An eclectic bathroom with bird and flower wallpaper, white KOHLER toilet, towel ladder, and lots of potted plants.

Toilet
Buying Guide

Everything you need to know about choosing a toilet.

Understand the Possibilities

Explore all the options available to you when selecting a toilet.

A bathroom with white KOHLER toilet installed in an arched white and gray tiled niche, accent shelving, wall art, and a robe hanging from a hook.

Toilet Types

One of the first decisions will be what type of toilet is best for you and your bathroom space: one-piece or two-piece toilet, floor-mount or wall-hung.

A serene bathroom with a white KOHLER one-piece toilet, wood floors, and silver and blue wallpaper above white wainscoting.

Rough-In Measurement

Not all toilets are right for every bathroom, so figuring out how much space you have is a key step.

A white KOHLER elongated toilet with concealed tank in a bathroom with light tile walls and flor and large, glass-paneled walk-in shower.

Toilet Design

Choose the shape of your toilet bowl, the height of your toilet, and more.

A person adds a cleansing tablet to the tank of a white KOHLER toilet with ContinuousClean technology.

ContinuousClean

New technology means you can automatically flush and fight germs at the same time, keeping your bowl clean longer.

Two versions of the same bathroom with marble floors and brown wainscotting, one with a beige KOHLER toilet installed under a window with city views and the other with a white KOHLER toilet.

Color Options

Color is important and plays a vital role in the look and feel of your bathroom. The decision of a white or color toilet can shift the tone and enhance the style by creating a drastic contrast or seamless integration. There is no wrong answer when choosing a color, it’s simply a matter of choice.

A bathroom with blue wainscoting, a shelf with a vase of flowers and framed artworks, and a white KOHLER elongated toilet with bidet seat.

Don't Forget the Seat

Toilet seats come with a host of features, including Quick-Release hinges for easy cleaning, Quiet-Close functionality, and bidet-style cleansing.

A spacious bathroom with white KOHLER Veil Intelligent toilet, freestanding Veil bath, a white vanity with lighted mirror installed on a black wall.

KOHLER Collections

Your bathroom should reflect your personal design style. We have many collections, encompassing traditional, transitional, and contemporary styles.

An image showing how a separate tank and bowl can be joined together to form a two-piece toilet.

One-Piece Toilets

The tank and bowl are cast as a single piece, meaning the toilet is seamless and easy to clean.

A white KOHLER San Souci Comfort Height one-piece toilet.

Two-Piece Toilets

A separate tank and bowl are assembled together to create the full toilet. Two-piece toilets offer great value to homeowners.

Smart Toilets

Personal Comfort and Cleansing

A white KOHLER Tresham Comfort Height one-piece compact elongated toilet seen in profile.

Floor-Mount Rough-In

To ensure your floor-mount toilet fits your space, measure from the wall (not the baseboard) to the floor bolts that attach the toilet to the floor. This is the rough-in measurement. The most common rough-in is 12", though there are also 10" and 14" rough-ins.

For floor-mount rough-ins, always measure from the wall, not the baseboard.

An image showing rough-in spaces for a wall-hung elongated toilet compared to a floor-mounted elongated toilet.

Wall-Hung Rough-In

To ensure your wall-hung toilet fits your space, measure the depth of the wall studs which will hold the in-wall water tank. These tanks come in sizes that coordinate with 2" x 6" or 2" x 4" studs. You will need to choose a tank that matches.

Measure between the studs for wall-hung toilet rough-ins.

Design

Bowl Shapes

The big difference in bowl shapes is length. Round-front is usually space-saving, while elongated bowls offer more comfort for most adults. The choice is yours.

A closed elongated toilet, seen from above, with the seat's measurement indicated.

Elongated Toilets

Provides extra room and comfortable seating, with bowl length between 28½" to 31⅝".

A closed round-front toilet, seen from above, with the seat's measurement indicated.

Round-Front Toilets

With the shortest bowl length of 25⅝" to 29¾", round-front toilets are a space-saving solution for small bathrooms.

Design

Finding the Right Seat Height

Toilet height is measured from the floor to the top of the seat. Most often, toilets fall somewhere between 15" and 19", with standard toilets coming in under 17". Chair-height toilets measure 17" or more.

White toilet, seen from in front, with measurements for standard-height seats.

Standard Height Toilets

An ideal choice for people of average or smaller stature, standard height toilets have a low profile.

White toilet, seen from in front, with measurements for chair-height seats and a wall-mounted flush.

Chair-Height Toilets

Approximately 2" higher than standard toilets, chair-height toilets make standing and sitting easier. Many are ADA-compliant.

A white wall-mount toilet with a measurement indicator showing it can be installed at custom heights.

Custom-Height Toilets

Wall-hung toilets let you customize the toilet height, between 15⅜" and 28½", and make cleaning around the toilet easy.

Design

Toilet Trapways

Trapways carry waste from the bowl to the piping and sewer line. Fully glazed trapways help stop clogging. Trapways can be exposed, concealed, or hidden.

A profile view of a white toilet with an exposed trapway.

Exposed Trapway Toilets

A traditional design that lets you see the trapway from the side. Standard bolt caps cover the bolts that hold the toilet in place.

A profile view of a white toilet with a concealed trapway.

Concealed Trapway Toilets

With their smooth, flat surfaces and low-profile bolt caps, concealed trapway toilets are easy to wipe clean and have a contemporary design aesthetic.

A profile view of a white toilet with a skirted trapway.

Skirted Trapway Toilets

With an easy-to-clean, uniform toilet base that hides the trapway and toilet bolts, a skirted toilet gives your bathroom clean, modern lines.

WaterSense logo.

Water-Saving Toilets

Reduced water consumption saves you money. Older toilets used 3.5 gallons per flush, but today our toilets can use as little as 0.8 gallons and can reduce the average family's water used by toilets by 20 to 60 percent.

WaterSense®-labeled toilets meet EPA criteria for performance and water efficiency.

Flushing

Toilet Flushing Types

Choose the one you're most comfortable with.

A white KOHLER toilet with bidet seat, installed in a bathroom with wood paneling, walk-in alcove shower, and display shelf holding a vase of flowers and a framed picture.

Single-Flush

Same consistent flush with every use, with models that range between 1.0 and 1.6 gpf. Single-flush toilets offer you the most design, shape, color, and installation options.

A person demonstrates how a dual-flush lever handle works.

Dual-Flush

Dual-flush toilets offer you the choice of a light or full flush, using as little as 0.8 gallons for a light flush and up to 1.6 gallons for a full flush.

A dramatic bathroom with a white KOHLER right-flush toilet, blue mosaic tile walls, dark paint, double vanity with white vessel sinks, and framed artwork.

Right or Left?

The flush handle is most commonly located as a push or swing lever on the front or side of the toilet. You’ll also want to be sure that you have easy access to the handle once the toilet is installed.

Choose a flush handle position that will be easy to access.