A light over the dining table does two jobs. It puts a warm pool of light on the food and hands, and it makes the table feel like a place. Hang it too low and the shade sits right in your sightline: you peer around it at the person opposite, and the bulb glares in your eyes. Hang it too high and it turns into a general ceiling light, the pool spreads thin and the table loses its cosy edge.
The height that works is measured from the tabletop to the bottom of the shade, not from the floor. That is the number to find. Drag the lamp below, or use the sliders, and watch what happens to the sightline between the two people.
Most dining-light guides land between roughly 60 and 90 cm from the tabletop to the bottom of the shade, and many settle on about 75 to 80 cm. A standard table top sits around 72 to 75 cm off the floor, so that puts the bottom of the shade somewhere near 1.5 metres above the floor. Treat it as a starting point you adjust by eye, not a law.
The reason is the human height behind it. When you sit at a table, your eyes are about 40 cm above the tabletop. A shade whose lower edge is well above that line leaves faces clear. Drag the lamp down to around 45 cm in the figure and the sightline turns clay-coloured: the shade has reached your eyes.
Ceiling height. Under a low ceiling, hang the light toward the bottom of the range, otherwise the shade ends up close to the ceiling and looks stuck on. Under a tall ceiling, go toward the top of the range and use a longer cord. Try 220 and 300 cm in the figure and watch the cord drop change.
Open or closed shade. If you can see the bulb, you will see its glare too, so keep an open shade or a glass globe in the upper half of the range. A closed shade hides the bulb, which lets you hang it a little lower and still sit comfortably.
Table size. A bigger pendant over a bigger table can sit a bit higher, a small one over a small round table a bit lower. Tall people and anyone who leans in to talk change how a height feels, so sit at the table in your real chairs before you settle on anything.
A common guideline is a shade about half to two-thirds of the table's width, centred over the table. A table 90 cm wide suits a shade of around 45 to 60 cm. Over a long table, one big shade can look lost; two or three smaller ones spread evenly along the length often feel calmer. Leave room for chairs to be pulled out: the lamp should hang over the table, not over the walkway.
If the fitting is not above the table, moving a table is free, while moving a ceiling outlet is a job for an electrician. In a rental, ask before changing any ceiling fitting, and leave all wiring to a qualified person.
Cut a cardboard disc the width you are considering, hang it from a string on the existing fitting or a hook, and sit down with your family for a meal. Raise and lower it a few centimetres until nobody has to lean to see across. Nothing about a cosy table needs a new lamp: a shade you already own, a second-hand find, or simply moving the table under the light you have can all do the job.