Banquette Seating Dimensions: A UK Specification Guide
A dining banquette seats at 450mm high with a depth of 450 to 500mm, measured to the top of the finished cushion. Back height runs 850 to 1000mm from the floor. Allow 91 to 97cm of run per table at minimum spacing, or 137cm where guests need privacy. The dimension that catches most buyers out is the one added by the upholstery after the frame is built.
Last updated: October 2026
Table of contents
- Quick reference
- Seat height and the cushion crown problem
- Banquette seat depth: why published figures disagree
- Banquette back height and what it does to the room
- Spacing and clearances
- Covers per linear metre
- When to move off standard banquette seating dimensions
Quick reference
| Dimension | Dining | Lounge |
|---|---|---|
| Seat height (floor to finished cushion) | 450–500mm | 400–450mm |
| Seat depth | 450–500mm | 600–700mm |
| Back height (floor to top) | 850–1000mm | 800–900mm |
| Clearance, seat to table underside | ~300mm | n/a |
| Table height | 710–760mm | 400–450mm |
| Run per table, minimum | 910–970mm | — |
| Run per table, privacy spacing | 1370mm | — |
The banquette seating dimensions above are metric throughout, because that is how UK joiners and upholsterers work even where the industry still quotes tables in feet.
Seat height and the cushion crown problem
UK upholsterers work to a standard dining seat height of 450 to 500mm from floor to the top of the cushion, with around 450mm finished being the common target. That height lets diners rest their arms on the table edge without lifting their shoulders or rounding their backs.
The trap is in the word finished.
Seat height is measured to the very top of the cushion crown, the curve created by the cushioning, and total seating height includes the pad and the upholstery cover as well as the frame.
Two banquette seating dimensions interact here: the finished seat height, and the clearance it leaves under the table. Get the first wrong and you lose the second. So a frame built at 450mm with a 50mm cushion is not a 450mm banquette. It is a 480 to 500mm banquette once the crown is accounted for, and your 300mm clearance to the table underside has become 250mm.
Specify the finished height, not the frame height, and put it in writing. If the numbers drift, the base of the pad or the plinth boxing can be adjusted to bring the finished height back to target. That is a conversation to have before manufacture, not after delivery.
Check it against your tables. UK dining tables run 710 to 760mm, and our banqueting table sizes guide covers where those figures come from.
Banquette seat depth: why published figures disagree
This is where published figures genuinely conflict, and it is worth understanding rather than averaging.
- Some makers quote 450 to 500mm as standard for dining, and 600 to 700mm for lounge
- Others put 400 to 450mm as the ideal for comfortable support
- Others again quote 457 to 508mm as typical, and strongly discourage anything below 406mm
The 400 to 450mm band sits partly inside the zone others discourage. If depth were a standalone number, somebody would have to be wrong.
It is not. Depth depends on the back angle.
More recline means greater overall depth. A 90 degree upright back suits fast-turnover venues and works at the shallower end, because the guest sits forward to eat. A reclined back, typically 3 to 5 degrees, pushes the usable seating surface backwards and needs the extra depth to compensate.
Practical rule: upright back, 400 to 450mm. Reclined dining back, 450 to 500mm. Lounge with back cushions, 600 to 700mm. Below 400mm, guests report tailbone fatigue, because pressure concentrates under the sit bones instead of distributing across the thigh.
If you specify a deep seat, the table has to move further out, which costs you floor space. Deep seats without back cushions are the most common comfort complaint in banquette installations.
Banquette back height and what it does to the room
Back height is not an ergonomic decision. It is a privacy and sightline decision, and it changes how the whole room reads.
Restaurant banquettes typically run 850 to 1000mm from floor to top of backrest. Higher backs give the classic restaurant feel and better privacy.
Three practical bands:
- 800 to 900mm. Guests can see over. Open, social, suits cafés and bar areas where the room should feel connected.
- 1200mm. A seated guest’s head is hidden. Half-privacy, the standard restaurant booth feel.
- Above 1200mm. Full separation, and it starts to dominate the space.
Use high backs selectively rather than throughout, or they overpower the room. A perimeter of 900mm banquette with two high-backed booths reads better than a room of 1200mm panels.
