HMO Kitchen Requirements London
Shared kitchen minimum floor areas are borough-specific — not one London-wide rule. For up to five occupiers, published shared-kitchen minima in our registry range from 5.5m² to 10.5m² across 26 boroughs.
Kitchen standards vary by borough
Unlike national minimum bedroom sizes, shared kitchen floor areas are set by each London borough in its HMO or property licensing standards. A layout that passes in one borough may fail in another. Always check your borough’s published standards before refurbishing or submitting a licence application.
Shared kitchen vs kitchen-diner
Most boroughs specify minimum m² for a shared kitchen used by multiple households. Some also publish separate minima for combined kitchen-diner spaces (cooking and dining in one room). Exclusive-use kitchens for single-household units within an HMO may have different thresholds — see your borough page for banded tables.
More than floor area alone
Councils also inspect ventilation, food storage, refuse arrangements, fire blankets, heat detection, and linear worktop length relative to occupier numbers. Our registry captures floor-area bands; your borough page and standards PDF remain the source of truth for equipment and fire-safety detail.
Examples (selected boroughs, ≤5 occupiers)
| Borough | Shared kitchen (min m²) | Kitchen-diner (min m²) |
|---|---|---|
| Bexley | 5.5m² | — |
| Barking and Dagenham | 6m² | — |
| Barnet | 7m² | — |
| Hackney | 5.5m² | — |
| Tower Hamlets | 6m² | — |
All boroughs — shared kitchen minima (≤5 occupiers)
Snapshot: July 2026. Higher occupancies may require larger kitchens — see each borough page for full bands.
| Borough | Shared kitchen | Kitchen-diner |
|---|---|---|
| Barking and Dagenham | 6m² | — |
| Barnet | 7m² | — |
| Bexley | 5.5m² | — |
| Brent | 5.5m² | — |
| Bromley | 6m² | — |
| Camden | 6m² | — |
| City of London | 7m² | — |
| Croydon | — | 15m² |
| Ealing | 7m² | — |
| Enfield | 6m² | 8.5m² |
| Greenwich | 9.5m² | — |
| Hackney | 5.5m² | — |
| Haringey | 7m² | — |
| Harrow | 7m² | — |
| Havering | 7.5m² | — |
| Hounslow | 6.5m² | — |
| Kingston upon Thames | 7m² | — |
| Lambeth | 10.5m² | — |
| Lewisham | 6.51m² | — |
| Newham | 7.5m² | — |
| Redbridge | 7m² | — |
| Richmond upon Thames | 7m² | — |
| Southwark | 9.5m² | — |
| Sutton | 7m² | — |
| Tower Hamlets | 6m² | — |
| Waltham Forest | 6m² | — |
| Wandsworth | 7m² | — |
Amenity caveat: Floor areas are one part of kitchen compliance. Worktop length, ventilation, refuse storage, and fire safety are borough-specific — confirm on your borough standards page before submission.
Frequently asked questions
Is there one London-wide minimum kitchen size for HMOs?
No. Each borough sets its own amenity standards. The table on this page shows verified shared-kitchen minima for up to five occupiers where published — your property may need a larger kitchen at higher occupancy.
Do kitchen-diner spaces count instead of a separate kitchen?
Many boroughs allow a combined kitchen-diner if it meets a higher minimum m². Others require distinct cooking and living space. Check the kitchen-diner band on your borough standards page before removing walls.
Can I rely on this guide for my licence application?
Use this guide for orientation only. Confirm exact figures, worktop requirements, and fire safety on your borough’s HMO standards page and council PDF before paying application fees.
Check rooms against London standards
Book a free consult for amenity advice, or verify bedroom sizes with the free room size checker.