Toplights and sidelights are the glazed panels that sit around a door: a toplight is fitted above a door or window, and a sidelight stands beside a door. Both bring daylight into an entrance, passage or living area without making the doorway itself any wider. In South Africa a toplight is also called a top light or fanlight (in the USA, a transom window), and a sidelight is often written side light. Together, toplights and sidelights turn a plain doorway into a full glazed entrance.
This guide explains what toplights and sidelights are, the sizes and frame systems Coetz™ makes, which ones open, and what they cost. Every price is a real shop price, excluding VAT, in White with 6.38 mm clear laminated safety glass.
Contents
What toplights and sidelights do
A solid front door leaves a hallway dark. A glass sliding door already lets in light, but the wall above it often does not. Toplights and sidelights solve both problems:
- More daylight reaches deep into a hallway, passage or open-plan room.
- A taller, wider look – a toplight lifts the entrance up to ceiling height, and sidelights widen it without a bigger door.
- A view of the visitor before you open the door, through a sidelight.
- Fixed or opening – a toplight is fixed, while a sidelight can be fixed or can open for ventilation.
What is a toplight?
A toplight is a fixed glazed unit that sits above a door or window. At Coetz™ every toplight is 600 mm high and does not open, so there is no handle and no opening direction to choose. The glass is split into 2, 3 or 4 fixed panes depending on the width, so the toplight lines up with the door below it.
A toplight above a sliding door is the most common use: an aluminium sliding door is usually 2 100 mm high, and a 600 mm toplight takes the glazing up to about 2 700 mm. The same idea works above sliding windows and folding doors.
Top light sizes
| Toplight | Width | Height | Price from (excl. VAT) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2 panel | 1 500 – 3 000 mm | 600 mm | R2 324 |
| 3 panel | 2 400 – 3 600 mm | 600 mm | R3 528 |
| 4 panel | 3 000 – 3 600 mm | 600 mm | R4 452 |
The widths match the standard door widths (1 500, 1 800, 2 000, 2 100, 2 400, 2 700, 3 000 and 3 600 mm), so a toplight can sit flush above the door or window it belongs to.
What is a sidelight?
A sidelight is the narrow glazed panel fitted alongside a door. It comes in 300, 600 or 900 mm widths and in 2 100, 2 400 or 2 700 mm heights, so it matches the height of the door it stands beside. You can fit one sidelight, or one on each side of the door for a symmetrical entrance.
Unlike a toplight, an aluminium sidelight can open. There are four ways a sidelight can work:
- Fixed – a single sealed pane, the most affordable option.
- Top hung – a sash hinged at the top that opens outwards from the head.
- Side hung – a side hung opening sash, 1 200 or 1 500 mm tall, with the rest of the sidelight fixed.
- Vertical sliding – a sash that slides up and down, so nothing projects outwards.
Sidelight frame systems
The frame of the sidelight should match the door beside it, so the profiles line up and the unit joins cleanly to the door frame.
| Frame system | Widths | Opening types | Price from (excl. VAT) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 75 mm frame | 300, 600, 900 mm (300 mm is fixed only) | Fixed, top hung, side hung, vertical sliding | R2 680 |
| 120 mm Heavy Duty frame | 600, 900 mm | Fixed, top hung, side hung | R4 823 |
| 105 mm StormSeal frame | 600, 900 mm | Top hung, side hung | R7 238 |
| Patio frame | 600, 900 mm | Top hung, side hung | R4 578 |
Pair a StormSeal sidelight with a StormSeal sliding door and a Patio sidelight with a Patio sliding door. The product page for each sidelight lists its frame system, so check it against the door you are ordering.
Toplights and sidelights and safety glass
Glass next to and above a door is in a high-risk area: people push against it, carry things past it and may fall against it. South African building rules (SANS 10400-N) require safety glazing in these positions – see where safety glass is required. All Coetz™ toplights and sidelights are glazed with 6.38 mm clear laminated safety glass as standard, which holds together if it breaks. The South African Bureau of Standards publishes the standard.
Toplights and sidelights: colours and prices
Toplights and sidelights come in White (standard), Bronze, Charcoal, Black and Natural Anodised. Bronze and Charcoal cost the same as White; Black costs about 10% more and Natural Anodised about 20% more. Order toplights and sidelights in the same colour as the door so the whole entrance matches. Prices in this guide are as at 19 October 2026 – the shop and the online estimator always show the current price.
How to order toplights and sidelights
- Measure the full opening – door, sidelights and toplight together – then split it into the units you need. See how to measure aluminium doors.
- Choose the door first, then pick the toplights and sidelights that match its width, height and frame system.
- Remember the 10 mm allowance. Every Coetz™ unit is made 10 mm smaller than its catalogue size in each direction, so it fits into the opening.
- Order everything in one colour from the sidelights and toplights range.
Coetz™ makes toplights and sidelights to order in 1–2 days and supplies them nationwide. We supply only, so your builder or installer fits the units and joins them to the door frame. For the doors themselves, browse aluminium doors or read about sliding door configurations.
Toplights and sidelights: top light sizes for sliding windows and doors
A toplight over a sliding window or door is sized to the width below it. Catalogue toplights are 600 mm high:
| Toplight | Widths | Price from (excl. VAT) |
|---|---|---|
| 2 panel | 1 500 – 3 000 mm | R2 324 |
| 3 panel | 2 400 – 3 600 mm | R3 528 |
| 4 panel | 3 000 – 3 600 mm | R4 452 |
For any other size, the online estimator adds a toplight of any width and height above a window or door, priced at R1 850.35 per m² excluding VAT in White. Toplights and sidelights are glazed with 6.38 mm clear laminated safety glass.
Toplights and sidelights: frequently asked questions
What is the difference between toplights and sidelights?
A toplight sits above a door or window and a sidelight stands beside a door. At Coetz™ toplights are always fixed, while sidelights can be fixed, top hung, side hung or vertical sliding.
What size is a top light?
Every Coetz™ toplight is 600 mm high, in widths from 1 500 to 3 600 mm that match the standard door widths, with 2, 3 or 4 fixed panes.
Is a fanlight the same as a toplight?
Yes. Fanlight, top light and transom window are other names for a toplight – a glazed panel above a door or window.
Can a sidelight open?
Yes. A Coetz™ aluminium sidelight can be fixed, or it can open as a top hung, side hung or vertical sliding sash for ventilation.
Do sidelights need safety glass?
Yes. Glass beside a door is a high-risk area under SANS 10400-N, so it must be safety glass. Every Coetz™ sidelight uses 6.38 mm clear laminated safety glass.
Can I buy a sidelight on its own?
Yes. Sidelights and toplights are ordered as separate units, so you can add them beside or above an existing door, as long as the frame system and colour match.
