What You Need to Ask Yourself When Buying a Toilet Seat

Okay, the toilet seat will rarely be the most glamorous part of your bathroom, but it is well worth taking the time to find the right one. Individual needs will vary from person to person, but there are four main questions which you can ask yourself to avoid making any mistakes.

Which Shape?

Contrary to what you might believe, toilet seats don’t come in sizes as much as they come in shapes, so find out which one you need.

Round toilet seats are still the most common option required in the United Kingdom, and are more likely to be needed for older toilets. However, elongated seats – which are recognised from their long oval shape - are becoming much more popular. Check what you need before going any further.

Which Material?

Toilet seats are generally available in either plastic or wood. Plastic is the most popular option – though some plastic seats are actually constructed from laying a plastic coating over composite wood. In either case, there should be several colours available, but you might find that the plastic is a little chilly in winter.

Wooden seats are much warmer, but they can be more easily stained by some toilet bowl cleaners, and are usually more expensive.

Which Style?

The style of your toilet seat will usually follow the overall style of your bathroom, so take that as your starting point to make sure you don’t pick something too incongruous.

There are hundreds, if not thousands, of options available, especially when you choose to shop online, so remember that you can find far more interesting options if you’d like. It’s always worth seeing what’s available.

Which Features?

As with most bathroom items, the toilet seat has come on leaps and bounds in recent years, at least in comparison to traditional ones.

You might not need any additional options at all, but they can be nice to have and shouldn’t add too much to the price. Heated seats are nice in the winter, while quick-release seats make cleaning easier and soft-close options prevent slamming.

You might not be terribly excited about looking for a new toilet seat, but keep in mind that you’ll notice the difference between the right one and the wrong one whenever you use it.