Verified By
Karianne Jaeger, Construction Project Manager
Verified By
Karianne Jaeger
LED lighting has become the top choice for illuminating tennis courts due to its energy efficiency, long lifespan, and superior brightness. Whether you’re upgrading from traditional metal halide lights or installing a new system, understanding LED tennis court lighting cost is essential for budgeting your project.
The total cost of LED tennis court lighting depends on factors like the number of fixtures, installation complexity, and energy savings over time. This guide will break down the key cost components, compare LED lighting to traditional options, and help you estimate your overall investment.
LED Tennis Court Lighting Installation Cost (2025)
Based on hundreds of estimated 2025 sports lighting projects across the United States in our internal database, the cost to install LED lighting for a tennis court typically ranges from $41,472 to $218,606 per court.
This price range reflects real-world installations at a wide variety of facilities, including public parks, private clubs, school campuses, and tournament venues.
Costs vary based on:
The required brightness level (lux/foot-candles)
The quality and lifespan of LED fixtures and control systems
Regional labor and material price differences
Whether the lighting is for practice play, competitive matches, or televised events
Is your sports facility looking to install or upgrade to new LED lights? Try our tennis court lighting cost calculator to get a customized cost estimate.
Tennis court lighting cost breakdown
| Cost item | Cost range |
|---|---|
Tennis LED Sports Lighting System, Poles, Control system | $16,400 – $168,000 |
Installation of poles | $4,000 – $24,000 |
Installation of fixtures | $6,200 – $28,000 |
Wiring from contactors to poles | $2,400 – $9,800 |
Structural engineering | $1,200 – $3,400 |
Total | $30,200 – $233,200 |
LED Retrofit Costs for Tennis Court Lighting Systems (2025)
Retrofitting an existing HID tennis court lighting system with LEDs in 2025 typically costs between $16,400 and $128,330 per court, according to real-world project data from our internal U.S. database.
LED conversions are generally more affordable than full installations because you can often reuse parts of the existing infrastructure, such as poles, foundations, and electrical systems. Retrofit projects are completed using one of two approaches:
Replacing the entire fixture with a new LED unit
Retrofitting LED lamps into existing housings (when compatible)
Use our tennis court cost calculator for a tailored cost breakdown for your project.
Why LED Retrofits Make Financial Sense
Beyond the lower upfront cost, the long-term savings are substantial:
Up to 75% lower energy consumption
No bulb replacements for 5–10 years
Reduced maintenance, fewer repairs, and longer-lasting components
Your total cost of operation depends on:
The efficiency of the fixtures (lumens per watt)
Required brightness based on level of play (recreational vs. competitive)
Your local electricity rates
Kick Off Your LED Sports Lighting Project
We’ve created a set of tools designed to assist facility managers and project planners in initiating their projects and help connect them with the professionals in the industry.
Factors Affecting LED Tennis Court Light Costs
The cost of LED tennis court lighting varies based on several factors, including:
Type of LED Fixtures
LED tennis court lights come in different wattages, beam angles, and brightness levels (measured in lumens). Higher-quality, high-output LEDs cost more but provide better illumination and efficiency.
Number of Lights Needed
A single court typically requires 4 to 8 LED fixtures, depending on the level of play and brightness requirements. Larger court complexes will require additional lighting, increasing costs.
Pole Height and Spacing
The height and positioning of light poles impact the number and type of fixtures required. Taller poles with wide-beam LEDs reduce the number of lights needed but may require more powerful (and costly) fixtures.
Brand and Quality
Premium LED brands offer better durability, performance, and warranties but come at a higher price. Investing in reputable manufacturers ensures long-term reliability and lower maintenance costs.
Competition Level
The level of play affects lighting requirements. Recreational courts can use lower-lumen fixtures, while professional and tournament courts must meet higher brightness and uniformity standards. This affects both the number and type of LEDs needed.
Read more: LED Sports Lighting Cost Guide for Project Planners
Installation Costs
Installation involves labor, equipment, and materials. Key factors that affect installation costs include:
- Pole mounting and positioning for optimal light distribution
- Wiring and trenching to ensure a stable electrical connection
- The complexity of installation, such as retrofitting vs. new construction
Additional Expenses
Beyond fixtures and installation, several other costs contribute to the total investment:
- Electrical Upgrades: If the facility’s existing electrical infrastructure needs enhancement, additional costs may apply.
