Banquette and booth dimensions

The five dimensions that decide everything#

Dimension	Target	Metric	Why
Finished seat height	17 to 18 in	43 to 46 cm	Feet flat on the floor for a 5 ft 4 in to 6 ft adult
Seat depth, upright back	18 to 20 in	46 to 51 cm	Back supported while sitting square to the table
Seat depth, raked back or bolster	22 to 24 in	56 to 61 cm	The rake or bolster returns the extra depth
Width per person	24 in	61 cm	Same allowance as a table edge
Table height	29 to 30 in	74 to 76 cm	Gives an 11 to 13 in differential
Table overlap over seat front	2 to 4 in	5 to 10 cm	Reach without perching
Back height above the seat	14 to 18 in	36 to 46 cm	Lumbar and shoulder blade support
Back rake from vertical	5 to 10 degrees		Dining posture, not lounging

Build the deck at 14 to 15 in (36 to 38 cm) and let a 3 to 4 in (8 to 10 cm) foam cushion bring it to 17 or 18. Foam at a medium density compresses roughly 1 in (25 mm) under an adult, so a 4 in cushion on a 15 in deck finishes at about 18 in. This is the mistake that most often gets built: a deck at 18 in plus a cushion is a 21 in seat, and every diner's feet leave the floor.

Seat depth and the back that pays for it#

Twenty inches is the practical limit for a bench with a vertical back. Beyond that, an adult sitting with their back against the cushion is too far from the table, so they sit forward, unsupported, and the depth is wasted.

Two ways to buy more depth:

Rake the back 5 to 10 degrees. Ten degrees over an 18 in (46 cm) tall back moves the top of the back 3 in (8 cm) rearward, so a 22 in deep seat behaves like a 19 in one. Do not exceed 10 degrees for a dining banquette. At 15 degrees you are building a sofa, and people will slouch away from their food.

Keep the back vertical and add a bolster. A 4 in (10 cm) bolster on a 24 in seat gives a 20 in effective depth and can be moved or removed. This is the better choice when the banquette also has to work as a window seat or an occasional sofa, and it is the one detail that lets a single piece do both jobs.

A vertical back is not automatically wrong. A vertical back with a slightly proud lumbar detail at 6 to 8 in (15 to 20 cm) above the seat is comfortable for a two hour meal and is much easier to build than a raked one, because every panel stays square.

The table relationship#

Seat to table difference of 11 to 13 in (28 to 33 cm) is the whole ergonomic argument. Standard chairs give 12 in: an 18 in seat under a 30 in table. Match it.

The overlap is the part that gets missed. The tabletop edge should sit 2 to 4 in (5 to 10 cm) over the front of the seat, in plan. Without it, a diner leaning back against the cushion finds their plate 6 in out of comfortable reach, so they spend the meal on the front edge of the seat with no back support, which is the exact opposite of what a banquette is for.

Overlap has consequences:

• Any table leg near the bench must be inset beyond the overlap, or it lands in the diner's shins. A pedestal, a cantilever bracket off the wall, or legs only on the outer side are the usual answers.
• Aprons and stretchers on the bench side must clear the seat front and the knee zone.
• A lift up seat lid cannot open under an overlapping tabletop.

Corner banquettes and the seat you do not get#

Depths across the room#

This is the number that decides whether a banquette is worth building.

Arrangement	Depth wall to wall	Metric
Chairs both sides, 36 in table	36 + 36 + 36 = 108 in	274 cm
Banquette one side, chairs the other	22 + 36 + 36 = 94 in	239 cm
Banquette both sides, 36 in table	22 + 36 + 22 = 80 in	203 cm
Booth, 30 in table, 24 in knee gap	22 + 24 + 22 = 68 in	173 cm
Commercial booth, 24 in benches	24 + 24 + 24 = 72 in	183 cm

The bench figure of 22 in (56 cm) is a 20 in seat plus a 2 in back panel. On the chair side you still owe the full 36 in (91 cm) of pull out clearance from the dining room clearance ring; the bench earns its saving because it does not move.

