Tiny Houses

The best tiny houses of 2020

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The unique Aero Tiny, by Australia's Tiny House Guys, is one of our top 10 tiny houses of 2020
Tiny House Guys
The Aero Tiny came about when The Tiny House Guys saw decommissioned training equipment used by a cabin crew training facility in Brisbane up for sale
The Tiny House Guys
The Aero Tiny is accessed by a fully working airplane door entrance with built-in steps
The Tiny House Guys
The Aero Tiny's interior retains the character of an airplane and includes original touches like the windows and overhead lockers
The Tiny House Guys
The unique Aero Tiny, by Australia's Tiny House Guys, is one of our top 10 tiny houses of 2020
Tiny House Guys
The Aero Tiny's snug interior includes a sofa bed
The Tiny House Guys
The Billboard Collective says that there are no plans to make the Solo 01 commercially available
Arun Prabhu N G
The Solo 01 was constructed using old scrap metal from old bus bodies and demolished buildings
Arun Prabhu N G
The Solo 01 was created to promote small scale architecture
Arun Prabhu N G
The Solo 01 includes a little table for working on a laptop in bed
Arun Prabhu N G
The Solo 01 includes a small camping toilet, kitchenette and even a bathtub
Arun Prabhu N G
Tiny House Nano, by France's Baluchon, puts the tiny back into tiny houses
Baluchon
Tiny House Nano measures just 3.3 m (10.8 ft) in length
Baluchon
Tiny House Nano's interior is snug but can fit up to two people in relative comfort
Baluchon
Tiny House Nano features a storage-integrated sofa bed
Baluchon
Tiny House Nano features a small loft-style sleeping area
Baluchon
The Timberwolf 24' Tiny House features Rocky Mountain Tiny Houses' signature rustic exterior style
Rocky Mountain Tiny Houses
The Timberwolf 24' Tiny House is built to withstand harsh cold weather. Its interior is kept warm with a small wood-burning stove, a mini-split air-conditioning unit, and a RV-style propane-powered furnace
Rocky Mountain Tiny Houses
The Timberwolf 24' Tiny House's living room is topped by an elevating bed platform that turns the space into a second bedroom at the push of a button
Rocky Mountain Tiny Houses
As well as its elevating bed, the Timberwolf 24' Tiny House features a typical loft-style bedroom with a low ceiling
Rocky Mountain Tiny Houses
The Timberwolf 24' Tiny House's elevating bed, shown in the raised position
Rocky Mountain Tiny Houses
The Magnolia V6, by Minimaliste, gets power from a standard RV-style hookup but is also wired for a generator in case of power outage
Minimaliste
As with Minimaliste's other models, the Magnolia V6's decor is clean and contemporary
Minimaliste
The Magnolia V6's kitchen is relatively well-proportioned for a tiny house
Minimaliste
The Magnolia V6's kitchen includes a dishwasher, which is a rare luxury in a tiny house
Minimaliste
The Magnolia V6's kitchen includes quite a lot of storage space
Minimaliste
The Traveler's Paradise, by Mint Tiny House Company, is a tiny house in name only and sleeps an incredible eight people under its roof
Mint Tiny House Company
The Traveler's Paradise is based on a triple-axle trailer and measures a total length of 41 ft (12.5 m)
Mint Tiny House Company
The Traveler's Paradise has a roomy interior, by tiny house standards
Mint Tiny House Company
The Traveler's Paradise includes a large downstairs master bedroom with plenty of headroom to stand upright
Mint Tiny House Company
The Traveler's Paradise includes two loft bedrooms. One is accessed by removable ladder and the other is reached by storage-integrated staircase
Mint Tiny House Company
The Bitser Tiny House, by Build Tiny, measures a total length of 6 m (20 ft)
Build Tiny
The Bitser Tiny House is accessed through glass doors at one end, rather than at the side as with many tiny houses
Build Tiny
The Bitser Tiny House's kitchen is small but contains an oven, propane-powered stove, sink, and fridge/freezer
Build Tiny
The Bitser Tiny House measures 6 m (roughly 20 ft) in length
Build Tiny
The Bitser Tiny House's living room sofa has a handy space-saving attachable swivel table
Build Tiny
Enthusiastic amateur shed builder Daniel Holloway won the 2020 Cuprinol Shed of the Year competition with his Bedouin Tree Shed
Cuprinol
The Bedouin Tree Shed's furniture was sourced from reclamation yards and bits and pieces that people had thrown out
Cuprinol
The Bedouin Tree Shed is used as a peaceful sanctuary to escape the owner's urban surroundings
Cuprinol
The Bedouin Tree Shed is built around the trunks of an Ash and an Evergreen Oak
Cuprinol
The Space by Ecocapsule is the latest iteration of Ecocapsule's egg-shaped dwellings
Ecocapsule
The Space by Ecocapsule is envisioned as a standalone tiny house or a guest house
Ecocapsule
The Space by Ecocapsule runs off-the-grid with solar panels and needs no foundations so can be placed anywhere
Ecocapsule
As standard, the Space by Ecocapsule's interior comes with a wooden floor and the storage space pictured
Ecocapsule
The Space by Ecocapsule's interior contains just one large space as standard, though it can be customized with additional furniture and a bathroom at extra cost
Ecocapsule
GoSun is typically known for its solar ovens and other outdoors gear, but the firm has now dipped a toe into the tiny house scene with the GoSun Dream
GoSun
The GoSun Dream is topped by solar panels that allow it to run off-the-grid
GoSun
The GoSun Dream's kitchen includes a two-burner propane-powered stove, as well as a fridge/freezer, sink, and quite a bit of counter space
GoSun
The GoSun Dream features an elevating bed that's operated with the flick of a switch
GoSun
The GoSun Dream measures a total length of 22 ft (6.7 m)
GoSun
View gallery - 49 images

