What are the 5 types of kitchen layouts?

Remodeling a kitchen is sometimes a matter of updating appliances, countertops, and cabinets. But to really get to the essence of a kitchen, it helps to rethink the entire plan and flow of the kitchen. Basic kitchen design layouts are templates that you can use for your own kitchen. You may not necessarily use the kitchen layout as-is, but it's a great springboard for developing other ideas and making the design one that's purely unique.

A kitchen design where all appliances, cabinets, and countertops are positioned along one wall is known as the one-wall layout. The one-wall kitchen layout can work equally well for both very small kitchens and for extremely big spaces.

One-wall kitchen layouts aren't very common since they require so much walking back and forth. But if cooking isn't the focus of your living space, a one-wall layout is a great way to tuck kitchen activities off to the side.

When space is narrow and limited (such as in condos, small homes, and apartments), the corridor or galley-style layout is often the only kind of design possible.

In this design, two walls facing each other have all of the kitchen services. A galley kitchen may be open on both the remaining sides, allowing the kitchen to also serve as a passageway between spaces. Or, one of the two remaining walls can contain a window or exterior door, or it may be simply walled off.

The L-shaped kitchen design plan is the most popular kitchen layout. This layout features two adjoining walls that meet in an L-shape. Both walls hold all the countertops, cabinets, and kitchen services, with the other two adjoining walls open.

For kitchens that have a large, square space, an L-shaped layout is highly efficient, versatile, and flexible.

A highly evolved kitchen design layout, a double-L kitchen layout design allows for two workstations. An L-shaped or one-wall kitchen is augmented by a full-featured kitchen island that includes at least a cooktop, sink, or both.

Two cooks can easily work in this type of kitchen, as the workstations are separated. These are normally large kitchens that can include two sinks or additional appliances, such as a wine cooler or a second dishwasher.

The U-shaped kitchen design plan can be thought of as a corridor-shape plan—except that one end wall has countertops or kitchen services. The remaining wall is left open to allow access to the kitchen.

This arrangement maintains a good workflow by means of the classic kitchen triangle. The closed-end wall provides plenty of space for extra cabinets.

If you want a kitchen island, it's more difficult to squeeze one into this design. Good kitchen space planning dictates that you have aisles that are at least 48 inches wide, and that is hard to achieve in this layout.

With appliances on three walls and the fourth wall open for access, it is difficult to include a seating area in a U-shaped kitchen. 

Here we answer the question, what are the 6 types of kitchen layouts including designs for the best ergonomic work triangle zones.

Open-plan kitchens were specially designed so you can prepare food while entertaining family or guests. As such, it is imperative to have a kitchen design to suit every individual’s needs.

A good kitchen design will put into consideration different factors before coming up with any design decisions. A couple of important questions you might have to ask your client or yourself before you remodel the kitchen are:

1. How much space do I have, and where is it located?
2. What type of kitchen layouts do you prefer? Which one fits best in your floor area?
3. How many family members are there in the household?
4. What are the appliances you need, and their sizes?
5. How much cold storage and pantry storage do I need?

These questions can provide helpful information that will guide you in designing your kitchen. You also need to consider what we call the “working triangle” or the “kitchen triangle”, a tool used since the 20th century to design kitchens.

The principle of the working triangle basically states that the three main areas of the kitchen – the sink, the fridge, and the stove – should form a triangle.

According to this design principle, the distance between each of these areas should be between 4 feet to 9 feet, and the total length/distance to each area should be a minimum of 13 feet to a maximum of 26 feet in total.

Following this principle will help guide you in designing the kitchen, and will also help ensure the efficiency of the design.

There are, however, limitations to this, because real estate prices have gone up, some kitchens are really small and compact, and may not be able to follow these rules at all. But if you have more flexibility in space, however, the working triangle is definitely an easy and helpful tool that you can use.

So what are the 6 types of kitchen layouts? Here’s an illustration to provide a visual guide:

These are the most common kitchen layouts:

• One Wall – these are common in smaller spaces like apartments or small townhouses. The kitchen is literally against one wall in one straight line.
• Galley Kitchen – these are usually small kitchens located in narrow rooms. The kitchen counters would be against two walls parallel to each other
• L-Shape Kitchen – this is a common kitchen layout in both traditional kitchens and modern kitchens. The kitchen counters form an L-shape and are placed against walls perpendicular to each other.
• U-Shape Kitchen – the kitchen counters form a U-shape, occupying 3 walls perpendicular to each other.
• Peninsula – this type of kitchen layout is common in open-plan spaces. 3 sides of the kitchen counters are against the wall, and one counter extends perpendicularly, in which the additional counter acts as a space divider or a counter dining/bar area.
• Island Kitchen – if any of the above kitchen layouts add a kitchen island to the design (it should be detached from any walls), it can be considered an island kitchen.

One Wall Kitchen Layout

The common problem of one-wall kitchens would be the bottleneck, especially when there’s not enough counter space.

Try to ensure ample space between the sink, range, and fridge to avoid this. If your counter space is very limited, consider using a compact-sized sink and range to compensate for the lack of space.

Galley Kitchen Layout

The minimum space between countertops should be 3 feet, but 4 to 5 feet is the most recommended distance as it allows better traffic flow.

L-shape Kitchen Layout

In L-shape kitchen designs, you also need to take special care in planning for your door swings and drawers as to not obstruct movement. The corner cabinets are usually tricky, and one trick to be able to maximize the space under the corner counter is by installing a kitchen carousel.

We recommend using door hinges that have at least a 160-degrees opening angle for the cabinets at the corner, to easily access the carousel.

U-shape Kitchen Layout

In those cases, try to put two areas in one counter – the sink and the range, for example – or you can also dedicate one whole wall as a storage/pantry wall if you need more food storage space.

In smaller U-shaped kitchens, however, having one area on each side of the counter is doable. Ensure that you have at least 3 feet clearance between two countertops as well.

Peninsula Kitchen Layout

If you like entertaining guests while cooking food, placing the range on the peninsula is a good idea.

Sinks are sometimes placed in the peninsula as well, but you can keep it open and empty if you want to maximize the peninsula’s counter space for food preparation and dining.

Kitchen Island Layout

Similar to the peninsula, you can place your range or sink in the kitchen island. If your kitchen island is freestanding, however, it will mostly be used additional prep space or breakfast counter.

What is your favorite type of kitchen layout? Let us know in the comments below.