At a glance
| Ref | Item | What it is | Basis |
|---|---|---|---|
| A | Seat height | From the floor to the seat, loaded. | See bar, counter and stool heights. |
| B | Footrest height | From the floor to the top of the rest. | Typical practice: set by the stool and the guest's leg. Confirm on a mock-up. |
| C | Seat to footrest | Vertical distance from seat to rest. | Check on a mock-up with a seated person; typical practice is not a standard. |
| D | Footrest load | Static and durability loads of the rest. | Read from the test report for the level and edition. |
| E | Fixing | How the rest joins the legs: welded, brazed, bolted or in a groove. | Ask the workshop and look at the report. |
| F | Finish at the foot | Wear where shoes rub: plating, powder coat, leather or sleeve. | Match the finish to the traffic; see the metal finishes sheets. |
| G | Floor protection | Glides or feet on each leg. | Choose for the floor: timber, stone, carpet. |
Millimetres from the finished floor. Heights are typical practice and are confirmed on a mock-up; loads come from test reports.
Where the footrest goes
The seat height comes first (see bar, counter and stool heights); the footrest is then set so the sitter’s knees rest at a comfortable angle with the foot supported. The drawing shows the three dimensions to fix: A seat height, B footrest height, C the distance between them. No standard sets B or C for a stool. Our bar sheet gives a typical bar foot rail at about 200 to 300 mm above the floor; a stool’s own rest sits higher, so find the figure on a mock-up with the real seat and a seated person, and write it on the drawing. For leg length and the seated body see anthropometrics for specifiers.
Choose the shape for the use. A ring all round suits a swivel or a chair that turns; a bar front and back suits a fixed stool placed in a row; a rest on one side suits a banquette-end stool. Round tube is comfortable, flat bar is thin under the foot. Keep it clear of the counter overhang so toes do not catch.
Footrest loads in test reports
A strength report to EN 16139 includes a footrest static load and a footrest durability test, each cited to a clause of EN 1728. The three accredited reports read for this sheet record these values, for stools tested at the edition and level shown:
| Test (EN 1728 clause) | L1, EN 16139:2013 report | L2, EN 16139:2013 report | L2, EN 16139:2025 report |
|---|---|---|---|
| Footrest static load (6.8) | 10 cycles at 1,300 N | 10 cycles at 1,600 N | 10 cycles at 1,600 N |
| Footrest durability (6.21) | 50,000 cycles at 1,000 N | 100,000 cycles at 1,000 N | 60,000 cycles at 1,000 N |
| Stability with footrest (EN 1022, 7.3.2) | not recorded on the page read | not recorded on the page read | 600 N vertical, 20 N horizontal (marked N/A: stool had no footrest) |
Read the table as what these particular reports recorded, not as the requirement. The static load differs between L1 and L2, and the number of durability cycles changed between the 2013 and 2025 editions in the two L2 reports read. Where a stool has no footrest the test lines are marked not applicable, so do not assume a stool report covers a rest you have added. Stability matters too: EN 1022 includes a forwards overturning test for seating with a footrest, because a person stepping on the rest moves load to the front.
The reports are for a sample. A bespoke footrest needs its own sample or a written statement from the workshop that the construction matches a tested one. See BS EN 16139 seating levels for the levels and seating sit-test protocol for how to test on site.
Fixing and finish
The rest takes a downward load at the foot and a sideways load when someone swings round. Check how it joins the legs: welded or brazed, bolted through, or located in a groove. A rest fixed only by a screw into the end of a tube will loosen; ask for a through fixing or a bracket and say so. See fixings and fasteners for metalwork and upholstered frame construction and joints for timber frames.
The rest is a high-touch, high-wear surface. Plated and polished finishes show scuffs where shoes rub; powder coat chips; a leather or sleeve cover protects the tube but wears and needs replacing. For the choices and for batch matching see high-touch hospitality metal finishes and decorative plating. If the stool is outdoors, add the corrosion points from corrosion categories.
Floor protection
Four small contact points carry the whole load, so the glides decide whether the floor survives. Choose by the floor: a felt or soft glide on timber, a hard-wearing glide on stone and tile, a flat-based glide on carpet. Glides wear and are replaced, so list them with the spares (see spares, attic stock and replacement cycles). If stools are dragged, specify a glide that does not mark the floor, and test on a sample of the floor finish (see timber floor finishes compared).
Specification wording
Paste into your schedule or specification and replace anything in [square brackets] with your own figures. Wording is a starting point: your specification governs.
Stool seat height [750] mm, footrest [round tube / flat bar] [ ] mm in section, top of the footrest [260] mm above the finished floor, [490] mm below the seat, set clear of the counter overhang by [ ] mm. Dimensions to be confirmed on a mock-up with a seated person before production.
Footrest to be tested to BS EN 16139, edition [ ], level [L1 / L2], including the footrest static (EN 1728 clause 6.8) and durability (clause 6.21) tests. The supplier is to provide a test report for a stool of the same construction, or a written statement identifying the tested model and confirming the footrest matches it.
Footrest to be fixed to the legs by [welding / through-bolting / bracket] and not by a screw into end grain or tube end. Finish at the footrest to be [ ] and tested for wear against a [shoe sole] sample. Leg glides to be [felt / hard / flat] for [floor finish], supplied with [ ] spare sets.
Terms used on this page
- Finished seat height
- The height of the top of the upholstered seat above the finished floor. It is different unloaded and when sat on, because foam and feather compress, so drawings should state which one they mean.
- Footrest
- A rail, ring or bar on a tall stool where the sitter rests their feet.
- Footrest static load test
- A test in which a stated force is applied to the footrest for a set number of cycles. The force and cycles for each level are given in the standard and recorded in the test report.
- Glide
- A pad or foot fixed to a leg that contacts the floor and protects it.
- Test severity level (L1, L2)
- A grade of use in EN 16139: L1 is general use such as cafés, restaurants and bars; L2 is more extreme use.
Standards and sources
- BS EN 16139:2025: Furniture. Strength, durability and safety. Requirements for non-domestic seating. Cited in the 2025 L2 report read. The standard itself was not read. BSI listing recorded in library notes: current from 31 Aug 2025; the 2013 edition withdrawn.
- BS EN 1728:2012: Domestic furniture. Seating. Test methods for strength and durability. Clause 6.8 (footrest static) and 6.21 (footrest durability) as cited in the reports. Not read.
- BS EN 1022:2023: Seating. Stability. Clause 7.3.2 (forwards overturning with footrest) as cited in the 2025 report. Not read.
Questions we are asked
How high should a bar stool footrest be?
There is no standard figure. Set it from the seat height and a seated person on a mock-up, then write the height from the floor on the drawing. A typical bar foot rail sits about 200 to 300 mm above the floor; a rest on the stool itself is higher.
What load does a stool footrest have to take?
That depends on the edition and level. In three accredited reports read for this sheet, the static test was 1,300 N at L1 and 1,600 N at L2, with durability at 1,000 N for a stated number of cycles. Check the current EN 16139 and EN 1728.
Do I need a test report for the footrest?
If the stool will be in a commercial space, yes: ask for a report for a stool of the same construction. A report for a stool with no footrest does not cover one.
What finish lasts best on a footrest?
It depends on traffic. Any finish wears where shoes rub, so ask for a wear sample and a repair or replacement plan. See the high-touch metal finishes sheet.
How do I protect the floor under stools?
Choose the glide for the floor: soft on timber, hard on stone, flat on carpet. List spare sets with the handover pack.
Download the factsheet
A two-page A4 PDF with the stool drawing, the footrest loads from three test reports and three specification clauses, to keep with your project file.