In a 10 × 10 ft kitchen, a U-shaped layout gives the most counter (13 ft 3 in) and passes every NKBA check with full-size appliances. A galley passes too. An L passes with a 33 in fridge; with a 36 in fridge it is 1 in short of counter between the fridge and the range. A single 10 ft wall is too short for four appliances and their landing areas, and an island doesn’t fit with NKBA’s aisles.
Four 10x10 kitchen layouts
Every plan has the same room: 10 × 10 ft wall to wall, a 32 in door, a 36 in window, and a 33 in sink base, a 24 in dishwasher and a 30 in range unless noted. Counters are 25½ in deep.
- Narrowest aisle: 59¼ in
- Work triangle: 17 ft 5 in
- Counter: 13 ft 3 in
U-shaped: the most counter
Three walls of cabinets, 13 ft 3 in of counter and a 59¼ in aisle even at the fridge. The triangle is 17 ft 5 in, each leg between 5 ft 5 in and 6 ft 2 in.
- Good for: one or two cooks; the aisle is wider than NKBA’s 48 in for two.
- Watch: two inside corners to fill with corner cabinets. More in U-shaped kitchens.
- Narrowest aisle: 59¼ in
- Work triangle: 17 ft 7 in
- Counter: 11 ft 9 in
Galley: two full runs
The fridge and range on one side, the sink and dishwasher on the other. The aisle is 69 in between the counters and 59¼ in at the fridge: generous, because a 10 ft room is wider than a galley needs. The triangle is 17 ft 7 in.
- Good for: a room with a door at each end.
- Watch: a pass-through galley is also a hallway. See galley kitchen layout.
- Work triangle: 16 ft 10 in
- Counter: 7 ft 9 in
L-shaped: open, but tight
Two walls of cabinets leave the other two free for a table. With a 33 in fridge there are 28 in of counter between it and the range, where NKBA asks for 27 in for the two together. The triangle is 16 ft 10 in.
- Work triangle: 16 ft 7 in
- Counter: 7 ft 6 in
- 2 NKBA checks short
L-shaped with a 36 in fridge: 1 in short
The 36 in fridge takes 3 in more of the side wall, and the counter beside the range drops to 26 in. Most people would live with it; the planner marks it because NKBA’s number is 27 in. A counter-depth fridge doesn’t help here, because the shortfall is along the wall, not across the room.
- Work triangle: 14 ft 8 in
- Counter: 2 ft 6 in
- 4 NKBA checks short
One wall: too short
Even with a 30 in fridge and an 18 in dishwasher, the four appliances and the fridge’s filler take 111 in of the 120 in wall. That leaves 9 in of counter between the fridge and the sink, plus the top of the dishwasher; the range ends against the wall with no counter on that side. It works as a kitchenette, well short of NKBA’s landing areas. A one-wall kitchen passes from about 13 ft with 24 in appliances; see one-wall kitchens.
Does an island fit in a 10x10 kitchen?
No, not with NKBA’s aisles. Across the room, a wall counter (25½ in), a 42 in aisle, the smallest island (25½ in deep, without stools) and a 36 in walkway behind it add up to 129 in, 9 in more than the room. A peninsula needs no aisle at its attached end, so it can fit; a rolling cart gives you the counter without the aisle. The room math for islands is on kitchen layouts with an island.
The 10x12 version
- Work triangle: 18 ft 4 in
- Counter: 9 ft 6 in
Two more feet fix the L
With a 12 ft side wall, a 36 in fridge keeps 34 in of counter beside the range, and the L passes every check with a triangle of 18 ft 4 in. The counter grows from 7 ft 6 in to 9 ft 6 in. An island still doesn’t fit: it needs about 13 × 13 ft.
Counter and cabinets in a 10x10 L
In the L above, the window wall holds the corner, 36 in of base cabinets, the sink base and the dishwasher; the side wall holds the range, about 28 in of base cabinets and the fridge. Stock base cabinets come in 3 in steps from 9 to 42 in wide (Wolf), so each gap is filled with one or two boxes and a narrow filler at the walls. A kitchen cabinet layout tool that fills each wall with stock sizes is on the way.
Questions people ask
What is the best layout for a 10x10 kitchen?
A U gives the most counter and passes every NKBA check with full-size appliances. An L keeps two walls free for a table and passes with a 33 in fridge.
Can a 10x10 kitchen have an island?
Not with NKBA’s aisles: the room is 9 in too narrow for even a small island. A peninsula or a cart fits.
How much counter space is in a 10x10 kitchen?
In our plans, from 7 ft 9 in (L) to 13 ft 3 in (U), not counting the sink and range. NKBA’s target for a whole kitchen is 158 in, about 13 ft 2 in.
Is 10x10 a small kitchen?
It is a common size and, at 100 sq ft, a small one: it takes any layout but an island. See small kitchen layouts for rooms down to 7 × 10 ft.
Sources
- NKBA’s free Kitchen Planning Guidelines with Access Standards: work aisles (42 in for one cook, 48 in for two), walkways (36 in), the work triangle (each leg 4 to 9 ft, 26 ft in all), landing areas beside the sink, cooktop and fridge, the dishwasher’s place and standing room, and seating clearances. This is the older free edition; the paid 5th edition (June 2026) may change some numbers.
- Wolf Classic Cabinetry product specifications: base cabinets 34½ in high and 24 in deep, stock widths 9 in and 12 to 42 in in 3 in steps (45 and 48 in by special order), wall cabinets 12 in deep
- Caesarstone: the standard depth of kitchen countertops, 25½ in (24 in cabinets plus a 1½ in overhang)
- Samsung “Will it fit” sheets for a counter-depth (28¾ in to the door front) and a standard-depth fridge (34¼ in to the door front); the planner adds 1 in behind, as KitchenAid’s guide asks
- GE Appliances product pages: 29½ in, 32¾ in and 35¾ in wide models for 30, 33 and 36 in openings
- Whirlpool WFES3530R 30 in range dimension guide: 29⅞ in wide, 25 7/16 in deep without the handle
- Bosch 300 Series SHS3ADF5N spec sheet: a 24 in wide, 24 in deep, 33⅞ to 35 in high opening
- Kraus spec sheets: a 30 × 18 in sink needs a 33 in base, a 33 × 22 in double sink a 36 in base
Checked 19 October 2026. The plans are drawn and measured by our planner; room sizes are wall to wall.