I live in a 2/1 combo and am building the same. I do like the look of 3 individual bays, but I think the 2/1 is more practical.

In my single bay, you can safely store a special vehicle or in my case, a 4-wheeler on a trailer, bikes and other kids' stuff. I have a wall between the two bays with a doorway between the two.

The large 2-car bay is great for my wife to park her vehicle as I rarely park in the garage. She drives a Suburban and can just park in the middle of the bay and have lots of room on either side....that's one big advantage I can think of. It is pretty tight when both of our vehicles are in there and we are unloading kids and groceries.

I would imagine 3 doors cost more than the 2/1, plus you would need 3 openers as well.

Hope this helps!

I also prefer the look of single bays. However, if I ever had to back a trailer into a garage I would want the double bay.

And what I really, really want is a garage bay that is a pass through to the backyard (a roll up door on the driveway side and the backyard side). It would be a great way to open the garage up to the backyard for moving big stuff in and out (instead of driving the mower through the side gate, onto the driveway,and then into the garage). If you don't have a fence (and critters) to worry about then just forget I mentioned it :)

I prefer 3 single bays rather than a double. There is more space between vehicles and looks great

We have a double garage (our single is in the basement at other end), but I wanted to say that a double is so much easier to get in and out of. I drive a big SUV and my husband drives a full size sedan and we can both get in and out of the garage and our cars easily, even with a not so wide driveway.

Our neighbors have 3 single car garages and they have vehicles close to the same size as ours, and a much wider driveway and they have to back up & maneuver several times to get their SUV in the garage!

Go with four bays!

I don't really need or want a 4 car garage.

I would prefer the combo double with a single (although, I agree, the 3 singles is nicer aesthetically). The double door is more economical (one door; one opener), but you'd probably have to price both options out in your area to know the exact price difference. A double is easier to get in and out of (esp. with large vehicles, or if you back into the garage). Also, it's easier to work on the cars (for oil changes, brakes, etc.), since you can then easily park in the center of the garage where you'll have plenty of room to work.

Id look into a 12' wide single door if you have the space. Plenty of room to back in and out of

My garage is actually pretty big which I think makes it easier to go with the 3 single bays...

We chose three singles, 10' wide. Yes, a trailer is tough to get in, but for cars, it's just as easy as a 2 bay door.

By "bays" do you mean dividing the entire garage with walls, or just whether to have 3 garage doors vs. 2 garage doors?

I personally think that no matter how nicely done, 3 individual garage doors looks like a drive-up storage unit, like this:

But I read the other posts and there are some people who love their 3 small doors, so this is obviously just a matter of personal preference! :)

1 garage with 3 doors. No walls inside.

The house we rented while building had single bays, and I had a tough time maneuvering my large SUV into the door. Now, we have one double and one single and it is bliss. Dh parks in the single, and I have all that room in the double. Our garage is rear entry, so aesthetics weren't a huge concern, but I think it looks ok.

Personal opinion: I think three single doors in a row looks kind of dull and repetative. Of course, that has nothing to do with function.

I prefer the look of single doors, but the versatility of a double door would win it for me. A double allows you to park in the middle which is helpful in many instances if you want to work on or clean the inside of the vehicle under a roof. It is also helpful when you have elderly guests coming to visit and the weather is bad. Easier for them to get in and out along with any equipment such as wheel chairs or walkers.

You could still accommodate the above, but you'd have to make each single bay larger.

If you drive a larger car, or want to ever work on cars, a double door is a must.