When you have plenty of kitchen sink options around the market, buying one of the kitchen sink types for your kitchen is not easy job for anyone. Buying a kitchen sink depends upon multiple factors that includes budget, design, usage, features, durability, and so on.

While buying a kitchen sink, one must consider the design of your kitchen along with the kitchen layout. The kitchen structuring, painting, and arrangements all matters a lot in choosing the right kitchen sink type. Kitchen sink is the one where 50% of our day-to-day kitchen activities takes place, making it one of the highest important area of kitchen.

If you are one of those who is looking for the types of kitchen sink for your kitchen then you are in the right place. Today, we are going to take you through kitchen sink buying guide that explains kitchen sink materials, design, and configurations that are available in the market. This guide will help you choose the best kitchen sink for your kitchen by clearing all of your doubts.

When it comes to kitchen sinks, there are multiple kitchen sink designs that you can see in the market. The reason is that, the kitchen sinks can be designed and remodeled according to your kitchen design and kitchen layout. However, there are few of the most prominent kitchen sink designs which are common today and are classified. Today, we will uncover all the types of kitchen sink.

1. Drop-in Sinks
2. Undermount Sinks
3. Farmhouse Sinks
4. Wall-Mounted Sinks
5. All-in-One Sinks
6. Workstation Sinks
7. Commercial Sinks
8. Bar Sinks
9. Single Bowl Sinks
10. Double Bowl Sinks
11. Triple Bowl Sinks
12. Low Divide Sinks
13. Overmount Kitchen Sinks
14. Stainless Steel Sinks
15. Cast Iron Sinks
16. Fireclay Sinks
17. Granite Composite Sinks
18. Corner Sinks
19. Kitchen Island Sinks
20. Kitchen Sink with Drainboard
21. Integrated Kitchen Sink

Let us go through each one of them, one-by-one and understand which one suites the best for your kitchen.

If you are looking for the most popular kitchen sink types, then this is the one you should go for, the drop-in sinks. As you can see this type of sink in almost all kitchens, the drop-in sinks are the most popular types of sink.

The drop-in sinks are also called by the name of top mount sink, which is nothing but a representation of a kitchen sink dropped into the pre-cut hole of a kitchen countertop. The drop-in kitchen sinks are designed in such a way that, once mounted on a kitchen countertop, the sink edges rests on the countertop rigidly giving the countertop seamless look.

The best part of dorp-in sinks is that, they are easy to install and works perfectly with any style of kitchen countertop. Not only that, they are easy to replace without disturbing the countertop or relocating the plumbing.

Most of the drop-in kitchen sinks that you see in the market are self-rimming, meaning: the drop-in sinks are held rigidly in place by their weight or fastened with the help of crews or clips. Apart from this, the other section of drop-in sinks are directly rimmed, meaning: they are more recessed into the countertop with the help of a joint cover held by a metal rim.

Features of Drop-in Sinks:

• Most popular types of kitchen sinks
• Also called by the name top mount sinks
• Easy to install on any kitchen countertop
• Installed or dropped into a pre-cut hole on a countertop
• The sink edges hold the sink rigidly on a countertop
• Offers seamless kitchen look on a kitchen countertop
• Easy to replace without relocating plumbing

Pros of Drop-in Sinks:

• Most popular kitchen sink types
• Easy to install on any countertop
• Easy to replace without relocating plumbing

Cons of Drop-in Sinks:

• Chances of Food Residue, grim or grime getting stuck at the edges
• Not easy to clean and maintain

The undermount kitchen sinks are the second most popular kitchen sink types in the market. Like the name suggests, the undermount sinks are installed under the kitchen counter to have a seamless look. They easily blends well with the kitchen countertop and enhances the looks of any kitchen design.

The undermount sinks are ideal for use with solid surfaces and granite. Unlike the drop-in sinks, the undermount sinks do not come with edges that rests on the kitchen countertop. In fact, they are designed to be part of kitchen countertop itself.

The other best part of undermount kitchen sinks is that they are easily to maintain and easy to clean. Since there are no edges and is blended with kitchen countertop, there is no chance of food residues getting stuck or grim-grime sticking. This makes the sink easier to clean and maintain.

Features of Undermount Sinks:

• Offers seamless kitchen countertop
• Easily blends with kitchen countertop
• Ideal for solid surfaces or granite
• No sink edges
• Are considered to be part of kitchen countertop

Pros of Undermount Sinks:

• Seamless kitchen countertop design
• Ideal for solid surfaces or granite
• There are no sink edges and blends well with kitchen countertop
• Easy to clean and maintain
• No chances of food residue sticking

Cons of Undermount Sinks:

• Only works best on solid surfaces
• Can’t replace easily

Farmhouse sinks are also known by the name of apron sinks. A farmhouse sink usually comes with a wide expanse and deep bowl with an exposed front. The best part of farmhouse sinks is that, they comes with a wide variety or wide range of materials.

