LED vs standard bulb - when does replacing pay off?

Lighting accounts for about 15-20% of electricity use in an average home. As electricity prices in North Macedonia keep rising, switching to LED lighting is a question people ask more and more often. But does it pay off, and when?

In this article you will see a realistic calculation of the savings, with concrete figures based on Macedonian electricity prices.

How much does each type of bulb use?

For the same light output (~800 lumens = a typical room bulb):

• Traditional filament bulb: 60W
• Halogen: 42W
• Compact fluorescent (CFL): 14W
• LED: 8-10W

That means LED uses 6-7 times less than a traditional bulb, and about 40% less than CFL.

A realistic calculation for a flat in Skopje

Picture a typical three-room flat in Skopje with 15 bulbs that are on for an average of 5 hours a day.

Annual saving: ~8.900 MKD

What does the investment cost?

The price of an LED bulb in Skopje in 2026: 150-400 MKD each (depending on the brand and the quality). For 15 bulbs, the investment is ~3.500-6.000 MKD.

Payback period: 4-8 months

That means that within less than a year the LEDs have paid for themselves, and every year after that is pure saving.

Bonus: lifespan

Average lifespan:

• Traditional bulb: ~1.000 hours (~1 year at 3h/day)
• Halogen: ~2.000 hours
• CFL: ~8.000 hours
• LED: 25.000-50.000 hours (~20-40 years!)

So on top of the electricity savings, you also save on replacing the bulbs themselves. Traditional bulbs need changing every year - LEDs practically NEVER within the lifetime of the installation.

When does replacing pay off?

✅ Worth doing straight away:

• Rooms where the light is on for long periods - living room, kitchen, hallway, garage
• Offices and business premises (lights on 8+ hours a day)
• Outdoor lighting - terrace, paths, facade
• Lighting in hard-to-reach places - high ceilings, ceiling lights

⏳ Replace when the old one goes:

• Rooms where the light is rarely on - cellar, small toilet
• Decorative bulbs whose style does not suit LED

What to look out for when buying?

1. Lumens (lm), not watts (W)

Old bulbs were measured in watts (60W, 100W). With LED you should be looking at lumens:

• 400 lm = soft lighting (wall light, bedside lamp)
• 800 lm = standard for a room (= an old 60W)
• 1.500 lm = brighter (= an old 100W)
• 2.000+ lm = very bright (kitchen, worktop)

2. Colour of the light (Kelvin)

• 2700K - warm white (yellowish, like a traditional bulb) - bedroom, living room
• 3000K - neutral white - all-purpose
• 4000K - cool white - kitchen, bathroom
• 6500K - daylight - workshops, garage

3. CRI (Colour Rendering Index)

How accurately it renders colours. CRI > 80 is good for the home, CRI > 90 is excellent (for photography or make-up).

4. Brands we recommend

From our experience, these are the quality LEDs available in North Macedonia:

• Philips, Osram, Ledvance (premium, expensive but last 20+ years)
• Schneider Electric (professional, good CRI)
• Mexllo, V-TAC (mid range, good value for money)

Avoid the cheapest no-name LEDs - they last 6 months instead of 25.000 hours.

Take care with old light fittings

Some old light fittings (particularly those with halogen transformers) do not work well with LED. Sometimes the transformer or the controller itself also needs replacing. A licensed electrician will know exactly what the situation is.

Thinking about switching to LED?

Elektro TR carries out professional LED lighting installation - from a single room to a whole flat. We have experience with every type of lighting.

Call: 070 393 045

Conclusion

LED lighting definitely pays off for most rooms in the home - the investment comes back in under a year, and after that you are simply saving. For rooms where the lights are on for long stretches (kitchen, living room, office), switching is close to pure saving in the long run. For larger projects (a whole flat, a new house, a business), we recommend talking to an electrician about the best solution - the type, the colour temperature and the layout of the lights.