Standard Kitchen Drawer Sizes – A Drawer Dimension Guide

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Discussions around standard kitchen drawer sizes will hardly come up in everyday conversation. This topic will only arise when it is time to design a kitchen. If you are renovating an existing kitchen or installing an entirely new one, congratulations, you are a lucky fish. As you can imagine, not that many people get to do this in a lifetime. This article will discuss standard kitchen drawer sizes and answer various questions such as; what are the standard kitchen drawer dimensions, what are the usual kitchen drawer heights, and what is the standard depth of kitchen drawers?

An Introduction to Kitchen Drawer Dimensions

Kitchen drawer dimensions should be your starting point when looking at your new kitchen. Storage is the main factor in any kitchen and the right size drawers must be incorporated into the design when looking at cabinetry.

Measurement of the drawers is important. The purpose of the drawers is just as important. Don’t forget to look at the space between the drawers as well.

Kitchen drawer dimensions or drawer boxes will always correspond with the sizes of the cabinet that you want to place in the kitchen. It has become very trendy for drawers to be placed under a center island of a kitchen, which will house bigger items such as pots and pans and even electrical appliances.

For base cabinets, your standard kitchen drawer sizes will range from 6 to 36 inches in width, 4 to 10 inches in height, and 24 to 36 inches in depth. This is all depending on the base cabinet’s depth. Remember to leave room for the drawer glides, which will fit inside the base spacings.

For your upper cabinets, these are specific drawers to choose from for your specific needs, such as a spice draw. These upper cabinets range from 3 to 8 inches in width and are 11.8 inches deep. The drawers are the full height of the cabinet, which will be 30 inches.

Kitchen Cabinets

Kitchen cabinets are sold in three types of construction. The names of this construction are stock, semi-custom, and custom.

Stock cabinets are mass-produced and available at home improvement shops. You can buy these as flat-packs or pre-assembled and ready for installation. This type of cabinet is the most affordable of the three types of cabinet. Cabinets are measured in linear feet. The colors are standard and styles are limited.

Semi-custom cabinets are those cabinets where you can add a few of your personalized touches, such as the doors of the cabinets and the finishings. Most choices are made from catalogs and should still be affordable and in the price ranges that suit your pocket.

Custom Cabinets are those cabinets that can be built to the owner’s specifications and desires.

The owner chooses the colors and finishes of the cupboard. The custom cabinet often has one or two features unique to a home such as coffee stations or glass display cabinets and crown molding is used to finish off with a perfect look. Custom kitchen cabinets are much more expensive than stock cabinets.

Kitchen Cabinet Styles

Framed or frameless are the items that you will hear when discussing cabinet styles. The framed cabinets are those with a box and a face frame.

The front of the box is the reinforcement needed for the doors and the drawers where attachment needs to take place. With this reinforcement in place, the box can be made from thinner wood, which makes it easier to fit into tight spaces.

The framed cabinet has a thicker box to which the doors and drawer will be attached. For better ease and access to the interior, consider cabinets without a face frame that extends past the storage area of the cabinet. Framed cabinets are very popular in modern homes.

The Best Sizes for Kitchen Drawers

Before measuring for drawers, have a clear idea of what it is you want to store in them, such as wine glasses or vases. If you want to store wine glasses, most of them measure between 8 and 10 inches, which means your drawer should be at least 12 inches tall. Drawer dividers can also be incorporated into a design for standard kitchen drawer sizes. If you do not wish to have your glassware clanking and to knock, they work great to store glasses and prevent accidents.

Standard Kitchen Drawer Sizes

The size and configuration of the cabinetry will determine the size of the drawers. The kitchen has to be functional and provide storage. There are two kitchen layouts, namely L-shaped or Galley Shaped where you find both upper and lower cabinets. Some kitchens in larger homes will incorporate an island or an additional row of lower cabinets.

In the smaller kitchens, a 10-inch by 10-inch kitchen, which is in an L-shaped configuration with no island will be the best choice. In this typical L-shaped kitchen, you can have up to twelve drawers but also can have as few as five drawers.

