What to check before buying a kitchen tap

Spout height and reach matter more than they look like they should in a showroom. A tall arched spout clears a stack of washing up easily but can splash badly in a shallow bowl, while a low spout struggles to fit a large pot underneath. Measuring your sink and worktop before you buy avoids the single most common kitchen tap regret.

Which style suits your kitchen

A single lever monobloc tap suits most kitchens, since one hand controls both flow and temperature while the other holds a pan. Choose a pull-out or pull-down spray if you rinse a lot of veg or clean a deep sink, and our pull-out vs pull-down comparison explains which of the two fits your layout.

Tall gooseneck spouts look striking and swing clear of large pans, which makes them a good match for a deep single bowl or a Belfast sink. On a shallow inset sink they tend to splash, so a medium height spout is usually the safer pick there.

Two-handle bridge taps suit a farmhouse or period kitchen, where a sleek single lever can look out of place. They're slower to adjust, since you set hot and cold separately, but the look is hard to match any other way. For a double bowl sink, whichever style you choose, make sure the spout swivels far enough to reach both bowls without being pushed round by hand every time.

Measure these before you order

Start with hole count. A monobloc tap needs a single hole, but swapping from an old two-tap setup or a tap with a separate side lever usually means matching or adapting the existing hole pattern in your worktop or sink.

Next, check worktop thickness against the tap's fixing kit, since thick stone or timber worktops can need a longer threaded stud than the one in the box. Finally, measure from the tap hole to the middle of the bowl so the spout reach lands water in the centre rather than on the back edge.

How much to spend on a kitchen tap

Budget mixer taps start around £25 to £50 and cover everyday use reliably (figures from our last check). Mid-range taps from £50 to £150 typically bring a smoother ceramic disc cartridge, a pull-out or pull-down spray head, and better finish durability, and premium ranges above £150 mostly buy longer warranties and finish quality rather than any real jump in performance. Our full guide to choosing a kitchen tap covers mixer types, finish and budget in more detail.

Common kitchen tap mistakes

Buying a mains pressure tap for a low pressure home is the one that catches people out most. Many modern mixers are designed for a combi boiler or unvented cylinder, so on a gravity fed system with a loft tank, check the tap's minimum pressure before you buy. Our guide to flow rate shows how to test yours with a jug and a stopwatch.

Finish is the other easy one to get wrong. Matt black, gold and brushed nickel all look great on day one, but in a hard water area they show limescale faster than chrome, so read our hard water buying guide before choosing a coloured finish. The flexible tails in the box also catch some people out, since they occasionally don't reach the isolation valves under an older sink, which is an easy fix with an extension hose if you know about it before fitting day.