The farmhouse sinks are best preferred when it comes to their size. Since they are available in multiple and big sizes, they can be most preferred for those who have bigger kitchens. With this kitchen type, you can easily clean larger utensils, such as, pots and pans.

The downfall of farmhouse kitchen sinks is that they need a base support to be installed. However, this can be avoided by installing it on top of a kitchen cabinet. This means you need to pre-design your kitchen in such a way that, the farmhouse sink can be installed on top of it. Apart from this, you can also look for few farmhouse sinks that offers retrofitting to your existing kitchen cabinets.

Features of Farmhouse Sinks:

• Offers great looks in your kitchen
• Modern and trendy design
• Offers deep bowl and wide expanse
• Available in wide range of materials
• Best for bigger kitchens
• Larger utensils such as pots and pans can be cleaned easily
• Can be installed or retrofitted on an existing kitchen cabinet

Pros of Farmhouse Sinks:

• Comes with deep bowl and wide expanse
• Available in wide range of materials
• Easy to clean large utensils
• Easy to install on an existing kitchen cabinet

Cons of Farmhouse Sinks:

• Requires base support for installation
• Takes more space  of your kitchen or kitchen countertop

If you are one of those who wants to save floor space in your kitchen then the wallmount sinks are the best options for you. They not only helps you to save some space in your kitchen but also helps in redesigning of your kitchen. The wallmount sinks doesn’t require a cabinet or a base for support or for installation.

The best part of wallmount sinks is that, they can be directly installed on a kitchen wall. Here the whole weight of the sink is reinforced on a kitchen wall. The wallmount sinks are available in wide variety of materials, including stainless steel, porcelain, cast iron, and so on.

Features of Wallmount Sinks:

• Doesn’t require a cabinet or base for support
• Helps to save kitchen floor space
• Available in wide variety of materials
• Can be directly installed on kitchen wall

Pros of Wallmount Sinks:

• No base or cabinet is required for support
• Can be installed on a kitchen wall
• Helps to save kitchen floor space

Cons of Wallmount Sinks:

• Not suited for all kinds of kitchen
• May spoil the modern kitchen design
• May not be reachable for people who are shorter in height

If you are looking for the most convenient kitchen sink options, then the all-in-one sinks are the best options for you. The all-in-one kitchen sinks are the ones that comes with complete kitchen sink unit which includes a single or double bowl sink as well as faucet.

There are plenty of kitchen sink varieties when it comes to all-in-one kitchen sinks. Among them, the most preferred ones are the all-in-one kitchen sinks either with a pull-down sprayer, a soap pump, a sink grid, or a strainer, and so on. The best part of all-in-one kitchen sinks is that, they can be installed on any type of countertop surfaces.

Features of All-in-One Sinks:

• Most convenient kitchen sink type options
• Comes with a complete kitchen sink unit
• Works on any countertop surfaces
• Can be combined with multiple features of sink

Pros of All-in-One Sinks:

• Like the name says, it is an all-in-one kitchen sink solution
• Comes with a complete kitchen sink unit
• Also includes a single or double bowl sink along with a kitchen faucet
• Features a pull-down sprayer, soap pump, sink grid, or strainer
• Can be installed on any kitchen countertop surface

Cons of All-in-One Sinks:

• Cleaning the sink can be challenging and not easy
• Cleaning this kitchen sink takes lots of time

Workstation sinks are considered to be the most useful and meaningful sinks when it comes to kitchen sinks in your kitchen. Workstation sinks are perfectly designed to execute most of your kitchen activities with ease.

The workstation kitchens are ideal for those kitchen which are always busy and best suits for homes with large families or restaurants. The best part of workstation sinks is that they convert your kitchen sink space into a work space or a preparation space.

Most of the workstation sinks comes with many custom accessories including cutting boards, drying trays, waste collectors, colanders, and much more. Also, many workstation sinks are designed with an integrated ledge in such a way that, they can easily able to hold accessories.

Features of Workstation Sinks:

• Best for homes with large family members or restaurants
• Multipurpose kitchen sink for all kinds of kitchen activities
• Ideal for busy kitchens
• Helps to convert kitchen sink into a work space or preparation space
• Comes with custom accessories such as cutting boards, or drying trays, etc.
• Helps to hold accessories with the help of integrated ledge

Pros of Workstation Sinks:

• Multipurpose kitchen sink
• Helps to execute multiple kitchen activities
• Custom made sink with different workstation setup
• Holds accessories

Cons of Workstation Sinks:

• Not suited for small family
• Might be more clumsy to clean the kitchen sink

If you are one of those who is looking for kitchen sinks for restaurants or hospitals, then the commercial sinks are the ones you must go for. The commercial sinks are highly and extremely durable when compared to other types of sinks.

