Bench Seats vs. Bucket Seats For A Pickup Truck

Should you get bench seats or bucket seats for your existing or new truck?

This is the question that baffles many peoples heads, as both of these configurations do differ a bit and come with their own good and bad.

On this post, i will be talking about the new types of bench seats, in other words, those which are essentially the same as buckets, it’s just that they have a jump seat right in the middle; not the actual couch kind like the old school pickups had.

Bench seat pros

Extra comfort

Because there is no more permanent center console in the way, you will have more room to move around.

What i mean by that specifically is leg room. Tall owners will appreciate this, as there is really nothing worse than banging your knee against the console on those longer trips.

I mean in general, you are able to stretch, move your legs around and just feel more roomy as there is nothing in there.

That empty space may also be used for storing something, but this will probably end up ruining the level of comfort a little.

Fit additional people

Having a middle seat between the main two in the front allows you to carry 3 passengers, or in short, 6 in the whole pickup truck.

That may not seem as crucial at first, but if you have a family, go out with friends frequently, have pets or so, this can actually be a great advantage.

These types of seats make even more sense for a truck that only has two doors, i.e. single cabs, as you don’t have that much seating to begin with.

Also, because the front seats sit on the same level and are joined together, you will be able to sleep there very comfortably, if there was ever a need to do so.

Cheaper

The results definitely depend on the manufacturer, but it’s surely possible to save a couple hundred dollars, if not more, when building a pickup with bench seats instead of the buckets.

Bucket seat pros

The console

It is true that most bench seats have some sort of console type thing in the back of the jump seat you can use once it’s folded down, but it doesn’t really compare to an actual solid center one, in that sense at least.

Bucket seats which have a permanently attached center console are just easier to use as everything is right in your eyesight – you don’t have to flip anything over, reach under to get what you want.

I also think they have more storage capability, particularly if the truck has column shifters.

That is really all i can tell about it, but guess what, this is still enough to convince many to go exactly for this sort of build.

There are those who just cannot live without a comfortable armrest and the standard look a center console provides in a truck, and that is why i think it’s a more popular choice.

In conclusion

By the amount of praise i wrote, it probably makes the most sense that the winner would be the bench seats…

Though as always, this is just my opinion and you can really go for anything you like, more so when we’re just talking about the types of seats for a vehicle.

Either way i would say this, if you are the kind of traveler who almost always drives alone or with a couple of people in the vehicle, chances are you should stick with the bucket seats and a center console.

Note: you can always have the center console, or jump seat for that matter replaced with one another, it’s just that this is going to cost you more in total, of course.