As 2020 comes to a close, we present our pick of the best, most innovative, and most unusual tiny houses we've seen this year. The towable homes we've chosen run the gamut from a supersized tiny house that sleeps eight people to an unusual compact model based on an airplane fuselage.

Our selection of the best tiny houses of 2020 reflects the sheer breadth of styles and ideas present in the small living movement and contains everything from practical tiny houses on wheels to oddball models that don't really fit the traditional definition of a tiny house. In no particular order, these are the small spaces that have caught our eye during 2020, and be sure to head to the gallery to see more of each.

Bitser Tiny House - Build Tiny

The Bitser Tiny House, by Build Tiny, measures a total length of 6 m (20 ft)
Build Tiny

Build Tiny looked at all the bits and pieces of surplus materials it had lying around from years of custom tiny house projects and the Kiwi firm decided to do something useful with them. That something turned out to be the Bitser Tiny House.

Measuring 6 m (roughly 20 ft) in length, the Bitser is powered by a standard RV-style hookup but is also wired ready to accept solar panels. The interior looks snug but comfortable and consists of a living room, kitchen, bathroom, and one upstairs bedroom that's reached by storage-integrated staircase.

Tiny House Nano - Baluchon

Tiny House Nano, by France's Baluchon, puts the tiny back into tiny houses
Baluchon

The overall size of tiny houses has been slowly increasing in recent years, but for those interested in a tiny house that is still actually tiny, Baluchon's Tiny House Nano definitely fits the bill.

Measuring a mere 3.3 m (10.8 ft) in length, the French dwelling is one of the smaller tiny houses we've seen in recent years and its interior is probably best suited as a weekender or guest house. It features a small desk area which doubles up as a dining table, with a sofa bed and a kitchenette nearby, plus a small bathroom with a toilet and shower. A ladder leads up to its only sleeping area.

Timberwolf 24' Tiny House - Rocky Mountain Tiny Houses

The Timberwolf 24' Tiny House features Rocky Mountain Tiny Houses' signature rustic exterior style
Rocky Mountain Tiny Houses

The Timberwolf 24' Tiny House by Colorado's Rocky Mountain Tiny Houses measures 24 ft (7.3 m) long and sports the firm's trademark rustic exterior styling. A fold-down deck and a fold-up awning are attached to the exterior and provide extra outdoor living space.

The interior features a living room with large u-shaped sofa and an elevator bed platform operated with a switch. Elsewhere is a kitchen, bathroom, and upstairs bedroom. It runs off-the-grid with solar panels and water tanks, and can also withstand harsh winter weather thanks to a combination of good insulation, a wood-burning stove, mini-split air-con unit, and a gas-powered furnace.

Magnolia V6 - Minimaliste

The Magnolia V6, by Minimaliste, gets power from a standard RV-style hookup but is also wired for a generator in case of power outage
Minimaliste

Minimaliste's latest version of its popular Magnolia tiny house measures a total length of 36.5 ft (11.1 m). Its interior includes a large living area, with a well-stocked kitchen that has a dishwasher and a massive fridge/freezer.

The Magnolia V6 boasts a large downstairs bedroom with plenty of headroom to stand up straight in, as well as a secondary loft bedroom. It's wired for a standard RV-style hookup but can also run from a generator in case of outages. Additionally, like all of the Canadian firm's models, this hardy home is built to withstand extremes in temperature and can take a harsh winter in its stride.

Aero Tiny House - Tiny House Guys

The Aero Tiny is accessed by a fully working airplane door entrance with built-in steps
The Tiny House Guys

Small living firm The Tiny House Guys definitely has a point when it calls its Aero Tiny House Australia's most unique tiny house. The off-grid home is made from a repurposed airplane fuselage section previously used for cabin crew training, that's placed on a standard tiny house towable trailer.

It measures 12 sq m (130 sq ft) and is accessed by a fully operational aircraft door. The interior retains some nice original touches like the overhead lockers, though thankfully a real bathroom has been installed in place of those cramped airplane toilets. There's also a deck, dining area, and kitchenette, as well as a sofa bed. It gets power from a solar panel array and has a water tank and pump system mounted under the floor.

