Installing Christmas lights on a brick house is one of the questions I get most often inside our 43,000-plus member installer community, and the answer surprises people: on a properly bid job, you almost never drill into the brick at all. After two decades running crews, training installers, and lighting hundreds of masonry homes, I can tell you the brick wall is rarely where the lights belong. The roofline, the eaves, and the gutters carry the show. The brick just sets the stage.
Why Brick Scares Installers (And Why It Shouldn't)
New installers freeze up on brick homes because they assume the lights have to attach to the wall. They picture drilling dozens of holes into 80-year-old masonry and patching them every January. That mental picture is wrong, and it costs people jobs. On a brick colonial, ranch, or two-story, the Christmas lights live on the roofline exactly like they do on a vinyl or stucco home. The wall material under that roofline changes nothing about how the C9 strand clips on.
The pro mindset is simple: light the architecture, not the material. A brick home usually has crisp, defined rooflines, strong peaks, and dormers that take light beautifully. That is a gift, not a problem. The brick reads as a warm, textured backdrop when the C9 bulbs come on, and that is exactly the magical look a homeowner pictures when they pull into the driveway on Christmas Eve with the grandkids in the back seat.
Where the Lights Actually Go on a Brick Home
The primary run on any brick house is the roofline. You clip C9 LED bulbs to the shingle edge or the gutter with enclosed clips, keep your spacing tight and consistent, and let the wall be the wall. If you want the full roofline method, our guide to hanging lights on a roof like a pro and the complete gutter installation guide break down every clip placement.
Definition — Tuff Clips: enclosed, fully-capturing clips that lock a C9 bulb and the strand to the shingle or gutter. They are the right clip for roughly 99% of brick-home roofline work. Avoid all-in-one clips. For the rare spot with no roofline to grab, lite strip clips (VHB adhesive clips) stick to clean fascia or trim — never use hot glue on any surface.
Here is the field sequence my crews use on a brick home, pre-staged at the shop before we ever pull into the driveway:
- Pre-bulb and pre-clip the strands at the shop. Every C9 strand leaves the shop already bulbed and clipped at 12" or 15" spacing so the ladder time on site is minimal.
- Set the roofline run first. Clip C9 bulbs along the shingle edge or gutter lip, sockets oriented downward so water sheds away from the connection.
- Light the peaks and dormers. Ridge caps, peaks, and dormers get the same enclosed clips and the same $8–$12 per foot — never discount the peaks.
- Handle eaves and porch lines. Lower eaves and porch rooflines extend the run without touching the brick face.
- Leave clips on at takedown. Clips stay clipped through the season and come off with the strand in January — no holes, no residue.
Clip Selection for a Brick Home
Brick homes themselves don't change your clip choice — the roofline material does. Most brick houses have standard shingle roofs and standard gutters, which is exactly what Tuff Clips are built for. The table below is the quick reference I give new installers. You can stock all of these from our Christmas light clips collection.
| Situation on a Brick Home | Clip to Use | Touches the Brick? |
|---|---|---|
| Shingle roofline | Tuff Clip (enclosed) | No |
| Gutter edge | Tuff Clip / gutter clip | No |
| Ridge cap / peak | Ridge clip | No |
| Clean fascia / trim, no roofline | Lite strip clip (VHB adhesive) | No |
| Wreath / garland anchor | One masonry screw in a mortar joint | Mortar only |
Notice the only row that touches masonry is the wreath anchor — and even then the screw goes into the mortar joint, not the brick. For a deeper comparison, see our breakdowns of the best Christmas light clips and when to use adhesive clips. On windows and doors, stick to C7 or C9 bulbs — never mini lights on SPT wire — as covered in our windows and doors guide.
Wreaths, Garland & Brick Accents the Pro Way
This is the one place masonry comes into play, and it is simpler than people fear. To anchor a wreath or run garland on a brick wall, you drive a single masonry screw into a mortar joint — the recessed grout line between bricks. Mortar is softer than brick, patches with a dab of matching mortar in seconds, and the hole disappears. You never drill the face of a brick.
Here is the key business point: the install price for a wreath is the same across vinyl, brick, stucco, wood, and metal. The surface only changes where the screw goes — mortar joint on brick, stud or trim on siding. There is no second-story premium and no "brick surcharge." A 24" wreath installs for $75–$125; a 60" jumbo wreath mounted right on the front of the house is a $400–$800 high-visual upsell that pulls the whole display together. The full method is in our complete wreath-hanging guide and our wreath and garland pricing guide.
