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What ceiling height to use 9ft or 10 ft.

6 years ago

Building a 2000 sq ft home should I use 9 ft ceilings or 10 ft ceilings?

Comments (16)

  • 6 years ago

    Yes, 9' or 10' ceilings would be good as you need them. But to get better info you need to give more info. Your question is too open ended.

  • 6 years ago

    i have the ability to build with 10 ft ceiling height as plans were drawn for first floor and 9 on second. It has a open living room dining to kitchen . Some people are trying to tell us to go with 9ft ceilings instead of 10ft. I think the 10 would add a more dramatic and open feeling.

  • 6 years ago

    A few things to consider, most importantly the cost, as mentioned, with wider trim and molding but also the kitchen cabinets, interior doors, windows, window coverings. Do you want kitchen cabinets to the ceiling? Think about how you will do that now (adding molding and/or stacking one cabinet on top of the other).

    urbanprep thanked Tracey Woods
  • PRO
    6 years ago

    How tall are you?

  • 6 years ago
    last modified: 6 years ago

    I have found the each inch over 8 ft is surprisingly effective but that decreases as you reach 9 ft and over 9-6 its hardly noticeable. I've found that most people think a 9-6 ceiling is 10 ft. In other words, the visual effectiveness of each additional inch slowly rises and then slowly falls. For that reason I usually recommend 9 ft ceilings.

    To me tall doors look narrow unless they're wider than 32". I usually use 32 x 84. I see no reason to make the casing trim different widths for dirretent height doors.

    urbanprep thanked User
  • 6 years ago

    My previous home had 9ft 3in ceilings on the main floor with generous room sizes and the proportions worked very well. However, I have been in homes with higher ceilings where the ceiling height just did not work right. I do not like high ceilings with small windows. It has to be an overall feeling of room sizes, ceiling height, door height, window size and placement all being appropriate.

    My current home has 8 foot ceilings and I don't notice the height difference any more. But the basement is only 7 feet and there is a huge difference between an 8 ft basement and a 7 ft basement ceiling. The first few extra inches over minimal is well worth the cost but past that, I would put the money elsewhere. Once you start needing oversized doors, larger windows, bigger rooms, taller cabinets etc the price increases faster than the effect, in my view

    urbanprep thanked Lyndee Lee
  • 6 years ago
    last modified: 6 years ago

    I prefer 9'. 10' felt really tall to me. I would suggest that you walk around a few to see how they feel to you.

    urbanprep thanked Trish Walter
  • 6 years ago

    urbanprep-

    Yes, 10' ceilings are more dramatic, but that's not necessarily a good thing. Depending on the overall design and look of the interior, dramatic, tall ceilings might be discordant. Consider 9' ceilings as they will give you the openness you want, and are more appropriate to the moderate size home you are building. In addition, normal height doors work fine with 9' ceilings so you save a lot compared to the taller doors you might need with 10' ceilings. And there will be other cost savings as well.

    urbanprep thanked kudzu9
  • 6 years ago

    As others have mentioned, the key is keeping everything in proportion. If your builder plops molding, doors, etc intended for an 8 or 9 ft ceiling, it will look off. Changing this variable changes many others. If your not sure the builder knows/is willing to make all those adjustments, just go with 9 feet. My house is 10 feet ceilings on the main and 9 feet on the second and the difference doesn’t register, even though ceiling height is one of my weird obsessions.

    urbanprep thanked rainyseason
  • PRO
    6 years ago

    I much prefer a 9' ceiling. And I have a TALL family! When one moves up to 10', kitchen cabinets look awkward (and the top one useable if they go to the ceiling). Of course, so much depends on the size of the rooms. Most of these tall ceilings are a result of new houses being built with very small rooms, many with no walls, and it's an optical illusion to try to make them appear larger than they are.

    urbanprep thanked Anglophilia
  • 6 years ago

    Love my 10 feet ceilings with 8 foot doors and crown molding throughout. We had 10 in our last home with 9 ft in the basement, and the difference was definitely noticeable.

    urbanprep thanked Lynda
  • 6 years ago

    And in the Winter, it's so nice and cozy warm above 9 feet.

    urbanprep thanked Lindsey_CA
  • 6 years ago

    I much prefer 10 foot ceilings as long as everything is proportional. I agree there is more drama with the higher ceiling and kitchen cabinetry that goes all the way up looks great with lighted glass fronts. It really is a matter of personal taste. Some prefer it lower and say it’s more cozy. To me it feels more claustrophobic. Honestly though, my home feels super cozy with our 10 foot ceilings. Lighting, color scheme, and decor are what really contribute to having a warm and inviting space.


    It’s hard to make this kind of decision for someone else. If, when you’re in homes with the higher ceilings, you really like the look and feel, then that’s what I’d go for.


    Our first floor is 10 foot and we did 9 feet on the second floor. I could kick myself for that one. We should have done 10 on both floors. There is a VERY noticeable difference when going upstairs moving from 10 feet to 9 feet. Our upstairs landing feels like a hobbit space in comparison. IMO, if one has a two story home, both floors should have the same ceiling heights....just looks and flows much better that way.

    urbanprep thanked User
  • 6 years ago
    last modified: 6 years ago

    I'm proposing 12' main floor ceilings. Average for this style home, as illustrated in the recent sale below:


    Ridley Blvd., Toronto.

    For a smaller home, certainly the larger spaces would look great with 10' ceilings. Indeed, I had 10' first floor ceilings in my first home built in the 1880s. And it was about 950sf. overall.

    urbanprep thanked worthy
  • 6 years ago

    I'm short, 5'3". I like a 10 foot ceiling. But, the key to any ceiling height is making certain you keep openings in proportion. I really like homes with an 8 foot interior door. The higher doors, windows and ceilings have a higher end, more elegant effect.

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