Growing up, the hall bathroom had its switch just outside, in the hall, and it was never an issue. So long as it's just one switch that's clearly for that room, I'd think it would be fine ... if it's in a group of switches that could be confusing which is for the bath and which is for the hall, that could complicate things. Also, I assume the switch can be reached by just reaching out the door and doesn't involve walking down the hall to get to.

I guess other considerations would be: is this going to be a switch people will want to randomly turn off when walking by? Is this a extra bath, guest bath, kids bath? What's it's setting? (downstairs? upstairs? near an entry?) What's your main concern with theswitch being outside the bathroom? (someone turning the light off or convenience?)

The switch can be reached by opening the door. It’s on the end of a hallway that would only pass the switch if going to the bathroom. It is an extra bath/guest bath.

My biggest concerns about it being in hall is that it seems unusual and people may not know where to find it

Inside, please. Guests will presume the switch inside. It is a powder room, so the difference in flip or Decora style isn’t going to get you a bad review from Architectural Digest. If you have kids, the temptation to turn out the lights on siblings will be eliminated if the switch is inside.

We used a Caseta switch with a Pico remote very successfully . I would definitely recommend them.

I would either leave it outside or consider a ceiling switch. In many places those are the only permitted options due to the higher voltage, and it is common in hotels, so I don't think people will be challenged by the concept.

People are pretty good at finding light switches when they need them ... you could always tell them where it is when you tell them where the bathroom is ... Either way, if they do walk in and don't find the switch, I think they'll naturally look outside before panicking or anything.

I can't say there was ever an issue with siblings turning lights out on one another, but I can't imagine children being ill enough mannered to be turning lights out on guests ... okay okay, I can imagine it, but ia bit of parenting fixes that issue.

IMO outside is fine I have had many places where I visit where the PR switch is on the outside

We have a dressing area outside the bathroom with a light switch next to the bathroom door and every single person who has been there has 100% of the time tried to turn on the bathroom lights with that switch! But we also use a Pico setup in another room and it is great, so I think both options are good ones.

@clt3 - so glad you found a switch that works - we added a door to my garage workshop and didn’t think about putting a light switch there (doh!!) and my husband has tried two different wireless/voice controlled switches so far with zero luck - we’ll try the Caseta!

Check your local code for the required location of bathroom switches.

Here is the code for electrical switches in bathrooms in California:

• Bathrooms must have at least one wall switch-controlled light
• The switch must be located near the entrance to the bathroom
• At least one luminaire shall be controlled by an occupant or vacancy sensor providing automatic-off functionality; it shall be initially configured to manual-on operation using the manual control required under Section 150.0(k)2C

While the first and second requirements above suggest that the light switch can be in the hallway outside the bathroom, the requirement for a vacancy sensor clearly is intended to mean that the light automatically goes off when the bathroom is vacant, regardless of whether someone is in the hallway.

@plan2remodel, can the last bullet be satisfied with undercabinet lighting on a floating vanity that is controlled with a motion-sensor switch with a dimmer? Curious minds want to know for purely selfish reasons!! ;-)

This thread has been extremely helpful and informative to my post on a similar question. Where should we place our switches?

Julie K.: My interpretation of Calif code is that no dimmer is required on a motion-sensor switch. I am a homeowner, not an electrician, and I have found nothing specific regarding under-cabinet lighting. Counties and cities can also impose additional restrictions; e.g., some cities require a dedicated outlet for charging an EV in the garage.

Somewhat off-topic, but the Ca code discussion reminded me that, when our kids were growing up, I installed motion-sensitive light switches in our bathrooms. Not for code reasons, but I was simply fed up with finding the bathroom lights left on all the time. It solved the immediate problem, but just created another: whenever we went out anywhere or visited friends, the kids would just leave the bathroom lights on, as they assumed they would turn themselves out.

My learning from that was it is far better to address the underlying issue (children not switching out lights) than implement a workaround.