Team KBB

Where should I place the sink in my new kitchen?

Posted on 8th March 2025

Planning a kitchen renovation but don’t know where to start designing the wet zone? KBB journo Francesca Seden breaks down where you should place you sink for a highly functional layout.

When thinking about the placement of your kitchen sink, there are a few things to consider – the position of the existing plumbing, the main food preparation area, and the dishwasher. Ideally, you want these two areas easily accessible from the sink.

Traditional kitchen with a Belfast sink. — If you’ve gone for a more traditional look in the kitchen, a Belfast or apron sink such as the Hawkshaw 900 by Shaws of Darwen, could be a great option.

As Franke UK sales and marketing director, Jo Sargent, notes, it’s not essential to have these elements arranged in a ‘working triangle’, the traditional configuration which some designers now consider old fashioned; instead, “it’s very practical to create a linear flow between the hob and sink on an island unit, which means you can move back and forth easily between the ‘wet’ and ‘dry’ zones for food preparation, cooking and cleaning up.”

Kitchen island with a hob and an adjacent sink. — Franke’s Mythos MYX 110-70 undermount sink is shown in a set-up that supports efficient workflow for food preparation, cooking and clearing up, by placing the sink and hob in a linear flow. Priced at £660.

Modern design with a central island and handleless furniture. — Contemporary bespoke handleless kitchen by Simon Taylor Furniture, from £40,000. Photography: Darren Chung.

Closeup of a steel sink and chrome tap. — Blue Pure Eurosmart, Grohe.

Design ideas

Jo suggests that an island unit featuring the sink, hob and preparation area in a forward-facing position in an open-plan layout ensures the cook can interact with family and guests while preparing meals and carrying out kitchen tasks. It is also conventional to put the kitchen sink in front of a window where there is natural light.

Shaker kitchen with the sink placed under the window. — Handmade Shaker kitchen, £10,000, Olive & Barr.

But Nigel Palmer, head of communications marketing at House of Rohl, questions whether this is necessary, especially in the UK where we, sadly, have many grey days, and maybe not the greatest view. He says that modern lighting can be subtly mounted and extremely bright, targeted at the key working areas of the kitchen.

“Plumbers appreciate simplicity, but we see many kitchens where hidden pipework has given the designer freedom to rethink the space. Modern kitchens, with their open- and broken-plan layouts, often succeed by flouting the rules.”