A Quick Guide to Choosing Track Lighting in 2025

Looking for the best track lighting System for your project? You can go beyond the premade ceiling or wall track lights with a configurable solution, so here’s our track component buying guide for you with a simplified process to help you choose and build your own design.

What is Track Lighting?

A track lighting system is a sleek modern method of connectivity between a light source and the power that runs it. A track lighting solution adapts pendants and light heads to quickly mount to linear lengths of track that can be fixed to surfaces or suspended from ceilings.

Why Choose Track Lighting Components?

You could buy a premade solution but that are always more universal in appeal. A component assembly opens up a truly bespoke solution tailor made to your home:

• Reconfigurable: Track lights are a great choice if you want to conserve space or change your mind about the layout in your living room. Since all components are exposed, it’s fairly simple to reconfigure without any drywall reconfiguration and mess.
• Easy: It’s a system that is an easy way for anyone, even those who are not too handy with tools or electricity, to install interior light fixtures in their homes and our handy guide shows you what you’ll need.
• Adaptable: Spotlights and pendants can be moved or swapped to another system in another room quickly and easily by anyone.
• LED: The most up to date forms of light source can be used, including new methods of LED wall washing which would otherwise be very expensive to use.
• Surface Mounting: Only choose track if you have the ceiling height to accommodate the depths of the spotlights.
• Sloping Ceilings: Suspending track from sloped surfaces creates a new platform to light from within a room.

Track Lighting Fundamentals

You might be unaware of the two different types of track lighting—low voltage or line voltage. 

Line Voltage (Mains Power) Track Systems

The advantage of line voltage (UK 240V mains power) is the power runs directly through the system with no requirements for a transformer, so round box at the end of the run or a remote transformer to hide. 

• 120V (240V EU)
• Electrical components are concealed within the track 
• No transformer to mount or hide
• Unlimited capacity
• Unlimited configuration lengths
• Perfect for dedicated LED heads
• Lower in cost than low voltage as less components to buy
• More reliable as less components to buy

Low Voltage Track Systems

Low voltage systems reduce the line voltage to an extra low voltage of 12V through a transformer. 

• 12V
• A transformer to mount or hide
• Limited capacity
• Limited configuration lengths to size of transformer used.
• More expensive than line voltage
• Less reliable as more components in the system.
• Only carries a safe to touch voltage.

H2 Low Voltage vs. Line Voltage Track Lighting?

Low voltage systems still are made but are not as necessary as they once used to be. Before LED as we know it now as a source of light, low voltage lighting created more light than it’s line voltage (mains) counterpart.

That is no longer the case with modern LED lighting. We recommend line voltage (UK mains voltage) systems over low voltage.

The Track Lighting Components You Need

Track Lengths

Usually white or black as standard colors. America describes their 120V track as H track. Track can be multi circuit, up to 3 circuits potentially controlled individually so not all the fixtures connected have to turn on at the same time. It can be bought in various length sizes and extended by joining together with connectors. 

Track Connectors

Perpendicular shapes can be created using ‘T’, ‘X’ or ‘L’ shaped connections. Straight run joins require a male to male connector that slots into each end of the adjoining run.

There is a wide variety of choices to clip into a track:

Astro Can 100 Dedicated LED

A powerful 1650 lumens from a 33W dedicated LED head with a reduced glare deep set design. UK only.

Check Out Current UK Price

Dedicated LED Heads

The LED light source is integrated into the fixture itself and able to produce a large amount of light, depending on the specification. The head easily clips in and out of the track whenever you want it to.

Astro Apollo 100 GU10

A GU10 mains voltage lamp based head with a reduced glare deep set design. UK only.

Check Out Current UK Price

GU10 or MR16 Heads

Line in or low voltage lamps or ‘bulbs’ fit into your chosen style of spotlight head. This allows for flexibility in color, beam width and lumen level choices.

Wall Wash Heads

Speciality heads that group a series of LEDs to broadly wash light across and down a wall.

Astro Pendant Adaptor

Transform your system into a decorative feature light by dropping a pendant over a table.

Check Out Current UK Price

Pendants

Pendant adaptors clip in and power a dropped cable, allowing for choices of shade or pendant design to be suspended at your desired position and length. 

Transformers

Low voltage systems require the voltage to be lowered through a transformer housed in a box or enclosure. This can be chosen to be remotely positioned out of sight or with most kits attached to the end of the track.

We teach much more on other types of linear lighting systems – check out our best track, monorail, freejack & cable-lighting guide.

Andrew Orange, the owner of Orange Lighting qualified and worked as an interior designer in 1993 before specialising in lighting working on high profile projects based in London. Since starting Orange Lighting Ltd in 2003 he has been sharing his knowledge and unique teaching style mostly to his designer clients, offering practical real life advice born from running a busy consultancy and lighting supply business. Launching in 2020, his blog has evolved into Quick & Easy Lighting, curating some 25 years design experience into making the lighting choice and design process achievable and easy to understand for all.