IP20: Meaning, Rooms Where It Is Allowed and What Not to Do

"IP20" is the most common mention on a light fixture's product sheet, and the least explained. It does not say the lamp is fragile: it says precisely what it is protected against, and therefore where you can install it safely. Two digits, and it is all there.

For the full scale, from IP20 to IP67, read our IP rating guide. Here, we take apart the one rating you will meet in almost every room of the house.

IP20: what the two digits mean

IP stands for Ingress Protection. It is an international standard (IEC 60529) that grades an electrical device's resistance to two things, with one digit for each.

The first digit, 2: solids

The fixture is protected against solid objects larger than 12.5 mm. In practice: a finger cannot reach a live part. It is the minimum level of safety expected from an object you handle at home. It does not protect against fine dust, which does not matter in a living space.

The second digit, 0: water

No protection against water. Not drops, not splashes, not steam. This digit decides everything: an IP20 fixture is a dry-room fixture, full stop.

Rating	Solids	Water	In plain words
IP20	Objects over 12.5 mm (finger)	None	Dry rooms only
IP23	Objects over 12.5 mm	Rain up to 60° from vertical	Very sheltered outdoors, minimum
IP44	Objects over 1 mm	Splashes from all directions	Bathroom zone 2, covered terrace
IP54	Dust (protected)	Splashes from all directions	Exposed outdoors, minimum
IP65	Dust (tight)	Low-pressure water jets	Exposed outdoors, shower (zone 1)

Where IP20 is enough

Anywhere with no humidity and no water splashes: living room, bedroom, office, hallway, entrance, dining room, dressing room. That is the case for 95% of decorative light fixtures sold in France: pendants, wall lights, floor lamps, table lamps. If a product sheet mentions no IP rating at all, treat the fixture as IP20, meant for dry indoor use.

In those rooms, looking for a higher IP brings nothing. An IP44 in a living room is neither safer nor longer-lasting: it is simply built for a different environment.

IP20 is not a flaw. It is the right answer for nine rooms out of ten in the house.

Where IP20 is forbidden

The bathroom, within 60 cm of water

The French standard NF C 15-100 divides the bathroom into zones. In the bath or shower (zone 0), directly above it (zone 1) and within 60 cm around it (zone 2), IP20 is forbidden: you need at least IP44, and IP65 at 12 V extra-low voltage above the shower. Ignoring these zones means a risk of electrocution and a claim your insurer will not cover. The zone-by-zone detail is in our bathroom lighting guide.

Outdoors, even under cover

A covered terrace stays damp: fog, condensation, rain pushed by the wind. The minimum outdoors is IP23 under cover, IP44 recommended, and IP54 as soon as the lamp is exposed. An IP20 left outside ends in internal corrosion and a burnt-out LED, often by the first winter.

Above a source of steam

Directly above a hob or an open walk-in shower, steam condenses inside the fixture. IP20 is ruled out.

The borderline cases

The kitchen

Above the table or the island, away from the sink and the hob, IP20 is fine: that is the case for most dining pendants. Near the sink or the hob, where steam and splashes are daily, prefer IP44.

The bathroom, outside the zones

Beyond 60 cm from the shower and bath (zone 3), the standard imposes no specific rating, but IP44 remains recommended because of steam. An IP20 is tolerated there provided it sits far from any splash: a lamp on a shelf at the far end of the room, not a wall light above the basin.

The rechargeable lamp you carry around

A cordless IP20 lamp can go out onto the terrace table for a summer dinner, then come back in. It must not spend the night there, nor sit in the dew. Moving it is allowed; leaving it outside is not.

The damp cloth

Cleaning an IP20 fixture with a slightly damp cloth, switched off, is no problem. Never spray a product directly onto it, never immerse it.

How to know which IP you need

• Dry room (living room, bedroom, office, hallway): IP20 is enough.
• Kitchen: IP20 above the table, IP44 near water and the hob.
• Bathroom: IP44 minimum within 60 cm of water, IP65 and 12 V above the shower, IP44 recommended elsewhere.
• Outdoors: IP23 minimum under cover, IP44 recommended, IP54 to IP65 when exposed.

If you remember only three markers: IP20 dry room, IP44 bathroom and covered terrace, IP65 exposed outdoors.

Our lamps for dry rooms

Two cordless lamps designed for indoors: a bedside, a desk, a console, a living-room table. To be used away from damp areas.

Frequently asked questions about IP20

What exactly does IP20 mean?

Protected against solid objects larger than 12.5 mm, such as a finger, and with no protection against water at all. It is the rating of a dry-room fixture.

Can you put an IP20 fixture in a bathroom?

Not within 60 cm of the shower or bath, nor above it: you need IP44 minimum, IP65 and 12 V above the shower. Beyond 60 cm it is tolerated, but IP44 remains recommended because of steam.

Can an IP20 fixture go in a kitchen?

Yes above the table or island, away from the sink and the hob. Near water and steam, prefer IP44.

Can an IP20 lamp stay on a covered terrace?

No. Humidity, condensation and wind-driven rain reach covered terraces too. You need at least IP23, and IP44 is recommended.

A fixture with no IP rating shown, what rating is it?

Treat it as IP20: dry indoor use only. If you need a higher IP, insist that it is written on the product sheet.

IP20, in short

Protected from fingers, not from water. Perfect for every dry room, which means the vast majority of the home's fixtures. Forbidden within 60 cm of water in the bathroom and outdoors. For anything involving humidity, move up the full IP rating scale.