Single bowl kitchen sinks buying guide
A single bowl kitchen sink is one large basin with no divider. This page answers the questions people ask before they buy one: what it is called, whether a single bowl suits you, what size to choose, and how to wash dishes in one basin. It then goes through the single bowl sinks in this collection by type, with drainer, large, small and round sizes. The practical call for most kitchens is a single bowl if you run a dishwasher and cook with large pots and trays, and a drainer on the side if you hand-wash.
What is a single bowl kitchen sink called
The same sink goes by several names: single bowl sink, single kitchen sink, one bowl sink and, when it has a drainer beside the bowl, a single bowl and drainer sink. It is one large basin with no divider. That is why searches for a one bowl sink for a kitchen or a big single kitchen sink land on this page. A sink with a second, smaller bowl is a 1.5 or 1.75 bowl sink, and those have their own pages: see 1.5 bowl kitchen sinks and double bowl kitchen sinks.
Who a single bowl suits
A single bowl suits households that run a dishwasher regularly and mainly hand-wash large items, cooks who use big pots, pans or baking sheets, small kitchens where bench space is limited, and people who want a clean look. It suits smaller kitchens, apartments and smaller households, takes up less benchtop space and is easy to clean.
A single bowl has no separation between clean and dirty items, so a household that hand-washes a lot is best served by a drainer or drainboard alongside, which makes up for the missing second bowl. A double bowl suits the household that hand-washes often, and you should choose a double if the benchtop run is 900mm or more.
What size single bowl sink
There are two size bands. A small single bowl is 400 to 560mm wide, with a minimum cabinet of 450mm. A large single bowl is 600 to 760mm wide and needs a cabinet at least 600mm wide, ideally 700 to 900mm to leave room for a drainer. Front to back the sinks run 400 to 500mm, and the bowl depth is 180 to 250mm, with 180 to 200mm as the standard and 220 to 250mm as deep. A deep bowl needs a tall or pull-down mixer to reach the base.
Some clearances matter. A standard benchtop is 600mm deep, and a sink 450 to 500mm front to back leaves 50 to 100mm behind the bowl for the tap and the silicone bead. Keep at least 50mm between the cut-out and the front edge, and 50 to 75mm to the back edge, and leave at least 250mm of clear space under the sink. For a drainer, leave at least 300mm of clear bench on each side of the bowl. The sink should also be at least 70 to 80mm narrower than the internal width of the base cabinet, to leave room for plumbing and hardware.
Single bowl sinks with a drainer
- Phoenix 1000 Series single bowl with a drainer: 765 x 480mm and 183mm deep, 0.8mm machine pressed 304 stainless steel, overmount only.
- Meir single bowl with a drainer: 840 x 440mm, with a 400 x 400mm bowl and 32L.
- Oliveri Petite single bowl with a drainer: 770 x 480mm, with a 330 x 400mm bowl, and the Ultraform at 890 x 470mm.
- Oliveri Sonetto single bowl with a drainer: 1035 x 510mm, with a 470 x 405mm bowl, in left-hand and right-hand versions.
- Fienza Hana single bowl with a drainer: 990 x 450mm and 36L, and the Fienza Tiva single bowl with a drainer at 780mm, with one tap hole.
- Clark Vital and Horizon end bowl sinks, which have an embossed or patterned drainer that sends water back into the bowl.
Drainer models are mostly handed, and a flat or shallow drainer pools water, so look for deep grooves and a slope. Each brand collection covers its range in full: Phoenix kitchen sinks, Meir kitchen sinks, Oliveri kitchen sinks, Fienza kitchen sinks and Clark kitchen sinks.
Large single bowl sinks
A large single bowl lets trays and big pans lie flat, which is why it suits a busy cook better than a double. The largest in this collection are:
- Seima Kubic large single bowl: 750 x 750 x 200mm, with a 90mm basket waste and an overflow option.
- Phoenix 4000 Series extra large single bowl: 740 x 446mm and 232mm deep, 304 stainless steel 1.2mm thick, hand welded, with a 65 litre capacity and a matching sink protector.
- Meir large single bowl: 760 x 440 x 200mm, with a 720 x 400mm bowl and 58L.
- Fienza Hana single bowl: 750 x 450 x 200mm and 55L.
- Oliveri Santorini mega bowl: 760 x 435mm, moulded granite, with a 690 x 400 x 200mm bowl, a 55 litre capacity and a weight of 16kg.
