Galley Kitchen Ideas: The 1.2m Aisle Rule and 5 Layout Fixes

A galley kitchen puts two parallel runs of units either side of a single walkway, or one run along a single wall. Most of the time it is a layout you inherit rather than one you choose: in a Victorian terrace, a 1960s flat or a narrow side extension. It is also one of the most efficient layouts there is, because the sink, hob and fridge sit a step or a turn apart. The ideas below start with the measurements that decide whether a galley works, then move on to layout, storage, light and finishes.

Table of Contents

Start with the width: the 1 metre to 1.2 metre rule

The gap between the fronts of the two runs matters more than anything else in a galley. Get it wrong and doors clash, drawers cannot open fully and two people cannot pass.

Galley kitchen plan diagram: 1m minimum walkway, 1.2m comfortable for two, over 2m too wide — Walkway widths measured from worktop edge to worktop edge, from Neptune and Homebuilding & Renovating guidance | Graphic by Contemporary Structures

About 1 metre is the floor. Neptune’s design team advise allowing at least one metre between facing runs of cabinetry so that drawers and doors open without obstruction.
1.2 metres is comfortable for two. Homebuilding & Renovating suggests at least 1.2m between runs where one person cooks and another needs to get past.
Beyond about 2 metres the galley stops working. The same guidance warns that once the opposite run is too far away you lose the efficiency that makes the layout worthwhile, and 2m is more than enough.

Measure from worktop edge to worktop edge, not wall to wall. Standard worktops are 600mm deep, so two runs take up roughly 1.2m before you have any walkway at all. In practice a room needs to be about 2.2m to 2.4m wide inside for a comfortable double galley. If yours is narrower, Neptune’s advice is that a single run along one wall may be the better choice, with tall storage and a slim table or shelf on the other side.

Length matters too. A galley shorter than about 2m struggles to fit appliances as well as preparation space, so in a very short room an L-shape or a single run usually gives more usable worktop.

Plan the layout before you choose a door colour

In a galley, each appliance’s position decides whether the room is pleasant or frustrating. A few placement rules do most of the work:

Split the sink and hob across the two runs, or keep them well apart on one. Siemens’ kitchen planning advice sets 300mm as the minimum between sink and hob for safety, and recommends more where you can, because that stretch becomes your main preparation space.
Do not put the dishwasher directly opposite the fridge. In a narrow galley the two doors meet in the middle and block each other. Stagger them along the run.
Keep the oven away from the doorway end. An open oven door at the entrance traps whoever is cooking and is a burn risk for anyone walking in.
Leave a landing zone next to the oven. You need somewhere to put a hot tray down without crossing the walkway.
Put the tall units at one end. A bank of tall housings for the fridge-freezer, oven and larder works best at the far end or along one run, leaving the other side low and open so the room feels wider.

If the galley has a door at each end it is also a corridor. Keep the main working triangle (sink, hob, fridge) to one half of the room so people passing through do not cut across the cook.

Single galley or double galley?

A double galley gives roughly twice the worktop and storage, but needs that 2.2m or more of internal width. A single galley suits a room under about 2m wide, or an open-plan space where the kitchen sits along one wall facing a dining area. If you are planning an extension, our kitchen layout ideas compare the galley with L-shaped, U-shaped and island plans.

Storage ideas that suit a narrow room

Galleys rarely lack length; they lack depth and floor space. Storage should go up and along rather than out.

Wide, deep drawers instead of cupboards in base units. You can see everything from above without kneeling in the walkway. One Neptune customer who designed a galley for a Cotswolds cottage called his 900mm-wide pan drawers “a god-send”.
Full-height larder units. A 300mm or 400mm pull-out larder fits into gaps too narrow for a standard cupboard and holds a surprising amount of tins and jars.
Integrated bins. A freestanding bin in a galley is always in someone’s way. A pull-out bin inside a base unit removes the problem.
Wall units to the ceiling, or no wall units at all. Either take wall cabinets up to the ceiling so there is no dust-gathering gap, or swap one side’s wall units for open shelves to let the room breathe.
Use the end wall. The wall facing you as you walk in can take a tall dresser, a run of shelves or a narrow breakfast ledge.

Handles matter more than usual. Bar handles that stand proud of the doors catch hips and clothing in a 1m walkway, so consider handleless rails, recessed grips or slim knobs.

Light, colour and making a galley feel wider

Many galleys have one small window at the end, which leaves the middle of the room dim. Lighting has to do the work daylight cannot.

