TO SHOP | THE COUNTER STOOL GUIDE

AND WHAT TO LOOK FOR WHEN PICKING THEM OUT

Pull up a seat!! Today I’m featuring my favorite counter stools - specifically ones with a taller back! Most homes and apartments have some sort of counter dining. It could be like my set up at home where the kitchen island turns into a counter height dining situation. Whatever situation you have, making sure you have the right seat here is super important. Here’s why…

THE HEIGHT GAME

Have you ever sat in a chair or stool that felt too short for the counter top? Yeah, it sucks, right? That’s because there are certain standards in seat heights that ensure all of your pieces will work together. Here’s the break down:

The best rule of thumb for the ratio between you counter top and your chair height is about 12” between the top of the counter that the top of your seat. Try to notice this next time you’re at a restaurant! You definitely need at least 10” to cross your legs under a table.

Lucky for you, most kitchen counters are at 36” tall, and most counter stool seat heights are already made at 24 - 27” tall. However, if you have a funky situation where your counter height is at a different height, you want to make sure you measure first so you can pick out the right stool!

Why to pay attention to the height of the back of the stool too..

Not only does the height of the bar stool seat matter for comfort reasons, but the height of the counter stool back also matters! Let’s think about the relationship between the back height and the counter height. With my bar stool the back height is 37” H. This means that the back of the bar stools only stick up about an inch above the height of the counter. I really like the look of this in our home because they don’t take up so much visual weight when you look at our kitchen and living room area.

However, if you want your counter stools to be more of a statement in your kitchen I would think about getting some with a taller back height! This usually means the counter stool will also be a bit larger, but this is usually great and more comfortable to sit at! I would look for counter stools that have a 38”-40” tall back. This means the backs of them would stick up about 2-4” inches above the countertop!