Per square metre of floor, a wardrobe wins: 400–500 litres against 180–240 litres for a dresser of the same footprint. Per unit of reachable space it loses badly, because the top third of a wardrobe is above eye level and the bottom third is behind your knees. The practical split for one adult is 60% hanging in a wardrobe, 40% folded in drawers.
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The volume comparison, worked through
A 120 × 50 cm wardrobe, 180 cm tall, has a gross volume of 1,080 litres. Subtract the carcass walls (about 8%), the door depth, and the unusable 15 cm above head height, and it stores roughly 820 litres of goods. A 120 × 45 cm dresser, 90 cm tall, has a gross 486 litres and stores about 390 litres.
| Unit | Footprint | Gross volume | Usable volume | Litres per m² of floor |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chest of drawers, 4 drawers | 80 × 45 cm | 288 L | 230 L | 640 L/m² |
| Dresser, 6 drawers | 120 × 45 cm | 486 L | 390 L | 720 L/m² |
| Wardrobe, 120 cm, single rail | 120 × 50 cm | 1,080 L | 820 L | 1,370 L/m² |
| Wardrobe, 180 cm, rail + shelves | 180 × 60 cm | 1,944 L | 1,480 L | 1,370 L/m² |
| Narrow wardrobe, 60 cm | 60 × 47 cm | 508 L | 390 L | 1,380 L/m² |
The wardrobe's advantage per square metre is consistent at about 1.9×, because it uses height. That is also its weakness: 40% of its volume sits outside the 60–170 cm band a standing adult reaches without a step.
Drawer height versus hanging drop
A drawer gives you 12–15 cm of usable depth for the price of one drawer front, and 20–25 cm if it is a deep drawer. Hanging gives you 100–120 cm of linear drop for a shirt, 150–170 cm for a dress, in the same 50–60 cm of floor depth.
- Folded in drawers: 10–12 shirts per 60 × 45 cm drawer, 8–10 jumpers, 6 pairs of jeans.
- Hung on a rail: 45 shirts per metre, but you need the full drop whether the shirt is long or short.
- Cross-over point: below about 40 cm of garment length (folded trousers, knitwear, underwear), drawers are more space-efficient. Above 60 cm (dresses, coats), only hanging works.
A 4 m² bedroom: the decision
In a 2.0 × 2.0 m room with a 140 cm bed against the wall, you have one usable wall of 200 cm and about 60 cm of walking space. Take the wardrobe every time:
- Option A, 120 cm wardrobe + 80 cm chest: 820 + 230 = 1,050 litres, 0.9 m² of floor. Fits a 120 × 50 cm carcass with 90 cm of door swing.
- Option B, two dressers: 460 litres, 0.72 m². Saves 18 cm of depth, which in a 2 m wide room is the difference between walking sideways and walking normally.
- Option C, 150 cm fabric wardrobe only: about 1,000 litres at 43 cm depth, 0.65 m². Shirts and knitwear only — no coats — but it clears the doorway.
Option A is the one most people should take. Option C is right when the room is under 3.5 m².
What people forget
A dresser's top surface is load-bearing furniture, not storage. Plan for 30–40 cm of clear wall above it, because that is where the lamp, the mirror, and the pile of things that have no home end up. A wardrobe has no such surface, which is why wardrobes stay tidier.
The other forgotten item is the laundry basket: 40–50 litres, and it needs floor space that neither unit provides. If the room is under 4 m², put it inside the wardrobe on the floor, and budget 30 cm of the hanging drop for it.
For heights, see the chest of drawers height guide; for rail and shelf splits inside a wardrobe, the interior layout guide.
Keep reading
More dimension guides are in the collection, and the full index is on the furnolio journal.
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