A 10x10 bathroom (120 × 120 in, 100 sq ft) holds a full primary bath. A 60 in tub and a 60 × 36 in shower fit side by side on one 10 ft wall, 60 + 60 = 120 in with nothing to spare, and a 72 in double vanity goes on the side wall. Without a tub, the same shower and vanity pass every comfortable-spacing check with floor to spare, enough for a toilet room or a freestanding tub.
Four 10x10 layouts, drawn to scale
The dashed boxes are the code’s clear spaces in front of each fixture, and the brass line marks the toilet’s centerline. Open a plan in the layout planner to move things or try your own door.
- Clear in front of the shower: 84 in
- Clear in front of the vanity: 39 in
- Sink centerline to the side: 36 in
- Toilet centerline to the side: 18 in
- Clear in front of the toilet: 69 in
Layout A: a tub and a shower, side by side
A 60 × 30 in tub and a 60 × 36 in shower base share the far wall, which is exactly 120 in: on paper, with nothing to spare, so before you count on it, check the stud opening each one’s installation sheet asks for and the wall or glass that goes between them. A 72 in double vanity runs down one side wall with its sinks 36 in apart, and the toilet sits on the other, 18 in from the shower with 69 in of floor in front. Every comfortable-spacing check passes.
- Best for: keeping a tub and adding a real shower, with two sinks.
- The trade-off: the fixtures use three walls, so the plumbing does too.
- Clear in front of the shower: 84 in
- Clear in front of the vanity: 99 in
- Sink centerline to the side: 21 in
- Toilet centerline to the side: 18 in
- Clear in front of the toilet: 90 in
Layout B: no tub, a walk-in shower and two sinks
A 60 × 36 in shower fills one corner with 84 in of floor in front of it. The toilet sits next to it on the same wall, 18 in from the shower, and a 72 in double vanity takes the side wall. All the comfortable spacing is there, and the middle of the room stays open.
- Best for: a primary bath that skips the tub.
- The trade-off: no tub; if this is the only full bath in the house, plan one somewhere else.
- Clear in front of the shower: 84 in
- Toilet centerline to the side: 18 in
- Clear in front of the toilet: 90 in
- Clear in front of the vanity: 58½ in
- Sink centerline to the side: 24 in
Layout C: a toilet room
A partition wall 66 in long closes off a toilet room 36 in wide inside in one corner, the size the NKBA suggests, with 18 in on each side of the toilet. A 60 × 36 in shower takes the other corner of that wall, an 18 in linen cabinet fits between the two, and a 72 in double vanity runs down the side wall. Every comfortable check passes.
- Best for: privacy in a bath two people share.
- The trade-off: the plan leaves the toilet room open; a pocket door closes it without a door swing.
- Clear in front of the shower: 84 in
- Toilet centerline to the side: 15 in
- Clear in front of the toilet: 90 in
- Clear in front of the vanity: 61½ in
- Sink centerline to the side: 21 in
Layout D: a freestanding tub
A 66 × 31½ in freestanding tub stands along one wall, 6 in out from it and 27 in from each corner. A 48 × 36 in shower fills the far corner with the toilet beside it, and a 72 in double vanity takes the opposite wall with 61 in of floor in front.
- Best for: a tub you see from the door, plus a separate shower and two sinks.
- The trade-off: the toilet is at the code’s 15 in from the shower, and a freestanding tub drains through the floor beneath it, so its drain usually moves.
What the plans assume. The fixtures are drawn at the planner’s nominal sizes, in a room measured between finished walls, with the door where it’s shown. A plan that passes keeps the code’s spacing for those sizes; it doesn’t show that a particular product fits. Check the spec sheet of each fixture you buy. A tub or a shower base goes in against the studs before the walls are finished, so fit it to the stud-to-stud opening its installation sheet gives, not to the finished width: on Kohler’s drawing of its Villager tub, the finished end wall laps ⅞ in over the tub. How each rule is read: what the planner checks.
The toilet room. The plans draw its partition as a framed wall 4½ in thick (2×4 studs with drywall on both sides), and the room sizes given are inside it. The doorway is left open, so choose the door before you build: a pocket door needs a stretch of wall beside the opening at least as wide as the door, clear of pipes and wires, and a door that swings in would sweep the toilet’s clear space, which is why the NKBA suggests a pocket door or one that opens out.
The double vanity. The planner’s 72 in double vanity sets its sinks 18 in from each end and 36 in apart. Kohler’s 72 in Charlemont has them 16⅝ in from the ends and 39-11/16 in apart, still more than the code’s 15 in from a wall; check your own model’s basin centers on its spec sheet. More in how wide a double vanity needs to be.
A 9x10 bathroom
Take a foot off one side and a 9x10 bathroom (108 × 120 in, 90 sq ft) keeps almost everything. Our planner still fits a 60 in tub, a 60 × 36 in shower and a 72 in double vanity with every comfortable check passing. What changes is where the tub and the shower go: side by side they need 120 in, so they share a 10 ft wall or face each other across the room.
| 9 × 10 ft | 10 × 10 ft | |
|---|---|---|
| Floor area | 90 sq ft | 100 sq ft |
| Tub + 60 × 36 in shower + 72 in double vanity | Yes | Yes |
| Tub and shower side by side | On a 10 ft wall | On any wall |
| No tub: shower + 72 in vanity, every comfortable check | Yes | Yes |
From the BathDraft layout planner, with an elongated toilet and a 30 in door. For the next size up, see 10x12 bathroom layouts; for one foot narrower, 8x10 bathroom layouts.
Questions people ask
What fits in a 10x10 bathroom?
A full primary bath: a 60 in tub, a 60 × 36 in shower, a 72 in double vanity and the toilet, all with comfortable spacing (Layout A). It also fits a toilet room or a freestanding tub.
What is a good 10x10 bathroom layout with no tub?
A 60 × 36 in walk-in shower in one corner with the toilet beside it and a 72 in double vanity on the side wall (Layout B), or the same with a toilet room (Layout C).
Can a 10x10 bathroom have a walk-in closet?
A full bath leaves little room in 100 sq ft for hanging clothes, so the closet usually goes next door, often as a walk-through between the bedroom and the bath. See bathroom and closet layouts.
Is a 10x10 bathroom big enough for a freestanding tub?
Yes, a 66 in one along a wall with a 48 × 36 in shower and two sinks (Layout D). Freestanding tub guides suggest at least 4 in between the tub and each wall.
How many square feet is a 10x10 bathroom?
100 sq ft (10 × 10), about 9.3 m².
Sources
- 2021 International Residential Code, chapter 3 (R307.1 fixture clearances, R305.1 ceiling height) and chapter 27 (P2705.1 fixture spacing, P2708.1 showers), read in Colorado’s adoption without amendments on UpCodes
- Larimer County, Colorado: Figure R307.1 bathroom clearances
- NKBA’s free bath planning guidelines: the roomier spacing (18 in beside a toilet, 20 in beside a sink, 36 in between two sinks, 30 in in front of each fixture, a 36 × 36 in shower, a 32 in door opening, a 36 × 66 in toilet compartment). Its newer, paid editions change some numbers.
- Kohler Underscore alcove tubs, 60 × 30 in and 60 × 32 in spec sheets
- Freestanding tubs: Kohler Ceric (59-11/16 × 28⅞ in) and Abrazo (66 × 31½ in) spec sheets; at least 4 in to the wall on every side from Signature Hardware’s freestanding tub buying guide
- Toilet depths from the wall: Kohler Cimarron round and elongated spec sheets
Checked October 19, 2026. All plans and the 9x10 comparison were worked out with the BathDraft layout planner; centimeters are converted from inches.