Dreaming of a cozy nook by the window? Imagine sipping your morning coffee, diving into a good book nestled in your own window seat. With IKEA cabinets and a bit of sweat equity, you can add a storage bench or window seat to your home in just one weekend. This DIY storage bench works well in a living room that needs extra seating, a dining room as a banquette/breakfast nook bench, or in the bedroom or playroom as a window seat. The possibilities are endless! In this blog post, I will cover the cost, feasibility, step-by-step process and helpful tip on this weekend project.
How much does it cost to build a window seat?
While hiring an experienced carpenter to custom build a window seat can cost thousands of dollars, building your own can be done a lot cheaper.
Wood benches on the market range from $400 to $1200. They are ready-made and can be placed anywhere in the house. The downside though is they are usually not long enough to fit a space wall to wall.
With stock cabinets as the base, you can hack the look of a high-end built-in storage bench and have the whole project done in a weekend. No trouble of measuring and cutting everything from scratch.
IKEA cabinet boxes are around $50 a unit. Adding in the cabinet front (all factory finished), drawers, filler panels, 2x4s for the base and 3/4″ plywood for the top, you are easily looking at $1000 for a custom build, but only a fraction of that number with IKEA (less than $500 for mine!). Because IKEA hacks are so cost-effective, I did a floor-to-ceiling, wrap-around wardrobe in the guest bedroom. Check out the details here.
Why use IKEA SECTION vs. other IKEA furniture?
IKEA furniture is famous for its versatility. Mix and match their products to meet your needs. The main reason I went with IKEA SECTION cabinets is the space I’m working on needed a bench about 80” long or slightly less. To achieve that length, I used 2 SEKTION wall cabinets 24” wide and 1 SEKTION wall cabinet 30” wide. IKEA BESTA and NORDLI are two other popular options, you can look into these and see which combination works best for your space.
Storage bench built with SEKTION cabinets in local IKEA.
Note that there are a few differences between IKEA SEKTION and BESTA. SEKTION has more widths to choose from, but the drawer doesn’t provide the same full coverage as BESTA.
Can you build a window seat in only a weekend?
Absolutely! This is an easy, beginner-friendly DIY project. Pre-made storage units or cabinets are like building blocks in LEGO, they allow you to build something that looks professional with little or no experience. The parts (aka. cabinets) are already made and finished professionally. All you have to do is to put them together.
Obviously you can add doors, drawers, cushion, or new drawer pulls to spruce things up. However, these are are totally optional. In its most basic form, a window seat is made up of only a few parts:
- a base (to support the frame and offer a level, solid foundation)
- a frame (essentially a rectangular frame that connects to the adjacent walls and the base)
- a bench top (to distribute weight and as a nice big surface for sitting)
If you look at professionally built window seats, they follow pretty much the same structure. Window seats are really not that complicated, if you think about it!
How well does an IKEA hack window seat hold up?
A common question people had when I told them I built my window seat with IKEA cabinets was Is the cabinet alone enough to hold the weight of a person? How well does an IKEA hack bench or window seat hold up?
Although I am not a physics major, I am not exactly sure how to calculate the load bearing capacity of a bench, I have seen this idea many times on the internet, using both IKEA cabinets or pre-made cabinets from other manufacturers. In fact, using stock cabinets to build a window seat is a common practice. It’s mentioned in This Old Home and Lowe’s.
As to my own window seat, it’s held up well. It’s a sturdy seat for storage, arts and crafts, story time and filming Instagram stories. Other than a few minor stains on the top of the bench (because I only did one thin layer of protective topcoat), the whole design looks just as new as 2 years ago and as solid as can be.
If you’re on the fence, you can add crosspieces in the back or frame out the structure with 2×4 lumber to reinforce the structure. There are different ways to make this durable and stylish at the same time.
Materials for this project
Here are all of the materials I used for my 79″ long window seat.
- SEKTION Wall cabinet frame, white 30″ wide x 14¾ ” deep x 15″ high
- SEKTION Wall cabinet frame, white 24″ wide x 14¾ ” deep x 15″ high
- MAXIMERA drawer, medium 30″ x 14¾ “
- KUNGSBACKA drawer front (matte black finish)
- KUNGSBACKA cover panel
- 2x4x8 pine board as base
- 4×8 birch plywood as bench top (MDF is a more affordable option)
- Toe kick grille or vent cover
- Paint for the base to match the drawer front
- Wood glue
- Wood screws (optional: pocket holes crews, brad nails)
- Clear topcoat (polyurethane)
- Wood veneer for edge banding
Total cost: $450
How do you build a DIY storage bench?
Adding drawers to your window seat is a great way to add extra storage and enhance the aesthetics of a room.
