrial lighting is made by taking the total number of lumens and multiplying that by 0.001496. For example, 538 lumens x 0.001496 watts = 0.805 watts per square meter so your 50 foot-candles would equal 0.805 watts per square meter.
In the simplest sense, you can install one light in a room above the floor and, while using a light meter, walk around the floor and take foot candle measurements. The amount of light directly under the installed fixture will be brighter than the light in the corners.
Using this same room, you can install four fixtures evenly throughout the room. As you walk around the room, everything is brighter. The light meter is showing higher foot candle measurements throughout the room. The corners are brighter.
That’s all this is. Lights produce lumens, and as you add more lights, the foot candle measurements will increase throughout the space.
The takeaway: the more lights you add, the higher the foot candle readings will be.
Lumens Per Square Foot
What are lumens per square foot? By definition, one lumen per square foot is one foot candle. This means that:
| 20 lumens per square foot |
20 foot candles |
| 40 lumens per square foot |
40 foot candles |
| 80 lumens per square foot |
80 foot candles |
Like the previous discussion of lux, lumens per square foot is an additional description of what a foot candle is. So why do we think of lighting in terms of foot candles and not lumens per square foot?
Mostly because the tools we use to create lighting plans provide us with results in foot candles. However, it’s easy to convert the foot candle measurements we provide to lumens per square foot measurements.
Lighting Plan Software – How it Works
Lighting plan software is a computer-generated lighting model that understands the physical characteristics of how many lumens a light produces and how it distributes its light. The software allows you to install lights in a software “space” and run calculations by simulating foot candle readings on the ground. It’s extremely accurate, and the report generated provides details on light levels and light balance within the space.
The takeaway: we provide free lighting plans for our commercial and industrial customers, electricians, and electrical contractors. Scroll to the bottom of this page to ask for yours.
Understanding Light Efficiency – This is What Saves You Money
Even amongst LEDs, not all bulbs are created equal. Though they are all more efficient than options like fluorescents and metal halides, not every LED is equally efficient.
This is another reason why it’s important to pay attention to the lumens of an LED light instead of the watts. In many cases, a higher quality LED with a lower wattage can produce a brighter light than one that has a higher wattage.
How to Choose the Right Fixture to Meet the Foot Candle Requirements
Now that you understand what the foot candle levels might be for your project, how does that translate into buying the right fixture, or the right type of fixture? That’s where we can help. LED Lighting Supply provides two distinct services:
We provide free lighting plans.
We supply the lights for your project.
Determining the right light to produce the right amount of foot candles is not guesswork. We use industry-leading lighting plan software to calculate light levels within indoor and outdoor spaces to meet specific light levels the customer may have. Understanding foot candles is one thing. Picking the right fixture, the right number of fixtures, and achieving the right light levels with even, balanced, non-shadow lighting is another. That is why we provide lighting plans for our industrial and commercial end users, contractors, and electricians.
Request Your Free Lighting Plan
Written by Cory Peterson
