Dresser in Front of Window? The 6 Pros and Cons

One of the most exciting things about purchasing new furniture is arranging it in a new or updated room. Dressers, in particular, are usually quite easy to place, due to their manageable shapes and sizes and how well they can fit into certain spaces. One such area that has become a common home for dressers is in front of a window in order to save room, but is that a good idea in the first place? 

What are the pros and cons of placing a dresser in front of your window? The following are a few pros and cons of putting these standard pieces of furniture in front of windows:

Pros	Cons
Save space	Could lead to dresser damage
Can look great	Messes with lighting
Could help balance the room	Draws unwanted attention
It is practical	Could block access to the window

It might sound very counterproductive to place furniture in front of a window, in theory. But fortunately, that is not always the case when it comes to dressers. The remainder of this article will go over a few things you should know about dresser placement in front of windows, including its advantages and disadvantages. 

Can a dresser go in front of a window?

Before we move on to the pros and cons of having this popular piece of furniture in front of a window, let’s answer the question at hand: Can a dresser go in front of a window? The answer is that it depends. There are multiple factors you will need to consider when determining whether it is feasible for you to move a dresser in front of a window, including its size and style and the window’s dimensions. 

Considering Dresser Size 

If you want to place your dresser in front of your window, the first thing you will need to look at is its size. Ideally, the space that the piece will occupy will consist solely of the area underneath or in front of your window. 

First, let’s look at the dresser height. Obviously, if you have a tall dresser that will block most, if not all, of your entire window, it is better to leave it where it is against the wall. After all, there is no point in having a window if it is just going to be blocked off! 

Ideally, you will want to use a dresser that is short enough to either fill the space underneath the window or so that it only covers a small portion of the window’s bottom. However, in some cases, you can get away with covering as much as an eighth or even quarter of a window from the bottom, depending on the dimensions and placement of the window itself. (More on this later.)

You should also consider the width or “depth” of your dresser. 

(Note: By “width,” note that we are not referring to the distance between the left side of the furniture to the right where the dresser’s drawer handles are; here, we are talking about the length from the handles to the back of the dresser that will rest against the window.)

Why is width or depth important? Well, for one, you want to make sure that you are still able to reach around your dresser to get to your window when you need to. You do not want to have a piece of furniture make it difficult for you to reach the window if you ever need to open or clean it. 

Considering Dresser Style

While the style of the dresser is not necessarily a “make it or break it” factor for whether you should have it in front of your window, it is undoubtedly a way to ensure you find a dresser that is the right size for placement there. This is especially the case if you are in the middle of searching for a new one. 

When some people think of “dresser,” they often think of the standard, tall, four or five-drawer pieces that would likely block a good portion of a window. However, many modern dressers are now also designed “long-ways,” or “wide,” meaning that they are long from side to side and have drawers placed next to one another rather than stacked. 

For this reason, these dressers are usually pretty short and are almost always perfect for keeping underneath a window since they do not end up taking much space at all. This YITAHOME wide dresser is an example of the popular wide dresser.  

Considering Window Dimensions

Finally, you should consider the size of your window. How high off the floor it is, and its actual height, are two dimensions you need to keep in mind. These numbers will determine how much room there really is to place a dresser in front of it. 

With all of this said, let’s move on to analyze each of the pros and cons that come with placing your dresser in front of your window.

4 Pros of Placing a Dresser in Front of the Window

The following are four advantages of placing dressers in front of windows. Note that the benefits mentioned here are not all applicable to everyone, as your circumstances may vary. 

1. Have More Space

If your dresser is currently taking more space than you would like, moving it so that it is in front of your window is an easy way to make room. 

In fact, pushing all of your furniture toward the walls is a great way to create more space in the center of the room so you can move around without obstacles getting in the way. It also leaves a little area open to place more furniture should you want to add to your collection. 

2. Can Look Great

Now this advantage can be a little bit subjective since beauty is in the eye of the beholder. However, having a dresser occupying the space right below your window will usually look a lot better than leaving that space as a short empty wall. Just imagine walking into your room to find an open window letting the sunshine in as its curtains float towards you to welcome you to a beautiful piece of furniture. 

Another thing you can do to enhance the beauty of your dresser in front of your window is to place objects on top of the furniture, such as photographs, flowers, or figurines. The light of day will create a great visual effect on them, and pictures will look prettier when seen with a blue sky behind them.

3. You Can Balance the Room

A significant feature that you must know when it comes to successful room arrangement and decoration is balance. Think of it as a painting or a photograph: what makes one look great is when there is something to see everywhere in the frame; drastically empty spaces on one side and not the other make it look “off-balance.” This same concept can be applied to a room.

When there is too much furniture placed on one side, and little to no furniture on the other—or, in other words, the room is asymmetrical—something feels a little off about the area, and it might not look as attractive or welcoming.

Placing your dresser in front of your window helps with the issue of room balance because it allows you to have no restrictions when placing your furniture. For example, if you have a piece of furniture on the right side, and the window to the left is empty, do not worry; just put your dresser there.