Acoustics come into this too. A tall upholstered back absorbs sound, which is often the real reason a designer specifies one.
Spacing and clearances
Seat and back figures decide comfort. Spacing decides how many covers you fit along a wall, and it is where capacity is won or lost.
Minimum spacing. Tables set 310 to 360mm apart, which is roughly the depth of a person, giving an overall zone of 910 to 970mm per table.
Privacy spacing. Tables 610mm apart, requiring 1370mm per table.
That is a 40% difference in floor consumption per table, and it is the single biggest lever you have on banquette capacity.
For the aisle side, allow total clearance of 910 to 1520mm, split into a sitting zone of 460 to 610mm and a circulation zone of 460 to 910mm. Loose chairs opposite the banquette should sit 610 to 760mm apart.
Two things override all of this: your licensed capacity and your fire escape route widths. Layout figures are for comfort, not compliance.
Covers per linear metre
Few guides convert banquette seating dimensions into the number an operator actually budgets with. Here it is.
A single-sided banquette run seats two covers per table on the wall side, with loose chairs opposite.
- At minimum spacing (910 to 970mm per table): roughly 1 table per metre, so about 2 wall-side covers per linear metre
- At privacy spacing (1370mm per table): roughly 0.73 tables per metre, so about 1.5 wall-side covers per linear metre
For a 10 metre run, that is 20 wall-side covers tight against 15 with privacy spacing. Add the chair side and you are comparing 40 covers to 30.
Five extra tables across a 10 metre wall is a real revenue difference, and it is decided at the drawing stage rather than after installation. Work out which side of that trade-off your concept sits on before the joiner starts.
This also feeds your budget. Banquettes are usually quoted per linear metre, so covers per metre is what converts a joinery quote into a cost per seat.
When to move off standard banquette seating dimensions
Commercial dimensions get adjusted to suit layouts, tables and usage patterns, provided the ergonomic relationships hold. Four situations where standard is the wrong answer:
- Corner and curved runs. Corners lose usable seat length. Budget one fewer cover per corner than the linear maths suggests.
- Bar-height banquettes. Seat and back scale up together with the counter. Do not raise the seat and leave the back where it was.
- Long dwell times. Hotel lounges and members’ clubs justify the deeper seat and back cushions. Fast-turnover cafés do not.
- Uneven walls. Most banquettes are built in situ by joiners because rooms are rarely square. Measure wall-to-wall at seat height, not at skirting level.
Whatever you specify, the fire requirement does not change: upholstered banquettes need Crib 5 under BS 7176, covered in our Crib 5 fire regulations guide.
Great Albion Furniture supplies contract seating and tables to UK venues, and our custom restaurant sofas service builds banquette seating to your wall dimensions. Browse our restaurant chairs and restaurant tables, or send your wall dimensions and cover target.
The banquette seating dimensions above are starting points rather than rules, and a good joiner will adjust them to the room.
Frequently asked questions on banquette seating dimensions
What is the standard height for banquette seating?
450 to 500mm from the floor to the top of the finished cushion, which matches standard dining chair height and works with a 710 to 760mm table. Specify the finished height including upholstery, not the frame height, or the cushion crown will push it 30 to 50mm higher than intended.
How deep should a banquette seat be?
400 to 450mm for an upright back, 450 to 500mm for a reclined dining back, and 600 to 700mm for lounge seating with back cushions. Below 400mm, pressure concentrates under the sit bones and guests become uncomfortable within a normal sitting.
How much space does each banquette table need?
Between 910 and 970mm of run per table at minimum spacing, or 1370mm where guests need privacy. That is a 40% difference in floor consumption per table, so it is worth deciding deliberately rather than by default.
How high should a banquette back be?
800 to 900mm for open café settings where guests see over, around 1200mm for restaurant booths where a seated head is hidden. Above 1200mm gives full separation but starts to dominate the room, so use it selectively.
Do banquettes need to be Crib 5 certified?
Yes, if they are upholstered and contain foam. Crib 5 under BS 7176 is the medium hazard standard for non-domestic seating, and it applies to fixed banquettes and booth seating as much as to loose chairs.
About the author
Written by the Great Albion Furniture team. Great Albion Furniture supplies commercial furniture to restaurants, cafés, hotels and hospitality venues across the United Kingdom.