CCTV planner: how many CCTV cameras do I need?
Tell us what you are protecting and which areas you want to watch. We work out how many cameras you need, where each one goes and why, and point you to the ready-made kit that fits.
Your plan
3cameras
A 4-camera kit fits, with 1 spare channel to add a camera later.
- Front door: Above the front door, 2.5 m up. Sees everyone who calls and every parcel left on the step.
- Drive or parking: On the front corner, looking along the drive. Covers the cars and the gate in one view, with a clear plate angle.
- Back garden or rear door: Under the back eaves, looking down the garden. Most break-ins come in through the back, so this view matters most.
Kits that match this plan
All kits- 4 cameras · IP PoE · 2 TB driveHikvision 8-Channel 3K PoE CCTV Kit, 4 Hybrid Light Audio Turret Cameras, 2TB£540.38
- 8 cameras · IP PoE · 2 TB driveHikvision 8-Channel 3K PoE Kit with 8 UKVISION UK-CI-3K-G1 Turret Cameras and 2TB£795.89
Every kit comes with the recorder, cameras, power and a hard drive. To add a camera later, buy the same make of camera and plug it into a spare channel.
How the planner works
The planner gives one camera to each area you tick: the front door, the drive, the back, the side and the inside. Two areas get more because one camera cannot see them: a farm yard gets two (one at each end), and a shop gets two inside (one over the till, one down the aisle).
The total is rounded up to the next kit we sell. Up to 4 cameras fits a 4-camera kit. 5 to 8 cameras fits an 8-camera kit. Whatever is left over is a spare channel on the recorder, which is how you add a camera later without changing anything else.
Network (IP, PoE) kits send picture and power down one network cable to each camera, so there is no separate power point at the camera. Coax (Turbo HD) kits reuse the coax and power cable that many older systems already have. Pick the one that matches the cable you have, or the one you would rather run.
This is a plan, not a survey. A long run, a very wide space or a dark corner may need another camera. If you are unsure, add one: a spare channel costs nothing until you use it.