- Control Systems: Smart lighting controls, such as remote access and scheduling features, add to the initial expense but offer long-term savings.
- Permits & Compliance: Local regulations may require permits or adherence to specific sports lighting standards, impacting costs.
Get a cost estimate for your faility
Our tennis court lighting cost calculator provides a useful starting point to estimate costs. The more detailed information you can enter about your facility, the more accurate the quote will be.
With that estimate in mind, planners can start doing the long-term cost balancing and exploring financing options. Projects like these have a lot of benefits when it comes to seeking donors, sponsors and grants. An early cost estimate allows for a jumpstart on the fundraising efforts.
Conversion to LED: Considerations
Sports center managers have a lot of factors to weigh when deciding if they should replace or retrofit their lighting system. LED tennis court lighting systems can be part of the new construction or renovation of a tennis court or multi-court center. Upgrading the lighting may be a standalone project, or it may be part of a broader project.
Age of the existing lighting system
A complete tennis center lighting upgrade is almost always worthwhile when fixtures throughout the facility are outdated. Between the 30% increase in illumination and the instant turn-on / turn-off nature of the lights, many factors point to ball impact resistant LED.
What is your goal?
In addition to the age of the current lighting, the overarching goal of the renovation is an important factor. If the main goal is to save energy and reduce operating costs in the long term, converting the tennis lighting to ball impact-resistant LED fixtures makes perfect sense.
Audit the infrastructure
Even if the project is “just” the lighting, this entails more than swapping out some bulbs and fixtures. The light poles and their foundations should be examined to ensure they have not been affected by their years of use and exposure to the weather. If the foundation is solid and the pole remains strong, it should be reusable.
Advantage: LEDs
LED’s make a convincing case for upgrading from conventional lighting systems. On every dimension other than point-of-sale costs, LED’s are superior to their predecessors, such as fluorescent tubes or halogen lamps.
At the top end of savings, LED lights can reduce lighting electricity costs by 50 – 60%. At that rate, an LED system can pay for itself after just a few years.
The LED tennis court lighting cost calculator can be used to get a quote on a lighting upgrade.
LED vs. Traditional Lighting: Cost Savings Over Time
Energy Efficiency
LEDs consume significantly less energy than metal halide or HID lights. A 1,000W metal halide light can be replaced with a 300W-500W LED, reducing electricity costs by up to 70%.
Maintenance Savings
Traditional lights require frequent bulb replacements and ballast repairs. LEDs last 50,000+ hours, meaning fewer replacements and lower maintenance costs.
Electricity Cost Comparison
A single 1,000W metal halide fixture costs about $500 per year in electricity, while an equivalent LED fixture costs $150-$250 per year. Over 10 years, this results in thousands of dollars in savings.
Return on Investment (ROI)
Although LED lighting has a higher upfront cost, the lower operating expenses mean most facilities recoup their investment within 3 to 5 years through energy and maintenance savings.
LED Sports Lighting Buyer's Guide
Our comprehensive buyer's guide covers all the essential aspects including budgeting, design, funding, and installation considerations, simplifying your decision-making process.
Get the Free Guide
Tennis Court Lighting Requirements & Standards
Inadequate court lighting reduces the enjoyment of the game and may affect the precision of ball striking. To avoid this, glare-free, uniform illumination of the entire court is essential. The lighting class of the new fixtures is part of the quality of the illumination. This, in turn, depends on the requirements you have set for the facility. If you host or wish to host high-level players or events, the lighting will need to be at a comparable level.
Lighting classes for tennis court lighting:
- Class I: High performance competitions, 750 lux
- Class II: Intermediate level competitions, 500 lux
- Class III: Simple competitions, school and recreational sports, 200 lux
For amateur and normal training use, class 3 luminaires are quite sufficient. But if professional or high-level collegiate players will be using the courts, situations that might be broadcast or streamed, Class 1 lighting becomes a requirement. And, of course, if your players and events are in between those levels, lighting Class 2 is suitable.
Layout & design
Tennis court lighting fixtures are usually installed outside the court, parallel to the sidelines and turned towards the court. These measures increase the lighting efficiency and player experience. In sports complexes with sloping roofs, the LED lights should follow the slope of the roof to ensure balls hit high in the air remain visible to the players. Additional lights can be installed to provide extra illumination of the run-out of the court behind the baseline.
