Cigar Locker Dimensions: Sizing Guide for Collectors and Lounges

A cigar locker is a bank of small, individually keyed, humidified compartments, and its dimensions work on two levels: the size of each compartment and the footprint of the whole cabinet. Individual compartments commonly run about 10 to 12 inches on a side, while a full floor-standing bank is typically close to 6 feet tall and a foot and a half deep. What matters is how those numbers meet your cigars, your wall and your room’s climate. This guide takes you through all three.

We approach this as curators of humidor storage, so we will be direct: the right locker is the one that fits your collection with room to breathe, fits your space with room to service it, and holds its humidity steadily. Dimensions are where that begins.

TL;DR

• Individual lockers commonly measure roughly 10 to 12 inches wide and tall, with a depth near 12 inches. Always confirm the interior measurement, which is smaller than the door opening suggests.
• Full banks usually stand about 75 to 85 inches tall and 17 to 19 inches deep. Width depends on the column count.
• Size compartments from your longest cigar and your largest box, then leave air space. A packed locker cannot hold a stable relative humidity.
• Plan for the room too: floor load, door swing, and a stable 65 to 72% RH environment around the cabinet.
• For unusual walls, lounges or clubs, a bespoke build removes every compromise.

Table of Contents

• What a Cigar Locker Is, and Why Size Varies
• Starting With the Cigar: How Big Is What You Are Storing?
• Compartment Dimensions: What to Expect and What to Measure
• Cabinet Footprint: Height, Width and Depth
• The Room Around the Locker
• Materials That Affect Interior Size and Performance
• Choosing by Use
• Sizing Steps You Can Follow
• Mistakes in Sizing a Locker
• Our Perspective
• Plan Your Locker With Us
• FAQ
• Sources

What a Cigar Locker Is, and Why Size Varies

A locker is a small humidified compartment, typically rented by members at a lounge and stocked with their own cigars. As one lounge’s explanation of how lockers work notes, some hold a couple of boxes while others hold half a dozen or more, and sizes vary by venue.

That range is the first lesson. There is no single standard. One lounge offers compact 6 by 6 inch compartments sized for up to 60 loose cigars plus a cutter and lighter, a perfectly sensible choice for a member who buys singles. A private collector who ages full boxes needs something quite different.

Three users, three answers:

• The lounge member wants a compartment for loose sticks and accessories.
• The private collector wants box capacity, often with cabinet-style lockers in a study or cellar.
• The operator wants a modular bank that can grow, with consistent compartment sizing for rental pricing.

Starting With the Cigar: How Big Is What You Are Storing?

Every dimension flows from the cigar. Length is measured in inches and diameter in ring gauge, which is a count of 64ths of an inch. The University of Illinois cigar primer lists a corona at 5.5 to 6 inches with a ring gauge of 42 to 44.

A few working figures follow from that arithmetic:

The diameters are straight conversions from ring gauge (gauge divided by 64). Lengths for the non-corona rows are common trade conventions rather than a single official standard, so measure your own.

An important point: a box is wider than its cigars. Boxes of 25 or 50 add wall thickness, cellophane, bands and, often, a lid that stands proud. Hold your largest box up against the numbers below before you commit.

Compartment Dimensions: What to Expect and What to Measure

For a standard box-capable locker, a compartment around 11 inches wide, 11 inches high and 12 inches deep is a useful reference point. It accepts a typical box of 25 laid flat, or two boxes stacked, and leaves a sliver of clearance for air.

What to check on any spec sheet:

1. Interior versus door opening. Spanish cedar lining, shelving and gaskets reduce the usable space. Ask for interior width, height and depth.
2. Depth against your longest cigar. Seven-inch cigars in a box plus wall thickness need at least 8 inches, and 12 gives you working room.
3. Height for stacking. Two stacked flat boxes need clearance above for your hand.
4. Bottom row. Many designs make the lowest row slightly taller, which suits tall or irregular boxes.
5. Lock and hinge intrusion. A self-closing hinge or lock body can eat into the opening.

A practical rule: fill a locker to roughly two-thirds. Cigars give off and take on moisture, and a compartment that is stuffed to the doors cannot circulate air. If you plan to age boxes for years, size up.

Cabinet Footprint: Height, Width and Depth

Floor-standing locker cabinets tend to follow a pattern that follows from the stacking of compartments. Six rows of 11-inch compartments plus frame and base lands you around six feet. A bank of this kind commonly stands in the 75 to 85 inch range and 17 to 19 inches deep. Width then depends on columns: roughly a foot per column plus the frame.

That gives a planning table:

These are our planning estimates derived from the compartment sizes above, not published specifications for any one product, so treat them as a starting envelope and confirm against the specific model.

Commercial banks are generally designed to sit flush against each other, so more compartments can be added later. That modularity matters for lounges that grow. A commercial unit from a retail supplier’s catalog describes cabinets built to fit flush side by side and slotted panels for air circulation, which is the kind of detail to look for in any bank.

The Room Around the Locker

A locker’s dimensions end at its sides, but its performance does not. Plan for:

• Clearance. Leave room at the front for doors to swing fully open and for two people to pass. Allow a few inches at the back and top for service and air movement.
• Floor load. A tall cabinet filled with cigars and hardwood is heavy. Place it over joists or a slab, never in the middle of a span of thin subflooring.
• Location. Keep it away from exterior doors, direct sun, kitchens and vents. Our guide to cigar cabinet placement for collectors covers room, layout and the 65 to 70% RH target in detail.
• Ambient climate. For lounges, we cover stratification and 65 to 72% RH operations and, for larger rooms, HVAC that holds ±1 to 2% RH.