Under-cabinet strip lighting on both runs lights the worktop directly and stops you working in your own shadow.
A line of ceiling downlights down the centre of the walkway, rather than one central pendant, spreads light along the length of the room.
Pale or reflective worktops and splashbacks bounce light back into the room. Glossy tiles, a glass splashback or polished stone all help.
Glass-fronted wall units or open shelves on one side make the room feel less enclosed, as Siemens’ planners suggest.

Colour does not have to be white. A dark colour on the base units only, with pale walls and wall units above, keeps the eye moving upwards. A darker colour on the far end wall makes it appear to recede and the room feel shorter and wider. Our navy blue kitchen ideas show how deep colour works on lower cabinets.

Flooring laid lengthways down the galley exaggerates its length. Laying planks or rectangular tiles across the room, or on a diagonal, makes it read as wider.

Ventilation in a galley kitchen

A narrow room with one small window fills with steam and cooking smells quickly. Building regulations set minimum extract rates for kitchens in new work: Approved Document F asks for 30 litres per second where extraction is through a cooker hood, or 60 litres per second from an extract fan positioned elsewhere in the room. If you are refitting a galley as part of an extension or a renovation that needs building control sign-off, your installer should check the hood or fan meets the figure that applies. The full requirements are in Approved Document F on GOV.UK.

Ducting a hood to an outside wall almost always works better than a recirculating hood in a galley, because the room is too small to absorb the moisture a recirculating unit leaves behind.

Opening up a galley kitchen

Sometimes the best galley idea is to remove one wall of it. Knocking through to a dining room or into a side return turns a closed galley into a single-run kitchen with an island, or a galley that opens on one side to a table.

Load-bearing walls need a structural engineer’s calculations and a steel or timber beam, and the work needs building regulations approval.
Partial openings, such as a wide hatch or a half-height wall with a breakfast bar on top, keep some of the upper storage while letting light through.
Side return extensions are the classic way to widen a terraced-house galley. See our guide to side return extensions for what is usually involved.

If you keep the galley but want some seating, extending one worktop past the last base unit, ideally near the window, makes room for a stool or two without changing the layout.

Galley kitchen mistakes to avoid

Corner units at both ends of a run waste space in a galley; most galleys have no corners at all, so standard straight units give the most usable storage.
A range cooker in a narrow room. Its wide, heavy door eats most of a 1m walkway when open.
Appliance doors that open into the walkway at the same point. Check the swing of every door on the plan, including the fridge, before ordering.
Dark worktops, dark doors and dark floor together. One dark surface is a design choice; three in a room with one window feels like a corridor.
No socket plan. Count the appliances that will live on the worktop and put sockets where they will sit, not where the old ones were.

Frequently asked questions

What is the minimum width for a galley kitchen?

Aim for at least 1 metre between the fronts of the two runs, and 1.2 metres if two people will cook or pass each other. With two 600mm worktops that means a room roughly 2.2m to 2.4m wide inside. Narrower rooms usually work better as a single galley along one wall.

Can a galley kitchen have an island?

Not in the walkway itself. Even a slim island needs clearance on both sides, which a galley does not have. If you open one wall into a neighbouring room, the run you keep can face an island on the other side.

What is the best layout for a galley kitchen?

Sink and hob on different runs, or well spaced on one run, with the fridge and tall units at the far end and the oven away from the doorway. Keep the main working area in one half of the room if the galley is also a corridor.

How do I make a dark galley kitchen feel bigger?

Layer the lighting with under-cabinet strips and a line of ceiling lights, use pale or reflective worktops and splashbacks, swap some wall units for open shelves, and lay flooring across the room rather than along it.

Are galley kitchens still a good choice?

Yes, in the right room. Professional kitchens are often laid out as galleys because everything is within a step or two. The layout only fails when the walkway is too narrow, too wide, or used as a through-route by the rest of the house.

Planning a new kitchen or an extension in Kent? Contemporary Structures covers layouts, costs and the trades you will need.

Galley Kitchen Ideas: The 1.2m Aisle Rule and 5 Layout Fixes

Start with the width: the 1 metre to 1.2 metre rule

Plan the layout before you choose a door colour

Single galley or double galley?

Storage ideas that suit a narrow room

Light, colour and making a galley feel wider

Ventilation in a galley kitchen

Opening up a galley kitchen

Galley kitchen mistakes to avoid

Frequently asked questions

What is the minimum width for a galley kitchen?

Can a galley kitchen have an island?

What is the best layout for a galley kitchen?

How do I make a dark galley kitchen feel bigger?

Are galley kitchens still a good choice?

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