A window seat is always the best seat in the room. Made for gazing out at the view, curling up with a book, snuggling with a loved one, or sneaking in a power nap, it’s the spot that everyone will fight over.
If you don't have the budget or the space for a built-in, improvise a window seat using a wood or upholstered bench or loveseat of any style or period. Just make sure that it fits seamlessly beneath your window, and style it with throw pillows, a cozy blanket, or a reading light.
Let these window seats—located everywhere from the living room to the bedroom, dining room, mudroom, home office, and beyond—inspire you to install a window seat in your room of choice.
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Add a Mudroom Window Seat
Make your mudroom more comfortable with a built-in window seat. Becca Interiors is located steps from the front door of a Hudson River view Colonial home in New York state, making it a convenient place to take off muddy boots or set down your sun hat and farmers market haul.
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Leave the Windows Bare
Keep windows curtain-free to maximize functionality if light control or privacy isn't an issue.
Cathie Hong Interiors topped this built-in, wood-topped window seat in the dining room with extra throw pillows to create an off-duty reading nook or extra bench seating when there's a crowd.
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Decorate the Landing
Make use of extra space on a staircase landing by installing a window seat. Mindy Gayer Design Co. made this light-flooded pass-through space an ideal location for a built-in window seat that runs beneath a wall of double windows.
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Create a Daybed Hybrid
One of the joys of working from home is having the option to stay focused—and take needed breaks—in any location or posture without having coworkers looking on.
Anita Yokota set up a cozy and casual window seat daybed in this L-shaped home office for reading drafts, brainstorming new ideas, or grabbing a power nap.
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Use a Vintage Love Seat
Create an improvised window seat using a small loveseat. Becca Interiors placed a vintage velvet loveseat beneath the window between a pair of built-in bookshelves in the home library corner of this Hudson Valley, NY Colonial home.
Are window seats modern?
Upholstered built-in window seats with hidden under-bench storage or built-in shelving on either side that are common today are a modern evolution of the small free-standing benches that people began placing beneath their sash windows centuries ago.
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Create an Attic Perch
Make a finished attic into a cozy reading room with a window seat. Jersey Ice Cream Co. decorated this family-friendly space with cozy floor rugs and pillows and wrap-around banquettes that include a built-in window seat that hides the HVAC.
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Install an Extra-Long Bench
Install an extra-long window seat that is big enough to share or use to display plants, books, or decor objects.
Emily Henderson Design styled this streamlined window seat with throw pillows, a sconce reading light, books, and a vase of branches.
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Add Dressing Room Seating
Turn a spacious walk-in closet into a hang-out space with a window seat. This fully loaded dressing room from Britt Design Studio includes ample storage for clothes, accessories, and shoes, plus a built-in window seat under the arched window for gathering yourself before heading out to face the world.
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Make It Kid-Friendly
Make your kids' room extra cozy with a built-in window seat. Becca Interiors decorated this space with vintage wallpaper and furniture, warm colors, and homespun Colonial charm—plus a double window seat that's ready for storytime.
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Try a Window Bench
If you don't have the budget for a built-in, or your window is on the smaller side, try installing a bench instead.
A simple upholstered bench with built-in hidden storage is wedged into the corner for extra stability in this bedroom from Emily Bowser for Emily Henderson Design.
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Add Built-In Shelves
Maximize space by flanking your window seat with built-ins. Christina Kim Interior Design created a reading corner in this coastal home office, complete with a comfortable window seat and bookshelves for storing reading materials and displaying decor objects.
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Occupy a Full Wall
A full-wall window bench will add structure to a long rectangular space. This mudroom laundry room combo from KG Designs has wall hooks for storing jackets and backpacks, bench seating for putting on shoes, and a pair of window seats where you can take a load off while you wait for the towels to finish drying.
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Decorate With Plants
Not every window is possessed of a picturesque view. This window seat from JK Interior Living faces a brick wall, but lets plenty of natural light into the mudroom, and includes a place for plants on the windowsill.
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Add a Bathroom Window Seat
Install a window seat in a spacious bathroom to give yourself a spot to paint your toenails or share a moment with your partner.
Desiree Burns Interiors placed this window seat with under-bench storage between twin vanities in a primary bathroom for a spa-like feel.
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Try an L-Shaped Window Seat
Optimize space with a corner window seat. This kid-friendly corner window seat from Mindy Gayer Design Co. is decorated in keeping with the blue, white, and red theme of the room.