When choosing the number of drawers you want, remember to look at your needs, such as a silverware drawer, utensil drawer, and even a kitchen towel drawer. The silverware drawer should be between 15 inches to 24 inches wide so that dividers can be inserted at a later stage if you find that they are needed. The utensil drawer is usually the same size as the silverware drawer. In a few instances, drawers can also be fitted into spaces between the fridge and oven or sink. These drawers are usually 9 inches wide and 6 inches tall and have slightly less depth than the actual cabinet base.

In the past, base cabinets were the popular choice for storage, but more recently, people are opting to have standard kitchen drawer sizes in the space as it is easier to access without having to bend down to find what you are looking for.

Drawers are popular for big-ticket items such as kitchen appliances, pots and pans, and glass vases.

The pots and pans drawers are 8 inches to 10 inches high. The ideal width would be 30 inches. The standard depth of kitchen drawers is fully dependent on the base cabinet, which is usually between 24 inches, to 36 inches.

The pantry and storage drawers should be deep to hold jars upright. Many base cabinets with three drawer stacks are made where two drawers are 10 to 12 inches deep and the bottom drawer is 4 to 6 inches tall. These bottom drawers will be the place where big items are stored.

Kitchen Drawer Dimensions

For new drawer boxes with side glide mounts, the cabinet needs to be measured at the opening width (inside the frame), after which you can then subtract 1 inch from the width. The side mount drawer glides will be half an inch on either side of the drawer box.

Depending on the type of glides you choose, you may have to subtract a little more.

Standard Depth of Kitchen Drawers

When considering the standard depth of kitchen drawers, you will need to subtract 1 inch. Do this subtraction from the length of the side-mounted drawer glides. If the glides are 21 inches, then all you do is subtract 1 inch for a 20-inch-deep drawer box.

Kitchen Drawer Heights

The standard kitchen cabinet door height is usually somewhere between 24 and 30 inches. Should your base cabinet feature a drawer, which not all do, the door’s height is an average of around 24 inches.

Space Between Kitchen Drawers

Ensure that you will have enough space to open the drawers. Usually, 1 inch is enough. When all the drawers are closed the front of the drawers should create a unified effect from drawer to drawer without any obvious spaces in between.

Spice Drawers

These are vertical drawers and can be installed in upper and lower cabinets. The inserts can be as narrow as 3 inches wide and up to 9 inches. The depth of a typical spice drawer is 23 inches, which then makes it a perfect base for those cabinets, which are 30 inches tall. Spices and baking items are usually the typical things stored in this standard depth of kitchen drawers.

Measure Twice

The golden rule in any building is to measure twice, especially when thinking of building kitchen cupboards. It is also very important to have a good, clear, practical idea of all your needs when it comes to space.

Have a look at the items you want to place in the kitchen and then decide on the space that will incorporate all the items you want to be included. There is nothing worse than not having enough space in the kitchen because measurements were not done correctly in the beginning.

Choosing Kitchen Cabinets

Most upper kitchen cabinets are somewhere between 30 to 40 inches in height and about 12 to 24 inches in depth with a width of roughly 9 to 36 inches. To be sure, you have the correct kitchen cabinet dimensions, you need to know which areas to measure, this means measuring the height without the countertop, measuring the height with the countertop, measuring the depth (front to the wall) without the countertop, and then measuring the depth with the countertop.

The standard base cabinet width sizes are 12, 15, 18, 21, 24, 26.25, 27, 30, 33, 39, and 42 inches. The base floor cabinets can be found in 6- and 9-inch widths. Taller cabinets have a width of 18, 24, 30, and 33 inches.

Standard wall cabinets have a depth of around 4 inches. The height can vary from 12, 15, 18, 24, 30, 36, and 42 inches, while the width will be between 12 and 26 inches.

Tall kitchen cabinet heights are between 84 and 96 inches. The depth will be between 12 and 24 inches and the width is 12, 24, or 36 inches.

