When you are talking copper/brass/bronze the price will be higher than aluminum. The best path lights on the market are FX Luminaire. The best up and down lights for the price is Vista. If you want inexpensive go to your home improvement store but if you want something that will last a lifetime go with C/B/B.

If you have a a Ewing Irrigation store near you they will have fixtures on display along with catalogs. ewing1.com.

You get what you pay for.

If you're worried about getting ripped off, break down the entire job, components and figure out as best as you can what is involved.

Your contractor will make some money, but if you want stuff that will last > 2 years and properly installed ...

Well we give a lifetime warranty on all our installs as long as the selection is Copper/Brass/Bronze. Any aluminum fixtures are under the manufacturers warranty like Kichler which is 10 years. Our transformers which we buy direct from the manufacturer is also covered under the lifetime warranty. As a matter of fact we take it one step further by transferring that warranty if and when the house is sold. I am the only installer in the country that has the authority to crack open a transformer when a terminal block, relay, breaker switch or a surge protector go out and the transformer remains under manufactures warranty. Since we are able to do that work we will extend that warranty to lifetime because those items listed are the only things that can go bad in a toroidal transformer. As a matter of fact we have two transformers that are still in service after being hit by lighting. Now the warranty is now void because the top of the transformer is bulged up but we will continue to service it until the coils go out.

How can we do this? We do it right from the start. After 10 years we are now replacing some of those old fixtures that we first installed. Back then when we were just starting out we installed some lower quality brass fixtures and now they are giving out. So we are replacing them at no cost to our customers. That is no material cost and no labor cost. The bill to the customer at the end of the day is $0.00.

Here in Texas we do lump sum pricing to eliminate the need to charge sales tax. the Landscape Lighting Installers have enjoyed this avoidance of an additional 8.25% charged to the customer for a very long time now, longer than we have been in business. Some of our competition elects to break it down as you indicated above but in the end that just ends up costing the customer more.

Just some thoughts.

Usually you do get what you pay for in Landscape lighting. You don't want to cheap out on the wire, connectors or lamps as moisture will be the death of your electrical and then your investment is worthless. That being said, 200 per light installed by a qualified contractor using good materials is a fair price. The cost of brass fixtures available to the consumer has come way down, I still wouldn't trust those companies from China with prices that seem too good to be true-it probably is! Especially if their warranty is longer than they have been in business for! There is also different grades of brass so you want to know what kind of brass you are paying for (top, mid grade tier, solid cast brass vs cast brass). Yes your brass won't corrode, but some will chip vs others that will take impact better.

I've found Unique's aluminum powder coat line to be the cheapest, and Vista and Kichler to be just slightly more expensive, but have more customizable options for those who want a custom install (ie. glare shields, frosted lens).

A new line that I haven't used but recommend because they are backed by Site One Supply is Pro Trade, which you probably can get at affordable price retail.

Again, the price is worth it if the installation is being down top grade.

www.uniquelighting.com

www.vistapro.com

@Kichler

https://www.siteone.com/en/protrade