Facility managers should switch on the lighting of all neighboring courts in the tennis center during games to ensure a uniform visual backdrop for the players. Their game will suffer if their eyes are constantly adjusting and adapting to different background light levels.
Photometric study
For lighting that is customized to the sports facility, the lighting design should be carried out by the company which will do the actual work or by a specialist in sports illumination. This should involve modeling how the court will look under different lighting arrangements, and show what things will look like from the vantage point of people throughout the facility. The more accurate this modeling is, the better the construction can be adapted to produce a high quality outcome.
Ball-proof fixtures
The structural requirements for sports centers hold that the indoor lighting in the playing area must consist of ball-proof LED fixtures to ensure the safety of the users. Fast-moving balls can cause damage to lights that are not ball-proof, which, in addition to a loss in the quality of the hall lighting, also poses a risk of injury to the players. With ball-proof LED systems, both risks are greatly reduced.
Control system
With modern LED indoor lighting, all lights can be controlled with a dimmer switch. This way, you only have to pay for the brightness you need, as you can adjust the lights individually from one room to the next, seamlessly between lighting classes, from one hour to the next.
While you want to match your lighting to your usage as much as possible to keep costs down, overall, the brighter the facility, the more attractive it will be for clubs and players.
Fortunately, LED indoor tennis court lighting does not force you to choose. LED systems can be designed to accommodate all three classes with a switching system that allows you to turn fixtures on and off, and then adjust the brightness of the individual fixtures, at any time. This way your lighting always meets the demands of the players on the court, without costing you more than you need to spend.
Another option is coin-operated lighting, where the tennis players themselves pay for the lighting as they need it. This makes the lighting a (small) source of revenue, and gives the players an incentive to mind their energy usage while at the center.
Read more about outdoor tennis court lighting design considerations in our separate article.
Which LED Lights Are Right for Your Tennis Court?
When choosing the right LED lighting for a tennis court, you have to consider the color of the light, the power consumption of the LED tubes, and the certification of the product. When it comes to the light color, the options range from cool shades of blue to warmer shades of yellow.
The power consumption of the lighting depends on the number of installed luminaires on the one hand, and on the manufacturer and model on the other. An efficient arrangement of the lights will pay off in savings over the long-term.
When deciding on the manufacturer and model of LED sports lights, read over independent tests in addition to the manufacturer’s specifications. Look for industry awards and certifications, such as TÜV, when assessing the quality of the light tubes and to maintenance needs.
Tennis Court Lighting Companies
Companies specializing in tennis court lighting offer tailored solutions to meet the specific demands of the sport. Proper illumination is essential for players to track the fast-moving tennis ball, especially during evening or indoor matches. These experts design systems that provide consistent, glare-free lighting across the entire court, ensuring optimal playing conditions and enhancing the viewing experience for spectators. When considering lighting for a tennis court, it’s crucial to choose a company with expertise in this area to ensure the right balance of brightness and shadow reduction, guaranteeing both performance and safety.
Pro tip: If you are currently looking for a reliable and knowledgeable sports lighting vendor, try our sports lighting partner finder and get connected with suitable lighting partners.
Kick Off Your LED Sports Lighting Project
We’ve created a set of tools designed to assist facility managers and project planners in initiating their projects and help connect them with the professionals in the industry.
Costs and Financing of LED Sports Lighting
Everything above is just the first step of what you need to consider and discuss. Professional lighting designers and installers will go into much greater detail in determining your needs before they begin work. They should provide models, renderings and simulations so you can see what the courts will look like under a variety of lighting conditions before approving any designs and commencing work.
Both the size of the playing areas and the number of lights factor into the cost of a new lighting system. Efficiency, therefore, becomes as much a product and design factor as do quality and the rated lifespan of the lights. You can conveniently calculate the costs incurred for lighting as part of the renovation or construction of a new tennis center with our LED tennis court lighting cost calculator.
LED lighting offers long-term cost savings for sports facilities. However, the upfront costs may seem steep at the time. Owners should research grants for tennis facilities, donations and crowdfunding efforts that target sports and recreation facilities, or energy efficiency upgrades.