4. It is Practical for Placement

It is no secret that a dresser is both a container and a small table in one, which makes it a really great piece of furniture to have by your window. This is especially the case if you are trying to make room. 

For example, rather than keep a table in front of your window, why not use a dresser that can function as two different pieces of furniture instead? You can easily save space and avoid the need to purchase a table or other separate pieces of furniture that serve a similar function. 

How can you maximize these advantages?

Not all dressers are built the same; you can have tall, short, long, slim, and wide dressers and everything else in between. When talking about these benefits, we are considering furniture with a somewhat specific size.

If you want a dresser that will provide the benefits mentioned to your room when placed in front of your window, then look for or use a short or wide one, as mentioned before. That way, you can improve your chances of reaping all of the benefits of placing the furniture by the window. Here are a few other examples of highly-rated short and wide dressers on online worth checking out: 

• Sorbus Dresser with 5 Drawers
• Acme Grey Furniture Dresser
• StorkCraft Kenton Universal Dresser
• HOMFA Wide Dresser

4 Cons of Placing a Dresser in Front of the Window

Having a dresser in front of a window is not a magical solution for everybody’s home décor problems. There are some cons that, much like the pros, will apply to certain people, depending on their situation.

1. Could Lead to Dresser Damage

Because your dresser is in front of the window, it will usually have plenty of exposure to the sunlight during the day. This can be bad news for furniture that has been stained or has a paint job on its top surface. Why? Prolonged exposure to the light will eventually cause the paint or staining to fade, taking away the sheen of your once-beautiful piece of furniture. 

2. Lighting Could Be Worsened

Now, this is what could happen if your dresser is too tall. A window’s purpose is to light up the room, and the dresser that you would ideally place in front of it, so blocking the window with the furniture to the point where lighting is severely interrupted defeats the purpose of putting in there in the first place (Apartment Therapy).

As hinted before, you could get away with a dresser that is slightly taller, to the point that it covers some of the lower portions of the window. That way, it will not block the light to any noticeable degree. However, this will only work if your window is either further off the ground or has a decent height. 

3. Unwanted Attention

This con is very situational and can be avoided easily but is still worth mentioning. Be aware that people outside your house can see your dresser and the area in front of it, too. This means that if you need to change, you will need to be mindful of where you stand as you do so; if you have to, remember to grab the clothes you need first and then move away from the window to change. 

You will also need to be mindful of where you place valuables, such as jewelry or expensive electronics, on the dresser. The last thing you want is for potential thieves to see these items on display in front of your window, where they can easily break in and grab them. 

However, regardless of either of these two scenarios, having curtains and blinds in place will quickly solve this issue.

4. Could Block Access to the Window

This is a pretty big issue that is also very situational. Another purpose of having a window is ventilation. Sometimes you will want it open to let the air in, and sometimes you will want it closed to leave the cold air outside. You will also want to regularly clean it for it to look better.

If you wish to be capable of doing all of that, then make sure your dresser is not too deep. If so, it can become complicated or even impossible to have access to the window without having to move the furniture.

This is another reason why the ideal dresser you should be looking for is one that is small and ideally slim as well; you do not want your furniture to become an obstacle.

Is there any way to avoid these disadvantages?

Just like the advantages mentioned above, these disadvantages are very situational, and there are many workarounds that you can employ to either minimize them or get rid of them completely.

• First off, if you want to prevent your dresser from seeing damage, try placing a decorative cloth or sheet on top to protect it from harsh sunlight; you can also use decorative items that take up the entire surface of your dresser to block light. Alternatively, you can take the time and repaint or re-stain your furniture when it comes time to update it. All you need for staining is some sandpaper, a water-based pre-stain and staining solution, and a protective finish. 
• When it comes to lighting, then there are basically no options if your dresser is too tall for the window. Of course, you can get away with the furniture sticking out just a little from the bottom, but the only solutions to a piece that is too tall are not placing it there at all or buying a new one. The same applies to furniture too deep to allow easy access to the window.
• Regarding unwanted attention, the workarounds are pretty simple; just invest in curtains and blinds that you can easily get to and close when needed and avoid placing valuables within reach on top of the dresser. 

Can you place any other furniture in front of a window?

You absolutely can place other furniture in front of a window. In fact, many people do this with their beds, their tables, desks, chairs, and other standard pieces. 

The same rules with dressers apply to other furniture, including most of the pros and cons. The critical thing to remember when it comes to placing different types of furniture in front of the window is to make sure it does not significantly block it. Consider the factors mentioned above, such as furniture size and window dimensions. 

You can even find furniture in the market that is designed to be placed in front of a window; for example, some desks may have unique shelving or hutches set so that they go around a window rather than in front of it. That way, you can still access the window and let sunlight in. 

Conclusion

Contrary to popular belief, you can place a dresser in front of a window. In fact, it is a very common interior design trick to improve the overall look of a room and save space. 

When considering whether or not it is worth placing furniture in front of a window, however, you will need to think about the dresser’s size, style, and the dimensions of the window that will be behind it. These factors will ultimately determine which of the benefits mentioned above will be available to you, and which disadvantages you can avoid.