Bathroom Vanity: Widths, Tops and Sinks

What a bathroom vanity is, and the choice that matters

A bathroom vanity is the cabinet under the bathroom sink, plus the counter and sink on top of it when they're included. It hides the drain and supply lines, holds the sink at a comfortable height and gives you somewhere to keep the toothpaste.

The first choice is width. Your wall decides it. The second is the top: included, or base cabinet only. The third is how many sinks. Everything else, finish, drawers, wood or MDF, comes after those three.

The table above lists every bathroom vanity in our data, sorted by stated width, narrowest first. That's every brand we track for vanities, rechecked each week. Where a maker or listing doesn't state a field, the table shows a dash. I'd rather show a dash than guess, and so would you once the cabinet is in the house.

Measure before you scroll the bathroom vanity table

Here's my one firm opinion for this page: measure the drain and supply lines before you shop. Those pipes come out of the wall or floor at fixed points, called the rough-in. The vanity's back panel has to clear them, and the sink has to land over the drain. The maker's install sheet shows where the cabinet expects the pipes. Compare the two before you order.

Then measure four more things:

1. The wall, side to side, at counter height and at the floor
2. The distance from the wall to the toilet's center
3. The door swing, with the door fully open
4. The outlet and light switch heights

The National Kitchen & Bath Association's planning guideline gives the spacing worth checking. It recommends at least 20 inches from the center of a sink to a side wall or tall obstacle, and cites 15 inches as the code minimum. From the center of a toilet to the nearest fixture or wall, it recommends 18 inches, with 15 inches as the code minimum. It also recommends 30 inches of clear floor in front of a sink, with 21 inches as the code minimum.

On the job, the most common sound at a vanity install is somebody saying "huh" at the drain. Measure it first, and the "huh" happens at your kitchen table instead.

What to look at in a bathroom vanity listing

Width

Width is the stated side-to-side size of the cabinet, or of the top if it overhangs. In our data, the most common stated widths are 36 inches, then 48, 30 and 60. Smaller vanities, 16 to 24 inches, are for half baths and tight walls. Above 60 inches you're mostly in double-sink territory, with widths of 72, 80 and 84 in the table.

Odd widths like 29, 35 or 49 inches aren't errors. Some makers size a cabinet a little under a round number so it fits an opening with room for a wall that isn't square.

Depth and height: the numbers listings skip

Here's something the table makes plain. Most vanity listings in our data don't state depth, and almost none state height. Where a depth is given, 18.5 inches is the most common number, and those come from one maker's listings.

That gap matters more than it looks. Depth decides how much floor is left in front of the sink and whether the door clears the counter's corner. Height decides whether you stoop. If the listing is silent, the maker's spec sheet or install guide usually isn't. Get both numbers in writing before you order, and tape them to the template.

I make a cardboard template of the vanity's footprint for every bathroom I work in. Iris decorates them. One had a sun in the corner and a cat sitting where the toilet goes. The measurements were correct. The cat was not to scale.

Top included or base cabinet only

This is the field to read twice. In our data, makers list four answers:

• Top with undermount sink: the bowl is mounted under a stone or quartz counter
• Top with vessel sink: the bowl sits on top of the counter
• Top with integrated sink: counter and bowl in one piece
• Base cabinet only: no counter, no sink

A bathroom vanity with sink included is one order and one matched top. A vanity cabinet alone lets you choose the counter, but you're also choosing the height. The top's thickness adds to it, and a vessel bowl adds more. Our bathroom vanity height guide does that math.

Sink count

Single or double. In our data, single-sink vanities far outnumber doubles. The NKBA recommends at least 36 inches between the centerlines of two sinks, and cites 30 inches as the code minimum. That's why double-sink vanities in the table start at wide widths, not narrow ones.

Two sinks need two drains, or one drain shared through a fitting, and two sets of supply lines. If your bathroom has one drain, a double vanity is a plumbing job, not just a cabinet job.

Freestanding, wall-hung or corner

Freestanding vanities stand on the floor, on legs or a toe kick. Wall-hung, or floating, vanities hang on the wall with open floor beneath. A corner vanity fits into a corner, which can free up a small room.

A wall-hung vanity carries its full weight, top and sink included, on the wall. That needs studs or solid blocking behind the drywall where the maker's instructions say. If you can't open the wall, choose a freestanding one.

Top material

When the listing states it, the table shows the top material. In our data, quartz is the most common by far, then resin and cultured marble, with a few ceramic and solid surface tops. Each maker names its own stone or color, so two "white quartz" tops from two makers may not match.

Cabinet material

Many listings don't state it, and the table shows a dash where they don't. Where they do, you'll see plywood, MDF or engineered wood, solid wood, or a solid wood frame with MDF panels. MDF is a dense board made from wood fibers that takes paint well and doesn't like standing water. Plywood is layers of wood veneer glued crosswise. Neither is the only right answer. What matters is knowing which one you're buying.

Soft-close and assembly

Most vanities in our data list soft-close doors or drawers, a damper that slows them for the last inch. I've got a soft spot for a drawer that closes quietly. It's the one sound in a bathroom nobody complains about.

Many listings also state "assembly required". That usually means the cabinet ships flat or in parts. Plan an afternoon, lay out the hardware and count it before you start.

Bathroom vanity cabinet or pedestal sink?

A pedestal sink is a bowl on a column. It takes very little floor, which is why you see it in old half baths. It also holds about one bar of soap, and the pipes show from the side.

A vanity gives you storage and hides the plumbing. In exchange, it needs depth in front of it. Ana's take, from a librarian: "A vanity is a bookshelf with plumbing. Measure it like a bookshelf. Where does the door swing, and can you still reach the bottom row?"

If your half bath has a pedestal sink and works fine, there's no rule that says it has to go. If you want storage, a narrow vanity of 16 to 24 inches often fits where a pedestal sat. Check the rough-in first. A pedestal's drain may sit higher or lower than a cabinet expects.

Sizes and sub-types, briefly

The vanity pages narrow this table down by one choice at a time:

• By width: 24, 30, 36, 48, 60 and 72 inches each get a page when enough vanities qualify
• Double sink vanities: two sinks, wide widths
• Floating vanities: wall-hung, open floor below
• Freestanding vanities: on legs or a toe kick
• Vessel sink vanities: the bowl sits on the counter
• By finish: white, gray, black, blue and green vanities, by the maker's own color names

If you already have a cabinet you like and only want a new counter, see vanity tops. If you're still deciding on a size, start with bathroom vanity sizes.

Brands that make bathroom vanities in our data

These brands supply the vanities in this table right now, listed here alphabetically. Each has its own page with its full lineup:

• ARIEL
• eclife
• James Martin Vanities
• Jeffrey Alexander
• Kohler
• Robern
• Signature Hardware
• Wyndham Collection

The table's order follows width, not brand. No brand pays for a spot, and none gets one.

Before the vanity comes home

A few things to settle before delivery day:

• Clear the path from the door to the bathroom, and measure the narrowest doorway on the way
• Check that the faucet you want matches the top's hole count: one hole or three
• Decide whether the old shutoff valves stay; the vanity swap is the time to replace them
• Find the studs in the wall behind the vanity and mark them

A vanity with a stone top is heavy. Carry it with two people, and anchor it to the wall as the maker's instructions show. Outlets near the sink should be GFCI-protected; the NKBA notes that bathroom receptacles must be, under the code it cites. If yours aren't, that's a call for a licensed electrician before the new vanity goes in.

For a short list sorted by width with a note on each pick, see best bathroom vanities. For the vanities in the lowest price tiers in our data, see cheap bathroom vanities.

Measure the drain. Then pick the vanity.