Powering a Brick Home the Pro Way
Brick changes nothing about your electrical plan. C9 LED bulbs draw about 0.9 watts each, so 100 bulbs pull under one amp — you can run 500 to 1,000-plus feet of LED roofline on SPT-1 wire without power injection. SPT-1 is your default seasonal wire; both SPT-1 and SPT-2 are typically 18-gauge with the same amperage, so save SPT-2 for permanent or extreme-cold installs. Build your own extension cords from SPT-1 zip wire and vampire plugs rather than buying pre-made cords — our custom cord guide shows the build.
For safety on any home, brick included: orient every socket downward, keep male and female connections elevated off the ground, and never tape or seal connections — tape traps water and is the number-one cause of GFCI tripping. Never test the homeowner's GFCI; keep five to ten portable GFCI adapters on the truck instead. Our GFCI requirements guide covers the full code picture.
What to Charge — and How to Sell the Magic
When you quote a brick home, don't lead with linear footage. Lead with the feeling. Walk the homeowner through what their house becomes: warm C9 light tracing every roofline, the peaks glowing, a big wreath anchoring the front, the whole brick facade reading magical from the street. That is what they are buying — the look on the grandkids' faces when the lights come on, the best-house-on-the-block bragging right, the magical drive home from Christmas Eve service.
| Line Item | Pro Price |
|---|---|
| Roofline, peaks & dormers | $8–$12 per linear foot |
| Tree wrapping | $30–$60 per foot of tree height |
| 24" wreath installed | $75–$125 |
| 60" jumbo wreath on the house | $400–$800 |
| Average brick-home ticket | $1,500–$2,000 |
Tell the homeowner your packages start at $1,200 — "start at," never "minimum." Round the final quote to a number ending in 7, like $1,847; it tests better than round numbers. Most homeowners want an online quote, so move fast: get them a price in under an hour, and use an AI mock-up of their actual brick house lit up to close the deal — visual mock-ups convert far better than a text quote alone. Secure the date with a 30–50% deposit (give them the option), and remember the deposit secures their spot on the schedule — that is all you say about it. Stock the job from our C9 LED collection and pro light kits, and size every run with the Christmas light calculator.
Related Guides
- How to Hang Christmas Lights on a Roof Like a Pro
- Christmas Lights and Gutters: The Complete Installation Guide
- How to Install Christmas Lights on a Two-Story House
- How to Install Christmas Lights on Metal and Tile Roofs
- How to Hang Christmas Wreaths: A Pro Contractor's Guide
- How Much Does Christmas Light Installation Cost?
Frequently Asked Questions
Do you have to drill into brick to hang Christmas lights?
No. On a properly installed brick home, the lights clip to the roofline and gutters with enclosed Tuff Clips, so nothing touches the brick. The only fastener that ever enters masonry is a single screw in a mortar joint for a wreath or garland anchor, and that patches invisibly.
What clips work best on a brick house?
The clip is chosen by the roofline, not the wall. Standard shingle rooflines and gutters take enclosed Tuff Clips, which handle about 99% of brick-home jobs. For clean fascia with no roofline to grab, use lite strip (VHB adhesive) clips. Never use hot glue.
How do you attach a wreath to a brick wall without damaging it?
Drive a single masonry screw into the mortar joint — the recessed grout line between bricks — rather than the brick face. Mortar is softer, holds the anchor securely, and patches with a dab of matching mortar in seconds so the hole disappears.
How much does it cost to put Christmas lights on a brick house?
Roofline runs $8–$12 per linear foot with packages starting at $1,200, and the average brick-home ticket lands between $1,500 and $2,000. There is no "brick surcharge" — the wall material doesn't change the price, only where a wreath screw goes.
Can you run all the lights on a big brick home off one circuit?
Usually yes. C9 LED bulbs draw about 0.9 watts each, so 100 bulbs pull under one amp and you can run 500–1,000-plus feet on SPT-1 wire without power injection. Split into two runs only if a single run gets too long, and keep portable GFCI adapters on the truck.
About the Author — Jason Geiman. Jason is the founder of ChristmasLightsHQ and runs a 43,000+ member professional installer community. He is a career firefighter, ASE/EVT-certified technician, EMT, and Hazmat responder who has spent two decades installing and bidding professional Christmas light displays. He writes from the ladder, not the armchair — every number and method here comes from real jobs on real homes.