Measuring guide
How to measure your kitchen or bedroom
You don't need to be an expert. Rough-but-careful measurements are all we need to prepare your free design and quote. Here's how to take them, step by step.
Before you start
What you'll need
Set aside 30 to 45 minutes and clear the walls as much as you can.
Steel tape measure
A 5m or 8m tape is ideal. A laser measure is handy for long walls.
Paper & pencil
Squared paper makes sketching easier. Keep an eraser nearby.
Phone camera
Photos of each wall help us spot anything a sketch misses.
A helper
A second pair of hands keeps the tape straight on long runs.
Four golden rules
- 1Measure everything in millimetres (mm), not centimetres or inches.
- 2Measure wall to wall, ignoring skirting boards and existing units.
- 3Take each measurement twice. If the readings differ, measure a third time.
- 4Write measurements on your sketch as you go, not from memory afterwards.
Step 1: Sketch the room from above
Draw a simple outline of the room as if you were looking down from the ceiling. It doesn't need to be neat or to scale.
Give each wall a letter, working clockwise from the door. Mark the doors (and which way they open), windows, chimney breasts, boxing and any alcoves.
- Total length of each wall
- Depth of any chimney breast, pillar or boxing
- Position of the boiler, radiators and pipes
Step 2: Measure each wall in turn
Now stand facing each wall and draw it flat, like a picture on a page. Measure in a chain from one corner to the other, so every gap, door and window adds up to the total width.
- Floor to ceiling height
- Corner to door frame, and the door width including its frame (architrave)
- Corner to window, window width and height
- Floor to the underside of the window sill
Tip: add up your chain of measurements. If it doesn't match the total wall width, measure that wall again.
Step 3: Measure at three heights
Very few walls are perfectly straight or square, especially in older homes. Measure each wall's width near the floor, at waist height and near the ceiling. Do the same for ceiling height at both ends of the room.
Always give us the smallest figure. Cabinets are made to fit the tightest point, and any small gaps elsewhere are finished neatly with scribe or filler panels.
Mark services and fixed features
Some things are expensive or impossible to move. Mark where they are on each wall drawing, with their distance from the nearest corner and from the floor.
Your stop tap and boiler must stay accessible once the furniture is in. If you're planning to move any services, tell us where they'll end up instead.
- Sockets & switches
- Light fittings & spotlights
- Radiators & underfloor heating controls
- Boiler & gas supply
- Water pipes, waste pipes & stop tap
- Extractor ducting & air vents
- Meters, fuse boxes & thermostats
Step 5: Bedrooms: slopes, alcoves and lofts
Fitted wardrobes are often planned around awkward spaces, which is where accurate measurements matter most.
- Knee wall height, where the slope meets the low wall
- How far the slope runs across the floor before the ceiling flattens
- Width, depth and height of each chimney alcove
- Depth of any coving and skirting you plan to keep
- Anything in the way of doors opening, such as light switches or radiators
Avoid these
Common measuring mistakes
Measuring to the skirting board
Measure to the bare wall. Skirting is usually removed or cut around when cabinets are fitted.
Using only one reading per wall
Walls lean and bow. A single reading can be 10mm or more out at a different height.
Forgetting the door swing
Show which way room doors open, so we don't plan a tall unit where the door can't clear it.
Missing boxed-in pipes
Boxing, bulkheads and chimney breasts all affect cabinet depths. Measure their width, depth and height.
Rounding numbers
2,397mm is not 2,400mm. Give us the exact figure and we'll allow for tolerances in the design.
Ready to send
Your measuring checklist
Send us what you have, even if it's incomplete. A photo of your sketch is fine, and we'll ask about anything that's unclear.
- A floor plan sketch with walls lettered A, B, C, D
- Measurements for each wall, taken at three heights
- Ceiling height (and slope details, if any)
- Door and window sizes, positions and sill heights
- Positions of sockets, pipes, radiators, boiler and vents
- A photo of each wall
- Any appliances you're keeping, with their model numbers
Your measurements are used for the design and quotation. Before anything is ordered, final site measurements must be checked, ideally by your fitter, and the specification approved in writing.
Ready to start planning?
Send us your measurements, plans or photos and we'll prepare a free initial design and quotation, with no obligation.