Doors With Sidelights
A single door, flanked by light
A door with sidelights is a single entry door flanked by one or two narrow glass panels. The combination adds dramatic proportions, floods your foyer with natural light, and creates an elegant entrance — without the wider footprint of a true double door.
Understanding Doors With Sidelights
Why Sidelights Transform an Entry
Sidelights are the easiest way to dramatically upgrade your home’s curb appeal without expanding the door opening itself. A single door with two flanking sidelights creates a balanced, formal entrance. One sidelight (asymmetric) is great for narrower openings or modern homes that prefer asymmetry.
Glass options run from clear (maximum light, less privacy) to obscured/textured (light enters but views in are blocked) to decorative leaded glass with patterns. Sidelights can also be operable (think mini-windows for ventilation) or fully fixed.
Why Choose Doors With Sidelights
Six Reasons to Pick Doors With Sidelights
What makes our doors with sidelights stand out from anything else you can buy in the Charlotte area.
Foyer-Filling Daylight
Sidelights pull natural light deep into your entry and adjacent rooms — a noticeable change in any home with a windowless foyer.
Symmetrical Elegance
Two sidelights flanking a center door create classic, balanced architectural proportions — works beautifully on traditional homes.
Privacy Glass Options
Frosted, textured, leaded, or decorative glass — let light in without compromising privacy from passersby on your porch.
Coordinated Trim Lines
We coordinate trim, glass patterns, and finishes across the door and sidelights for a unified, custom-designed look.
Secure Glass Inserts
Sidelight glass is laminated and tempered — secure against break-ins while still letting light flow through.
Lifetime Warranty
Door, sidelight glass, frame, and installation backed by our transferable lifetime warranty.
How It Works
Our Hassle-Free Process
From your first consultation to your lifetime warranty — we handle every step in-house.
01
Free Consultation
A design consultant visits your home, walks through your goals, and brings full-size door samples to compare in your space.
02
Precise Measurement
Every opening laser-measured to 1/16″. We document everything so your custom order is exact.
03
Professional Installation
Our in-house crew installs, seals, and finishes everything in a single visit.
04
Lifetime Warranty
We back the install, frames, and hardware with a transferable warranty that follows the home.
Frequently Asked
FAQs About Doors With Sidelights
How wide does my opening need to be for sidelights?
A typical door with two sidelights is 5-6 feet wide overall (a 36″ door plus two 12″ sidelights). One sidelight + door is roughly 4-5 feet. We measure your existing opening and confirm what configurations fit.
Are sidelights secure?
Yes, modern sidelights use laminated tempered glass that resists impact — significantly harder to break than the single-pane glass in older sidelight installations. We can also recommend reinforced framing for security-focused homes.
Can sidelights be operable (open and close)?
Yes — operable sidelights work like narrow casement or awning windows, opening for ventilation. Most homeowners choose fixed sidelights for simplicity and seal, but operable is a popular option.
Will sidelights cost more than just a door?
Yes — typically 40-70% more than the door alone, depending on glass type. Decorative leaded glass costs more than clear or frosted. We provide the full breakdown at quote.
Can I add sidelights to my existing door opening?
Sometimes — depends on your wall framing. If there’s enough framing width to one side of your current door, we can sometimes expand the opening. We evaluate this during your consultation.
What's the difference between sidelights and a transom?
Sidelights are vertical glass panels next to the door. A transom is a horizontal glass panel above the door. They’re often used together for maximum light, especially on traditional home styles.
Get Started With Doors With Sidelights
Ready for a Free Quote?
Book a free in-home consultation. We’ll measure your openings, show you full-size doors with sidelights samples, and quote your project on the spot — no pressure, no commitment.