Boot Rooms & Bootility’s

Updated November 2026

A bootility is a boot room and utility room in one space. It combines somewhere to sit, take off muddy boots and hang coats with the practical side of a utility: a sink, the washing machine and tumble dryer hidden behind cupboard doors, and tall storage for cleaning kit. It suits homes with a back door, dogs and too little space for two rooms.

Once only found in country and farmhouse homes, the boot room is now a highly sought-after space. If you enjoy walks in the countryside with your family and four-legged friends, but hate the mud that follows you back into the house, a boot room or bootility could be the answer.

Boot room, utility room or bootility?

Boot room

A space by the back or side door for shoes, boots, coats and outdoor gear, often with a bench seat. Some people call it a mud room.

Utility room

A room for laundry and cleaning: the washing machine, tumble dryer, a sink and storage for cleaning supplies.

Bootility

Both in one room. Step in from the cold into a space for your shoes, coats and outerwear, and add a sink, washing machine and dryer to make it a bootility. With bespoke furniture you can also make room for dog beds, the perfect resting place after a long walk.

What to include in a boot room or bootility

There are many things to consider when designing a boot room.

A boot bench seat

Many customers choose a bench seat for their boot room. It gives you somewhere to sit and take off your boots after a long walk, and can double as storage with drawers, shelves or cupboards built in.

Boot and shoe storage

As this is where you’ll take off your shoes, footwear storage is a must. Think carefully about what you’ll keep here and tell your designer: wellies and walking boots need taller storage than everyday shoes.

Hooks and coat storage

No more coats over the sofa or on the stairs. Coat hooks in the boot room give a home to coats, jackets, umbrellas and hats, and keep the rest of the house tidy.

Utility and laundry

To make it a bootility, hide the washing machine and tumble dryer behind cupboard doors and add a utility sink for muddy boots and paws. A housekeeper’s cupboard stores cleaning supplies and other essentials, and glass-fronted cabinets are a good place for towels.

Space for the dog

An open base unit or a space under the bench makes a built-in dog bed, and a sink or shower area makes washing muddy dogs easier.

How to plan a bootility room

Choose the right spot

The best place is by the door you use most when you come in from outside, ideally next to the kitchen so plumbing is close by.

Pick a hard-wearing floor

Brick, stone and tiles cope with mud and water. A herringbone brick floor is a popular traditional choice.

Plan the laundry first

Washing machines and dryers fix where the water, waste and power go, so place them first, then fit the bench, boot storage and coat hooks around them.

Match it to the kitchen, or don’t

A bootility can match your kitchen or have its own colour. Our painted kitchens page has colour ideas; all our furniture is hand-painted in any Farrow & Ball or Little Greene colour.

Our boot room furniture

Just like our kitchen cabinetry, our boot room furniture is solid wood, with no MDF, MFC or chipboard, handmade to order and designed for you and your home. It is made in 10–12 weeks and delivered fully assembled. Cabinetry starts from £1,180 per metre for our Cottage range, £1,818 for Town House and £2,372 for Manor House, including painting and VAT. See our prices.

You are welcome to see the quality for yourself in our showroom in the village of Pitsford, Northamptonshire. We have our own showroom boot room, with a large housekeeper’s cupboard with lacquered oak shelving, as well as a dressing room and many kitchens. See how we added a boot room beside a barn conversion kitchen at Cavendish Holt.

Boot room questions

What is a bootility?

A bootility is a boot room and utility room combined: boot and coat storage and a bench, plus a sink, washing machine and tumble dryer hidden behind cupboard doors.

What is the difference between a boot room and a mud room?

There is very little difference between a boot room and a mud room. Both are spaces by an outside door for muddy boots, coats and outdoor gear. “Mud room” is more common in America; “boot room” in the UK.

How much space do I need for a bootility?

A bootility needs enough space for a run of tall and base cupboards with the washing machine and dryer, plus room to sit on a bench and take off boots. The White Kitchen Company’s designers can plan one around your space, even a narrow corridor.

What should go in a boot room?

A boot room should have a bench seat, tall boot storage, coat hooks, a cupboard for cleaning supplies and, if there’s room, a sink and space for the dog.