How To Pick The Right Size Rug For Living Room – Rugs go a long way in making a space feel right. It adds color and texture, helps set up furniture and defines different areas of a large space. Getting the size and placement right is obviously the hardest part. One of the most common mistakes is that the rug is too small for the space or combination of furniture.
To help with this, I’ve put together some visual guidelines to show you what works well in a living room with various types of furniture and settings. In some cases, you will see that there is more than one size of rug, so here are some additional guidelines to help you choose the right option for your personal space.
How To Pick The Right Size Rug For Living Room
So before we talk about what to do, let’s start with what I don’t recommend. This first example is a 7-foot-long sofa with 2 chairs paired with a 5-foot-by-8-foot rug. At first glance, it might seem like a good choice, right? But if you look closely, you’ll see that this 5×8 rug only rests the front legs of the couch on the rug, but not the chair. If you move the chairs so that the front legs are on the carpet, the whole arrangement starts to feel cramped. Just like this rug, it feels like an island with a coffee table, chairs and a couch next to it. Not so good, see?
How To Choose The Right Size Rug By Room
Now here is the same furniture arrangement with an 8ft x 10ft rug and then a 9×12 rug…
Very good! The 8×10 definitely helps with furniture arrangement and allows for two small side tables on either side of the couch. A 9×12 works very well in this layout and allows for a wider side table.
If you have a very large room or an open concept room where you need to define which area, a 10 foot by 14 foot rug can also work so that all the furniture pieces can sit completely on top of the rug. There should be one meter of space between the carpet and the wall so that the carpet does not look like a wall-to-wall carpet.
The pieces are large and have numerous adjustment options, making the sizing and placement of rugs even more complicated. This post would take forever if I tried to cover all possible configurations, so I tried using a 100″ by 100″ sectional or a 94″ by 58″ “chaise” style sectional. (Of course, if you have any questions about your room or the condition of the area, you can get instant advice here!)
How To Choose The Right Size Area Rug For Your Space
With this size (100″x100″) equilateral corner cut, you’ll find that both 8×10 and 9×12 mats will work well. I think the 9×12 helps balance this arrangement a bit more since the armrests are included. Without the chair, the 8×10 would be more proportional.
Sculptures are very popular these days, but they are the size of a couch with an attached ottoman, so figuring out how to place a rug can be difficult. Regarding the seating area, it is important to consider how to place the side table. An 8×10 rug is a good choice if the armchair is against a wall or where it doesn’t make sense to have a side table.
However, if you have a side table at the long end of the sectional, you’ll need a larger rug to make that side table feel like it’s part of the group and not just hanging there! A 9×12 rug placed completely under the sectional can make a side table, coffee table, or even an armchair or two.
I’ll close this post with a disclaimer: these are just general guidelines and every home is different, so there will always be exceptions to the rule! I’ve used standard sizes in these examples, but couches, rugs, chairs, and side tables come in the billions. If you need more guidance or feel like you’re in a tough spot, I’m here to help! I recommend 30 minutes. You can find quick tips here as part of my e-design services.
How To Choose The Right Rug Size
Pin the graphic below if you want to keep these tips in mind the next time you shop for a rug! Follow me on Pinterest while you’re there!
Previous Previous One Room, Three Styles: Bedroom Next Edition Consider the Style… McGee Studio at Target is often asked how to choose the right size rug for under the dining table, under the bed, in the entryway, or just about anywhere! While we’re on the subject, I believe in just one design rule – choose a rug that’s the right size for your space! I have an old blog post about choosing the right size rug (HERE) – hey, even Joanna Gaines has changed her approach from choosing rugs that are too small to rugs that are the right size for the room and furniture. Here are some hints from past changes.
When we decorated my sister’s bedroom, we tried two different rugs! Pictured above is an 8×10 charcoal rug that I ordered but wasn’t here when the photo was taken. So I shot a 6×9 light tapestry, which is too small for the space, and it’s nice to see light verses.
In this small bedroom we made a queen metal bed with a 6×9 rug. The rug is perfect for the wall! (see this conversion here)
How To Choose The Right Area Rug For Under Your Bed
We made this queen bed an 8×10 mat. I wanted to go bigger because there is space and it breaks up all the gold floors and gold wallpaper.
For my sister’s bedroom, I made an 8×10 painting to brighten the room and contrast the dark carpet. You can find carpets here.
In this small bedroom we have a 5×7 queen size bed that pulls the whole space together! Find rugs here.
Yes, we do carpet on carpet! It really adds a lot to the room. We did a 5×7 for this rug in this little girl’s room.
How To Choose The Right Size Rug For Your Living Room
I used this mat here! Love how it pulls off the color of the wall. (see details of this room here).
For this bedroom remodel, we went from a 9×12 rug to a 6×9! It’s a queen size bed and it matches the carpet and the room perfectly! The rug sits 2 feet from the bed (See the bedroom layout HERE and the rug HERE).
Note again that the carpet under the bedroom is not included in this bedroom decor. It is an 8×10 with a queen size bed. (Get the room makeover HERE and the rug HERE).
I did this makeover for my friend Amy. We carpeted her master bedroom, which is a great way to use your favorite rug in a small space, and a great way to save money if the rug above isn’t a budget rug (See the solution HERE )-See the mat HERE.
Loomy Rug Size Guide: The Easy Way To Choose The Right Rug For Your Space
It’s a smaller room, but it’s a great example of how to turn a rug to fit the shape of the room. I usually make the rug horizontal to break up the shape of the bed, but it runs the length of the bed. It’s nice to see how a rug can add so much to a space, even on a rug. (Get this makeover HERE and the rug HERE).
In this bedroom remodel, we made a king size bed with an 8×10 rug, and I actually showed how light rugs look with darker colors! Find two options in this conversion.
Again, for those wondering if they should put a rug over the carpet – YES! A rug over a rug is a great way to define a space and add color if you want! (Get bedroom decor HERE and rugs HERE).
You can see how I layered two rugs on my front porch, the doormat itself was too small to “know here are lots of plants.” I layered it with a rug I had so it spanned the entire width of the door. I recently ordered this 3×5 rug for our back door and can’t wait to show it to you!
Best Rug Size For 15×15 Rooms, 10×12, 11×13, 12×12 & 15×20
I feel strongly that the front legs of your couch should be on the carpet and the front legs of your chairs should be in the space. It really brings everything together. If you go too big, everything will feel like it’s floating. I had this rug in our living room and I love the color, but it is as thin as expensive rugs.
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