I second all of that!

We would just use it to hang coats, mittens, hats. We have a closet across from where we plan to place the lockers. All sporting gear goes in the garage and boots, shoes, etc, go in the closet.

I don’t like a ton of clutter

I like the idea of a cubby per person but it really depends on what needs to be stored, as Patricia said. You need to take inventory, measure stuff (hats, width of coats, etc.) and consider the best way to store things (e.g. casual lightweight jackets will be fine on hooks but heavy wool coats would fare better on wood hangers, etc.).

Here’s another picture of the space

Here

"We would just use it to hang coats, mittens, hats."

"boots, shoes, etc, go in the closet."

Why not use the closet for coats? If you don't like a lot of clutter, really think about your locker design because if they're open, they'll offer visual clutter. That's just the nature of open storage. Don't forget that the two inspo pictures you shared are styled. One cubby is mostly bare in the first picture and in the second, they've added pillows on the bench. Would this translate to your daily life? Really think about your routines and habits to make sure you're creating something that suits your family's lifestyle. Don't build something based on how things "should" be. Base it on how things are. And if you want four larger cubbies in that space, would an L-shape configuration work? Have you tried sketching out layouts on graph paper?

Great advice! Our closet space is too small to fit everything in an organized manner.

I’ll have to think about it

Just build another closet there. All out of site.

"Just build another closet there. All out of site."

@decoenthusiaste you must live with really neat and tidy people! :) In my family, things don't end up in the closet (especially the kid's stuff as she can't reach).

@Ac Lb I don't think sharing cubbies will work well. Is someone in your family willing to NOT have a cubby? If not, do the smaller cubbies. We have 54" of space and are doing 3-16" cubbies (lockers, actually). I'm fine that they won't fit a ton. This is just for the interim/mid week craziness to hold the stuff and shoes that everyone takes off and drops when they come in the house. At the end of the week, everything can get tidied back in the closet.

Three cubbies or a full height section of open shelving cubbies and the rest of the space a single long rack of hooks. Even if you don't have backpacks now, there will be individual bags in the future and you could slide them into shelves. Lower shelves for the youngsters, upper ones for adults.  I suggest thinking about where casual visitors will leave their coats and bags too. Perhaps a couple of open hooks would be useful

A lower hanging bar is the solution to that excuse. She'll feel special that she has her own hanging rod; paint it her favorite color. They are not likely to use the cubby system properly either, and it will still look a mess and always be in your face. You can at least kick stuff into the closet floor and shut the door. You can try limiting them to only one jacket each until they learn to hang it up. Then they can be allowed another one, and so on. No need to raise slobs! I know people whose house you can hardly wade through, and their grown kids live the same way. They will do what you do, so be sure the adults are not the instigators!

Ok, I wasn't suggesting my family are slobs. In fact, I think we're on the neater side of things. My general point was that cubbies and hooks are easy. Closets are not. Opening doors, grabbing hangers, putting your coat on a hanger, putting it back on the rod (especially if it's a full closet) and closing the door are time consuming. Maybe not SO MUCH time, and maybe you don't think this is much to ask, but if there's a hook or a coat rack by a door, that's what people are going to use. Instead of the back of a chair, or the entryway bench, or wherever else coats end up. And if it helps manage the clutter, even better. My daughter has her own hook at her level. In our last house it was a 3M hook on the wall. In this one it's a coat rack with a lower level. In the next house it will be a cubby with a low hook. Wanting an easy place to hang a coat is fine and has nothing to do with how well you're raised.

Didn't say you family were slobs; just generally warning not to raise kids to be slobs. If they are used to hooks at school, they should use them at home. There may be consequences at school for trashing the coat area and so they push it a bit at home thinking mom will pick up behind them. You can always do a doorless closet and once you're empty nesters, put doors on.

I agree that a closet would visually look less cluttered. However, I feel like lockers or some sort of coat tree would work best for my family. I did forget to include that along with coats, mittens, and hats, we need a place for backpacks. Since we’ve removed our old coat tree, our coats, backpacks, etc. have been placed around the dining room table as our closet is full. I guess I was trying to figure out if 15.5” lockers would be wide enough or weather I should make them wider (22ish) and share a locker with my husband. I could also wrap it around and add a few hooks on the side wall for visitors.

Is the are you wants to put lockers or cubbies to the right of that door where the trim is missing? The door opens into that area. Whoever is at the cubbies will get smacked with the door, not to mention it will keep it from opening completely

And there is a vent there you don’t want to block that

This is the best photo I have at the moment of our mudroom locker area in the background. Just to the left of them is our door to the garage, where we come in from after school every day.

We have 3 of these cubbies and 4 people. I don't get a cubby, which generally is okay bc I only keep one pair of flip flops out. If I did it over again I would consider having a long wide bench and not separate cubby areas. But it's possible as my kids get older they will need the separate areas more. IDK.

I do like having the drawers for shoes. It's easy for my kids ( ages 5&7) to throw shoes in there and close it up to look tidy for my needs. Backpacks go here also (I cannot imagine the morning chaos if they were stored in their rooms) and DH hangs lunches after prepping. The girls put on shoes, grab their things, and go in the morning. Currently they only have a few pair of shoes and they all go in the drawers to minimize morning stress. This works great for our family.

I wish I hung the hooks higher and have no idea how we decided on that measurement. But coats hang too low imo. The upper cabinets hold dog stuff and off season items, etc.

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Here is our design. We are doing doors as this is a high-traffic area in our home (our powder room is through this space) and I wanted to be able to close doors on it. The doors make it more of a pain to use but at least it will be tidy.

We are putting a bench in front of it so we will have a place to sit. Again, makes it tough with doors there - no one can get in a locker if someone is sitting - but we have limited space. We did an open space for shoes (kick them under) and a drawer for winter things.

Here are a few mudroom/entry way ideas that we have done for various clients. Please note the benches, storage areas, and hooks.

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I think lockers are expensive and overrated. We just put nice hooks on the wall and a bench below.

We have decided to go with 3 lockers that are approximately 21.5 wide. My husband and I plan to share one so our kids can each have one. I’m considering having the side wall paneled with 2 hooks. Do you think that will look too busy? The paneling will not include a bench.

For a family of four in a 67-inch-wide space, I'd lean toward four cubbies rather than three. At roughly 15.5 inches each, you get dedicated ownership — one per person — which genuinely changes how a family uses the space. Kids especially respond well to having their own defined spot. For coat hooks, mount a double hook at about 42 inches from the floor so younger children can reach without help, and a secondary upper hook at 56 inches for adults. A solid wood bench running the full width ties everything together and gives a place to sit while pulling boots on. Since shoes are handled elsewhere, you can use the lower cubby floor for backpacks and sports bags, keeping daily chaos contained.