Window Seat Cushions
The numbers
- Thickness 2 to 4 in (This Old House), 3 in minimum on a hard box (Today’s Homeowner)
- Measure the angles before the lengths. Do not assume a bay window has 45 degree returns
- Order three pieces, not one. A single trapezoid forgives nothing
- Take depth at both ends of every section and order to the smaller
- Measure from the face of the window trim, not the glass
- Direct sun fades standard fabric. Look for solution-dyed or outdoor-grade
Where to buy: the ROFIEJOX runs $39.99 at 36 inches and $97.99 at 72, in stock at Amazon on 13 August 2026. It is the only one of the five below that is both in stock and past this site’s fifty-review minimum. The full entry is further down.
Window seat cushions come in two shapes, and only one of them goes wrong. The flat-window rectangle is easy. The bay is where every bad order I read about started, because it needs a trapezoid or a three-piece set and the angled returns are rarely 45 degrees even when they look it.
Measure the angles before you measure the lengths.
The short answer
Go 3 in minimum on a hard box, 2 to 4 in published range. Measure the angles before the lengths, because bay windows are rarely the 45 degrees people assume. A paper template of the whole seat beats any list of measurements.
Thickness
Two to four inches, per This Old House, which repeats the range in its build guide. Today’s Homeowner suggests 3 inches minimum on top of the base.
Which end of that range you want depends on what the seat is for. A perch, where you sit facing out with your feet on the floor, works at the thin end. A lounge, where you sit sideways with your legs up for an hour, wants the thick end, because your hip bears the weight in one spot instead of spread across your thighs.
A window seat also usually sits on a hard box rather than a sprung base, so there is nothing under the cushion to give. That argues for the thicker end regardless.
The lounge version is a reading seat by another name. That matters if you have not committed yet. A chair in the corner gets you the same hour with a book and none of the joinery, and the reading nook pages cover what fits one.
The cushion counts towards the finished seat height, so measure the box before you settle on a thickness. Those numbers live on window seat dimensions, and the compression arithmetic is on bench and banquette dimensions.
Measuring a bay window
This is the part that separates a cushion that fits from one that does not.
Measure the angles first. A bay window looks like it has 45 degree returns. Do not assume it does. Bay windows are built to several different angles and, as with any corner in a house, the built result drifts from the drawing. Interior walls can be half an inch out of line across 32 inches and still meet the NAHB performance guidelines.
Hold a piece of paper into each corner, mark where the walls cross it, and take that to the supplier. Or measure the diagonal across the corner and let them work the angle back.
Decide on one piece or three. A single trapezoidal cushion looks better and forgives nothing. Three pieces, one per section, cope with a wall that is not straight and are far easier to lift if there is storage underneath. Three is the safer order.
Take the depth at both ends of each section. Bay window boxes are often built to a drawing rather than to the room, so the depth at the left end of a section may not match the right. Order to the smaller.
Account for the window trim. The cushion sits on the box, but the back edge meets the window casing, which projects into the space. Measure from the face of the trim, not from the glass.
Subtract a quarter inch on each free edge. A cushion cut exactly to the box binds when you try to seat it, and it looks wrong because it bows up in the middle.
Check where the cushion top lands against the sill. If the cushion sits above the sill you lose the backrest and gain a draught, which is a reason to take the thin end of the thickness range on a low sill. What the sill and seat heights should be in the first place is on window seat dimensions.
Fabric and light
Window seats sit in direct sun, which is the one thing that separates them from every other cushion in the house.
Look for fade-resistant or solution-dyed fabric. Outdoor upholstery fabric is built for UV and is a reasonable indoor choice for a south-facing bay, even though it feels less soft. A standard cotton in full sun will show a line where the curtain fell within a couple of years.
Removable covers matter more here too, since the seat collects dust off the sill.
The ready-made market barely exists, and here is the evidence
I checked five window seat cushions on August 3, 2026, and read all five again on August 13. Two are out of stock. Two more have 48 and 24 reviews, below the fifty this site requires. One passes.
| Cushion | Thickness | Fill, as listed | Cover | Fade claim | Rating | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ROFIEJOX tufted | 4 in, 3 in at 60 in and longer | 70D high-density foam, memory foam, silk floss | Chenille, machine washable | None | 4.6 / 239 | Passes |
| Latitude Run customizable | 3 in | “75D high-resilience” | Zip, washing not stated | UV and fade resistant | 4.7 / 87 | Out of stock |
| Hokku Designs premium | 4 in | “75D” high-resilience | Zip, machine washable | None stated | 4.5 / 80 | Out of stock |
| Navenwelle linen | 2 in | “75D high-density sponge” | Zip, machine wash | None | 4.2 / 48 | Below review minimum |
| itenge bay window | 2 in | Memory foam | Zip, machine wash | None | 4.7 / 24 | Below review minimum |
On the two out-of-stock entries, the reviews are worth recording anyway, because they strengthen this page’s argument. Both are made-to-order cushions where the buyer specifies the size, and the low-star complaints on both are about size and cut accuracy, with no foam-flattening, shrinkage or fading complaints at all: “ordered 22" wide and considerably wider”, “does not appear to be rectangular”, “the cover is longer than the insert by atleast 2-3 inches”.
