Standard counter height

Counter height chart

Kitchen counters in the US are 36 in (91 cm) high, and almost every stock base cabinet is built to land there. KraftMaid puts it plainly: a 34½ in base cabinet with a 1½ in countertop gives an overall countertop height of 36 in (KraftMaid cabinet sizes). Here is how the other common heights compare.

Sources: KraftMaid (kitchen counter), Rooms To Go (table, counter-height table, bar and seats), KraftMaid vanity guide, ADA 902.3. Metric is converted from inches.

So how tall is counter height? 36 in is exactly 3 ft, or 91.4 cm. That is the average and the standard at once, because kitchen cabinet lines are made to it. "Counter height" on a table or stool listing means the same thing: a surface around 34 to 36 in, a step above a dining table and a step below a bar.

How 36 inches adds up

A kitchen counter is three layers stacked on the floor: the toe kick, the cabinet box above it and the countertop. The first two come as one unit. Cabinet makers build base cabinets 34½ in (88 cm) tall with the toe kick included, then the countertop adds the last 1½ in (3.8 cm).

Three cabinet lines show how standard this is. KraftMaid base cabinets are 34½ in tall and 24 in deep (KraftMaid). Home Depot's Hampton Bay base cabinets are 34.5 in high (Hampton Bay KB36). IKEA gets there differently: a SEKTION base cabinet frame is 30 in tall and stands on 4½ in legs, which also makes 34½ in (IKEA SEKTION).

The toe kick is the recess at the bottom front that lets you stand close to the counter without stubbing your toes. Kitchen Cabinet Kings gives 3½ in high and 3 in deep as standard (Kitchen Cabinet Kings); IKEA's legs make a 4½ in toe space.

Stone countertops change the math a little

The 36 in figure assumes a top 1½ in thick. Quartz and stone slabs come in metric thicknesses, often 2 cm and 3 cm (Cambria's install rules cover both, Cambria). A 3 cm slab is about 1 3/16 in, so laid straight on a 34½ in cabinet it finishes at about 35 11/16 in. A 2 cm slab (about ¾ in) on a ¾ in plywood sub-top lands at about 36 in. Ask your fabricator which build-up they use if the exact height matters to you.

Counter height vs bar height vs table height

There are three standard surface heights, each about 6 in apart, and each has its own seat. Table height is 28 to 30 in (71 to 76 cm), counter height 34 to 36 in (86 to 91 cm), and bar height 40 to 42 in (102 to 107 cm) (Rooms To Go). The National Kitchen and Bath Association plans kitchen seating at exactly 30, 36 and 42 in (NKBA Kitchen Planning Guidelines), and IKEA sizes its stools for 34 to 36 in counters and 39 to 42 in bars (IKEA).

Counter height is the everyday working height: you stand to chop, and you can perch on a stool to eat. Bar height puts a seated person closer to the eye level of someone standing, which is why it suits a raised ledge on an island or a home bar. Table height is for sitting in a regular chair; table sizes and spacing are on Nest In Small's dining table dimensions page.

Stool and chair heights that match

Pick the seat by the surface, not the other way round. Furniture makers leave about 10 to 12 in (25 to 30 cm) between the seat and the counter or table (Rooms To Go, Plank+Beam): a 17 to 19 in chair at a table, a 24 to 26 in counter stool at a 36 in counter and a 28 to 30 in bar stool at a 42 in bar.

A classic mistake is buying bar stools for a 36 in counter. A 30 in seat under the 34½ in underside of a standard counter leaves only 4½ in for your thighs. Measure your counter height, subtract 10 to 12 in, and shop for that seat height.

Overhang and knee space for seating

If people will sit at the counter, the top has to reach out over their knees. NKBA gives each diner a space 24 in (61 cm) wide, with knee space 18 in (46 cm) deep at a 30 in table, 15 in (38 cm) at a 36 in counter and 12 in (30 cm) at a 42 in bar. Behind the seats it asks for 32 in (81 cm) where nobody passes, 36 in (91 cm) to edge past and 44 in (112 cm) to walk past (NKBA). A long overhang needs brackets or legs, and the limit depends on the countertop material: countertop overhang covers the supports, and kitchen island dimensions sizes an island with stools.

Accessible counter heights (ADA)

A counter for a seated cook, including someone in a wheelchair, is lower than 36 in and open below. The 2010 ADA Standards put work and dining surfaces at 28 to 34 in (71 to 86 cm) above the floor (ADA 902.3), and ask accessible kitchens for at least one 30 in (76 cm) wide section of counter no higher than 34 in (86 cm), with knee space below, or a counter that adjusts from 29 to 36 in (ADA 804.3). Cabinet makers sell lines for this: KraftMaid's Passport base cabinets are 32½ in tall, so the countertop sits at 34 in (KraftMaid universal design). The ADA covers public buildings and the accessible units in covered housing, not most private homes, so treat these numbers as design targets; ADA counter height has the knee, toe and floor clearances in full.

Bathroom vanity height

Bathroom counters run lower than kitchen counters: KraftMaid puts a standard vanity at about 32 in (81 cm) and its comfort-height vanities at 36 in (91 cm), the same as a kitchen counter (KraftMaid vanity guide).

Counter depth and the heights above it

The base cabinet under a standard counter is 24 in (61 cm) deep, not counting doors and drawer fronts (KraftMaid, Hampton Bay). The countertop covers the box and the doors and adds a small lip at the front. See standard cabinet depth for every cabinet type and standard counter depth for the top itself.

Wall cabinets usually hang 54 in (137 cm) above the floor, which leaves 18 in (46 cm) between a 36 in counter and the bottom of the cabinets (KraftMaid). That gap is a maker convention, not a building code rule. More on it in upper cabinet height; for the sink cut into the counter, see standard kitchen sink size. Outlets above the counter are a job for a licensed electrician.

When to go higher or lower

36 in is a compromise height that suits a wide range of cooks, not a rule. NKBA's access standard recommends at least two work-counter heights in a kitchen: one between 28 and 36 in (71 and 91 cm) and one between 36 and 45 in (91 and 114 cm) (NKBA Kitchen Planning Guidelines, InspectApedia). That way a tall cook, a short cook, a child and a seated cook all have somewhere that fits.

Ways to change the height without custom cabinets:

• Lower one section for baking, a seated cook or a child's prep area, using shorter base cabinets such as KraftMaid's 32½ in line or a table-height island.
• Raise one section with a bar-height ledge at 42 in on an island or peninsula.
• Fine-tune the whole run with the toe kick or leg height and the countertop thickness. Each changes the finished height inch for inch.

How to measure counter height

1. Measure at the front edge. Hold the tape plumb from the finished floor to the top of the countertop, right at the edge.
2. Check a few spots. Floors are rarely flat. Measure at each end of a run and in the middle, and use the lowest reading for stool shopping.
3. Work out the seat. Subtract 10 to 12 in from the counter height for the stool seat. Then measure the underside of the overhang to be sure there is room for your thighs.
4. Measure the cabinet box. Lift a drawer out or open a door and measure the cabinet side from the floor to its top edge. 34½ in is standard.
5. Allow for new flooring. If a new floor will go down around existing cabinets, subtract its thickness from today's height.

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