Open-Concept vs. Zoned Kitchens: What’s Trending in 2025?

Homeowners will never stop debating the best kitchen layout. The debate today centers on several common styles, including the popular open-concept kitchen layout and the less familiar zoned kitchen style. Each kitchen design has advantages and disadvantages, but one may be more suitable for your needs.

Sometimes it is not an either/or situation; instead, a modern approach is to combine these layouts, allowing you to have the best of both. Designers today are experimenting with new ways to combine openness and purposeful divisions, catering to modern lifestyles that value flexibility, efficiency, and comfort.

Open-Concept vs. Zone Kitchens

Open-concept kitchens first appeared in the 1950s but were repopularized in the 1990s and became a common home feature. They are still the most popular kitchen layout today. An open-concept kitchen is a kitchen design that removes barriers, such as walls and doors, between the kitchen and the other living spaces. This layout creates a seamless flow and promotes easy interaction in common areas like the kitchen, living room, and dining room.

A zoned kitchen is similar to an open-concept kitchen, but it is designed with distinct areas for different functions—such as cooking, prepping, and cleaning—while still maintaining a certain visual and spatial connection with other areas. This design approach uses elements like partial walls, cabinetry, or layout adjustments to create some separation without fully closing off the space.

Open-Concept Kitchen: Pros and Cons

Even though open-concept kitchens are the most common choice for most people, this doesn’t mean they work for every home.

Pros:

• Spacious and Airy Feel: Without walls, an open kitchen feels larger and more connected to the rest of the home.
• Better Social Interaction: Ideal for entertaining and maintaining an active home life. Open kitchens allow those who prepare and cook food to interact with others while doing so.
• More Natural Light: Allows the flow of natural light between rooms.
• Flexible Layout: Accommodates a diversity of layouts, including the incorporation of islands, eat-in breakfast nooks, and multifunctional areas.
• Modern Aesthetic: Provides a sleek, contemporary look that is both simple and inviting.

Cons:

• Less Privacy: Because there is no separation between spaces, noise, smells, and mess are more noticeable from one room to another.
• Requires Tidy Habits: When the kitchen is disorganized, the entire living space feels chaotic.
• Limited Wall Space: There are fewer walls on which to mount cabinets and other storage elements and appliances.
• Heating and Cooling Challenges: Large, open spaces make temperature regulation more difficult.

Zoned Kitchens: Pros and Cons

The concept of creating kitchen zones has been around as long as the infamous “work triangle,” but designers and realtors are seeing renewed interest in the idea of designating areas in the kitchen for specific purposes.

Pros:

• Better Organization: Distinct areas for cooking, prep, and eating create a more efficient work flow.
• More Privacy: Separation reduces the flow of noise, odors, and visual clutter between spaces.
• Increased Storage: More wall space allows for additional storage and other kitchen components.

Cons:

• Less Social Interaction: The cook may feel isolated from the family and other guests.
• Less Design Flexibility: The addition of walls and other fixed components means that it will be harder to reconfigure the space for other purposes or add new elements.
• Reduces Natural Light: Partial walls and more cabinets may hinder the flow of natural light from room to room.
• More Confined: If your kitchen is zoned in a way that isolates it, it may feel tighter and more cramped than it is.

2025 Kitchen Trend: A Balanced Approach

Designers have predicted the death of open-concept kitchens for years, but the layout still remains strong in new residential design. However, many homeowners are looking to nuance this approach with ways to make their kitchen more distinctive and usable.

Blending Open and Zoned Kitchen Concepts

A major trend for 2025 is the shift away from excessive openness and toward a hybrid strategy that strikes a balance between connectivity and thoughtful design. Homeowners want the best of both worlds, which they define as the social, airy feel of an open kitchen combined with the functionality and organization of a zoned kitchen.

Design Solutions for a Blended Approach

Builders are beginning to introduce elements that create soft divisions between spaces. These subtle separations help define spaces without fully enclosing them, maintaining light flow and openness while still creating purposeful zones. Here are some ways to create more distinction in an open-concept kitchen.

Half-Walls and Partition Screens

Patial walls can create a visual and spatial barrier that divides the kitchen from other living areas without making it feel completely closed off. This can also create valuable space for storage and appliances. Perforated screens, slatted doors, and shutters offer physical separation while maintaining visual and light flow.

Glass and Steel Partitions

Crittal-style glass and steel windows, walls, and doors are useful in modern home settings for allowing real separation while maintaining sightlines throughout the living space. These can be fixed or sliding depending on the homeowner’s needs.

Strategic Cabinetry and Shelving

Tall cabinets or floor-to-ceiling shelving placed in thoughtful locations can subtly divide the space without a stark separation. Practically, this will also increase the organization of the kitchen.

Separate Seating Areas

Rather than relying only on bar seating, zoned kitchens often feature a separate in-kitchen eating space. This might include a breakfast area with banquette seating or, if space is tight, an extended peninsula on the island that creates some separation between the food prep and eating areas.

Coffee or Bar Prep Zone

A coffee or other beverage prep zone frees up valuable space and prevents frequent crowd-ups in the main kitchen space. These zones can be easily tucked into small corners, integrated into other cabinetry, or designed in a dedicated alcove for added distinction.

Choosing the Right Kitchen for Your Lifestyle

Never follow a trend simply because it is the latest and greatest idea out there. Choose it because it enhances the style of your home or increases the comfort and functionality of your life. Here are concepts to consider which kitchen style will work for you.

1. Consider How You Use Your Kitchen Daily

If your kitchen is the heart of your home, and you enjoy entertaining and feeding your family and friends and thrive in noise and potential chaos, an open concept may be ideal for you.

Serious cooks who love a fully equipped and organized space and enjoy the quiet of the kitchen might benefit from something more closed. Consider adding a few zones for dedicated food or beverage prep, as well as a small table away from the island for eating if you want to create a blended approach.

2. Think About Visual Connection

Neatnicks are happy with open-concept kitchens because it is always clean and organized and never causes visual disruption for the rest of the living space. Closed kitchens keep the mess away, but you don’t have to resort to full separation. Adding some partial walls or tall cabinets that separate the space will provide more space for good organization.

3. Evaluate Your Home’s Layout and Spacial Constraints

Smaller homes benefit from open kitchens, and large homes have enough space that they still look spacious with kitchens that are closed. Smaller homes can still create a spacious-looking kitchen that is closed if you opt for soft partitions like glass doors that you can see through or sliding doors that you can pull back when desired.

4. Assess Storage Needs

Open-concept kitchens will almost always have to sacrifice cabinet space and flexibility for layout. For people who love minimalism, this is ideal as it forces them to keep their kitchenware edited. Zoning with partial walls and cabinetry adds space for more kitchen items while still maintaining a more open style.

5. Prioritize Aesthetics and Design Preferences

For homeowners who prefer a modern kitchen style, an open kitchen or a hybrid style with glass partitions, a multifunctional island, and separate eating space will give you an on-trend but efficient kitchen.

Historic kitchens were designed to be separate from other living and entertaining areas, so if you prefer a more traditional look, consider a partially closed or heavily zoned kitchen for a classic style, optimal storage, and seamless functionality.