Cabinets over washer and dryer units get planned from the machines up. Pick the washer and dryer first, or at least the sizes they’re listed at, before the cabinets and counter are ordered. A counter over front-loaders takes its height, depth and gaps from the machines, not from the kitchen. The cabinets go above that counter, where the person doing the laundry can reach them.
Draw that wall from kitchen habit and the counter can miss the machines. A counter set at kitchen height can be too low for a full-size front-loader. A counter that’s too shallow leaves the machines sticking out past it. And a counter that rests on the pair, or boxes them in, turns a repair into a tear-out. All of it is cheaper to settle while the plan is a drawing than after the counter is cut.
How High Should the Counter Over a Washer and Dryer Be?
High enough for the machines you choose, plus the room their maker asks for around them. That can put the laundry counter higher than the counters in your kitchen. There’s no single right number, because each model lists its own installation height. The machines set the counter, and the counter sets what goes above it.
One model shows how specific this gets. For a front-load washer, one washer maker’s installation page lists an undercounter installation height of 39 inches. The same page says that when it comes to clearance around the washer, more clearance is better than less. That’s one model’s number, though. Another washer lists its own.
Kitchens get planned around the standard kitchen countertop height of 36 inches. So a laundry counter copied from the kitchen can sit too low for a full-size front-loader like that one. Compact and shorter machines list their own heights. Don’t let the kitchen set it. The exact model does, which is why its installation instructions should reach your designer before the counter is ordered.
Two things can move that height. Pedestals raise the machines off the floor, so they shift where the counter lands. And a top-loading washer opens upward. Its lid needs clear space, so a counter generally belongs over front-loaders. Both are worth raising early, while the elevation is still being drawn.
How Deep Should the Laundry Counter Be?
Deeper than the machines alone. The water supply, the hoses and the dryer duct all sit behind a washer and dryer, and that space has to be in the plan. So the counter and the cabinet run get drawn from each machine’s listed depth plus the rear room its maker asks for, not from a kitchen base cabinet.
The same maker puts numbers on that for one model. Its front-load washer is listed at 34 inches deep, with rear clearance of 5.9 inches in a side-by-side installation. Add the gap behind and you’re planning past the machine’s own depth. Other machines list other depths, so the pair you buy governs the drawing.
Gaps matter on the sides and the back. Where the water supply sits behind the washer, another maker’s general installation guide asks for at least 1 inch on each side and 0.2 inch above the washer. The same guide asks for at least 4 inches between the back of the unit and the water supply. It also says it was written for all its models, so the exact product may differ. Your machines’ own instructions are the ones that govern.
Side gaps add up across two machines. The opening in the cabinet run is the machines plus their gaps, not the machines alone. The cabinets above line up with that opening. That’s the number to protect, and it comes from the instructions rather than from memory.
Can the Washer and Dryer Still Come Out for Service?
They should. As a general rule the counter is carried by the cabinets, the side panels or the walls, not by the machines themselves. That way a washer or dryer can slide out for a repair or a swap without the counter coming off. Plan that pull-out room while the wall is still a drawing.
Some homeowners ask for a section of counter over the machines that lifts out. It’s a fair thing to raise with your designer, because it changes how the counter gets supported and finished.
The water shutoffs and the outlets are your builder’s and the trades’ work. So is the dryer duct. What the design can do is leave room to reach all of it.
If doors will close over the pair, the door style belongs in the plan early. The same washer maker is specific about that. When a washer and a dryer share one closet or alcove, the front needs at least 72 square inches of unobstructed air opening. That’s that maker’s requirement for its own machines. Check what your models ask for before the doors get picked.
Placing the Cabinets Over Washer and Dryer Units
Once the counter height is set, the cabinets above have a starting line. They hold detergent, linens and supplies, and they go where the person doing the laundry can reach them without a step stool. The counter below becomes the folding surface, so leave working room above it. A shelf nobody can reach isn’t storage.
The space between the counter and the cabinets comes down to the same questions as kitchen uppers: who’s reaching them, and what has to clear the counter. The reach test behind how high upper cabinets sit above a counter in a kitchen works the same way over a laundry counter. Don’t copy the kitchen’s numbers, though. Copy its thinking.
Plan for the next pair too. A replacement washer or dryer can come in taller or deeper than the one you own, and a wall built to the bare minimum turns a swap into a rebuild. Leaving room past the minimum gives up a little wall space. It can save a counter. The washer maker’s line is worth keeping in mind: more clearance is better than less.
Organization is key in the laundry room. Kitchen Design Partners can help plan effective and tasteful storage using cabinetry across the home — our laundry room and other-space cabinetry included.
Frequently Asked Questions About Laundry Counters and Cabinets
Can you put a countertop over a top-loading washer?
Not over the lid, as a rule. A top-loader opens upward, so it needs open space above it, and a solid counter fights that. A counter suits front-loading machines. One option is to keep the counter beside a top-loading pair instead of over it, with the cabinets set where they clear the open lid. Your designer can lay out both versions before anything is ordered.
Will a washer and dryer fit under a 36-inch counter?
Only if the models you pick list undercounter heights that fit under it. One maker’s full-size front-load washer is listed at 39 inches for undercounter installation, which is taller than that counter. Compact and shorter machines list their own heights. So the answer comes from the specific models, not from the counter. Check both machines with your designer before the countertop is ordered.
Should the counter rest on top of the machines?
As a general rule, no. Carry it on the cabinets or the walls so the machines can slide out when one needs service. Side panels can do that job too. One maker’s general guide even asks for a small gap above the washer where the water supply sits behind it, which a counter resting on the machine wouldn’t leave. Ask your designer how the counter is supported.
Do you need to choose the washer and dryer before the cabinets?
Ideally, yes, or at least the listed sizes you’re planning around. The counter height and the depth of the run come from the machines. So do the side gaps. If the pair isn’t picked yet, plan around the largest models you’d consider and leave room past the minimum. Then bring the real instructions to your designer as soon as you have them.
Does Kitchen Design Partners help plan laundry rooms?
Yes. Organization is key in the laundry room or home office, and the team can help plan effective and tasteful storage using cabinetry to transform spaces across your home. The first step is to contact us to schedule an appointment. We’ll discuss your needs, tour our Northbrook showroom with you, and start developing a customized design plan.
Set the Laundry Counter While the Plan Is a Drawing
Kitchen Design Partners specializes in kitchen and bath design, remodeling, custom and semi-custom cabinetry, countertops and tile, and guides each choice in the right order.
The sizes of the machines and the counter over them are easiest to settle before anything gets ordered or cut. The cabinets above follow from that.
Bring your washer and dryer model numbers, or the sizes they’re listed at, and schedule a design consultation to plan cabinets over washer and dryer units that fit the machines you choose. You’re welcome to visit our state-of-the-art showroom and explore different kitchen layouts, styles and materials.