The commercial sinks are usually longer and deeper in design that helps to clean large utensils and many utensils at the same time. They are much longer and deeper when compared to other kitchen sink types. For example, the home sinks that you see in your kitchen are usually shorter in lengths than that of sinks that you see in hospitals or restaurants.

Most of the commercial sinks comes with a dedicated prep surface built in which allows you to expand your counter space and protect your counter surfaces. This additional counter surface will help you as an alternate counter surface for food preparation.

The commercial sinks are usually designed with stainless steel material that lasts longer. This means you can buy the stainless steel commercial sinks according to your needs. Apart from stainless steel, they are also available in different materials including both under-mount and drop-in installation types.

Features of Commercial Sinks:

• Best suited for hospitals, restaurants, etc.
• Highly durable and lasts longer than that of other sinks
• Offers more space as they are longer and deeper
• Can wash large utensils easily
• Comes with built in prep surface as counter space
• Usually available in stainless steel material and also available in different materials

Pros of Commercial Sinks:

• Comes with pre-built-in prep counter surface
• Are bigger in lengths and deeper in depths
• Helps to clean large utensils easily
• Lasts longer and are highly durable

Cons of Commercial Sinks:

• Occupies more space in kitchen or the area where it is installed
• May not be suitable for small kitchens

A bar sink is the one which can be used as a secondary sink as it has a smaller sink space for cleaning purposes. A bar sink is one of the smallest sinks when compared to any standard sink. Being small makes it easier for anyone to be installed it as a secondary sink in places such as a kitchen island or a home bar.

The bar sinks are also made up of stainless steel material which makes it easier for cleaning and maintenance. As it acts as a secondary sink, you can use it for preparation of fresh ingredients away from main sink. This helps to avoid any cross-contamination, making your food cooking simpler.

Features of Bar Sinks:

• Smaller in size compared to standard sinks
• Can be used as a secondary sink for fresh food prep
• Best fit for home bar and can be installed on any kitchen island

Pros of Bar Sinks: 

• Comes in stainless steel material
• Can be used as secondary sink
• Ideal for home bar setup

Cons of Bar Sinks:

• Only acts a secondary sink and requires additional sink for your kitchen activities
• Small in size, so the usage options are limited

If you have a small kitchen then a single bowl sinks are going to be the best sink types for your kitchen. A single bowl sink always comes with a large wash basin with no dividers in it. This occupies less space and is much ideal for small kitchens with limited counter space.

The best part of having single bowl sinks is that, they makes it easier for cleaning of large cookware. Since, the wash basin is large, you can easily lay down any kind of pots or pans at the bottom.

While you wash, the spillages outside of sink can easily be avoided. However, do remember that they are not ideal for multi-tasking such as cleaning, cooking, and food prep at the same time. These are available in stainless steel and other different materials.

Features of Single Bowl Sinks:

• Ideal for small kitchens
• Designed with large wash basin
• Can be easily installed on a kitchen counter space with limited counter space
• Large cookwares can easily be washed without any debris spillage outside of sink

Pros of Single Bowl Sinks:

• Comes with a large wash basin
• Can be easily installed on a limited kitchen counter space
• Allows you to wash large cookware
• Uses less counter space than that of double bowl sinks

Cons of Single Bowl Sinks:

• Hand washing can be difficult as there won’t be additional basin
• Requires additional drying rack which in turn takes more counter space
• Can be less hygiene as you won’t have the option of keeping dirtiest utensils somewhere else

If you are looking for multi tasking in your kitchen sink, then probably the double bowl kitchen sinks are the best options for you. Since they have a divider at in between the bowls, the best part of having double bowl sinks is that, you can use one side of the bowl for washing dishes and use the other side for rinsing, drying or for food preparation.

Having installed the double bowl sinks in your kitchen makes them unique and helps in real multi task kitchen activities. They come in wide variety of design patterns, shapes, colors, and styles. This combination will easily help them to match the design of any modern kitchen.

