Best light switches and sockets
Updated: October 2026
Stars on this shelf sit between 4.5 and 4.7, so a best list that only sorts ratings will hand you a 13 A socket when you needed a stair switch. Best, here, means best for a stated job among twelve amazon.co.uk captures checked on 21 October 2026. Each pick has a price, a review count, and a person who should leave it in the basket. The [light switch sockets comparison](/hub/electrical-equipment/light-switch-sockets) is the full table. This is not a lab test and not a national best-seller claim.
Stars on this shelf sit between 4.5 and 4.7, so a best list that only sorts ratings will hand you a 13 A socket when you needed a stair switch.
Stars on this shelf sit between 4.5 and 4.7, so a best list that only sorts ratings will hand you a 13 A socket when you needed a stair switch. Best, here, means best for a stated job among twelve amazon.co.uk captures checked on 21 October 2026. Each pick has a price, a review count, and a person who should leave it in the basket. The light switch sockets comparison is the full table. This is not a lab test and not a national best-seller claim.
Our top picks
| Badge | Product | Fitting | Switching | Finish | Note | Price | Offer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Best overall |  BG BG double switched socket, brushed steel, NBS22G | Switched socket | Double switched | Brushed steel | 9.6 | about £6.37 | View offer |
 BG BG single 2-way switch, antique brass, NAB12 | Light switch | 2-way | Antique brass | 9.6 | about £5.79 | View offer | |
| Best value |  Knightsbridge Knightsbridge CU2000 1-gang 2-way switch | Light switch | 2-way | White | 9.4 | about £3.00 | View offer |
White plates
If you only need a white 2-way plate, Knightsbridge CU2000 is the best value on this amazon.co.uk capture: £3.00, 4.6 from 1,579 reviews, 10 A, 1-gang, 2-way. Skip it if you need 1-way only, or if you want metal. This capture prints 10 A, does not print AX, and charges £3.00. A lower trade price is another shelf.
The 1-way white plate is Knightsbridge CU1000 at £3.99. Skip it on any stair. The photograph is shared with CU2000, so the picture does not prove the mechanism. BG's white moulded 812 at £4.49 is the white 2-way when you want 20 A, 16AX. The £3.61 plate has attribute rows that claim IP65. Do not treat it as an outdoor switch.
Metal singles
Metal is a finish step, not a higher star. The three single 2-way metal plates sit between £5.77 and £5.95, all marked 20 A, 16AX, and all IP00. Antique brass NAB12 is £5.79 and 4.7 from 895 reviews. In this capture it is rank 1 in Switches & Dimmers. That is an amazon.co.uk rank, not a test. Reviews describe the metal as bronze rather than gold, and a faceplate screw as short.
Polished chrome NPC12 is £5.95. The screws are short, and one reviewer said a plate sold as Nexus Metal was plastic. Matt black NFB12 is £5.77. It shows fewer fingerprints than shiny metal, and it scratches. There is no matt-black double in this twelve. Earth and colour shift are on the metal or plastic page.
Doubles and the two sockets
A double plate is two gangs. BG NBS42 is the brushed-steel double 2-way at £6.18, 4.7 from 2,879 reviews. The title says 20 A, 16AX and a bullet says 10 A, 10AX. That clash is why it is not the top pick even with a strong review count. Antique-brass NAB42 at £6.79 is the highest price here. One review found it paler than the picture.
The strongest review count belongs to a socket, not a switch. BG NBS22G is the top pick on this shelf: a 13 A double switched socket in brushed steel, £6.37, 4.7 from 8,291 reviews. Reviewers describe a secure plug and a firm click, and they also mention fingerprints. Skip NBS22G if the cable is a lighting switch drop. Antique-brass NAB22B is the other 13 A socket, also £6.37, with a 25 mm box in the bullets. Reviews say the brass is darker than the photo.
The one intermediate
BG NBS13 at £5.99, 4.6 from 632 reviews, is the best plate in this set only when it is the middle of three or more positions. The title says intermediate. An attribute row says 2-way. Follow the title. A normal stair, top and bottom, uses two 2-way plates and does not use NBS13. The ends stay 2-way and the middle becomes the intermediate.
Skip NBS13 for a bedroom with one switch, and skip it if you wanted a dimmer. This twelve has no trailing-edge dimmer and no smart switch. If the landing is the third position, the 1-way or 2-way page is the scheme.
Common questions
Which socket has the most reviews?
NBS22G, B004TRJYE8, 4.7 from 8,291 reviews, at £6.37. That volume is why it is the top pick among listings that share a 4.7 star line. It is a 13 A double switched socket. NAB22B has the same price and the same star rating from 668 reviews, with a stated 25 mm box. Neither star line means the socket is safer than a correctly chosen switch. It means more people have reviewed that socket listing.
What if I need three switch positions?
Keep 2-way plates at the two ends and put NBS13 in the middle. NBS13 is £5.99 in brushed steel. Do not buy three copies of CU2000 and expect the middle one to behave as an intermediate. Do not buy NBS13 for a stair that has only two switches. If you cannot see which cable is the strapper, stop and use a competent person rather than the best-value plate.
Is antique brass the best metal?
It is the metal with the strongest switch rank in this capture, not the best metal for every room. NAB12 is 4.7 from 895 reviews and rank 1 in Switches & Dimmers on amazon.co.uk. Reviews still say the colour is bronze, darker than the photograph. Buy one plate and look at it in daylight before you order the rest of the room.
Why is the cheapest plate not the trade price of CU2000?
Because this page ranks the amazon.co.uk capture, where CU2000 is £3.00. A trade page can list the same model number near £0.82 including VAT. Those details are not in the amazon capture, so they are not this shelf's specification. Do not write £0.82 as the Amazon price.
Does 4.7 mean safer?
No. Every kept listing is between 4.5 and 4.7, and the gap does not measure earth, isolation, or whether you bought a socket for a lighting cable. NBS22G's 4.7 from 8,291 reviews does not make that socket the right part for a stair. Safety here is the right mechanism, a proved dead circuit, and an earth when the plate is metal.
Related pages
Sources
Public UK sources are listed below. Shelf prices and star lines are the amazon.co.uk figures checked on 21 October 2026.
- Electrical Safety First: What is notifiable work? (retrieved 21 October 2026)
- IET: BS 7671 18th Edition wiring regulations (retrieved 21 October 2026)
- IET: Section 701, locations containing a bath or shower (retrieved 21 October 2026)
- BEAMA: Load ratings for manually operated functional switches (retrieved 21 October 2026)
- BSI: BS EN 60669-1:2018 scope (retrieved 21 October 2026)
- B&Q: How to replace a light switch (retrieved 21 October 2026)
- Homebuilding: Types of light switches (retrieved 21 October 2026)
- amazon.co.uk listings for these plates (retrieved 21 October 2026)