Hutch vs Sideboard vs Buffet vs Credenza: What's the Difference?
By Michael King, Owner
A sideboard is a waist-high dining room cabinet with drawers and doors for dishes, linens and serving pieces. A buffet is the same kind of piece, usually a little lower and longer. A hutch is a buffet or sideboard base with a tall cabinet of shelves on top. A credenza is a low cabinet that today usually means office or living room storage.
Key takeaways
- Sideboard and buffet are close to interchangeable words. In one of our dining lines the buffet is 36 inches tall and the matching sideboard is 40 inches.
- A hutch is the tall option: the same line's hutch is the 36-inch buffet with a display top, 83 inches in all.
- Credenza is the word to search for office storage. The 23 credenzas on our site are all office pieces, and 22 of them have file drawers.
- Pick by wall length, ceiling height and what you need to store, not by the name on the tag.
Hutch vs sideboard vs buffet vs credenza at a glance
The four names overlap, and furniture makers don't always use them the same way. This table shows how the words are generally used, with real sizes from the pieces we sell.
| Piece | What it is | Height (examples from our site) | Storage | Usual room |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sideboard | Dining cabinet with drawers and doors, often on legs | 40" (Bowerston Sideboard) | Drawers for flatware and linens, shelves behind doors | Dining room |
| Buffet | Same family as a sideboard, usually lower and longer | 36" (Bowerston Buffet) | Drawers plus a long cabinet section | Dining room, kitchen |
| Hutch | A buffet or sideboard base with a tall top cabinet | 83" (Bowerston Hutch) | Base storage plus display shelves, often behind glass | Dining room, kitchen |
| Credenza | Low cabinet, usually without a hutch top | 30" (Traditional Credenza) | Drawers, often file drawers, and shelves | Office, living room |
What is a sideboard?
Merriam-Webster defines a sideboard as "a piece of dining-room furniture having compartments and shelves for holding articles of table service." In plain terms, it's the cabinet along the dining room wall where the plates, serving bowls, napkins and flatware live, with a top that works as a serving surface during a meal.
The piece is old. Britannica traces the word to the Middle Ages, when a sideboard was a stepped side table used to show off valuable dishes. Drawers for napkins and cutlery were added between the storage pedestals in the 1700s, and by the 1800s the lower section was usually cupboards to the floor. That history explains why today's sideboards still mix drawers on top with doors below.
On the sideboards we sell, the details are practical. Of the 20 sideboards on our site, 16 list dovetailed drawers, and 7 mention a wine rack option.
What is a buffet?
Look up "buffet" as furniture and Merriam-Webster simply points you to "sideboard." The two words describe the same job, and many people use them interchangeably. When furniture makers do separate them, the buffet tends to be the lower, longer piece, with more of its front given to cabinet doors.
That's exactly how it works in the Bowerston dining line on our site. The Bowerston Buffet is 60 inches wide and 36 inches tall. The Bowerston Sideboard is 54 inches wide and 40 inches tall. Same style, same 20-inch depth, but the buffet sits lower and spreads wider, which suits a long wall or a spot under a window.
What is a hutch?
Merriam-Webster's furniture meaning of hutch is "a cupboard usually surmounted by open shelves." Today a dining hutch is two stacked parts: a base that works like a buffet, and a tall top cabinet for display. The top may have open shelves or glass doors.
The clearest way to see it is to compare pieces from one line. The Bowerston Hutch is 60 inches wide, 20 inches deep and 83 inches tall. Its base has the same width and depth as the 36-inch Bowerston Buffet, and the top adds about 47 inches of display space with glass shelves and a plate groove.
Of the 60 pieces in our hutch collection, 41 list lights in the top cabinet and 23 call out glass doors. That tells you what a hutch is for: showing off china, glassware or family pieces while keeping everyday dishes out of sight in the base.
What is a credenza?
