Modern Kitchen Design Ideas
Are you tired of your old kitchen design? Have you decided it’s time to freshen it up a bit and make it more modern? Whether you’re planning on completely re-doing your kitchen or just adding cosmetic touches, you’ll find inspiration for modern kitchen designs in our picture gallery.
First of all, what makes a kitchen design ‘modern’? This is a complicated question, because in layman’s terms, ‘contemporary’ is often used interchangeably with ‘modern’, but they’re actually different styles of interior design and architecture. How? The Houzz magazine offers direction. John Hill explains the difference talking about architecture: “At their most literal, ‘contemporary’ is the architecture being produced now, the architecture of the moment. ‘Modern’ architecture breaks with the past – specifically the traditional styles of before the Industrial Revolution.” Jude Loxley looks at furniture and describes that ‘modern’ is “a historic design movement”, and ‘contemporary’ is “an adjective used to define a style”. The takeaway? Most of the time, when you want to describe a kitchen design as ‘modern’, know that ‘contemporary’ is actually the more accurate term to use. Go ahead and impress your interior designer or architect with your industry-term know-how!
What you’re probably more interested in though is very likely the visual aspect of what makes a modern kitchen design. That’s where the Houzz image gallery can help. You can browse thousands of photos to explore the style and narrow down your ideas. If you spot a particular modern design you like, you can even contact the kitchen designer, showroom or store behind it and get a quote!
Here’s a few more things you may want to consider while looking for your perfect kitchen:
Consider your kitchen space
You may like the idea of a window splashback, but is that something that’s realistic for your space? Start with what you have and work from there. If you’re looking for a kitchen with an island, select the appropriate filter above to narrow down your choices. If your kitchen is small, you may want to look for ways to make a small kitchen look bigger. If you’re overwhelmed with backsplash choices, consider not having one at all and look at designs without one.
Is a modern kitchen design practical?
Depending on your space, the possibilities for filling your kitchen space are endless. But what do you actually need? It helps to think about how you use the space. Do you do a lot of casual entertaining? A kitchen island that doubles up as a table with seating area may be ideal. Are you cooking a lot and own lots of appliances? You want to make sure you have enough cabinets to store it all. Do you eat out a lot and like beautiful styled shelves? Open shelving may be the right solution for you.
Which modern design is yours?
Only once the above two are sorted should you move on to the design aspect of things. Which colours do you like and will stand the test of time? A white or grey kitchen design is quite timeless, and keeping things minimal will always allow you to add character. Which other styles may influence your design? Any style can be given a modern touch. Once you have the main elements sorted, think about the design elements that will make your kitchen stand out. Lighting can be one such element, as is flooring or wall art! In a minimalistic modern kitchen, a chandelier may be your main feature, or standout flooring will set your design apart. If you choose simple pendants, a standout artwork may be the perfect centrepiece.
So go ahead and collect some ideas - we can’t wait to see what you create!
Whether you want inspiration for planning a modern kitchen renovation or are building a designer kitchen from scratch, Houzz has 268,426 images from the best designers, decorators, and architects in the country, including MGS Architecture and TONIC Design. Look through kitchen photos in different colours and styles and when you find a modern kitchen design that inspires you, save it to an Ideabook or contact the Pro who made it happen to see what kind of design ideas they have for your home. Explore the beautiful modern kitchen ideas photo gallery and find out exactly why Houzz is the best experience for home renovation and design.
- Ceramic Tile (11451)
- Glass Sheet (9721)
- Glass Tile (8993)
- Stone Slab (6918)
- Subway Tile (6842)
- Porcelain Tile (4347)
- Mosaic Tile (4190)
- Stone Tile (3488)
- Marble (2733)
- Mirror (1387)
- Metal Tile (1254)
- Matchstick Tile (1034)
- Cement Tile (835)
- Wood (816)
- Window (531)
- Brick (227)
- Terracotta Tile (158)
- Slate (151)
- Travertine (148)
- Limestone (120)
- Medium Hardwood (17633)
- Light Hardwood (17210)
- Porcelain Tile (11008)
- Dark Hardwood (9549)
- Ceramic Tile (9495)
- Concrete (4324)
- Vinyl (1999)
- Laminate (1865)
- Marble (1491)
- Slate (1053)
- Limestone (833)
- Travertine (806)
- Cement Tile (753)
- Bamboo (693)
- Linoleum (568)
- Painted Wood (427)
- Terracotta Tile (424)
- Cork (346)
- Plywood (326)
- Terrazzo (116)
- Brick (54)
- Carpet (13)
UA Creative
This is an example of a modern galley kitchen in Melbourne with flat-panel cabinets, white cabinets, white splashback, stone slab splashback, stainless steel appliances, with island and grey floor.
Marble vein bench top with grey tiles - webuser_258056425
Paul West
This is an example of a modern u-shaped kitchen in Melbourne with a drop-in sink, flat-panel cabinets, medium wood cabinets, stainless steel appliances, with island, grey floor and grey benchtop.
