Kitchen planning and layout ideas: how to design a kitchen

The kitchen is one of the hardest-working rooms in the house, so it needs to be as functional as it is stylish. 

Carefully designing a kitchen layout is the key to creating a space where you can cook, socialise, and keep things clean and organised without too much effort. 

This guide will explain some of the key kitchen planning and layout considerations. 

Discover the best and worst kitchens according to our lab tests and consumer surveys

How to plan your new kitchen

The planning process is the key time to consider big changes to your kitchen’s design, so think carefully about how you use your current space and how you would like to use the new one. 

Ask yourself these questions before you start:

1. Where are your kitchen’s physical constraints? Consider its size and the positions of doors, windows and plug sockets. If you’re not planning any structural work, you’ll need to be realistic about what your space can accommodate.
2. How do you move around your kitchen? If you use it as a social space, you might want to add a breakfast bar for people where people can sit, or an island facing your table. If you’re a serious cook, you should prioritise worktop space. 
3. Where do you need your appliances? To ensure you can move around your kitchen efficiently, keep your oven, fridge and sink close together. This is called the kitchen triangle.
4. How much storage do you need? Do you need more than you currently have? Include big, deep drawers for pans and appliances and open shelving if you have a lot of beautiful table or glassware.  
5. Fitted, bespoke or freestanding? Fitted and bespoke kitchens are built into your space, but bespoke kitchens are more customised to your design preferences. Freestanding kitchens are made of separate units, such as cupboards, that are not built in.

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Kitchen layout styles

There are five main types of kitchen layout: single-wall and galley kitchens, as well as L-shaped, U-shaped and G-shaped kitchens. 

Single-wall kitchens

These are often found in new builds and apartments designed for fully open-plan living. Creating a working triangle is difficult with this type of layout unless you install a kitchen island.

Galley kitchens

These are generally the best way to maximise the worktop and storage space in a small kitchen. They keep all the necessary appliances (eg the hob, refrigerator and sink) within arm’s reach. 

L-shaped kitchens

This type of kitchen is great if you want space for an island or dining table. With this layout, you can accommodate a working triangle and create a sociable space. 

U-shaped kitchens

These provide a huge amount of storage and worktop space. You can also make one side of a U-shaped kitchen into a peninsula, creating a seating area for dining or working from home. 

G-shaped kitchens

This type of kitchen has four sides, with the fourth slightly shorter than the rest, creating an ideal spot for a peninsula. It’s a great option if a U-shaped kitchen wouldn’t provide enough storage, worktop or seating space. 

Kitchen layouts with islands

A centralised kitchen island works well with most kitchen layouts.

They are a great way to add extra storage and worktop space, zone your kitchen and create a working triangle if your layout doesn’t naturally lend itself to one.

In addition, they can make your kitchen feel more sociable, as the person cooking doesn’t have to stand facing a wall while preparing the food. 

Islands can be as big as you want, but if you’re tight on space there are also slimline versions. You can also get a kitchen island on wheels so that it can be moved out of the way when needed.

A kitchen peninsula is another option for smaller spaces. This is essentially an island attached to one wall.

Visit our kitchen costs guide to find out how much you can expect to spend on a new kitchen

Is an open-plan kitchen a good idea? 

Open-plan kitchens have proved popular in recent years as they create living spaces that feel bigger and brighter, but some homeowners are starting to question whether the layout still works with many of us spending more time at home since the pandemic. 

There are pros and cons to an open-plan kitchen:

Pros:

• Creates a more open space, so it’s better for socialising and collaborative work 
• Allows more light into the space
• Can make your house seem larger 
• Allows you spend time with or monitor children without being in the ‘same room’ 

Cons:

• Hard to keep clean, as mess in one room makes the whole space appear untidy
• Noisier and busier than separate rooms, especially when using kettles, extractor fans or washing machines 
• Difficult to create cosy, quiet spaces  
• Requires a cohesive decor scheme across all rooms 

Open plan kitchen ideas

If you do want to opt for an open-plan space, you can make it more practical using zoning strategies. 