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Opt for a Window Bench
Swap a window seat for a window bench if it works better for your layout. In this roomy bedroom from Emily Henderson Design, the closets on either side of the far window make it impossible to install a built-in window seat, but there's room enough for a small wooden bench.
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Fill a Dead Space
Turn an empty hallway into a destination with a built-in window seat. KG Designs filled the dead space outside of a home office into a dedicated zone for reading, chilling, or seating waiting clients.
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Add Built-In Shelving
Tailor built-ins around the layout of your window seat. Blogger Ursula Carmona of Home Made by Carmona gave her parents' rustic and traditional mountain home library a modern refresh with white paint, nearly floor-to-ceiling corner shelving, and a built-in window seat.
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Build a Nursery Window Seat
It may be true that every nursery needs a rocking chair. But this baby room from Becca Interiors makes the case that window seats are another flexible seating option for everything from burping the baby to supervising toddlers playing on the floor.
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Install a Corner Banquette
Turn your eat-in kitchen table into a window seat with an L-shaped banquette. Jessica Nelson Design outfitted this corner spot with comfy throw pillows and a small round cafe table to preserve flow.
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Customize a Bay Window Seat
Optimize a bay window with a custom window seat. Kate Marker Interior created a cozy spot for reading and daydreaming in this forest green home library.
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Try a Curved Window Seat
Break up the linear quality of a typical window seat by adding curves. Sissy + Marley Interior Design installed a curved window seat in this chic and neutral New York City highrise apartment that gives it a custom look and a softer feel.
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Install a Foyer Window Seat
Make your foyer more inviting with a window seat. Modernize a small window seat in a period home with a colorful throw pillow and a piece of modern art on the wall, like this modern Victorian home renovated by Chango & Co.
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Use Neutral Tones
Decorate your window seat with black, white, and pale wood tones to keep the focus on the view. Michelle Berwick Design kept it simple and modern in this home gym, adding a mix of open and closed storage for equipment.
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Pair Fireplace Window Seats
Install a pair of window seats beneath the windows on either side of a fireplace to create double reading nooks, like this living room from Chango & Co.
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Use Coordinating Colors
Decorate your window seat with matching upholstery, throw pillows, and art for a coordinated look, like this spacious staircase landing from Britt Design Studio.
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Add a Roman Shade
Soften a bedroom window seat by hanging a patterned Roman shade. Ashley Montgomery Design paired different floral patterns on the window shade and wallpaper.
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Playroom Window Seat
A deep playroom window seat can double as a sleeping space for visiting kids and cousins. This colorful space from Chango & Co. is upholstered with a comfy cherry red cushion and a multitude of throw pillows.
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Float a Kitchen Banquette
Install a simple floating wood window seat banquette stretching wall to wall in an eat-in kitchen to maximize seating.
Leanne Ford Interiors added under-bench storage and unattached pillows covered in white linen for an effortless feel.
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Try a Basement Window Seat
While basement windows are generally too high to gaze out of, they do provide natural light. Michelle Berwick Design installed a comfy banquette beneath a tall basement window to create a variation on a traditional window seat.
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Build a Picture Window Seat
A picture window will allow a jaw-dropping view to take center stage. Sissy + Marley Interior Design decorated this ultra-luxurious window seat with understated pale neutrals that keep the focus on the New York City skyline.
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Float the Window Bench
Create a modern window seat for a small mudroom with a chunky wood floating bench seat that will keep the design feeling light and airy, like this neutral space from Michelle Berwick Design.
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Paint the Window Seat Green
Add comfort to a spacious combination mudroom laundry room with a custom window seat that hugs the windows and provides a place to chill while your towels finish drying, like this space from Jessica Nelson Design. Paint it sage green for a soothing hint of color.
What else can I do with a window seat?
A window seat can double as a reading nook, banquette seating for a breakfast nook or dining room, or as a bonus sleeping space if it’s big enough and comfortably upholstered. Use your window seat to display seasonal decor or to store stuffed animals in a toddler room.
What can I use for window seat cushions?
You can DIY a no-sew window seat cushion using thick foam cut to size, stapled with fabric, and attached with Velcro. Or you can order a custom cushion to fit your window seat if your budget allows. Choose a durable fabric that will stand up to heavy use if you have kids and/or pets.
How can I make my window seat feel cozy and comfortable?
Make your window seat feel cozy and comfortable with extra throw pillow and blankets in soft fabrics like velvet and faux fur. Use a thick mattress or memory foam cushion to make the seating comfortable for long reading sessions.