Solo 01 - The Billboards Collective

The Billboard Collective says that there are no plans to make the Solo 01 commercially available
Arun Prabhu N G

Admittedly, there are very few people who would want to actually live in the Solo 01, but it's a fascinating example of the ingenuity seen in the tiny house movement. Based on a rickshaw with a removable living area made from scrap metal, it measures just 6 x 6 ft (1.8 x 1.8 m).

Notwithstanding its humble dimensions, Indian designer The Billboards Collective has somehow managed to squeeze in storage space, a kitchenette, a toilet, and even a tiny bathtub, while the mezzanine area hosts a bed and a laptop table. The exterior has a small drop-down porch and the rooftop terrace is accessed by ladder.

Traveler's Paradise - Mint Tiny House Company

The Traveler's Paradise is a gigantic tiny house measuring 41 ft (12.5 m) in length
Mint Tiny House Company

The Traveler's Paradise, by Canada's Mint Tiny House Company, is at the opposite end of the tiny house scale from Baluchon's Nano, and is a tiny house that's tiny in name only. Measuring an incredible 41 ft (12.5 m) in length, the home sleeps up to eight people.

So how do you fit eight people into a towable home? Well, two have to rough it on a sofa bed, while another two get to enjoy the master bedroom, which is downstairs and has lots of headroom to stand upright and walk around. The remaining four share the tiny house's two loft-style bedrooms. The home also has a large kitchen, living room, and just one bathroom for everyone to share.

Bedouin Tree Shed - Daniel Holloway

Enthusiastic amateur shed builder Daniel Holloway won the 2020 Cuprinol Shed of the Year competition with his Bedouin Tree Shed
Cuprinol

Daniel Holloway's Bedouin Tree Shed was an eight-year labor of love and won him the prestigious Cuprinol Shed of the Year competition in the UK.

It began life as a conventional garden shed but grew over the years to include multiple structures based around two living trees in Holloway's garden. Its interior includes souvenirs from his extensive travels in Africa, vintage etchings, and finely carved ancient hardwood Indian columns. A wood-burning stove provides warmth and its furniture was sourced from reclamation yards and bits and pieces people had thrown out.

Space by Ecocapsule - Ecocapsule

The Space by Ecocapsule is the latest iteration of Ecocapsule's egg-shaped dwellings
Ecocapsule

The Ecocapsule has been around in various forms for years now but with the Space by Ecocapsule, as it's officially named, the novel egg-shaped tiny house gets rebooted with an updated design.

It measures 4.67 x 2.2 m (15 x 7.2 ft) and has 8.2 sq m (88 sq ft) of floorspace inside, with a distinctive fiberglass shell covering a steel frame. The interior is laid out in just one room with flooring and storage space as standard, with optional extras like a bed, air-conditioning, additional furniture, and a bathroom. It gets power from a solar panel array mounted on a small telescopic pole that's connected to batteries and has a rainwater collection system too.

GoSun Dream - GoSun

GoSun is typically known for its solar ovens and other outdoors gear, but the firm has now dipped a toe into the tiny house scene with the GoSun Dream
GoSun

GoSun is best known for its line of solar ovens and other neat outdoor gear, but the firm has moved into the small living movement with a new tiny house named the GoSun Dream.

The tiny house measures a total length of 22 ft (6.7 m) and sports an optional electric awning that offers shade outside. The interior maximizes the compact space available with a living room that contains a u-shaped bench seat and table that can be turned into a bed. There's also an elevating bed that lowers down with the flick of a switch when it's time to hit the sack. Other notable features in this one include its solar panels and water tanks, allowing it to run fully off-the-grid.

View gallery - 49 images
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9 comments
paul314
Some of these look like they have more square footage than small real houses. It would be interesting to see more "tiny" houses not built on trailer frames.
Nobody
Most of these are over priced and waste so much living and storage space. Regular travel trailers are light years ahead in design and practicality plus they can run on 12 or 120 volts and are totally self contained. A travel trailer is actually very livable even down to the 19 foot size. Even my 24 foot fly bridge cabin cruiser boat had more livable space than almost all these impractical tiny houses.
Alan Reyes
These are trailers . They are just overpriced and very questionable safe trailers .
The wholectiny house concept seems to just rename trailers so they can be sold for higher prices.
It is very questionable that these trailers are within the GVW of the trailer wheels.
Douglas Bennett Rogers
It's a trailer for people who are embarrassed to live in a trailer.
Tom Lee Mullins
I like the Solo 1 the most. I think it is really neat. It would be neat to travel the back roads and explore areas in it.
Gauvin Lapetoule
So cool !
I think you forgot to mention the "Stendhal" Tiny house made by Serena.House: https://serena.house/fr/tiny-house-escapade-stendhal/
David V
Not really into these things but you've just got to love the Aero Tiny. Just climbing up the cabin stairs would whisk me away ...
unusualsuspect
I went to North Carolina to visit a tiny home manufacturer, and was told that if they're on wheels they get taxed as an RV. If you remove the wheels, they get taxed as a house. Not sure what the tax is in other places, but something to think about if you're going to purchase one.
mikewax
i think it's more about photographic art using tiny houses as props that are set in idyllic surroundings. THes are not very useful, but the photos are well done and nice to look at.