Features of Double Bowl Sinks:

• Best for multi task kitchen activities
• One bowl can be used for dish washing and other bowl can be used for food prep
• Separate bowls for washing and rinsing or drying
• One bowl can also be used as a food residual garbage disposal during food prep

Pros of Double Bowl Sinks:

• Can be modified as a workstation sink
• Two basins for multi tasking
• One bowl for washing and other bowl for food prep
• One bowl can also be used as a food residual trash can

Cons of Double Bowl Sinks:

• Usually takes more kitchen counter space
• Difficult to wash large cookware, especially when the wash basins or bowls are small
• Kitchen under counter storage space may be get lost when you go for a larger and deeper double bowl sink

Similar to the double bowl sinks, you will also see triple bowl sinks in the market that are also very much popular when it comes to modern kitchen design. The reason is that they are available in wide variety of design styles and patterns, and comes with different materials including stainless steel, ceramics, porcelain, etc.

In triple bowl sinks you will either see two same size bowls and one small size bowl or you will see one big size bowl, one medium size bowl and a small size bowl at the middle. All three basins or bowls comes with sink holes along with four holes for faucet installation.

Kitchen with a triple bowl sink ideas comes with 3 bowls or wash basin bowls, which offers multiple usages, including: washing, rinsing, and food residue or chopped vegetables left-outs storage. Compared to the double bowl sinks, the triple bowl sinks are the best options in your kitchen, especially when you have bigger kitchen space. The triple bowl sinks are very convenient to use the garbage disposal when one bowl is filled with full of dishes in the soapy water and the other bowl can be easily used to rinse and wash the dishes.

Features of Triple Bowl Sinks:

• 3 bowls or 3 basins for washing, rinsing, and garbage storage
• Available in variety of design patterns, styles, and materials
• Best alternative for double bowl sinks
• Ideal for kitchens with large space
• Kitchen with a triple-bowl sink ideas

Pros of Triple Bowl Sinks:

• Comes with 3 bowls or basins
• Best suited for large size kitchen
• Best for multi tasking of kitchen activities
• Can perform washing, rinsing, and garbage collection at the same time

Cons of Triple Bowl Sinks:

• Requires large space for installation
• May not be suitable for small kitchens

Often, the low divide kitchen sinks are also called by the name of low score sinks. As the name suggests, the low divider sinks comes with a low center divider which is designed to be only to cover half way up the basin. Basically, you can say the low divider sinks are almost identical to the double bowl kitchen sinks and gets differentiated in the divider.

The best part of low divider sinks is that, you can easily able to wash large pots and pans, which are usually difficult to fit in double bowl or single bowl sinks. At the same time you can also be able to do both washing and rinsing. To make the most of low divider sinks, you can look for the one’s that have bit deeper wash basins to accommodate most of your kitchen dishes.

Features of Low Divider Sinks:

• Comes with 2 bowls or wash basins
• Has a divider at the center which is bit lower compared to the height of both bowls
• Can do both washing and rinsing at the same time
• Can be most efficient kitchen sinks compared to double bowl sinks

Pros of Low Divider Sinks:

• Helps you to easily wash large pots and pans
• Comes with a slightly lower divider that helps to accommodate more large utensils
• Can do both washing and rinsing at the same time

Cons of Low Divider Sinks:

• Can’t fill either of the bowls completely with water at the same time as it can move to other
• Sometimes there are chances that, the food residue or grease or oil, can flow into the rinsing side making your cleaning job much difficult

Another type of sink that you can look for your modern kitchen is the overmount kitchen sink. The overmount sinks are also called by the name of top mount sink pr drop-in sink as it is installed into the counter by dropping it and creates a lip or rim around the sink.

The overmount kitchen sinks are easy to install, are versatile, and provides extra support on the kitchen sink area. You can use any type of material of overmount kitchen sink as it holds rigidly into the sink countertop.

Features of Overmount Sinks:

• Comes in wide variety of materials
• Can install as much heavy sink as possible
• Provides an extra support around the sink area in the form of rim
• Easy to install and easy to replace

Pros of Overmount Sinks:

• Most preferred kitchen sink type for any type of kitchens
• Can be of any type of material and can be as much as heavy as possible
• Most affordable when compared to undermount kitchen sinks
• Helps to prevent any damages that can happen to countertop by not allowing the water to flow out

Cons of Overmount Sinks:

• Debris or food residual can get stuck around the sink countertop and makes it difficult to clean it off
• Due to raised lip, will take an extra surface of countertop

If you are looking for the cheapest and most affordable kitchen sinks, then the stainless steel sinks the ones which you should go for. The best part of stainless steel sinks is that they are easy to install and can fit in any type of kitchen. Moreover they are the lightest of kitchen sink types.

The stainless steel sinks comes in wide variety of styles, which includes farmhouse, undermount, and overmount kitchen sinks. They are much more affordable when compared to granite sinks and are much durable compared to other kitchen sink options.