Glass, Wood or Metallic? Modular Switch Plate Finishes Compared

What a plate finish is, and why it matters more than it looks

A modular switch plate finish is the surface of the front plate: its colour, its sheen and its texture. It is the only part of the switch board anyone sees, and it is the part people touch several times a day. The switches, sockets and wiring behind it do the work; the finish decides whether the board disappears into the wall or becomes part of the room.

Choosing a finish is really three decisions made at once. The look: white, colour, wood, metal or glass. The sheen: high gloss, matt or textured. And the practical side: how well the surface hides the marks that every switch board collects. This guide compares modular switch plate finishes across the 13 plate designs we make in our KEMPS and VIZA ranges, so you can see which finish suits which room and what each one costs at MRP.

The finish families across our 13 plate designs

We make 13 modular plate designs: nine in VIZA (Cherry, Aqua Cherry, Slim, Royal, Glasso, Teyoma, V-Wood, Decore and Cristal) and four in KEMPS (Orchid, Aster, Daisy and Peony). Our catalogue prices them by finish, and those price lines fall into a small number of families.

White and gloss The base finish of most designs, priced as “White” or “White/Black”. Decore and Teyoma are listed in white only.

Metallic A separate price line in Orchid, Aster, Aqua Cherry, Slim, Royal and V-Wood.

Texture Wood and stone effects, the top price line in the same six designs.

Glass-style Peony and Glasso. The Peony catalogue page is written around “the power of glass”.

Acrylic Cristal, made in acrylic and polycarbonate, sold at one “all colour” price.

Same fit Every family takes the same switches behind it; the finish changes only the front.

Daisy and Peony are also priced as “all colour”: every shade in the design costs the same, so the choice there is purely about looks.

How many colourways each finish family offers

Across the 13 designs our design pages list 48 plate colourways. Plain colours and whites make up most of them, but wood and metallic between them still give 16 options.

6 colourways Royal, Slim and Daisy have the widest choice, six each.

4 colourways Orchid, Aster, Peony, Aqua Cherry and Cristal.

1 to 3 Glasso has three, Cherry, V-Wood and Teyoma two, and Decore one.

16 wood or metallic Spread across six designs, so a warm or a shiny board is never limited to one range.

Glass-style and acrylic plates: Peony, Glasso and Cristal

A glass modular switch plate is the finish most people ask about first. In our ranges that look comes from three designs, each at a different price.

Peony Our KEMPS glass-style design in Z Black, Pearl White, Sky Blue and Bronze Copper, ₹350 for a 1M plate. See the Peony plates.

Glasso VIZA, in Mint Green, Pearl White and Zed Black, from ₹335 at 1M. See the Glasso plates.

Cristal The VIZA acrylic and polycarbonate plate, in Z Black, White, Mint Green and Sky Blue, ₹254 at 1M. See the Cristal plates.

What they share is a flat, deep, reflective face. That is exactly what makes them look expensive on a feature wall, and exactly what makes them show every thumbprint.

Best for Living rooms, bedrooms and reception walls where the board is on show.

Think twice Children’s rooms, and boards beside a kitchen counter where hands are rarely clean.

Wooden finish switch plates: which designs, which woods

A wooden finish switch plate is a textured plate printed and moulded to look like timber. It is not solid wood, which is why it can sit on a wall for years without warping. Eight of our colourways are wood effects, spread across six designs.

KEMPS Walnut Wood Texture in Orchid, Oak Wood Texture in Aster, and Wooden 1 and Wooden 2 in Daisy.

VIZA Teak Wood Texture in Royal, Rey Wood Texture in V-Wood, and Rey Wood and Grey Wood in Slim.

Matches Wooden wardrobes, panelling, doors and laminate floors. A walnut or teak plate against a matching veneer all but vanishes.

Practical The grain pattern hides fingerprints and small scuffs better than any flat finish.

In the designs with a price line per finish, texture is the top line: in Orchid, a 1M plate is ₹102 in white and ₹180 in texture.

Metallic plates: shine without glass

Metallic plates carry a sheen through a coloured base. They sit between plain gloss and glass-style in both price and look, and they suit rooms where the rest of the hardware is metal: door handles, lamp fittings, a TV unit trim.

KEMPS metallic Z Black Metallic and K Grey Metallic in Orchid; Rose Gold Metallic and Space Blue Metallic in Aster.

