Kitchen island chairs are part of the focal point of a kitchen, just as important as the oven hood, or the countertops you choose! The kitchen island is often designed making the stools the centerpiece of your kitchen – so all the more reason to choose wisely!
I’m sharing the necessary measurements you need, PLUS 26 gorgeous kitchen island chairs that are beautiful additions to your kitchen! Nothing too utilitarian here.
Table of Contents
Kitchen Island Chairs
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Measurements To Know
First, let’s quickly talk about the difference between bar stools and counter stools heights. Read below to find out what you need so you purchase correctly!
Counter Stool Height
A standard countertop (including the kitchen island countertop) ranges from 36 to 39 inches. In order to be comfortable, you will want a counter stool that measures about 24 to 26 inches from floor to seat.
Taller families might of course prefer stools on the shorter end of that range, and vice versa.
Bar Stool Height
The countertop on a bar is usually around 40 to 42 inches high, so in this case opt for a bar stool about 28 to 30 inches tall.
How Many Stools Fit At A Kitchen Island?
This was our burning question when we built our almost 10ft island. I have an easy way for you to figure this out!
A simple math problem to find out how many stools fit at your kitchen island is to take the total length of your island in inches, and divide it by 29. Your answer is how many stools will fit comfortably. You can round up if its close!
Of course, different kitchen island chairs have different widths. For an adult to sit comfortably on a kitchen island chair you want about 28-30″ of elbow room per chair.
Generally speaking, you are looking for about 8 – 10″ of space between your island chairs, and of course a few inches leftover on each end.
26 Kitchen Island Chairs That Will Make Your Kitchen Shine
The following 26 kitchen island chairs are split into two categories – 12 high end counter stools, followed by 14 counter stools priced under $400. All are counter height, but many have a bar height option.
12 High End Kitchen Island Chairs
Counter stools might be the only furniture pieces in your kitchen, so choosing something beautiful just makes sense.
Sources: 1. Britt Counter Stool 2. Balboa Stool (scroll down to bottom for 2 knock offs) 3. Farallon Counter Chair 4. Loom Counter Stool 5. Fenton White Leather 6. Baldwin Counter Stool 7. Riviera Swivel 8. Blanchett Swivel Chairs 9. Bardot Counter Stool 10. Paige Acrylic Stool 11. Amory Stool 12. Avalon Counter Stool
14 Kitchen Island Chairs Under $400
Sources: 1. Seagrass Bucket Swivel 2. Lakeport Counter Stool 3. Bicast Leather Counter Stool 4. Noah Counter Stool 5. Lindy Counter Stool (in natural and in white) 6. Kouboo Chippendale Rattan Counter Stool 7. Shannon Counter Stool 8. Adeline Counter Stool 9. Black Steel Neal Stool 10. Natural Rattan Amolea 11. Alistair Counter Stool 12. Calder Counter Stool (so lovely!) 13. Windsor Counter Stool (great price!) 14. Cline Counter Stool
Just because they are more affordable doesn’t make any of these less beautiful. Above of these kitchen Island chairs I fell in love with. What do you think of the selection?
We own the non swivel version of the Riveria counter stools, but we also own the backless version of these! I have 4 kids and we think these are the perfection blend of beauty meeting practical.
The frame of the stools is rattan, a beautiful no maintenance wood, containing natural nicks and imperfections in the wood grain. (For indoor kitchen island chairs I much prefer rattan, over the look of aluminum on the knock offs).
The weave of the seat and chair backs is simply plastic, making them wipe up easily. (You can see a quick video of me cleaning up kids food on them in this post).
This chair is also available as a Riviera Swivel now too!
Some stand out kitchen island chairs I love…
The Avalon swivel stool always catches my eye because the back makes it beautiful from all angles! Rattan is so “in” right now – this is a great way to add some warmth to your kitchen, especially if you used a lot of grays and silver.
Via: Kristy Wicks
The $100 counter chairs are an amazing budget find, and a quarter of the price of Serena & Lily’s Tucker Counter Stools that are almost identical. Which ones do you like better?
Serena & Lily’s Tucker counter stool seen below, which have a more petite design….
Via: @lee_kristine
And below are Target’s counter stools, with a slightly larger profile. I still can’t get over the price!
via: Decor Pad
The design on the Balboa counter stools speak to me. This is a high perforance fabric on the seat cushions that can be zipped off and washed.
I have seen 2 good knock offs of the Balboa stool! Take a peek at these counter stools from Joss & Main, or these bar stools from Wayfair (remember – different measurements on bar stools):
Woven and wood furniture – anything with natural or natural looking materials – is considered in style right now. However, metal and plastic materials can look modern and cool in the right style of kitchen!
Do you have kitchen counter chairs you are eyeing that aren’t included here? You can see my whole kitchen here in this post!
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