What is CCT – A guide to choosing correlated colour temperature for your lighting

Have you ever walked into a space and felt immediately calm? Or had your concentration sharpened? Or noticed how airy and bright a room seems?

The right choice of lighting can make all the difference. Read on to learn about correlated colour temperature (CCT) for your lighting and how you can create the perfect feel in any space, be it a home or office.

What is CCT?

CCT defines the colour appearance of a white LED. CCT is defined in Kelvin; a warm light is around 3000K, cool white at around 4000K, and daylight at around 6500K. Each of these has its own unique benefits and can be selected based on your own specific environmental needs. Each colour appearance is also available in different styles to suit your space – whether that is inside or outside, a workshop or an office. There is a choice of CCT for every need.

Benefits of CCT

When compared to an average light source, CCT is far superior, as it has been designed to create the optimum conditions needed in a particular setting.

Warm white light replicates the rising or setting of the sun and can make a space feel welcoming and cosy. This is a wonderful way of inviting people into your hotel lobby or guest room – or even your own home. Neutral and cool light replicates the way light changes throughout the day, making it an ideal choice for office spaces – it can perk your workers up and increase alertness.

Also, when you choose CCT, the luminaire can have up to four different selectable colour temperatures. These can be changed very easily at any point in its lifecycle. And that’s not all – they’re space saving, too. Wholesalers stocking CCTs are able to reduce shelf space with multiple colour options in one luminaire. Installers purchasing CCT luminaries are able to select the light colour option most suitable for them and still have the option to change this after the fitting has been purchased.

How to use CCT

We have a wide range of CCT selectable lighting available, meaning that you can choose the setting you require. In many products, you will find that the colour temperature is adjustable between 3000K warm white, 4000K neutral white and 6500K cool white. There are even some options for outdoor spaces. Here are some typical choices of CCT for popular spaces:

3000K warm white is often used in residential spaces, restaurants and hotel receptions. This encourages a warm and cosy feeling.

4000K cool white is often used in retail settings, supermarkets, showrooms, display garages, offices, education settings, hospitals and in manufacturing spaces. This encourages mental alertness and complements items within the space.

6500K daylight is often used in graphic studios, used as task lighting, and found in non-display garages. This is perfect for spaces where you need to be carrying out detailed tasks, as it provides you with the optimum amount of light.

If you want your home, office, retail or hospitality space (and more!) to be perfectly lit at all times, you can’t go wrong with CCT selectable luminaires. They have many benefits for domestic or commercial environments and can help you to create the ideal feeling for your area at any time of day.