Combo Switch Wiring Diagrams

This page contains wiring diagrams for combination switch/receptacle device known as a combo switch. A combo switch is a single-gang device the same size as a standard duplex wall receptacle containing an outlet on one end and a builtin switch on the other. A device like this is handy when you need both but you only have a single-gang box available. Like the split receptacles previously mentioned on this page, these devices make use of a removable connector between the two hot terminals to divide it when needed. With the tab intact and the device wired to one hot source wire, the combo can be used to turn a light off and on while the receptacle will be constantly hot. In other cases, the tab can be removed and the device used in a split circuit or to control the receptacle half of the device itself.

Wiring a Switch Combo to a Light Fixture

For areas where ground-fault protection is not an issue a standard combo device can be used as in this diagram. See below for a GFCI combo switch wiring diagram. In the arrangement here, the connecting tab between the hot terminals remains intact. The source is at the device and the hot is connected directly to one of the hot terminals, it doesn't matter which one. Two-wire cable runs from the combo to the light fixture and the switch output is connected to the black wire running to the fixture hot terminal. The source neutral wire is spliced to the neutral on the receptacle half of the combo device and to the white cable wire running to the light. At the light, it connects to the neutral terminal.

Wiring a Combo Switch and Receptacle in the Same Box

If you have a second device in the same box with the combo switch you can wire them together as illustrated in this diagram. We use a receptacle here but any device such as another switch, timer, etc. will be wired in the same way. The tab on the combo remains intact and the source hot is spliced with a pigtail to the hot terminals on each device in the box. The source neutral is spliced with a pigtail to the two devices and to the white wire running to the fixture neutral terminal. The combo switch output is connected to the black wire running to the fixture hot terminal.

Combo Switch Split Circuit Wiring Diagram

This is another option for wiring a combo device where two electrical sources are used. In this arrangement, the connecting tab between the hot terminals on the device is broken off to separate the two. The switch controls a light and the receptacle half of the combo device is always hot.

Source 1 comes in at the light fixture and a 3-wire cable is run from there to the switch half on the device. The hot from the source is spliced to the black wire running to the combo and to the input side of the switch. The white neutral from the source is connected directly to the light fixture. The red wire from the light is connected to the output on the switch and to the hot terminal on the light at the other end.

Source 2 comes in at the combo device where the hot and neutral wires are connected to their corresponding terminals on the receptacle half of the device.

Wiring a Combo Switch to Control Itself

Lastly, the combo switch can be used to control the builtin receptacle itself allowing it to function as a switched outlet. This is handy if you want to use the switch to control a light fixture or other device plugged into the combo. Here the tab between the two halves is removed and the circuit hot is connected to the input side of the switch. The switch output is sent to the hot side of the receptacle using a short jumper wire of the same gauge. The circuit neutral is connected to the neutral side of the receptacle outlet.

A GFCI combo switch can be used when you need a device like this in a kitchen, bathroom, or laundry room for protection against electrical shock. For more gfci switch combo wiring diagrams check here. In this diagram the source hot is spliced to the hot LINE terminal on the receptacle and to one of the builtin switch wires. The other switch wire is spliced to the hot wire running to the light fixture. The source neutral wire is spliced to the neutral LINE terminal on the GFCI and to the white wire running to the light.