Christmas light ideas on a budget: $100, $200 and $400 plans

The $100 plan: one line and a door

Total: about $85 with mini lights or $110 to $145 with C9, for a front of 60 ft. Best for small houses, see small house ideas.

• About 60 ft of mini lights along the main roof edge or porch roof: one 66 ft string ($18). For the bolder C9 look, one 100 ft reel is about $45 to $80 per 100 ft reel.
• A door outline in mini lights ($18).
• Clips ($14), one outdoor cord ($15) and a timer ($20).

The $200 plan: full roofline and bushes

Total: about $170 to $205. This is the classic warm-white roofline plus net-light bushes.

• 100 ft of C9 LED in warm white: one 100 ft reel (about $45 to $80 per 100 ft reel).
• Four net lights for two bushes ($64).
• Clips ($14), one cord ($15), a timer ($20) and spares ($10).

The $400 plan: roofline, windows, tree and path

Total: about $350 to $385. Close to the Hallmark-movie cozy look without the wreaths.

• Roofline: 100 ft of C9 (about $45 to $80 per 100 ft reel).
• Window outlines: four mini sets ($72).
• Tree trunk wrap: one mini set ($18) and net lights for four bushes ($64).
• Pathway stakes, 20 pieces ($56) and a power stake ($22).
• Clips, cords, timer and spares ($70).

What the lights cost to run

Running cost is small once the lights are LED. At the August 2026 U.S. average residential price of 18.16 cents per kWh (EIA) and 240 hours of use, with typical wattages from the calculator:

Where to save, and where not to

• Save on: spare extension cords you already own, mini lights for areas near the ground, and sets bought after Thanksgiving when many are discounted.
• Do not save on: the outdoor rating, a tested listing mark, clips and the timer. CPSC advises lights tested by a nationally recognized laboratory and certified for outdoor use; cheap clips break and indoor sets fail in rain.
• Buy once: LED strings last many seasons, so a $45 to $80 C9 reel is a few dollars a year. See LED versus incandescent.
• Reuse: coil each string around cardboard in January, bag the clips and label the box.

Spend on what people see first

Stand across the street at dusk: the roof edge and the door are what the eye finds first. A short, even, bright line beats a long, patchy one, and one LED string that lasts many seasons beats three cheap sets replaced each year. Buy one spare string of the roofline lights now, because a set that dies mid-season is hard to match once stores sell out.

Spend the first dollars where nobody needs a ladder, and price each area with the calculator before you commit. The area-by-area guide helps you choose which areas to light, and the pro price for the high runs is in installation cost.

Compare budget looks on your own house photo before buying. Preview it on my house, free