| Jack and Jill Bathroom Pros | Jack and Jill Bathroom Cons |
| You can save space in your house | This bathroom will not be easily accessible to the rest of the household |
| The construction and installation costs are lower | Users can easily walk in on each other by accident |
| They offer the users more privacy than bathrooms opening onto the hall | One user can forget to unlock the other person’s door |
| There are many design options for preference and need | It can cause arguments and disagreements |
| As they are not “general” house bathrooms, they can be decorated for the users, specifically | |
| Having to share and coordinate can help your small children to learn valuable people skills |
Related article: Why Is It Called a Jack and Jill Bathroom?
Jack and Jill bathrooms can save money and space, provide more privacy and design freedom than hall bathrooms, and teach kids to get on. Yet, it’s not always best to have a bathroom cut off from general use. There is the risk of walk-ins or forgetting to unlock the other door. Sharing can create conflict.
Pros of Jack and Jill Bathrooms
Save Space
Bathrooms are very interesting spaces. Even if you are a bathtub-soaker, you are unlikely to spend more time in the bathroom than in a room like a kitchen, bedroom, or living room. Yet, you absolutely need a bathroom, and it is one of the top two most feature-heavy rooms in the house (the other is a kitchen).
To install two showers, two bathtubs, two basins, two toilets, and duplicates of all the internal plumbing fixtures can end up using so much space that you might have to compromise on things like the size of the shower or even the inclusion of a bathtub.
Jack and Jill bathrooms provide an excellent design solution if you want to have two separate bathrooms, but you don’t have the space to accommodate them both.
You will typically still install two basins and separate storage areas in a Jack and Jill, but these bathrooms will have a shared bathtub, shower, and toilet.
In the end, if you go for a Jack and Jill, then that one bathroom can end up providing more space for each user than their own individual bathroom would provide.
Lower Costs
Once again, in comparison to building two separate bathrooms, a Jack and Jill bathroom will be cheaper to install. You only install one tub, one shower, and one toilet. This alone can save you packets of money.
But then there are also the labor and construction costs that you save on. You don’t have to pay for pipes or wires to be laid in two separate bathrooms.
So, even if you end up making the bathroom bigger than each separate bathroom would have been, the Jack and Jill option will be less expensive.
Privacy
Privacy is a fundamental requirement for a bathroom. With a Jack and Jill design, you will only have one other person to worry about instead of an entire household.
Furthermore, you don’t have to worry about guests using your bathroom or trying to open the door while you are in the bathroom. This is a very important feature for teenagers who get embarrassed by things like that.
Another reason why Jack and Jill bathrooms offer more privacy is because you don’t have to dash across the hall to reach the bathroom.
Once again, teenagers will be very appreciative of this (although they might not let on to the fact!). If you are no longer a teen, you can surely still remember the agony of being caught in your pajamas at 11 am by Aunt So-and-So while on your way to shower. What a lecture that incurred!
If your kids have grown up and the Jack and Jill is being used by guests, they will also appreciate not having to face the general household before they have showered or brushed their teeth.
Multiple Design Options
There are a lot of options for a functional Jack and Jill, and you can adapt the design to suit your particular requirements.
Single-Facility Option
You can have a single-facility bathroom (i.e., one sink, one tub, one shower, and one toilet) adjoining two bedrooms. This design is probably the least ideal for a Jack and Jill, but it is the biggest space- and cost-saver.
Double Sink Variation
A slight variation to the above is the single-tub/shower/toilet, but double sink design, which allows both users to do things like brush their teeth, wash their face, or do their hair at the same time.
Separate Wet Area and Toilet
One of the more common and convenient Jack and Jill bathroom designs are those with separate toilet and shower areas.
So, the bedroom doors open onto a general space with the basins and storage, but the shower and tub are concealed behind another door in the “wet area”, and the toilet is also cubicle-d behind a door.
This allows one user to go to the toilet while the other uses the shower or basin, and it is important because you can’t always wait to go to the toilet!
Yet another option for a Jack and Jill bathroom is to have two basins, separate storage, and two toilet cubicles. Then the only shared feature would be the shower or wet area.
For many people, this design is so close to that of completely separate bathrooms that if there is the space and money for this option, then you might as well install two bathrooms.
Décor Freedom
Often, when bathrooms lead off from the hall, homeowners start thinking about how the décor matches the rest of the general home areas. Even though it is your children’s bathroom, you are automatically more hesitant to use a bright color or child-related theme because the room is potentially visible to guests.
With a Jack and Jill bathroom, you don’t have this hesitancy. You can paint all the yellow duckies or polka dots that are required to make bath time fun for your toddler without worrying about someone seeing how it clashes with the nude palette of the rest of the house.
Small Children Learn People Skills
When your children are forced to share a bathroom, they are also forced to learn valuable people/life skills, like how to share, how to compromise, how to coordinate, and how to resolve conflict.
They can also learn respect for others’ space and things.
Related article: Jack and Jill Bathroom Etiquette
Cons of Jack and Jill Bathrooms
Less Accessible to Household
If you have a smaller home or many family members, then a Jack and Jill bathroom uses up all the space for one (maybe even one and a half) bathroom, but it is only accessible to the people in the adjoining bedrooms.
So, if you can only install two bathrooms in your home, it makes more sense to go with a master en-suite, and a bathroom that is accessed from the hall.
Accidental Walk-Ins Are More Likely
A shared bathroom with hall access has one door and is known to be for general use. If the door is shut, the bathroom is probably in use, and you know to wait your turn.
Jack and Jill bathrooms are often viewed as a person’s private bathroom, and the doors are often both left shut (closed doors can create a humidity issue if the bathroom is not well ventilated). Each person understands that they share the bathroom with the other person, but it’s also more instinctive to just try and open the bathroom door.
The result is more frequent walk-ins. Depending on the design of the Jack and Jill bathroom, this can lead to embarrassing moments for one or both of the users. This is especially true if both bedrooms are used as guest rooms and the person you walk in on is someone you just met at a house party!
In some hotels or B&Bs, Jack and Jill bathrooms are used and attached to two separate rooms. In such cases, you may be sharing with a complete stranger and accidental walk-ins will be horrifying for all parties involved! You can read more in my article on the Difference Between Private, Attached, and Shared Bathrooms.
Forgetting to Unlock the Door
Another issue with Jack and Jill bathrooms is the fact that when one person enters, they lock both doors if they need privacy. This introduces the risk of forgetting to unlock the other person’s door.
At night or in an emergency (like when the person needs to be sick), this is problematic.
Accidental walk-ins and forgetting to unlock the door may be overcome through the installation of a specialized bathroom door lock.
Chance for Conflict
As with all shared bathrooms, in comparison to a private bathroom, Jack and Jills can create conflict.
Factors such as the age and gender of the uses need to be considered. A teenager might not be very happy having to share their bathroom with a toddler who doesn’t yet understand personal space and will always be accompanied into the bathroom by a parent.
Furthermore, even when they are siblings, boys and girls can get uncomfortable sharing a bathroom with each other.
Related article: Are Jack and Jill Bathrooms Outdated?
Related article: Pros and Cons of a Bathtub
Related article: Jack and Jill Vs. Hall Access Bathroom: Which is Better?
Sources
https://www.customhomegroup.com/blog/jack-and-jill-bathrooms/
https://www.houzz.com/discussions/4564731/pros-and-cons-of-jack-and-jill-bath
https://www.mymove.com/home-inspiration/bathroom/need-know-jack-jill-bathrooms/