Which side of a sink should a dishwasher be on? Even though this question may seem unimportant, the answer has a big effect on how smoothly your daily life goes.
Whether you need to find a specific cooking tool or want to speed up the clean-up after a dinner party, where you put your dishwasher will affect how easy it is to do the job. And while you may know how to clean a dishwasher and make sure that your dishes come out spotless, you may not know where this appliance is.
So, should a dishwasher be to the right of a sink or to the left? Here, experts help you find a solution that will work in your kitchen.
WHICH SIDE OF A SINK SHOULD A DISHWASHER BE ON?
The answer is completely up to you and depends on which hand you use most.
Daniel P. Craig, the founder of Kitchen Deets, says, “If you are right-handed, you should put your dishwasher on the left” (opens in new tab). “A right-handed person would stand at the sink with a plate in their left hand so they could use their right hand to scrape or wipe the plate and then use their left hand to put the plate in the dishwasher.”
If you are left-handed, Daniel suggests putting your dishwasher on the other side of your sink so you can reach it just as easily. He says, “It’s easier and more efficient to turn your dishwasher away from where you wash dishes.”
HOW FAR CAN DISHWASHER BE FROM SINK?
Evan Nelson, a cabinet expert at Nelson Cabinetry and a kitchen designer, says that you should put your dishwasher as close to the sink as possible. This makes the job of cleaning easier and faster. Evan says, “From a plumbing point of view, it makes more sense to put all the kitchen plumbing in one place to save money on materials and make it as easy to get to as possible.”
And besides being convenient, putting your dishwasher near your sink may also save you money.
“It is most cost-effective to put the dishwasher next to the sink,” says Kristen Reyes, an interior designer and CEO of Sey Interiors (opens in new tab). This is because the appliance is usually connected to your kitchen sink’s plumbing. “From a technical point of view, this is not the only place where a dishwasher can be. But it is the most useful place, and I always tell my clients to put theirs there if they can,” says the designer.
HOW FAR CAN DISHWASHER BE FROM SINK?
The dishwasher should be put as close to the sink as possible. But if your kitchen is small, you can still enjoy the convenience of a dishwasher with a little creativity.
Kristen says, “If you are short on space, you can also put the dishwasher 90 degrees from the kitchen sink.” Most people use their dishwasher every day, so it’s important to think about where you will stand when loading and unloading it.
Or, if you have another place to prepare food, like a wet bar or butler’s pantry, you could put another dishwasher there. “When planning for these kinds of small rooms, you can save space by putting in dishwasher drawers or an apartment-sized dishwasher,” she says.