On the target itself: New Hampshire’s tobacco tax statute, for example, defines a humidor as a container or room designed to keep cigars within 65 to 72 percent humidity at room temperature. That is a legal definition in one state, but it matches the range collectors work toward.

Materials That Affect Interior Size and Performance

Spanish cedar is the traditional lining because it is aromatic and moderates moisture. The U.S. Forest Service’s Cedrela technical sheet notes the wood’s use for cigar boxes and its volatile oils. In dimensional terms, thicker linings and solid-wood shelves reduce interior capacity but add stability. Ask whether the stated measurements are interior or exterior.

The cabinet exterior is a matter of taste: mahogany, cherry and walnut each have their devotees. Glass fronts show off the collection, while solid doors help a locker hold steady. Locks matter for shared banks: individually keyed doors with a master key are the common arrangement for lounges.

Humidity discipline is not unique to cigars. Anyone who has read about keeping dried flower fresh will recognize the same principle: stable moisture, minimal air exchange and no overcrowding.

Choosing by Use

For the private collector

Capacity is measured in boxes, not in compartments. Count your boxes today, add what you expect to buy in three years, then size the interior so you stay at about two-thirds full. Our cabinet humidors are a natural place to start, and a model such as the 17-locker cherry cabinet shows how a locker format works in a home setting.

For the lounge or club

Uniform compartments make pricing and assignment simple, and a modular bank lets you add columns. Larger options such as the 29-unit commercial locker humidor or the standing mahogany display suit operators building a membership program. Confirm each product page for exact measurements before you plan your wall.

For the odd wall or the ambitious room

Alcoves, sloped ceilings, stair landings and wine-cellar conversions rarely match catalog sizes. That is where custom work earns its place, and it is why we built Dunn’s Bespoke.

Sizing Steps You Can Follow

1. Measure your longest cigar and your largest box, including the lid.
2. Decide how many boxes or loose cigars each compartment must hold, then add one-third for air.
3. Choose compartment interior dimensions that exceed the box by about half an inch in each direction.
4. Multiply for rows and columns to find the cabinet footprint.
5. Measure the wall, the doorway and the route to the room. A six-foot cabinet has to arrive in one piece.
6. Check the floor, the climate and the nearest vent.
7. Confirm interior measurements, not just exterior, with the maker.

Mistakes in Sizing a Locker

• Buying to today’s collection. Collections grow. Size for the third year.
• Trusting exterior numbers. The compartment is smaller than the cabinet suggests.
• Ignoring delivery. Stairs, narrow doors and tight turns defeat tall cabinets.
• Forgetting air. A locker that is full to the doors swings in humidity.
• Placing it badly. A perfect locker beside a sunny window will struggle.

Our Perspective

We see the same pattern again and again: collectors choose a cabinet for its finish and discover its capacity afterwards. We encourage the reverse. Decide what the cabinet must carry, how it must sit in the room, and how its climate will be held, then choose the wood and the glass. A humidor is an instrument, and an instrument is specified before it is admired.

When a space refuses catalog dimensions, we work from your wall, your collection and your light, and we pair that with expert consultation and white-glove delivery so the finished piece arrives as designed. Craftsmanship shows in the part you cannot see: the fit of a door, the tolerance of a shelf, the stability of the interior.

— Belle Dunn

Plan Your Locker With Us

If you are sizing a locker bank for a home, lounge, club or retail floor, our team will help you work from your measurements to the right format, from catalog cabinets to a fully custom build. Browse the cabinet humidor collection, or start a conversation about a bespoke commission. You can also begin at dunnluxuryselections.com.

FAQ

What size is a standard cigar locker compartment?

There is no single standard, but many box-capable compartments fall around 10 to 12 inches in width and height with a depth near 12 inches. Smaller lounge lockers, such as 6 by 6 inch units, are designed for loose cigars. Always ask for interior dimensions.

How many cigars fit in a locker?

It depends on the compartment. One lounge describes its 6 by 6 inch lockers as holding up to 60 loose cigars. A compartment of about 11 inches square can generally take one or two boxes, and we suggest filling it to about two-thirds.

How tall is a floor-standing locker cabinet?

Most banks are close to six feet, commonly in the range of 75 to 85 inches, with depths around 17 to 19 inches. Width follows the number of columns. Check the specific model and your ceiling height.

What humidity should a cigar locker hold?

Collectors typically aim for 65 to 72% relative humidity, the range New Hampshire’s statute uses to define a humidor. Our room guides cover how to hold it steadily around the cabinet.

Can I get a locker made to a custom size?

Yes. For unusual walls or larger projects, we offer bespoke work through consultation. Contact us with your measurements and collection size.

Sources

• What is a Cigar Locker (and is it Worth it in NEPA)?
• Cigar Lounge, private cigar lockers
• What Is A Cigar, University of Illinois
• Commercial cigar locker, mahogany
• Chapter 78 Tobacco Tax, New Hampshire
• Cedrela spp., USDA Forest Products Laboratory
• How to store THCA smalls for freshness

Recommended

• Cigar Cabinet Capacity Planning for Custom Humidors
• Cigar Club Humidor Types: Premium Storage for Lounges
• Cigar Cabinet Placement for Collectors: Room, Layout, 65–70% RH
• Cigar Box Arrangement: A Collector’s Complete Guide