Ovens separate & cooktop other side - ronellec
Who says neutral tile can't be beautiful? This kitchen features our handmade tile in Light Grey. The fireplace in the dining room complements the kitchen's backsplash in the exact same tile. It creates a truly clean, modern and beautiful space.
3"x6" Subway Tile - 815W Light Grey
table like islans bench - gailquincey
Photography by J Savage Gibson
Mid-sized modern l-shaped open plan kitchen in Los Angeles with an undermount sink, flat-panel cabinets, medium wood cabinets, quartz benchtops, stone tile splashback, stainless steel appliances, concrete floors, with island, beige splashback and grey floor.
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Tess Kelly Photography
This is an example of a modern l-shaped kitchen in Melbourne with an undermount sink, flat-panel cabinets, light wood cabinets, white splashback, subway tile splashback, stainless steel appliances, with island, beige floor and beige benchtop.
simply clean lines and beauiful - franceswilson58
Clever re-configuration was integral in the transformation of this generic apartment kitchen into a generous, ‘house-sized’ entertaining area. The lightbulb moment was to ‘waste’ space in order to create more – by pulling the kitchen joinery forward, a previously blank wall and awkwardly sized cupboards became an expanse of sleek, maximised storage, with deep drawers and built-in elements. The new kitchen system allowed us to treat the whole 5.3m wide apartment as ‘kitchen’, giving the clients – serious cooks and entertainers – a 2.5m island bench, that simultaneously works as a partition between the kitchen and dining/living areas. The cooktop was liberated from the back wall, finding a new position that allows the cook to interact with guests without turning around. Bathed in Corian, the rangehood merges seamlessly into the splashback, bench tops and sides, creating a visual and tactile flow from one area to another.
From this island bench ‘cockpit’, a beautiful expanse of new oak, engineered-timber floors stretches out into the dining and living areas, continuing up and around the re-configured ‘snug’ that houses the study. The rich warmth of this private space offsets the sleek whiteness of the kitchen and living areas, and allows for privacy while retaining visual connection to the other spaces.
Small spaces can be fantastic, and maximizing the functionality of every component in this home was a satisfying challenge.
Photography: Nexus Designs
Light above the island bench - webuser_625783047
Merle Prosofsky, Vicky's homes
Photo of an expansive modern l-shaped eat-in kitchen in Edmonton with an undermount sink, flat-panel cabinets, grey cabinets, quartz benchtops, white splashback, ceramic splashback, stainless steel appliances, porcelain floors and with island.
Peter Taylor
Large modern l-shaped kitchen in Brisbane with light wood cabinets, marble benchtops, marble splashback, black appliances, marble floors, with island, white floor, a drop-in sink, flat-panel cabinets, grey splashback and grey benchtop.
White marble & wood look kitchen - webuser_499941499
Inspiration for a modern single-wall kitchen in San Francisco with flat-panel cabinets, white cabinets, medium hardwood floors and no island.
Architecture by Bruce Stafford & Associates
Interior design by Hare + Klein
Engineering by Geoff Ninnes Fong & Partners
Photography by Nicholas Watt
The simplicity. the bench - sharon_breust
This masterfully appointed kitchen is both beautiful and functional. The large center island has room for seating, storage, open book shelving and wine display. The kitchen is complete with abundant natural light streaming in from the large window, the LRD can lighting, modern mini pendant lights, and under cabinet LED strip lighting. The white and grey quartz gives the beauty and elegance of marble, without any of the maintenance. The polished grey porcelain floor is the perfect anchor point to the dark cherry cabinets. The glass and stone blend for the back splash brings just enough movement and color into this upscale space.
Christopher Frederick Jones
Design ideas for a large modern kitchen in Brisbane with an undermount sink, porcelain floors, multiple islands, grey floor, flat-panel cabinets, grey cabinets, black appliances and beige benchtop.
benchtop and cabinets excluding vinyl looking walls - webuser_601650792
Mid-sized modern l-shaped kitchen in Brisbane with a double-bowl sink, flat-panel cabinets, white cabinets, quartz benchtops, mirror splashback, stainless steel appliances, light hardwood floors, brown floor, white benchtop and with island.
White kitchen, contrasting colour in island - webuser_29275865
Inspiration for a modern l-shaped eat-in kitchen in Minneapolis with flat-panel cabinets, white cabinets, white appliances, medium hardwood floors, with island and brown floor.
Photography by Matthew Momberger
This is an example of an expansive modern galley eat-in kitchen in Los Angeles with flat-panel cabinets, stainless steel appliances, porcelain floors and with island.
Timber - juliecheg
Photo of a modern galley kitchen in Sydney with an integrated sink, flat-panel cabinets, dark wood cabinets, concrete benchtops, window splashback, black appliances, light hardwood floors, with island, beige floor and grey benchtop.
blue touches & following it through next room - cristycombe
Design ideas for a small modern single-wall kitchen in Central Coast with an integrated sink, white cabinets, stainless steel appliances, dark hardwood floors, with island, flat-panel cabinets, white splashback and brown floor.
Handle-less drawers and cabinets - oskargaboda