That leaves one ready-made recommendation and a clear argument for custom, which happens to be the truthful answer for window seats anyway. Bays have angles, sills are rarely square, and the bay section above tells you to order three pieces rather than one and to measure the angles before the lengths. A stock rectangle cannot do that. A note on the “75D” in the table: that is the kg/m³ convention, and 75 kg/m³ works out near 4.7 lb/ft³, denser than the best custom foam grade sold. I read it as marketing. The ROFIEJOX lists 70D, which lands near 4.4 lb/ft³ and reads the same way. The foam density table on the bench cushions page shows what real grades measure.
1. ROFIEJOX Tufted Window Seat Cushion — the only stock option that holds up
Four inches at the shorter sizes, chenille, machine washable cover, 239 reviews at 4.6.
The fill is listed as high-density foam, memory foam and silk floss together, which is more detail than most listings give even if none of it is a number. Seven stock sizes run from 36 x 14 up to 72 x 14, plus a custom option, and that range is the widest here by some distance. The three longest sizes drop to 3 inches. 60 x 20, 63 x 16 and 72 x 14 are all 3 in, and the four shorter ones are the full 4.
Pros
- Machine washable chenille, which is rare at four inches
- Seven stock sizes plus custom
- The largest usable review sample on this page
Cons
- The negative reviews land on exactly the two things this page warns about. On thickness, a two-star reviewer writes “it’s also not as thick as they say” and, more usefully, “I’m 140lbs and you bottom out”. Bottoming out at 140 lb on a four inch cushion means low density foam
- On recovery, a three-star review reports “it remains lumpy 6 weeks later”, which is the silk floss layer failing to loft back
- On size, a one-star reviewer ordered 42 inches and reports it “barely makes it to 35”
Specs. 36 x 14 x 4 in as tested, $39.99. Sizes from 60 in up are 3 in thick. Fill listed as 70D high-density foam, memory foam and silk floss. ILD not published. Two end zips per reviewers.
Where to buy
The size selector on the ROFIEJOX listing reaches the other six sizes and the custom option. The 72 inch runs $97.99.
2. Go custom, and what to specify
For a bay, a bench with a radiator cover, or any sill that is not a clean rectangle, made to measure is the answer, and the reviews above are the argument for it. Across the nine cushions I checked for this page and the bench cushions guide, five carried complaints about the delivered size not matching the listing. On a bench you can live with half an inch. In a window reveal you cannot.
One caveat first, because I checked: two of the cushions on this page are made-to-order in the buyer’s own dimensions, and their reviews still report wrong sizes. Ordering custom removes the guesswork about which stock size to pick. It does not remove the risk of a bad cut, so measure the delivered cushion on arrival and keep the return window in mind.
When you order, specify these four things, because a custom vendor will ask and a stock listing will never tell you:
Give them a density figure. The floor is 1.8 lb/ft³, and take 2.8 where the vendor offers it. Foam By Mail rates its 1.8 lb/ft³ HD36 at seven years against sixteen for the 2.8 lb/ft³ grade, at identical firmness.
Three inches minimum. FoamOrder says so, Today’s Homeowner says three inches minimum on a hard box, and This Old House puts the working range at two to four.
Solution-dyed fabric if the seat gets sun. Sunbrella is the reference, 100% solution-dyed acrylic with pigment added before spinning, carrying a five year limited warranty on upholstery weights. FoamOrder offers it. A surface-dyed cotton in a south-facing bay will not last a summer, and one of the cushions on the bench page has a reviewer describing it as shredded by the sun.
A removable cover with a zip. Four of the nine cushions I checked cannot be washed at all.
Where to buy
Neither retailer runs an affiliate programme.
Where to go next
Bench and banquette cushionsThe foam density table this page leans on
Reading nookIf the window seat is where the books live
Questions
How thick should a window seat cushion be?
This Old House gives 2 to 4 inches and Today’s Homeowner suggests 3 as a minimum. Take the thin end if you sit facing out with your feet down, the thick end if you curl up sideways. The box underneath has no give, so err thicker.
How do I measure a bay window for a cushion?
Measure the angles before the lengths, and do not assume the returns are 45 degrees. Take depth at both ends of each section and order to the smaller. Measure from the face of the window trim, not the glass.
One cushion or three for a bay window?
Three. It looks nearly as good, forgives walls that are not straight, and is far easier to lift if there is storage underneath.
What fabric holds up in a sunny window?
Solution-dyed or fade-resistant fabric, or outdoor upholstery fabric. Direct sun will mark a standard cotton within a couple of years.
Should the cushion sit above or below the sill?
Below, ideally, so the sill or the wall gives you something to lean against. If the cushion tops the sill you lose the backrest and sit against cold glass.
How these numbers get checked: methodology.