Kitchen cupboards should be at least two feet away from the ceiling. The majority of the homes built in the last 50 years or so have kitchen cupboards that are between 32 or 36 inches tall, leaving at least a one to two-foot gap between the top of the cabinet to the ceiling.

The standard size of the kitchen cabinet door height measures between 34.5 inches and 36 inches from the floor right up to the top of the countertop after the countertop is installed. The kick portion of the cabinet is 4 inches in height and the standard door height is 24 inches. The top-drawer height is 5 inches high.

The standard-size cabinet placed over a stove is governed by safety issues. You should include allowing at least 30 inches between the electric stove top and the bottom of the cabinet as you plan the size of your upper cabinets. Post installation, the overhead cabinet, including the range hood, should be between 55 to 72 inches from the floor. When measuring for kitchen cabinets, measure from wall to wall to get the total space that you have.

The measurements for opening doors and windows should also be considered. All trim around the cabinet should be taken into consideration when measuring. Standard kitchen cabinet depths are normally 24 inches deep. Wall cabinets are 12 inches deep and are sold in other sizes, such as 15, 18, and 24 inches.

Due to the manufacturers of fridges now making bigger fridges, the need for deeper countertops will have to be considered. If your kitchen is on the smaller side, there are nice choices of base cabinets of 12 inches deep that can fit into any space within the kitchen.

Buying the Right Kitchen Cabinets for Your Home

Before exploring the wonderful and technical world of kitchen cabinetry, there are a few things that should be considered. Most of our kitchen supplies are stored in cabinets in the kitchen. A typical kitchen would have cabinets that encompass up to 30 feet of a standard kitchen. The cabinet will determine the ultimate look and feel of a room.

When choosing what cabinets to place in your kitchen, size, type of material and cost should be key in making sure that the cabinet fits in with your pocket and your lifestyle.

Considerations When Buying Kitchen Cabinets and Fittings

Before you rush off to purchase your new kitchen drawers, there are a few things to keep in mind. We have listed some below.

When Buying Kitchen Drawers

• Is the wood solid?
• Do the drawers slide easily on the ball bearings?
• Is the drawer held firmly and securely by dovetail joints?
• The bottom drawer is typically bigger than the other drawers in a kitchen so check that the sturdy wood slides into the grooves rather than having been stapled or glued.

When Buying Boxes and Doors

• Is the wood solid?
• Be careful when you are looking at plywood panels as these usually do not hold up well especially if the countertops are heavy.
• If you have a frameless cabinet, is the box where the door connects, a half-inch thick?
• Does the door open easily and close easily?
• Can you open the door wide enough to get to the back of the cabinet easily?
• Are the hinges of the doors adjustable?

When Buying Kitchen Shelves

Are these quarter of an inch thick? If they are not, rather stay away from them, as, over time, the shelves would start to sag, especially when heavy crockery is placed on them such as a stack of plates.

Discussing kitchen drawer dimensions and a standard depth of kitchen drawers sounds like something that only carpenters should be discussing and if ever you find yourselves in the middle of these types of discussions, you can certainly count yourself lucky. It means your new kitchen is on its way. Not only is it on its way, but with the assistance of all the technical jargon laid out in this article, we hope that you are more informed when planning a beautiful new kitchen that you can spend a lifetime appreciating.

Frequently Asked Questions

What Is the Standard Kitchen Drawer Size?

Drawer boxes, or what we call kitchen drawers, will be measured according to the base kitchen cabinet dimensions and for what they were intended. Drawers for base cabinets can be found in ranges of 4 to 10 inches high and 6 to 36 inches wide. They should be 24 to 36 inches deep. Of course, this is all dependent on the depth of the cabinets installed.

Must I Use Expensive Wood for Kitchen Cabinets?

Choosing wood for your kitchen cabinets is very important, especially where hot appliances are going to be used. If you can only afford pressed wood, then it is advisable to move the kettle to an area where steam will not get into contact with the wood as steam could cause the wood to warp over time. The more expensive the wood used, the longer the kitchen will last without any regular maintenance having to be carried out.