We are not tall (I'm 5'3", DH is 5'8.5") and we LOVE our counter height vanities! The guy who made them for us had suggested it (partly as a way to maximize drawer/storage space) and it's one of our favorite things in all three bathrooms.

In fact, I b**ch and moan when we visit my parents and use the much lower-traditional height vanity in their guest bathroom during our stay.

Go for it!

You will NOT regret going with counters 36" high...love them! Especially for someone with a bad back.

I am 5'3" and dh is 5'8". We LOVE our higher vanity height! I too have a bad back.

Definitely 36". I am 5'3" and it is still fine. I don't know ow my DH, who is 6'4", dealt with the regular height vanities we had before.

That is giving me confidence - I asked DH to stand in front of the kitchen sink and pretend to brush teeth and wash face to see what he thinks.

Personally, I do not understand why vanities were ever made low in bathrooms not used by children. Our kitchen counters are 36" high and our new master bathroom vanity top will be, too. And we are not tall people!

Personally, I do not understand why vanities were ever made low in bathrooms not used by children.

It's my thought that when plumbing first moved indoors, most homes only had one bathroom, which had to accommodate both children and adults, thus the lower counter height.

Men were much shorter than too. I saw a shaving stand at an antiques store from about the 1920s and the top of the mirror was slightly below my head level. I'm 5'6.

Our house was built in 1999 and the MB vanity is 36". I wonder when they started using the higher vanities.

Thanks - I couldn't see any reason to go shorter but there were a few threads where folks didn't like them.
I think I picked out the style for my vanity - just have to figure out who makes something like it...

My master bath counters are 37.5" - I love them. 38" would have been fine too. I'm almost 5'9", DH is 5'11".

Sochi - thanks! I will test that height also

Does anyone think a 38" high vanity in the master would be an impediment to re-sale? I am 5' 10.5" and DH is 6'. Our cabinet maker discouraged us from going over 36" because it is so non-standard. I loved the 38" high kitchen island in our last house and imagine it would be comfortable for a vanity too. The 38" would give us better drawer heights for storage too. (I am so miserable leaning over the sink with our current 32" vanities.)

I certainly don't think it would be a determinative factor in buying a home. 38" is higher than average, but the vast majority of people wouldn't even notice it (they might notice less pain in their backs). Very short people may be challenged by it, but again, I can't imagine it being a serious impediment.

If you're planning on moving in the next year or two, maybe go with 36". Otherwise, go for it, you'll both love it.

Currently thinking of going with the 26 - but have to decide on the sink - if we go undercount, maybe go higher.
We plan on living here for 20 more years...

Definitely love our counter height. I went counter height in my daughter's bath too! She doesn't even notice and she's short.

Gemini, do you mean 36??

Oops- yes 36 inch.
Guess I failed text 101 or turned into a hobbit!

Hi Everyone, The consensus seems to be 36", but I find that at 36" when I bend to wash my face water runs down my arms and onto the floor. I am 5'7" and I think you need something's little lower to create a downward angle. Otherwise you need to wipe up the water that has dripped from your elbows. Any thoughts on this?

We're short and love a 36" vanity (really 34-1/2" plus countertop, just like in the kitchen). However, if I were doing drop-in sinks, I would get them a little shorter (but for undermounted sinks, they're perfect).

Yes, the water does drip down my arms a bit. But I prefer that to bending down.

This new vanity height is a revelation to me. I had no idea until today that they have been trending higher. 36"?!! The same height as kitchen counters?!!

I'm planning to redo my hall bath. The current vanity + counter is 30". I like it, but I've never tried anything higher. I'm 5'4" and live alone, probably will live here for the duration, and don't plan to ever have a vessel sink.

My only concern is getting close to the mirror. Seems like it will be a stretch.

I guess the added storage isn't a bad thing.

Hoping to be able to tell you what the 36" height with an undermount sink is like by the end of the weekend....whooeee! In my extensive research, this detail like many others was analyzed to death...it is now recommended to have vanity counters at that height...this tells you how long I have been researching...when I started...it was not commonplace. I did find out however, that it looks really odd, and perhaps is not as functional when using a vessel sink. Luckily one of the cabinet places I went to, had a vessel sink in their customer BR on a kitchen height vanity. It just looked odd and out of place. I had mocked it up with bowls on my kitchen counter, and thought it was fine. Seeing it in real life convinced me not to do it.

In our recent remodeled 3 bathrooms, using kitchen counter height vanity is our first and most important requirement.

