Wardrobes

How to choose a wardrobe

The wardrobe is the piece that decides whether the bedroom reads calm or chaotic. The first decision is whether to fit it in or buy it freestanding, and the answer is almost always whichever the room asks for, not whichever is cheaper.

Built-in or freestanding:

• Built-in / fitted wardrobes are the long-term answer when the budget allows. They use the full ceiling height (which freestanding pieces never do), they fill awkward alcoves and chimney-breast recesses properly, and they don't break the visual line of the room. Expect £1,500 to £4,000+ for a properly fitted run, plus installation.
• Freestanding wardrobes are the practical answer in rented or transitional spaces. £200 to £800 for a flat-pack 2-door; £600 to £1,800 for a properly built 3-door in solid wood; £1,500 to £3,000+ for the upper-tier oak or painted finishes from specialists like Oak & More.
• Sliding-door wardrobes save the swing space hinged doors need (around 60cm of clear floor in front), so they're the right answer in narrow bedrooms. Mirrored sliding doors do double duty as a full-length mirror.

Internal layout is what separates a wardrobe that works from one that doesn't. The standard split is roughly two-thirds long-hang (full-length dresses, coats, suits) and one-third short-hang plus shelving (folded jumpers, jeans, shoes). Couples should plan for one shelf or drawer level at chest height per person, because that's where the everyday-use stuff lives.

Depth is the spec to check before ordering: 60cm minimum so coats hang straight without crushing against the back panel; 50cm is acceptable for short-hang only; anything shallower than 50cm and the doors won't close on a winter coat.

Height follows the ceiling. A 200cm wardrobe in a 240cm-ceiling room leaves 40cm of dust-collecting void above. Either go taller (220cm or full ceiling height with a fitted unit) or top the void with closed-front baskets for seasonal storage. Rooms with skirting and picture rails need height taken from the picture-rail line, not the ceiling.

Material and finish tracks the rest of the bedroom. Solid oak in honey or weathered finishes is the long-term default for traditional rooms. Painted MDF (Bridstow Blue, Charcoal, Stone) reads more contemporary and shows fewer marks than solid wood. White-on-white is bedroom-safe and visually disappears, useful in small rooms. Mirrored fronts work in any room but get fingerprinty fast.

The brands and retailers we list

We pull around 12,400 wardrobes from across the UK retailer network.

Choice Furniture Superstore dominates this category for us with around 5,900 wardrobes, including 2-door, 3-door, sliding and corner designs in solid oak, painted finishes and oak veneer.

The Range covers around 2,300 wardrobes in the £150 to £600 value-to-mid bracket, leaning into flat-pack and quick-delivery options.

Robert Dyas stocks around 1,800 wardrobes including ottoman storage hybrids and the upper-mid oak ranges.

Furniture in Fashion covers around 875 wardrobes in the contemporary £400 to £1,500 bracket, including high-gloss and mirrored designs.

Filter the grid above by colour, material or price to narrow things down, or browse the full wardrobe range without filters to see everything in stock. Prices update daily.