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Light switch and socket buying guide

Updated: October 2026

You are standing in a hallway with a tired white plate in one hand and a basket that mixes lighting switches with 13 A sockets. They all look like a faceplate, and the wrong one still screws to the wall. This light switch and socket buying guide puts the cable first: switch or socket, then how many positions already control that light, then whether a metal face has an earth to land on. Finish, including brushed steel and antique brass, is the last click. The twelve-row [light switch sockets comparison](/hub/electrical-equipment/light-switch-sockets) holds the prices. Figures are amazon.co.uk captures from 21 October 2026, not a lab test.

You are standing in a hallway with a tired white plate in one hand and a basket that mixes lighting switches with 13 A sockets. They all look like a faceplate, and the wrong one still screws to the wall.

Our top picks

BG BG double switched socket, brushed steel, NBS22G

Best overall

BG BG double switched socket, brushed steel, NBS22G
9.6/10about £6.37
View offer
Knightsbridge Knightsbridge CU1000 1-gang 1-way switch

Rank 2

Knightsbridge Knightsbridge CU1000 1-gang 1-way switch
9.4/10about £3.99
View offer
Knightsbridge Knightsbridge CU2000 1-gang 2-way switch

Best value

Knightsbridge Knightsbridge CU2000 1-gang 2-way switch
9.4/10about £3.00
View offer
On this page
  1. 1.Switch or socket
  2. 2.Gang and way
  3. 3.Rating marks and box depth
  4. 4.Finish after the cable is right

Switch or socket

Ten of these listings are lighting switches. Two are 13 A double switched sockets, and buying one because the finish matches the hall lights leaves you with a plate that has no home on a lighting drop. The brushed-steel socket is BG NBS22G at £6.37, with 4.7 from 8,291 reviews. The antique-brass socket is BG NAB22B, also £6.37. A socket takes a plug. A switch breaks a lighting circuit. If the cable in the wall feeds a ceiling rose or a wall light, you stay on a switch row even when the socket photograph is the one you prefer.

Gang and way

Gang is how many rockers sit on one face. Way is how many positions already switch that one light. A double plate such as BG NBS42 or NAB42 is two gangs, each able to work as 2-way. That is two lights, or two groups, on one plate. It is not the stair version of a single switch, and it is not an intermediate. One position can take a 1-way plate or a 2-way plate used as 1-way. CU1000 is the only plate in this set titled 1-way only. CU2000 is 2-way. Two positions need two 2-way plates. Three or more need two 2-way plates at the ends and an intermediate in the middle. A normal top-and-bottom stair does not need that intermediate. The 1-way or 2-way light switch page walks through that landing case.
BG BG double switched socket, brushed steel, NBS22G

Testsieger

BG BG double switched socket, brushed steel, NBS22G
9.6/10about £6.37
View offer

Rating marks and box depth

Under BS EN 60669-1, the A figure on a switch is the tungsten, halogen, and inductive current, and the X figure is for externally ballasted lamps. You do not add 20 A and 16AX into one bigger number. NBS42 at £6.18 is the awkward row: the title says 20 A, 16AX and a bullet says 10 A, 10AX, with a 16 mm minimum box. Quote both strings or skip the plate if you need one agreed mark. Box depth is only as deep as the listing states. NBS42 and NBS13 state 16 mm. NAB22B states 25 mm. Other depths in this batch are not stated, and a missing depth is not 16 mm by family. The white 10 A plate's IP65 attribute is not supported by the indoor reviews, so leave that plate indoors.

Finish after the cable is right

Captured amazon.co.uk prices on 21 October 2026 run from £3.00 to £6.79. White moulded plates sit at £3.00–£4.49. Metal singles sit at £5.77–£5.99. Metal doubles and the two sockets sit at £6.18–£6.79. This table has no matt-black double and no polished-chrome double. Brushed steel and antique brass are the pairs that exist here across a single and a double, and the socket is still a different product from the switch. Metal still needs a circuit protective conductor on the plate. A moisture gasket is about the edge and new plaster, not a bathroom zone. These plates are mostly listed IP00. If the new face will be metal, read metal or plastic light switch before you order a run of them.

Common questions

Is a 2-way switch only for stairs?
No. A 2-way plate is for any light that already has two positions, including a hall, and UK retailers also use a 2-way plate for a single position. CU2000 at £3.00 is the 2-way white plate in this set. CU1000 at £3.99 is 1-way only, so it belongs on a light that has one switch and nowhere else.
What is 16AX if the plate also says 20 A?
They are two ratings printed side by side, not a sum. The A figure covers tungsten, halogen, and inductive load. The X figure covers externally ballasted lamps. A title that says 20 A, 16AX is not a 36 A switch. On NBS42 the bullet says 10 A, 10AX while the title says 20 A, 16AX, so that row does not agree with itself.
Will a 16 mm box take these plates?
Only where the listing says 16 mm. NBS42 and NBS13 state a 16 mm minimum. NAB22B states 25 mm. The other plates in this set do not state a depth, and you should not assume the BG family shares one number. A missing depth is a reason to check the live listing or choose a row that prints one.
Which two ASINs are sockets, not switches?
B004TRJYE8 is the brushed-steel 13 A double switched socket NBS22G at £6.37. B06VV7J7S4 is the antique-brass 13 A double switched socket NAB22B, also £6.37, with double-pole switching and a 25 mm box in the bullets. Every other ASIN in this twelve is a lighting switch, including the intermediate NBS13. Matching the brass of a light switch by ordering the brass socket will not terminate a lighting cable.
Does a non-notifiable swap mean I can ignore earthing?
No. In England, Electrical Safety First lists notifiable work as a new circuit, a replacement consumer unit, or an alteration in a special location, including the space around a bath or shower. A straight replacement outside that space is generally not notifiable, and the circuit still has to be safe. A metal plate needs a protective conductor. If the lighting cable has no earth and you want metal, that is a competent person's job, not a finish upgrade.

Related pages

How to replace a light switch

Light switch sockets

1-way or 2-way light switch: which mechanism to buy

Best light switches and sockets for one stated job

Metal or plastic light switch: check the earth first

Sources

Public UK sources are listed below. Shelf prices and star lines are the amazon.co.uk figures checked on 21 October 2026.

  1. Electrical Safety First: What is notifiable work? (retrieved 21 October 2026)
  2. IET: BS 7671 18th Edition wiring regulations (retrieved 21 October 2026)
  3. IET: Section 701, locations containing a bath or shower (retrieved 21 October 2026)
  4. BEAMA: Load ratings for manually operated functional switches (retrieved 21 October 2026)
  5. BSI: BS EN 60669-1:2018 scope (retrieved 21 October 2026)
  6. B&Q: How to replace a light switch (retrieved 21 October 2026)
  7. Homebuilding: Types of light switches (retrieved 21 October 2026)
  8. amazon.co.uk listings for these plates (retrieved 21 October 2026)