We used custom built cabinets for one bathroom, stock purchased cabinets for the other two, each vanity is 36 inches tall including granite counter top. The depth of the counter is 22.5 inches. We use undermount sinks.

I am only 5' 4", DH is much taller, he loves the counter height.

I Never have any problem to reach/use mirrors. In fact I got used to the new counter height since day one. Not until then I did not realize how much we had been deprived using the low vanities in the old bathrooms.

raehelen and azmom, photos please.

It looks odd? I'll bet it does. Doesn't it look massive?

Does anybody just split the difference and go 33-34"?

I just measured mine and with countertop they are 33". That should be fine for me, I'm only 5'0". We have undermount sinks.

Hello linelle,

For some reasons I could not get photos uploaded from photobucket even I have done that many times in the past. Please provide your email through my garden web email. I will send the photos when I get your address.

This post was edited by azmom on Sun, Feb 23, 14 at 1:25

I'm 5'4" and love the higher height of my vanities. Re the mirror, if you have a medicine cabinet with a door that swings open, I love my Robern magnifying mirror. Not cheap (maybe $80?) but it brings the mirror way forward and is great for putting on makeup. It is tucked inside the cabinet when not in use.

My master bathroom vanity is 34-1/2 tall and 36 inches high with the countertop. My daughter is redoing her bathroom and when she ordered her new cabinets she wasn't even asked if she wanted 31-1/2 or 34-1/2. The cabinet store automatically listed them at the higher height which was fine with my daughter. I am only 5'4" told and don't have a problem with the higher vanity. When I go into my other bathroom with lower height vanities, they definitly seem too low.
I am not sure if you can really tell the height from a picture, but here is my higher vanity.

Everyone's vanities look perfectly normal to me in the photos posted. :) I can't believe I'm just learning about this increased height. I guess my current vanities would seem so low to everyone (30"). Increased storage capacity is always a good thing.

When we redid our hall bathroom we didn't even notice the vanity we purchased was taller until DH used it and commeted how nice it was. Our in our master seems uncommonly low at 29.5" but it was built on site and the first home in this addition.

We plan to change to 36" when we get to that part of the renovation for the master.

We put in a 36" (34.5" high cab with granite top) high vanity in our master bedroom. Our family/guest bathroom is lower and feels weird to me. I'm about 5' 6" and like the higher height.

You might also consider how you use the vanity. I used my kitchen sink as a trial "run" on height and found I would be reaching quite a bit (on tip toes almost) if I were to wet my hair down in the sink. If you only brush teeth, wash face, the higher 36" would be great, especially if you are taller.

divotdiva, it would be mostly teeth-brushing and face-washing. Major hair-wetting happens in the shower or leaning over the tub, minor wetting via a spray bottle.

Yes! to using kitchen counter height vanity in bathroom. We are working on a bathroom now and did just that. And just as in our kitchen, this vanity has drawers, drawers, drawers! :) The granite top was just recently installed, and it is actually feeling more like a bathroom. For quite a while there has only been a shower, tub, and toilet. We have had to go to the laundry sink to wash hands. Not exactly convenient, so I am really looking forward to DH finishing the faucet install. ;)

Anything between 33-36 is fine. Noone will really complain within that range. I rarely see vanities go beyond 35 though.

I have counter-height vanities and I dislike them, mostly because I have two small children (age 2 and 4) and they have a lot of difficulty with the high counters. There are no stools that they can stand on to wash their hands by themselves! I like the idea of more storage space, etc, but for kids, a higher counter is problematic.

Interesting discussion. The ones in my house are 30", which for a 6'4" oaf like me means that they come to mid-thigh. I've been considering raising them but haven't come up with a plan as yet. New cabinets (never liked calling them 'vanity'; sounds odd/juvenile) are definitely out of the budget for the foreseeable future, so I've toyed with the idea of just raising the whole thing from underneath with a simple wood frame. My mother (who may be reading this, so be kind) suggested raising the countertops instead, and filling in the added front space with those little bottom-hinged, tilt-out drawers like you see under some kitchen sinks, but I'm not sure that I'd have enough space for that unless I added a good 6". That 6" Is tempting at my height, but in the tight 3/4 master bath I wonder if it would seem too big.

In reference to the height affecting the attractiveness of the house for sale, it's definitely not a deal-breaker. I noticed how low these were when I first looked at the place but the house had so much else going for it (built 1972, nice mix of originality and gentle renovations) that the low bathroom counters gave me no pause. I'm handy guy, I can fix it. And in the meantime, it's not the end of the world.