These include physical zoning, like including an island to divide your kitchen or shelving units as dividers, or creating psychological zones, like using different colours of paint in different parts of the room. 

Introducing plenty of soft furnishings, like rugs and curtains, will also dull sounds, making the space seem quieter. Seeking out quiet appliances when you need to replace them will also help to control noise.

Kitchen work triangle

The working triangle, or the kitchen triangle, refers to the optimal layout of your refrigerator, hob and sink.

Ideally, they should be roughly laid out in a triangle since these are the three areas of your kitchen that you will use the most and often use in tandem. 

To make your kitchen as easy to use as possible, each side of the triangle should be no longer than around 1.2m.  

Some kitchen designers also reference a second kitchen work triangle – the sink, bin and (if you have one) dishwasher. Keeping these close together will ensure cleaning up is as easy as possible. 

From islands to flooring and lighting, find more inspiration in our kitchen design ideas

Kitchen design tools

Most of the national kitchen companies have online design tools that allow you to visualise different kitchen layouts and designs. 

Many of these companies also offer a kitchen planning service, where you will be able to discuss your requirements with a designer who will create a digital plan of your kitchen.

Online kitchen planner

These companies have both a design service and an online planner:

Appointment-only design service

You can only use a design service with one of these companies if you book ahead. All of them offer a free first appointment, with the exception of John Lewis.

It’s worth noting that, while independent kitchen companies might not have an online planning tool, their designers are more likely to offer specialist expertise than general DIY stores.

Kitchen planning checklist

If you want to add detail to your measurement plan, or use an online planning tool, it’s worth keeping these factors in mind:

• Keep the work triangle distance (see the image above) between the sink, fridge and cooker at seven metres or less. This makes cooking easier, as you’ll have shorter distances to travel.
• Allow for a 40cm clearance between an open kitchen door and the nearest opposite unit. Aim for at least 120cm clearance between parallel runs of kitchen units, so that two people can move around at once.
• Most unit doors open up to a maximum of 60cm. Dishwasher doors usually open by 60cm and oven doors by 50cm. A typical worktop height is 90cm, although this will not be ideal for everybody. Ensure that elbow height is a few centimetres above kitchen worktops.
• Standard 60cm-deep units will be a tight squeeze if your kitchen is less than 180cm wide from one wall to the other. Solve this by looking for slimmer 50cm-deep units.
• Leave at least 40cm clearance between the worktop and wall-mounted cupboards. 
• Make sure you include space for end panels (where necessary) when calculating the dimensions of your units.
• Check the height of wall units to ensure you’ll be able to fit the cornice (the section of wood fitted along the top of wall units to give them a finished appearance).
• Work out the number of door handles and the amount of cornice and plinth (the section that runs along the bottom of base units) that you’ll need. You may want to order extra to save time and hassle if any are damaged during delivery or installation.

If you are considering a renovation, check out our readers most common kitchen design regrets

How to measure your kitchen

When considering unit and appliance dimensions, you may want to map out your kitchen to consider how they will fit. Use our tips to ensure you make an accurate and useful plan:

• Map out your current kitchen layout (or empty kitchen if you plan to start from scratch) on graph paper. Use metric measurements, as this is what kitchen manufacturers use.
• Measure your walls and plot the location of windows, cupboards and appliances. When measuring windows and doors, you should include the door or window frame (sometimes called the trim) in the measurement, so measure out from these.
• Highlight where the electric sockets are, the cable routes from them to the relevant appliance, and where the plumbing and waste pipes are. Moving these will add to the costs, so keep them where they are if possible. 
• Boiler and radiators – If you have a boiler in the kitchen, highlight where and what type of boiler it is. Note anything else that is a fixed feature, such as radiators. If you’re upgrading your boiler, read our boiler advice guides. 

Kitchen unit and appliance dimensions

We’ve listed the typical kitchen unit dimensions in the table below so you can see how much you can fit into your kitchen and where things will need to go.

A lot of the big-name kitchen brands sell kitchens pre-assembled, to the standard measurements below. If you have the budget, you could consider getting storage made to your home’s exact specifications.

Kitchen unit measurements