Choosing and buying bathroom faucets shouldn’t be rocket science, but with all the choices available and the wide variation in price, this is a purchase that can be overwhelming.

As someone who sells bathroom plumbing fixtures, I’ve found that most of my job is helping people narrow down their choices so they can make a decision and get on to the next part of their project, and be happy with the faucets they purchased.

So, here’s how to choose a bathroom faucet (or faucets) whether you are building new, remodeling, or simply replacing old fixtures.

WHAT’S YOUR STYLE

First of all, do you like contemporary, traditional, eclectic? You’ll want to buy a style of faucet that goes with the style/design of your bathroom. Obvious right? However, when you are in the showroom or store, it’s easy to lose sight of this simple concept.

It’s important though, unless you like to mix plaids and stripes (or polka dots) when you dress, then by all means do whatever you like. 

The most common categories here are modern/contemporary, traditional, and transitional. 

Modern/contemporary is defined by clean lines, minimal ornamentation and either a bold and no-nonsense presence, or a small presence to be noticed as little as possible.

Traditional designs are usually the opposite. With traditional faucet designs, flaring, curly curves and ornate details are the standard. These can be subtle or egregious, but they are there.

Transitional is a term that has been given to the gray area in between these two. Not contemporary, not traditional, somewhere in between. 

Here are a few other names you can use for different styles:

-Industrial

-Art Deco

-Modern Industrial

-Zen

-Coastal

-Country

-and the list could keep going.

Bottom line? Know what will work with the design of your bathroom so you know what choices to eliminate when you shop.

WHAT FINISH DO YOU WANT/NEED?

This may not seem like a priority question, but it’s important for 2 reasons.

The first is that you want to pick a finish that goes with your color palette. The second is because not all of the faucets you choose will be available in your finish.

Fortunately, most faucets are available in all of the ‘basic’ finishes:

-Polished chrome

-Satin/brushed nickel

-Polished nickel

-Matte black

-Satin Brass

Notice I didn’t say oil rubbed bronze or polished brass. That’s because those are less available across faucet’ series than the 5 faucet finishes I listed.

So how do you choose a finish? Here’s a simple guide to go by:

‘Warm colors with warm colors, cool colors with cool colors.’

That means if you’re design is predominantly black, white, gray and blue, your best complimenting finishes are polished chrome, matte black, matte white, gunmetal, black chrome and the like.

If the design has a lot earth tones such as browns, golds, yellows, rust/Sienna, warm whites, it is predominantly warm and is best complemented by polished nickel, satin/brushed nickel, and anything in the bronze or gold family.

Satin brass isn’t assigned to either category because it can go either way. It works great with blue and black, white, brown, green and even grey if done right.

Now remember, this guide is just that. A guide. If you find a combination that breaks the rules and looks fantastic. Cool. If you like it go with it!

1 HOLE, 3 HOLE OR…?

If you are replacing your faucets and not changing your countertop, you have a couple of options.

1. Use the same style you have now. If it’s a single hole, find a single hole faucet. If it’s a 4″ centerset faucet, find one of those you like. If it’s an 8″ widespread, replace it with one of those faucets.

2. What if you have a single hole, but you want a widespread? You may be able to drill additional holes in your countertop to allow for this. If so, pick whatever widespread you like. The cutouts are fairly standard.

3. If you have a 4″ centerset faucet now and want to get rid of it for a single hole faucet, you can often buy a baseplate to cover the additional holes and put most single hole faucets on top.

YOUR BATHROOM FIXTURES ARE DETERMINED BY YOUR FAUCET

Most faucet manufacturers create the entire bathroom series around the bathroom sink faucet, and there are few exceptions to this. That means if you pick your bathroom faucet first, there are matching:

-Shower controls (trim)

-Towel bars, toilet paper holders, towel rings, robe hooks

-Tub fillers/tub spouts

-Showerheads/handshowers

A few companies even have light fixtures to match the faucet series. Choose your bathroom faucet first and the rest will come to you with ease.

I encourage you to remember this when you go shopping if you are remodeling or building new. This rule does make shopping for your bathroom fixtures easier, I promise.

SO REMEMBER…

-What’s your style? What is the design going to look like overall?

-Which finish do you need/want to complement this design?

-‘Choose your bathroom faucet first, and the rest will follow.’

Your remodel or new build is a blank canvas, so follow these rules to make choosing a bathroom faucet stress free, give yourself a foundation to build on, and avoid getting too overwhelmed in the showroom.

Happy Hunting!

POST SCRIPT

Vessel faucets, wall-mounted faucets, multiple bathrooms…you didn’t say anything about this! True. I like to break things down into digestible bites. All of these topics will be covered in upcoming posts, so stay tuned!

*I am an Amazon affiliate and will receive a small commission for any items purchased through links in this article, at no additional cost to you.