The word has a story. In Italian, credenza means "belief" or "confidence." Merriam-Webster explains that in Renaissance noble households, a servant tasted food at a sideboard before it was served to make sure it wasn't poisoned, and the sideboard took the name. Its modern definition is "a sideboard, buffet, or bookcase patterned after a Renaissance credence, especially one without legs."
In American homes today, credenza mostly means a low cabinet for an office or living room. That's true on our site too: all 23 pieces sold as credenzas are office furniture, and 22 of them have file drawers. The Traditional Credenza, for example, is 60 inches wide and 30 inches tall, with two adjustable shelves behind its doors. If you want dining storage, search for sideboards and buffets. If you want a low cabinet behind your desk, a credenza is the right word.
How to choose the right piece for your room
Measure the wall, then the ceiling
Start with the wall length and leave space on each side so the piece doesn't look squeezed. Then check the height. An 83-inch hutch under a standard 8-foot ceiling, which is 96 inches, leaves about 13 inches above it. That looks right in most dining rooms, but it's worth checking if you have a low beam, a window or a light fixture nearby.
Think about what you store
If most of what you own is everyday dishes, linens and serving pieces, a sideboard or buffet holds it all and gives you a long serving top. If you have china, glassware or heirlooms you want to see, a hutch adds display space without taking more floor space.
Check the depth and walkway
The pieces mentioned above are 20 to 21 inches deep. Make sure there's room to open the doors and walk past when chairs are pulled out from the table.
Decide whether it should match the table
It doesn't have to. Many dining lines include a table, chairs, buffet and hutch in the same style, which makes matching easy. Because most of our furniture is made to order, you can usually choose the wood, stain and hardware, so a sideboard can match your table or complement it on purpose.
Pieces from our dining collection
Bowerston Hutch
Bowerston Buffet
Bowerston Sideboard
Mason Hutch
Hutch or sideboard: which should you buy?
- Choose a sideboard if you want a serving surface at a comfortable height and storage for dishes and linens.
- Choose a buffet if you have a long wall or want a lower top, for example under a window or a large mirror.
- Choose a hutch if you need more storage on a short wall, or want to display china behind glass.
- Choose a credenza if the piece is going in an office or living room.
Browse our hutches, or see the full dining room collection to find a buffet, sideboard and table from the same line.
Frequently asked questions
What is a sideboard used for?
A sideboard stores the things you use at the table, like plates, serving dishes, flatware and linens. Its top works as a serving surface for food and drinks during meals.
Is a buffet the same as a sideboard?
Mostly, yes. Dictionaries treat them as the same piece. When a maker separates the two, the buffet is usually lower and longer. In one of our lines, the buffet is 36 inches tall and the sideboard 40 inches.
How tall is a sideboard?
The sideboards and buffets on our site that list their size are about 35 to 40 inches tall. A hutch is much taller: the ones we checked run from 65 to 84 inches.
Are hutches out of style?
Hutches are still a practical choice for display and storage, and makers keep updating them with glass doors, lighting and simpler shapes. If you prefer a lighter look, a sideboard with art or a mirror above gives a similar focal point.
Can a sideboard be used as a TV stand?
It can, as long as the top is wide and deep enough for the TV and you have a way to run the cords. A low buffet or credenza often fits a living room better than a taller dining sideboard.
Does a sideboard have to match the dining table?
No. Matching pieces from one line look tidy, but a sideboard in a complementary wood or stain can look just as good. With made-to-order furniture you can usually choose the finish either way.
Sources
- Merriam-Webster: sideboard
- Merriam-Webster: buffet
- Merriam-Webster: hutch
- Merriam-Webster: credenza
- Britannica: sideboard
- Product pages on kingsamishfurniture.com (sizes and features as listed in November 2026)
How we made this guide: we compared the sizes and features listed on the hutches, buffets, sideboards and credenzas on our site, read the dictionary and encyclopedia entries above, and reviewed questions customers ask our team. Every fact was checked against our product pages.
See it in person
Visit our showrooms in Intercourse and Lancaster, PA, and Murrells Inlet, SC. Open Monday to Friday 10 to 5, Saturday 9 to 5.
