The medieval homes were cold, damp, and dark. Most of the time it was warmer and lighter outside the home than inside. For most security purposes, windows, when they were present, were very small openings with wooden shutters that were closed at night or for bad weather. The small windows allowed those inside to see out, but kept people from the outside, looking in.

A peasant’s home had a thatched roof, and a mud or straw floor. The floor would have to be swept out often because of the dirt and food that got on it. The spaces in the walls were filled with mud and twig a combination that was waterproof, fire proof, and made good insulation. Most homes in feudal Europe had dirt floors but wooden planks were used. There was a hole in the middle of the roof so smoke from the hearth would have a way of leaving the home. The hole was surrounded by tile or stone to make it harder for the thatch to catch fire. Windows when they were present were small openings with wooden shutters. The small windows allowed those inside to look out, but those outside not to look in. There homes were very cozy, they mostly had two rooms, and usually held more then one family.

Your normal Peasant houses had less then a thousand square feet under the roof, and were cold, damp, and dark. The typical home had two rooms, one for cooling, eating, and often sleeping. The other room was a storeroom and/or bedroom and often had a small hearth for heating; the hearth was also used for cooking. There would often be a married couple, their kids and one or more grandparents, and perhaps other family members. Older style homes were longer and more then one family lived in them. For lighting they peeled field rushes and dipped them in fat, which burned like small candles. Everything was kept as clean as possible and the earthen floors were often worn hollow as a result of always sweeping. Families spent a lot of time eating, sleeping, and spending time together in their one or two roomed homes. The peasant homes had very little furnishing. What they did have for furnishing was a plank table, a couple of stools, and a chest in which they kept their belongings. Peasant beds were very uncomfortable; they were usually made of dried leaves or straw.

These homes were more elaborate then the peasant's home. There floors were paved as opposed to being strewn with rushes, herbs and sometimes tile. Tapestries were hung on the wall not only for decoration but to provide extras warmth. Windows with lattice frames that were covered in fabrics soaked in resin and tallow, allowed in light, kept out drafts, and could be removed in good weather. Only the wealthy could afford panes of glass and sometimes only the churches and royal residence had glass windows.

In simpler homes with no chimney the medieval kitchen consisted of a stone hearth in the middle of the room. The kitchen was not only where the cooking took place but it was also the source of central heating. The kitchen of a manor house and castle had a big fireplace, where meat and even large oxen could be cooked on spits. The kitchen in the manor house also would be on the ground floor at the back of the house. It was big. In the peasants’ house, they had a small kitchen that wouldn't be that easy to move around in.