VIZA metallic American Blue Metallic and Olympic Blue Metallic in Royal, Red Metallic in V-Wood, and Silver Graphite in Slim.

Best for Contemporary living rooms, offices and hotel rooms where a white plate would look unfinished.

Care The sheen shows smudges more than a texture does. Wipe along the plate with a soft, dry cloth.

The Slim plates are the lowest-priced route into metallic: ₹123 for a 1M plate, against ₹172 in Orchid and Aster.

High gloss, white and matt: the everyday finishes

Most switch boards in most homes are white, and for good reason: white suits any wall colour, and replacing one plate years later is easy to match. Gloss white is also the most affordable finish in every design that offers it.

Lowest MRP Decore at ₹55 and Cherry at ₹65 for a 1M plate; Teyoma is white only at ₹70.

White shades Pearl White, Moon White, Snow White and Cool White: 11 of our 48 colourways are a white or pearl.

White Chrome Cherry in white with a chrome accent, ₹85 at 1M.

Matt black Our VIZA catalogue lists matt black Royal and Ebony front frames for a dark, low-sheen board.

Matt finishes reflect less light, so a fingerprint shows less than on gloss. A plain gloss plate still wipes clean in a second, which is why it remains the default for rentals, staff areas and large projects.

What each finish costs: MRP from our catalogue

Price follows finish more than design. Within one design the white plate is always the cheapest, then metallic, then texture; the glass-style and acrylic designs start higher again.

Budget Decore, Cherry, Teyoma and the white lines of Slim and Royal: ₹55 to ₹80 at 1M.

Mid Metallic and texture in Slim, Royal, Aqua Cherry, V-Wood, Orchid and Aster: ₹116 to ₹196 at 1M.

Premium Cristal, Glasso, Peony and Daisy: ₹254 to ₹380 at 1M.

MRP, not dealer price Every figure here is the printed maximum retail price from our current catalogue.

Which switch plate finish is best for each room

There is no single best finish; there is a best finish for each wall. How often it is touched, by whose hands, and how close it is to water matter as much as the look.

Living room Glass-style, metallic or wood: the board is on show and touched by clean hands.

Bedroom Wood texture to match the wardrobe, or a soft pearl white.

Kitchen Texture or matt near the counter hides marks; avoid deep grooves right beside the hob, where grease settles.

Bathroom and utility Keep any plate out of the direct splash zone; a plain white is the easiest to wipe dry.

Children’s room Avoid dark glass-style finishes; a textured or colour plate forgives small hands.

Cleaning and caring for each finish

Every finish in our range is cleaned the same basic way; the difference is how often you will want to. Switch off at the board before cleaning, and never spray liquid directly onto a plate.

All finishes A soft cloth, dry or barely damp. Wring it out so no water runs behind the plate.

Avoid Solvents, scouring powder and abrasive pads: they dull gloss, scratch glass-style faces and wear the print off a wood effect.

Glass-style and gloss Polish with a dry microfibre cloth after wiping to remove streaks.

Wood and stone texture Brush along the grain with a dry soft brush now and then; dust settles in the relief.

Metallic Wipe in one direction along the plate rather than in circles.

Change the finish without changing the switches

One of the real advantages of a modular system is that the finish is only the front plate. When the room is redone, the plate comes off, the switches and wiring stay where they are, and a new finish goes on.

Compatible Our plates are designed to take the modules of all major modular switch systems.

5-year warranty Every plate we make carries a five-year warranty.

Same size A new plate must be the same module size as the old one; a 6M plate replaces a 6M plate.

Series Note whether the old plate was KEMPS or VIZA when you order, so the new one matches the rest of the house.

Check the design Not every design lists every size; V-Wood, for example, has no 8M square.

For the switches and sockets that sit behind the plate, see how to choose a switch board.

How to choose a finish and order it

We sell through dealers and distributors, so the order usually starts as a list at the counter. Settle these in order and the finish is the easy part.

Step 1 Count the modules for each location and fix the plate size.

Step 2 Decide the budget line: white, metallic, texture, or a glass-style or acrylic design.

Step 3 Pick the design and colourway for each room, and note the series: KEMPS or VIZA.

Step 4 See a sample under the room’s own light before ordering the whole house.

Every plate is made at our works in Marol, Andheri East, Mumbai, under an ISO 9001:2015 certified process. Full codes and MRP for every design and finish are in our catalogue, and the whole range is on our products page.