Common Kitchen Flooring Plan Concepts and Methods to Use Them

What’s one of the best kitchen format to your dwelling? These kitchen flooring plan concepts will enable you plan your kitchen transform to be good and space-efficient with our information to kitchen configurations together with L-shaped, U-shaped, galley, one-wall and extra kitchen layouts.
Get extra kitchen transform inspiration with our favourite kitchen earlier than and afters plus low cost DIY kitchen countertop concepts and 22 methods to replace your kitchen island.

MOST POPULAR KITCHEN LAYOUTS
and Methods to Use Them
by visitor writer Juliana Gordon
Transforming your kitchen is an thrilling prospect and a giant resolution that may change the texture of your complete dwelling. Your new design must replicate the constraints of your own home (together with sq. footage), whereas additionally offering you with the counter and cupboard house you’ll want to make use of the kitchen the best way you wish to.
Earlier than you make the ultimate name, check out these six common kitchen layouts that owners and designers are utilizing to offer their houses a recent, new feeling. The 5 commonest kitchen flooring plans are one-wall, galley, L-shaped, U-shaped, and G-shaped, and any of those can even incorporate a kitchen island.
First: The Kitchen Work Triangle / Kitchen Zones
One of many greatest issues in a kitchen transform is the site visitors and performance of the house. Bettering your kitchen format to create a flooring plan that saves steps and makes kitchen work extra environment friendly will enable you LOVE your kitchen! The important thing to an environment friendly kitchen flooring plan is utilizing kitchen zones to type a work triangle.

What’s a piece triangle?
A kitchen working triangle is a design technique that claims that the three foremost work areas ought to type a triangle between 1) the sink (and dishwasher), 2 ) the range/oven, and three) the fridge.
This triangle design maximizes effectivity by centralizing the workflow of the commonest kitchen duties, which is particularly vital for dwelling cooks in a small kitchen. (That’s me 🙋 and possibly you!)
As you’re planning an environment friendly kitchen triangle (or “golden triangle”), listed here are the foundations designers comply with:
- All sides of the triangle must be 4-9 ft — not too compact, however not too unfold out.
- No kitchen fixture (reminiscent of an island) ought to reduce into the triangle greater than 12 inches. Bear in mind, that is about strolling site visitors, not simply distance.
- The sum whole of all of the triangle sides ought to 13-26 ft – once more, smaller dimensions for fewer steps between zones.
- No different site visitors patterns reduce throughout the triangle.
Now, bear in mind, these are extra like pointers anyway. 🏴☠️ Create a format and kitchen zones that give you the results you want and the best way that you simply use your house. The kitchen triangle maximizes effectivity for ONE cook dinner within the kitchen, so if you’re commonly cooking with a companion or host company usually, the site visitors patterns can be completely different. Bigger kitchens might have 2 triangles, the place every features a sink, a space for storing (fridge/pantry), and a prep/cooking space.
Is the kitchen triangle outdated? What about kitchen zones as a substitute?
Many trendy dwelling cooks discover it extra significant to make use of the kitchen triangle as a place to begin and spend extra effort organizing the kitchen in zones for widespread duties. The 5 kitchen zones mostly used are:
- Consumables zone: the place you retailer most of your meals. This can be break up between and embrace each recent meals (fridge/freezer) and different meals within the pantry or a meals cupboard.
- Non-Consumables zone: the place you retailer commonly used each day dishes, glasses, silverware, and so forth.
- Cleansing zone: your sink and dishwashing space. You’ll wish to find your non-Consumable zone close to the cleansing zone.
- Preparation zone: the place you do most meals prep, reminiscent of a bit of countertop or kitchen island. Embrace space for storing for slicing boards, knives, bowls, and so forth.
- Cooking zone: range, vary, oven, and probably microwave space. The cooking zone and prep zone must be close to to one another. Embrace space for storing for pots, pans, and utensils.
Considering when it comes to work paths (together with the triangle) between these zones may also help you design a kitchen format that is smart for a way you cook dinner and clear up. In your kitchen transform planning, preserve these concepts in thoughts and take into consideration the way you’ll use the redesigned house. Typically, altering the location of simply one of many three fixtures (or one of many 5 zones) could make a giant distinction.

The One-Wall Kitchen Format
Probably the most fundamental kitchen format is a one-wall kitchen. This straightforward kitchen flooring plan places the entire counter tops, cabinetry, and home equipment on a single wall. This can be a good format for smaller homes, residences, studios, and lofts the place there may be little or no house obtainable. Placing every part on one wall frees up extra room for eating house, and doesn’t block the home windows.
However what concerning the kitchen triangle?
It’s fundamental geometry: a line is NOT a triangle. A single-wall kitchen can nonetheless create a “triangle” within the strolling paths of the cook dinner — simply with longer paths between. This can be a time when it’s extra useful to htink in ZONES as a substitute of the kitchen triangle. The best method to make a one-wall kitchen extra environment friendly for the cook dinner is so as to add an additional workspace to type the prep space zone of the triangle.
Since there may be restricted counter house is offered, it’s a good suggestion to make use of a excessive eating desk that may double as an additional countertop. Additionally, take into account a smaller rolling desk or kitchen island that you could simply pull out while you want an additional work floor and put away later to save lots of house.






