People don’t always think of driveway lighting when they plan their landscape and outdoor lighting, however, it is a crucial element when creating a welcoming and safe entrance to your home. Driveway and landscape lighting work together to make the house easier for guests to find and help keep them from tripping over steps and on pathways as they make their way to the entrance.

In addition to being practical, driveway lighting can also add an extra design element the elevates the look of a home. It is one of the first things guests notice, so getting the illumination and style correct is important to the overall look of the home’s exterior.

Post lights and pathway lights help establish a perimeter and offer visibility, while wall lights save space as they illuminate the driveway. Driveway lighting ideas can be bold and edgy or subtly traditional. There are a lot of options when choosing driveway lighting fixtures.

LED Lighting for Powerful Illumination

Although LED lighting has been around for a while, using them for driveways and landscaping is relatively new. LED bulbs last longer, use less energy, and offer impressive results when used to illuminate driveways and landscaping. Because they last longer and don’t need to be replaced as often, they can be used in hard-to-reach places if that is what serves the design.

Benefits of LED lighting for landscapes and driveways include:

• Reliability – long-lasting bulbs that are highly resistant to the elements.
• Versatility – offers greater design freedom to place lights where they look best.
• Efficiency – low-voltage and energy-efficient, ideal for landscape lighting.

Things to think about when looking for driveway lighting:

• Use warm lighting to create a welcoming glow.
• Choose lights that are suitable for all weather conditions.
• Add lighting at consistent distances and on corners for complete coverage.

Tech Lighting Revel 8 Inch Decorative Pathway Light

LED driveway and path lights that spread illumination in different directions, such as the Tech Lighting Revel 8 Inch Decorative Pathway Light, will brighten the driveway and landscaping, adding an extra design element. The sleek, modern design features a metal surface laser-cut with horizontal slots that allow the diffuse LED light to slip through. The soft, subtle glow makes driveways and pathways easier to navigate.

Kuzco Lighting Dorian 32 Inch Decorative Pathway Light

For those who want whimsical landscape lighting ideas for driveways, the Kuzco Lighting Dorian 32 Inch Decorative Pathway Light seems to dance around any landscape. Mixing the modern with the fanciful, they are a great choice for illuminating natural foliage along driveways and pathways. Here they highlight the landscaping near the driveway while providing accent lighting to the driveway.

Sutcliffe Outdoor Wall Light and Atlantis Bollard by Hinkley Lighting

Lighting the grounds offers an inviting, intimate way to elevate driveway lighting. Placed along pathways to illuminate landscaping, the Atlantis 30 Inch Bollard by Hinkley Lighting provides ambient lighting that increases visibility. Often a few lights along pathways provide just the right amount of light. The Sutcliffe 22 Inch Tall 3 Light Outdoor Wall Light by Hinkley Lighting mounted on the wall completes the sleek look with early American styling.

Elegant Lantern Designs for Landscape and Driveway Lighting

Lantern designs are an elegant, classic choice for landscape and driveway lighting. Not only do they help illuminate the driveway, but they also lead the way to the focal point at the end – the home. By drawing the eye up toward the home, they create a welcoming feel for family and friends as they approach. Place these lights near pathways or alongside driveways to highlight landscaping features as they shed light on the driveway.

Z-Lite Brookside Outdoor Post Lamp and Wall Light

Different types of outdoor lighting can work together to illuminate the driveway and walkway. The Z-Lite Brookside 19 Inch Tall Outdoor Post Lamp, with a classic lantern shape and compelling X-shaped detail, lights the path from the garage to the entrance. It is supported by a pair of Z-Lite Brookside 18 Inch Tall Outdoor Wall Lights, providing softly diffused light throughout the area. Together these stunning lantern-style lights create a well-lit and safe nighttime environment. For homes with short driveways, this can provide enough illumination.

Z-Lite Barwick 113 Inch Tall LED Outdoor Post Lamp

Tall, post-mounted lanterns such as the Z-Lite Barwick 113 Inch Tall LED Outdoor Post Lamp spaced along the driveway illuminates the landscaping while also spreading light for comings and goings. These understated post lanterns offer ultra-modern flair with their elongated, cage-like design in a handsome, deep black finish. The etched glass plate warms and diffuses the light from LED bulbs into a wide, soothing glow.

Outside Wall Lights for Garage Doors

Getting in and out of the garage at night requires the proper lighting. Outdoor wall lights are a beautiful way to make this area safer at night. Placed above or between garage doors, wall lights illuminate the parking area of the driveway and increase its character.

Tech Lighting Bowman 4 Inch Tall LED Outdoor Wall Light

For an industrial look, consider the Tech Lighting Bowman 4 Inch Tall LED Outdoor Wall Light that creates a spotlight effect. The classic and sleek silhouette combined with the silver finish on the metallic shade adds an industrial vibe. Clean lines and mid-century modern design offer tightly controlled downlight that supplies powerful illumination on even the darkest nights.

Osler 19 Inch Tall 1 Light LED Outdoor Wall Light by Eurofase Lighting

If a minimal, contemporary style is more appropriate, the Osler 19 Inch Tall 1 Light LED Outdoor Wall Light by Eurofase Lighting offers ample light when mounted between and on either side of garage doors. It creates a simple, clean look over the garage.