Step 1: Remove existing trim
Start by removing the baseboard. This way, the bench stays flush against the wall and can be secured to the studs.
I wasn’t ready to commit to a permanent built-in, so I kept the bench freestanding.
Step 2. Assemble cabinet frame
Put together the IKEA SEKTION cabinet frame following IKEA instructions. Next, measure the total length and depth of the cabinets. This decides how wide the base of the bench would be.
If you have outlets on the wall, make an opening on the back panel, so you can still access it when it’s installed. I made a video on how to cut out wall panels around an outlet: here.
Step 3. Build 2×4 base
Why do you need to have a base or platform for a window seat?
There are a couple of purposes for the base. For one thing it provides support to the cabinets, so they have a solid foundation to sit on. The base also provides clearance for the drawers to freely open and close. Without it, the drawer front may scrap the flooring. Finally lifting the cabinets allows vent extenders to be added under the seat. So heat/cold air won’t be obstructed.
Try to place the cross sections around 2’-3’ apart for better support. At the same time, take note of where the floor vent is located and plan accordingly. You’d want the opening for vent cover to be between two cross sections.
Butt joint and screw the 2x4s together. The base is set back slightly, so the screws won’t be super visible. But if you want a seamless look, you can drill pocket holes or use wood putty to cover the screws.
Step 4. Install drawers
Assemble the drawer boxes. Install drawer slides and attach drawer fronts, which are actually cabinet doors. The IKEA manual was not very intuitive. If you get stuck like I did, check out this YouTube video.
What’s nice about these MAXIMERA drawers is they’re soft close. So sleek!
Step 5. Side panels
Measure and cut side panels. Place the rough side facing down, so it’s hidden.
If the cabinets don’t cover the full length of the space, you can install filler strips to cover the gap between the bench and the wall. Similar to what Yellow Brick Home did here. I also like the way Hydrangea Tree House added a mini book shelf on the side.
Step 6. Make bench top
Measure and cut bench top with a circular saw or a table saw. If you want to have cushion on top, glue foam to the plywood with spray adhesive and staple on fabric. Room for Tuesday has a helpful blog post on this. If you like the natural color of wood, edge band the rough edges of plywood and apply polyurethane to protect the surface. Another option is to apply wood stain. You can also turn the plywood top into flip-up tops.
Note: standard bench seat height is between 18”-20”. With the cabinets at 15” high, the base at 1 ½” tall (the actual width of 2x4s) it leaves 3”-5” for the top. Adding cushion made of 3” thick foam will take the overall height of the bench to 21.5”, more than the recommended height. This is something to consider.
Step 7. Secure everything
Screw the cabinets together. Secure cabinets to the base and wall studs. Glue benchtop.
That’s all you need to do to build this DIY window seat. It’s pretty simple, isn’t it?
How do you build a window seat over a heat vent?
Most houses have floor vents under the windows. To allow air to flow through, I cut a notch on the 2×4 base for the black 2″ X 10″ vent cover. Once the base was painted, the cover just blended right in.
You can also install an under furniture vent extender inside the bench base or use a Thermo-Pan. This will give you the absolute best air flow and makes sure heat/cold air is directly to the room.
Credit: Sammy on State
Another option is to use a toe kick boot.
Before and After
I hope this step-by-step tutorial for DIY window seat inspires you to build one in your home. I love how this weekend project adds both function and charm to my home office. It’s both affordable and beginner-friendly with the most impact on style and functionality. You can’t get any better than that!
Check out these before and after pictures of the same space.
This DIY idea is so popular, it got over 1 million views on my Instagram account. The best part is you can complete the project in a few days’ time.
Other online tutorials on making DIY bench
I got a lot of inspiration from other DIYers who transform their home with a beautiful bench. Here is a round up of my favorites:
- IKEA Besta Daybed Bench by This Maine House
- IKEA SEKTION DIY Bench by Wit and Delight
- How to Build a Window Seat by This Old House
- How to Build a Window Bench with Storage by Nick + Alicia
My Favorite IKEA hacks
A few other IKEA hacks that you should check out on this blog.
Amazing! I want to do something like this in my son’s playroom, but have always been hesitant to cover / unsure how to reroute the floor vent. It looks like you used a combination of duct fitting and extension here – can you tell me the precise products? It doesn’t look like any of those linked, but may just be hard to tell. Thank you in advance!
Hi Chelsea, thanks for the question! Depending on how big the space is under the bench, you can use either an under furniture vent extender (linked in the post), Thermo-Pan (linked) or a toe kick boot. I am not an HVAC expert, so check with the professionals if you’re not sure. These are just a few ideas I came across. I only installed the vent cover (toe kick grille) on mine and haven’t noticed any impact in terms of air flow in the room.