The Galley Kitchen Format
The galley kitchen, or walk-through kitchen, consists of two partitions with a walkway in between. It could possibly be open on only one finish, or open on each ends — a hallway kitchen, principally. This flooring plan maximizes the house obtainable in such a hall, and retains your cupboards and home equipment inside straightforward attain.
Galley kitchens additionally are likely to phase the cooking house away from the eating room and the remainder of the home, vs an open kitchen flooring plan that’s widespread in L-shaped or U formed kitchens.
This can be a good kitchen format concept for use by a single chef, or two on the very most until the kitchen may be very lengthy. With workspaces on either side, a cook dinner can simply arrange a fundamental cooking triangle work zone by having two parts on one wall and a 3rd centered between them on the alternative wall.
The downsides to a galley kitchen flooring plan embrace the dearth of room for a kitchen desk in between the partitions, and crowding if too many individuals are transferring by means of it.



The L-Formed Kitchen Format
Additionally good for smaller kitchens, the L-shaped format concept places the kitchen workspaces on two adjoining partitions, forming an L. This design helps preserve site visitors out of the kitchen, types a pure triangle work zone, and offers you adequate house for a eating desk and chairs (or an island).
This pure work stream setup makes an L-shaped kitchen format an incredible choice for smaller houses, together with remodels the place you take away a wall to open up the kitchen.
Having a kitchen wall that’s not less than 15 ft lengthy will assist preserve issues inside attain in an L-shape kitchen flooring plan, serving to you to cook dinner extra effectively. You probably have loads of room, chances are you’ll wish to take into account a unique format that might higher make the most of your house.
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The U-Formed Kitchen Format
The U-shaped kitchen design, usually known as a horseshoe, makes use of three partitions that type a “U” form. It’s a great format to make use of in case you want a big house to prep or cook dinner on or when there can be a number of cooks in a single space.
A minimum of 10 ft of house between partitions is required to make a U-shape kitchen flooring plan a sensible choice, although you’ll be able to see the format in each small and enormous kitchens within the pictures.
The horseshoe design makes it straightforward to create work triangles for making ready and cleansing, however particular care must be taken when contemplating the situation of cupboards and home equipment.
If cupboard doorways or home equipment are too shut to one another on the corners of the U-shaped format, the doorways will collide when opened. Having two corners additionally makes it vital to maximise the house in your nook base cupboards so you have got loads of storage with out useless house.





Kitchen Island Format Concepts
The kitchen island is turning into a extra common alternative immediately. It consists of a free-standing workspace that gives extra performance to a kitchen and can be utilized in quite a lot of methods.
Home equipment, kitchen cupboards, and even sinks might be included right into a kitchen island, or only a easy countertop. They will additionally make good kitchen tables, or cell tables if they’ve wheels, offered there may be sufficient room.




The G-Formed Kitchen Format
Peninsula kitchens add an additional leg to a single kitchen wall. This transforms the house into an “L” form, or an current “L” form right into a horseshoe format, or from an L-shaped kitchen right into a P-shaped or G-shaped kitchen. This format is finest for an oblong kitchen, and it may be scaled to suit kitchens of many sizes.
The peninsula gives additional countertop, cupboard, and equipment house. It additionally permits a number of folks to assemble across the similar space, maximizing the quantity of house obtainable. Like an island, you’ll be able to pull chairs as much as the peninsula and use it as a eating desk.

Kitchen Format FAQs
Have a query about kitchen flooring plans? Go away us a remark beneath!
What’s the most useful kitchen format?
Whereas any kitchen might be useful, the L-shaped kitchen format is the best flooring plan to create a piece triangle in a small house. An L-shaped kitchen can also be probably the most versatile. For these causes, it’s the commonest and the most well-liked for smaller kitchens, particularly kitchens with adjoining eating rooms or open kitchens.
What kitchen format is common in small houses?
In small houses the place house is at a premium, a galley kitchen is the small kitchen format to decide on. This compact flooring plan retains every part shut at hand.
In a small dwelling with a bit bit extra sq. footage, an L-shaped kitchen is usually a good choice to optimize house for each kitchen and eating room wants mixed.
What kitchen format is common in massive houses?
For houses with massive kitchens, one of the best kitchen layouts are U-shaped and G-shaped. These layouts take advantage of the house by including additional base cupboards for storage and extra countertop house for meals preparation. Many massive kitchens even have room for one (and even two!) kitchen islands or peninsulas to maximise storage and dine-in house.
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About The Writer: Juliana Gordon has cherished inside adorning since she was a baby; you may all the time discover her rearranging the furnishings in her dollhouses. From a younger age, she knew inside adorning was her calling. Gordon obtained a level in inside design from the Rocky Mountain Academy of Artwork and Design, and presently plans and decorates homes for a bevy of private purchasers. She is extraordinarily passionate concerning the design and residential enchancment business, and chooses to share her information on-line. Juliana contributes to a number of publications and blogs in her spare time, together with Kitchens by Wedgewood.
First revealed 19 July 2014 // Final up to date 14 Apr 2023
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