The commercial booth number is worth borrowing. Restaurants have optimised this arrangement over a century: 24 in of bench depth, a 24 in knee gap between the seat fronts, a 30 in wide table overlapping each bench by 3 in, and a 36 in (91 cm) aisle behind, widened to 44 to 48 in (112 to 122 cm) where staff serve. That is 108 to 120 in (274 to 305 cm) of total depth for a booth plus its aisle, which is the same as chairs on both sides with no aisle at all.

Backs, ends and the wall#

Back height. 14 to 18 in (36 to 46 cm) above the seat, so 31 to 36 in (79 to 91 cm) above the floor. That supports the shoulder blades without becoming a visual wall in a small room. Commercial booths go to 42 to 48 in (107 to 122 cm) above the floor because they are selling privacy, and that height in a domestic room will divide it in two.

Wall as the back. Using the wall itself, with a cushion hung on a French cleat or a run of upholstered panels, saves the 2 in back panel and lets the cushion be removed for cleaning. It also means the wall finish has to survive being leaned on, so use a scrubbable paint or panelling rather than a delicate plaster.

Ends and returns. An arm or a return at the end of a run stops cushions sliding and gives the end diner something to lean on, but it costs 3 to 4 in (8 to 10 cm) of seat width. If the run is exactly 96 in for four people, an arm makes it a three and a half seat bench.

Toe recess. A 3 in (8 cm) deep by 3 in high toe recess along the front of the base lets people stand up cleanly and stops shoes scuffing the front panel. It is the single cheapest improvement to a built in bench.

Storage under the seat#

Type	Clearance needed	Works when
Lift up lid, hinged at the back	Vertical swing, nothing above	The bench extends past the tabletop overlap
Lift up lid in sections	Vertical swing per section	Sections are 24 in or less so the lids are liftable
Front drawers	24 in (61 cm) of clear floor in front	Only on a run that faces open floor, not a table
End access, doors or drawers	24 in at the end of the run	Almost always, and this is the reliable option
Open cubbies below the seat	None	Shoes and baskets, not linen

Lift up seats are the default and the most often regretted. To open one you have to remove the cushion, lift a hinged panel that carries the weight of the upholstery, and hold it while you reach in. Fit soft close lid stays rated for the panel weight, and never make a single lid longer than 36 in (91 cm).

Front drawers look like the elegant answer and rarely are, because on a banquette the 24 in in front of the drawer is occupied by the table. They only work on a run of bench that projects beyond the table, or as a window seat away from the dining zone. Wider storage guidance is in our storage dimensions guide.

Accessibility and the mixed table#

A fixed bench cannot accommodate a wheelchair user, so any banquette that seats a household should leave at least one position at the table reachable from open floor. The 2010 ADA Standards give the target figures worth building to even in a home: a dining surface 28 to 34 in (71 to 86 cm) above the floor, knee clearance of 27 in (69 cm) high, 30 in (76 cm) wide and 11 to 25 in (28 to 64 cm) deep, and a clear floor space of 30 x 48 in (76 x 122 cm) at that position. A 30 in high table with a shallow apron meets the first three. A deep farmhouse apron does not, and neither does a pedestal with a wide splayed foot.

Full figures are in our accessible clearances guide.

Mocking one up in an afternoon#

You cannot try a banquette before it is built, but you can fake it precisely.

1. Stack plywood or books to 17 in (43 cm) and lay a cushion on top, or simply use a 17 in high stool.
2. Set a table at 30 in (76 cm) with its edge 3 in (8 cm) over the front of your mock seat.
3. Sit with your back against the wall or a vertical panel at your chosen depth. If you cannot reach a plate at the table centre without leaning off the back, reduce the depth or add a bolster.
4. Mark 24 in (61 cm) intervals on the floor with tape and sit two people side by side. This is the only way to know whether 24 in is enough for the people who will actually use it.
5. Check the corner. Sit in the corner position and try to get out.
6. Confirm the light above lands on the table, not on the bench: the fixture is centred on the table, which on a banquette layout is offset from the room. See chandelier and pendant height.

Half an hour of this saves the one thing joinery cannot give back, which is a seat height you cannot change once it is screwed to the wall.