Work out what you need
Household size and how much you own. The result converts to running feet of joinery.
How this calculator works
- Clothing = people × the per-person figure for your lifestyle band: 18, 28 or 45 cubic feet.
- Sarees and seasonal clothing are added per person as separate allowances, because both need different storage geometry from everyday clothes.
- Linen, kitchen and general storage scale with home type rather than headcount: a 2BHK carries 12 cu ft of linen, 25 of kitchen dry store and 20 of general items.
- Luggage is a flat allowance of 30 or 55 cubic feet and is assigned to the loft.
- Wardrobe run = (total − luggage − kitchen) ÷ 10.5 usable cubic feet per running foot of 2 ft deep, 7 ft high wardrobe.
- Loft run = luggage ÷ 9 and kitchen run = kitchen volume ÷ 12, using the usable volume per running foot of each unit type.
| Category | 1BHK | 2BHK | 3BHK | 4BHK / villa |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Clothing per person | 18 / 28 / 45 cu ft | 18 / 28 / 45 | 18 / 28 / 45 | 18 / 28 / 45 |
| Linen and bedding | 10 cu ft | 12 | 16 | 20 |
| Kitchen dry store | 18 cu ft | 25 | 32 | 40 |
| Documents, tools, general | 14 cu ft | 20 | 26 | 34 |
| Luggage | 30 or 55 cu ft | 30 or 55 | 30 or 55 | 30 or 55 |
| Usable volume per running ft | Wardrobe 10.5 | Loft 9 | Kitchen 12 | — |
Clothing scales with people and everything else scales with the home, because linen, kitchen and general storage track the number of rooms rather than the number of occupants.
Design and build under one accountable roof
Worked example — a family of four in a 2BHK
| Category | Arithmetic | Volume |
|---|---|---|
| Everyday clothing | 4 × 28 | 112 cu ft |
| Linen and bedding | 2BHK | 12 cu ft |
| Kitchen dry store | 2BHK | 25 cu ft |
| Documents, tools, general | 2BHK | 20 cu ft |
| Luggage | standard | 30 cu ft |
| Total | sum | 199 cu ft |
| Wardrobe run | (199 − 30 − 25) ÷ 10.5 | 13.7 running ft |
| Loft run | 30 ÷ 9 | 3.3 running ft |
| Kitchen storage run | 25 ÷ 12 | 2.1 running ft |
Fourteen running feet of wardrobe across two bedrooms is 7 ft each — which is exactly what a standard Mumbai 2BHK bedroom wall takes. That is not a coincidence; it is why the standard works, and also why a household with more than average clothing runs out of space in a 2BHK.
Why homes run out of storage
Because storage is designed to fit the wall rather than the contents. A designer draws a 7 ft wardrobe because the wall is 8 ft long, and nobody establishes whether 7 ft holds what the family owns. The alternative takes ten minutes: measure the total length of hanging rail currently in use, count the shelves in current use, and note anything currently living in boxes on top of a cupboard. That is the real requirement, and it is usually 20 to 30% more than the new flat is being designed for.
The second reason is that storage is treated as a single quantity when it is really four. Hanging, folded shelf, drawer and bulk are not interchangeable — a household with 14 running feet of hanging and no drawers is as badly served as one with the reverse. The proportion that works for most Indian households is roughly 55% hanging, 20% shelving, 15% drawers and 10% specialist: saree pull-outs, jewellery, bags, luggage.
The third is the loft, which is the cheapest storage in the flat and the first thing cut from a quotation. Thirty cubic feet of luggage in the loft is thirty cubic feet not competing with clothes in the wardrobe. If the budget is tight, build the loft and simplify the wardrobe internals — not the reverse.
One Mumbai-specific note: humidity. Any storage holding leather, silk or documents needs air movement, which means perforated back panels or a small gap rather than sealed carcasses, and a dehumidifier point in a walk-in. Sealed storage in a coastal flat is where good clothes go to grow mould, and it is entirely preventable at design stage.
Every constant on this page comes from Greenbox site records — measured drawings, signed BOQs and completion certificates from projects delivered between 2023 and 2026 — rounded to the figures an estimator would actually write down. We publish them so the arithmetic can be audited rather than trusted. Treat the output as a planning figure: accurate enough to brief a landlord, a bank or a family, and not accurate enough to sign a contract against.
What this tool does not cover
- Loose furniture storage — chests, trunks and under-bed drawers — which can add 20 to 40 cubic feet and is often the cheapest way to close a gap.
- Kitchen storage in detail. This gives a dry-store volume; the modular kitchen cost calculator handles the units.
- Books, instruments, sports equipment and hobby storage, which vary too widely to model and should be added as measured items.
- Storage cost. Volume tells you what to build, not what it costs — see the wardrobe cost calculator.
- Servant room and utility storage, which in a larger Mumbai flat carries a meaningful share of the bulk items.
- For the loft specifically, use the loft storage calculator.
Selected work by Greenbox Design Studio. Tap any image to enlarge.
Frequently asked questions
How much storage does a family of four need?+
About 199 cubic feet in a 2BHK with average wardrobes — 112 for clothing, 12 linen, 25 kitchen dry store, 20 general and 30 for luggage. That is roughly 14 running feet of wardrobe, 3.3 ft of loft and 2 ft of dedicated kitchen storage.
How many cubic feet is one running foot of wardrobe?+
Fourteen gross for a wardrobe 2 ft deep and 7 ft high, and about 10.5 usable once shelves, rails, the back panel and the air around folded clothes are accounted for. Designing against the gross figure is how wardrobes end up 25% too small.
How much hanging space does one person need?+
Around 28 cubic feet of total clothing storage for an average adult, of which roughly 55% should be hanging. Someone with a minimal wardrobe needs 18 cubic feet and a collector 45. The reliable method is to measure the rail you currently use.
What proportion of storage should be drawers?+
About 15%. The mix that works for most Indian households is 55% hanging, 20% open or shelved, 15% drawers and 10% specialist — saree pull-outs, jewellery, bags and luggage. A wardrobe that is all hanging is as badly planned as one that is all shelves.
Where should luggage be stored?+
In the loft, always. Thirty cubic feet of suitcases in a loft is thirty cubic feet not competing with clothes in the wardrobe, and loft is the cheapest storage volume in the flat. If the budget is tight, build the loft and simplify the wardrobe internals rather than the reverse.