Stop walking across a dark room to turn on the light. Install a 3-way switch and control lights from two locations.

Why a Neutral Wire Is Needed A smart switch needs a neutral wire to power it. This wire helps keep power flowing to the light switch even when turned off, acting as the switch’s primary power ...

Below, Donnelly tells AD how to wire a light switch with this simple step-by-step process for a single-pole light switch without zapping yourself along the way.

Four pigtails emerge from the backside of the switch—line, load, neutral, and ground—each of which must be connected via included wire nuts to the appropriate wires inside the wall.