Diwali 2026 falls on Sunday, November 8, and the light goes up long before the evening of the eighth if you want it done properly.
We install warm white Diwali lighting across Chicagoland three ways: a fixed color seasonal install from about $800, a color changing RGBW C9 seasonal install from about $1,400 that covers Halloween through Christmas from one install with Diwali in the middle of that run, or a permanent low profile system from about $3,000 that lives on the house year round. Seasonal installs are custom cut, maintained through the festival, and taken down afterward.
The short version
Diwali 2026 is Sunday, November 8. The five days run Friday November 6 through Tuesday November 10, and the Lakshmi Puja muhurat is 6:29 PM to 8:29 PM on the eighth.
Seasonal Diwali lighting starts around $800 for an average home, all inclusive: custom cut and fit, install, timer, in season maintenance, and takedown at the end of the season.
Color changing RGBW C9 seasonal lighting starts around $1,400 for one install covering Halloween through Christmas. Diwali sits in the middle of that run, so the same install is recolored to warm white for the eighth without a crew returning.
Permanent roofline lighting runs about $3,000 for a typical home and carries a ten year component warranty. It never comes down.
Book in September or the first week of October. Diwali lands 18 days before Thanksgiving in 2026, and every lighting crew in Chicagoland switches to Christmas work in late October.
When Is Diwali 2026?
Diwali 2026 is Sunday, November 8, which is the main day, Lakshmi Puja. The festival runs five days.
| Day | Date | Observance |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Friday, November 6 | Dhanteras |
| 2 | Saturday, November 7 | Choti Diwali (Naraka Chaturdashi) |
| 3 | Sunday, November 8 | Diwali, Lakshmi Puja, the main day |
| 4 | Monday, November 9 | Govardhan Puja |
| 5 | Tuesday, November 10 | Bhai Dooj |
The Lakshmi Puja muhurat on November 8 is 6:29 PM to 8:29 PM. Your lights should be up, tested and on a timer well before that evening, not the afternoon of.
Book by early October. Diwali lands 18 days before Thanksgiving in 2026, which is exactly when every lighting crew in Chicagoland switches over to Christmas installs. The calendar tightens fast in the second half of October, and booking in September is the difference between picking your install date and taking what is left.
Why Warm White for Diwali?
Because it is the closest electric match to the light the festival is actually about.
A diya is an oil flame, and oil flame is warm, low and steady. Cool white and blue white LEDs read as clinical against brick, stone and stucco, and they fight with the diyas and candles you have already placed at the entry and along the railings.
Warm white also photographs better. Most families are taking pictures on the eighth, and a warm roofline behind a doorway of diyas holds together in a phone photo where a cool white roofline separates and looks like a security floodlight.
If you want color, we can do it. Colored and multi scene programming is available on the permanent systems. Our recommendation for the festival itself is still warm white on the architecture, with color used deliberately rather than everywhere.
What Are the Options, and What Do They Cost?
| Fixed color seasonal | RGBW C9 seasonal | Permanent | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Typical price | About $800 and up per install | About $1,400 and up for Halloween through Christmas | About $3,000, once |
| Warm white for Diwali | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Recolors for other holidays | No, one scheme for the season | Yes, from the same install | Yes, from the app |
| Hardware | Commercial grade LED, custom cut | Commercial grade RGBW C9, custom cut | Commercial grade LED in low profile track |
| Warranty | Full season, animal damage included | Full season, animal damage included | Ten years on components |
| Timer | Included | Included | Built in, scheduled in the app |
| In season service | Included | Included | Included |
| Takedown | We remove it at season end | We remove it at season end | Never, it stays |
| Cost next year | About $800 again | About $1,400 again | Nothing |
All three numbers are typical starting points for an average Chicagoland home, not quotes. Complexity and length are what move them: peaks, dormers, second and third story access and unusual materials all change the figure. A real quote comes from measured footage and a look at your roofline.
The RGBW C9 option matters more than usual in 2026, because Halloween falls on Saturday October 31, eight days before Diwali. From about $1,400 one October install covers Halloween, then Diwali, then Christmas, recoloring itself for each. If you light only for Diwali, the fixed color seasonal install is the better buy. See our Halloween lighting guide for that calendar.
Does Permanent Lighting Actually Pay for Itself?
It depends entirely on which seasonal option you would otherwise buy every year. A permanent roofline system runs about $3,000.
| What you would otherwise pay every year | Annual cost | Permanent pays for itself in |
|---|---|---|
| Fixed color seasonal, one install | About $800 | About 3.75 years |
| RGBW C9 seasonal, Halloween through Christmas | About $1,400 | About 2.1 years |
| Two separate seasonal installs a year | About $1,600 | Under 2 years |
If you want color that changes per occasion, the honest comparison is the middle row, because nobody who cares about warm white for Diwali and orange for Halloween is buying the fixed color option. Against the color changing install you would actually buy, permanent pays for itself in a little over two years.
After the payback point the marginal cost of lighting your house for any holiday is roughly zero. That, rather than the break even date, is the real argument for permanent.
What Is Included in the Seasonal Service?
Our seasonal Diwali install is all inclusive. There is no separate charge for any of the following.
That last item is worth pricing out before you compare us against a cheaper bid. Ask any competing quote whether takedown and in season service are included or extra, because that is usually where a low number is hiding.
What Hardware Do You Use?
Commercial grade LED only. We do not install consumer retail strings or big box seasonal product.
Warm white on the architecture, with the diyas doing the work at the door.
Frequently Asked Questions
We install across Chicagoland, including South Barrington, Inverness and Oak Brook, along with the rest of our service area.
Sources
Diwali 2026 dates and the Lakshmi Puja muhurat were checked against multiple published festival calendars on August 16, 2026, all of which agree on Sunday November 8, a five day festival running November 6 to 10, and a muhurat of 6:29 PM to 8:29 PM. Pricing, warranty terms and service inclusions are Hanging Lights Club's own, current as of August 2026, and are typical figures rather than quotes.
