A Juliet balcony is essentially a balcony consisting of a balustrade connection to the building façade without a deck to walk on; not, as many assume, a glass balcony.
Made famous by Shakespeare, made perfect by Sapphire, the Juliet (or Juliette) is a specialist balcony commonly used to protect openings such as French doors on an upper floor of a residential development. Sometimes specified where a full, walk-on balcony isn’t practical for design or budgetary reasons, the Juliet version offers an effective way to create an open, outdoor feel to an indoor space in an apartment, for example.
While often referred to as a balcony, a Juliet balcony is not a usable outdoor space, but rather a guarding solution fixed to the façade. For projects requiring fully usable outdoor space, developers increasingly consider modular balcony systems as an alternative option.
You can see examples of how alternative balcony options are applied across real developments in our case studies.
While Juliet balconies are effective in certain scenarios, they have clear limitations:
For many developments, this leads to consideration of prefabricated balcony systems that provide both safety and usable space.
A cantilever balcony projects outward from the building structure, creating a fully usable external space.
| Feature | Juliet Balcony | Cantilever Balcony |
|---|---|---|
| Usable space | ❌ None | ✅ Walkable |
| Structure | Balustrade fixed to façade | Structurally projecting |
| Function | Safety barrier | Outdoor amenity |
| Resident value | Low | High |
| Impact on development | Limited | Significant |
We are fully focused on providing factory-finished modular balconies.
These are best suited to projects with:
Compared to both Juliet and cantilever balconies, our prefabricated balcony systems offer:
For technical detail and system design, explore our website.
