Planning space for appliances: fridge, oven tower, dishwasher, hood
The spaces kitchen appliances usually need, where each one goes best, and why the model's installation sheet always has the last word.
Last changed October 20, 2026
First, the installation sheet
Every appliance comes with an installation sheet that gives the niche it needs, the gaps for air, and where its water, power or gas connect. The sizes below are typical, to plan with before the models are chosen; once they are, the sheet decides.
Typical sizes
| Appliance | Size or niche | Where |
|---|---|---|
| Dishwasher | 60 wide (slim: 45); niche 82–87 high, at least 55 deep | under the worktop, within 91 of the sink |
| Built-in oven | niche about 56–57 wide, 58.5–60 high, at least 55 deep | under the worktop, or in a tall oven tower |
| Built-in microwave | niche 38 or 45 high | in a tall tower, or in a wall cabinet |
| Cooktop | 60, 70, 80 or 90 wide | in the worktop, over a base cabinet |
| Hood | 60 or 90 wide | above the cooktop |
| Fridge, free-standing | 60–91 wide, 170–190 high | at the end of a run, or in a tall housing |
| Fridge, built-in | niche about 56–57 wide; 88, 122, 140, 158 or 178 high | in a tall housing |
| Washing machine or dryer | 60 × 85 × 60 | under the worktop |
The dishwasher
Put it beside the sink, at most 91 cm from the bowl's edge, so its drain and water reach and wet plates don't travel. Leave about 53 cm of standing room in front of it, and keep it away from a corner, where its open door can block the drawers beside it.
Ovens and the tall tower
An oven under the cooktop saves space; an oven in a tall tower, at chest height, saves the back, and leaves the drawers under the cooktop for pots. A tower takes a microwave above the oven, and needs 38 cm of worktop beside it to put hot dishes down.
The hood
A chimney hood stands on the wall above the cooktop; an integrated hood hides in a wall cabinet. Either way it starts at least 65 cm above a gas cooktop, or 50 cm above induction, unless its manual says more.
The fridge
- Leave the gaps for air its sheet asks for, at the sides, top and back.
- Beside a wall, its door may need room to open past 90° for the drawers inside to come out: check the door's swing.
- Plan 38 cm of worktop on its handle side, to put the shopping down.
TruePlinth's catalog keeps each appliance's niche and checks it as you design: a niche too small is an error, a niche bigger than needed a note about the gap.
Plan it with TruePlinth
Draw your room, drag in cabinets in standard sizes, and the checks in this guide run as you design.