- Turner Hastings Cuisine in fine fireclay, up to 810 x 480mm.
The Santorini mega bowl's 16kg is a weight to plan the cabinet around. Larger sinks need more benchtop space and deeper cabinets, and sometimes reinforcement, so check the cabinet width, the benchtop thickness and the drainage layout before you choose the biggest bowl. See Seima kitchen sinks for the Kubic and the Oros range.
Small and round single bowls
The small end of the collection suits a bar, a prep station, a butler's pantry or a small kitchen. The Meir single bowl at 300 x 450mm holds 20L, and the Meir Kitchen Mini sink is 272 x 382mm and 150mm deep. The Fienza Tiva singles run from 345 x 495mm to 420 x 370mm. The Phoenix 4000 Series single is 396 x 446mm, and the Oliveri Nu-Petite standard bowl is 410 x 450mm. Round bowls come from Oliveri (the Solitaire, 490mm across), Seima (the Icaria, 510mm across), Clark and Caroma. A depth of 150 to 200mm is shallow, and a shallow bowl splashes less. See small sinks for more compact choices.
Single bowl or one and a half bowl
If you like the single bowl but miss a second basin, a 1.5 bowl keeps most of the width and adds a small bowl for rinsing or scraps. Choose the single when the run is under 600mm or the trays are big, and the 1.5 when you have 670mm or more and hand-wash regularly. The Meir 670mm 1.5 bowl and the Caroma Urbane II 1.5 bowl are examples. The decision is about the cabinet width first and the way you wash second.
Which material
The single bowls here are stainless steel, quartz and granite composite, or fireclay. A thicker stainless sheet, which means a lower gauge number, limits flex, noise and denting, and imports at the thin end often use 0.8mm while a more substantial sink uses 1.2mm. The thicknesses are 0.8mm on the Phoenix 1000 Series, 0.9mm on the 2000 Series, 1.0mm on the Seima Kubic, 1.2mm on the Phoenix 4000 Series, the Oliveri Sonetto and the Fienza Hana, and 1.5mm on the Meir sinks. Satin or brushed finishes hide scratches and water marks better than a mirror polish.
Granite composite is hard, scratch and chip resistant, non-porous and quieter than stainless. It is heavier, a heavy dropped pot can cause hairline cracks, and white shows coffee, tea and red wine more than black. See granite and stone composite sinks. Fireclay is typically a single bowl material, and it is heavy and best handled with care during installation. The Turner Hastings, Otti and Bao sinks here are fireclay. See butler and apron sinks and Turner Hastings sinks.
Accessories that make a single bowl work harder
Because a single bowl has no second basin, accessories do the job of the missing bowl: a drainboard alongside the sink, a colander or rinse basket over the bowl, a sink grid or protector mat, a dish rack to extend the drying area and an over-sink chopping board to extend the prep surface. Several sinks put some of these in the box. The Clark Monaco single bowl overmount comes with a bamboo chopping board, a stainless steel colander and a basket waste. The Oliveri Petite and Nu-Petite drainer sinks come with an integrated colander and a bamboo board that sit in the main bowl. The Fienza Hana sinks have matching accessories sold separately, including a roll up drainer, a drainer tray, a colander and a chopping board for the 55L single. See kitchen accessories.
How a single bowl is fitted
The bowl layout and the way the sink sits in the benchtop are separate decisions. A single bowl comes in topmount, undermount and flushmount versions. A topmount sink works with almost all benchtops, including laminate, because the rim covers the cut edge. An undermount sink needs a waterproof solid benchtop such as engineered stone or granite, and is not suited to laminate or timber. For a topmount sink the cut-out is roughly the sink's width and depth minus 20mm for the rim, and you should always use the specification sheet's cut-out dimensions and not the overall dimensions. The two methods are covered in more detail on inset sinks and undermount kitchen sinks.
The tap
Match the sink's size and depth with a mixer that has the right reach and swivel range. A deep bowl needs a taller mixer or a pull-down, and a compact sink suits a standard mixer. Most single bowls here have no tap hole, so the tap goes on the benchtop, and some drainer models have one. Check the tap hole count on the product page before you order. The kitchen taps collection covers the options, and sink wastes has replacement wastes.
Other collections
This page covers single bowl sinks of every material. If you have not settled on a layout, the main kitchen sinks page lists every range, and stainless steel sinks compares the steel grades and thicknesses in more detail. A kitchen sink gets used 20 to 30 times a day, so the size and the drainer are worth getting right before you order.
