Home Improvement Skills & Specialties Carpentry & Woodworking Building Furniture

11 Free Wooden Step Stool Plans

wooden step stool

The Spruce / Letícia Almeida

These free step stool plans will walk you through the simple woodworking project of building a wooden step stool all on your own. It's a basic project that takes very few materials and even less time.

There are both one-step and two-step step stool plans here in both classic designs as well as more unique designs which besides being functional, will really add some style to your home. Take a look at all of them before deciding which one you're going to use.

In all these free step stool plans, you'll find written building instructions, color photos, diagrams, and user tips on how to make sure your DIY project turns out to be a success.

  • 01 of 12

    Single-Step Step Stool

    A wooden single step stool on a tile floor

    Ana White

    This step stool from Ana White is very easy to build. The stool is 16" wide, stands around 8" off the ground, and is just over 9" deep.

    Aside from cutting out the feet (which you could skip over), this step stool is one of the easier ones to build. The instructions are very clear and descriptive with illustrations.

    Single-Step Step Stool from Ana White

  • 02 of 12

    Vintage Style Step Stool

    Distressed purple step stool

    Ana White

    Here's another step stool plan from Ana White. With two steps and a rugged feel, this vintage-style step stool stands a little taller off the ground at one foot. Ana White also has a similar two-step step stool with a different base design that's a foot tall that you can check out, plus a smaller one with built-in storage.

    The instructions in this step stool plan are very detailed, and the illustrations and cutting patterns are color-coded to help you along the way.

    Vintage Style Step Stool from Ana White

  • 03 of 12

    Simple Step Stool

    A blue step stool in a kitchen

    Build Something

    Here's a free plan for a simple step stool from Kreg. It has two steps and a straightforward design. It's a great design for kids and works perfectly in the kitchen, letting them reach the counters and kitchen island.

    Included in the free plan are a step-by-step building list, a tools list, a materials list, a parts/cut list, and extra tips. There are plenty of photos and diagrams to help you out.

    Simple Step Stool from Kreg

  • 04 of 12

    Stylish Step Stool

    A wooden white step stool

    Her Tool Belt

    Her Tool Belt took the challenge of building something with just one board and she came up with this fabulous stepstool that would look great in any home.

    The one board along with some pocket screws, wood glue, and sandpaper will get this built, in no time.

    Stylish Step Stool from Her Tool Belt

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  • 05 of 12

    Modern Step Stool

    A woman sitting on a step stool in front of a computer

    A Beautiful Mess

    This modern step stool from A Beautiful Mess has a sleek design that will help you reach upper cabinets and is a great place to take a seat.

    This is a simple project that will have a big impact wherever you put it. There's no need to hide it though, it looks great being on display. It also would work great as a bar stool.

    Modern Step Stool from A Beautiful Mess

  • 06 of 12

    Scrap Wood Wooden Step Stool

    A woman using a step stool

    Anika's DIY Life

    This stunning step stool is made entirely out of scrap wood! All the steps are included showing you how to build it. There's even a video available if you need some extra help. You won't want to miss how this lumber is treated to get this one-of-a-kind look. You'll love this step stool so much, you'll want to build one for every room.

    Scrap Wood Wooden Step Stool from Anika's DIY Life

  • 07 of 12

    Cheap and Simple Step Stool

    A wooden two-step stool

    More Like Home

    More Like Home has lots of DIY projects, and almost all of them, including this step stool plan, are easy to follow because they include color-coded illustrations to assist in building. This step stool is one of the easiest-to-build—and cheapest—stools in this whole list. It should cost just a few dollars to put together. Spend a few more dollars on stain or paint and you have one good-looking step stool that you spent hardly any money on.

    Cheap and Simple Step Stool from More Like Home

  • 08 of 12

    Easy 2-Step Step Stool

    A wooden two-step stool

    Woodworking for Mere Mortals

    Here's another free step stool plan, which is a two step-up stool that will come in handy in just about any room in your home. I really like this free step stool plan from Woodworking for Mere Mortals because there's a cutting guide you can print off to make the sides look exactly like the ones in the plan.

    In place of written instructions is a video showing how to build the step stool. It's easy to follow along and be successful in building your own.

    Easy 2-Step Step Stool from Woodworking for Mere Mortals

    Continue to 9 of 12 below
  • 09 of 12

    Storage Stool

    A simple wooden step stool

    RunnerDuck Resources

    This step stool doubles as a small toy box or another storage container. This means you can keep a few things in it and also use it as a step stool or a place to kick your feet up.​ It stands 10" from the ground with storage room for things as tall as 8.25".

    Check out the list of materials before the steps begin to make sure you have the necessary items to build this step stool.

    Storage Stool from RunnerDuck Resources

  • 10 of 12

    Swivel Stool

    A purple 3-step spiral step stool

    Instructables

    This step stool is super unique and comes from DaleGribble via Instructables. It has three steps, as you can see in the picture, but if you look closely you can also see the design on the floor and how each piece of the three steps can be moved freely along the rightmost rod. This makes for a spiral step stool, one unlike any of the others in this list. It may work perfectly for a narrow space that couldn't otherwise fit a 3-step step stool.

    Additionally, there's another step stool plan from CanuckInJapan at Instructables that's much easier to build but is only one step.

    Swivel Stool from DaleGribble via Instructables

  • 11 of 12

    Basic Step Stool

    Rear view of girl washing dish in kitchen at home
    Cavan Images / Getty Images

    The step stool plan from MyOutdoorPlans is much like some of the other easier-to-build stools from this list because the instructions are clear and the pictures are very easy to follow.

    It should take less than a day to complete this project, and all the tools and materials you need are given to you before you start building.

    Basic Step Stool from My Outdoor Plans

  • 12 of 12

    Simple DIY Step Stool

    A large, hinged wooden step stool

    Popular Mechanics

    Popular Mechanics has this step stool plan that's a "step stool turned chair."

    The list of tools and supplies is listed in the plan as well as assembly instructions. There's a link in this plan to some more details on building the step stool, including notes, dimensions, and drawings, so be sure to check those out too.

    Simple DIY Step Stool from Popular Mechanics