Measure the living room and pick a seating layout. You see whether it fits with a way to walk past it, which wall the sofa goes on, how far apart everyone sits, and which of the four classic layouts your room takes. Then open the room in the free planner and arrange the rest.
Your living room
Sofa facing 2 chairs: fitssofa on the 12′ wall · 30″ at each end, 49″ behind the chairs
The four layouts in this room
Quick answer: a living room layout works when the way through the room goes round the seating on a 30–36″ path, the coffee table sits 14–18″ from the seats, and seats that face each other are within 8′. With 30″ paths, a standard 84″ sofa facing two chairs needs a room about 9′ 6″ × 13′ 5″; an 84″ sofa and a loveseat in an L, about 12′ 8″ × 9′ 3″.
How to use the living room layout planner
- Measure the room wall to wall, both ways.
- Pick a layout, the sofa and the walkway. The answer says whether it fits, which wall the sofa goes on, how much room it leaves to walk past, and which of the four layouts your room takes.
- Open it in the free planner to add the TV, the rug, lamps and side tables, drawn to scale. Copy link keeps the result.
The rules of a living room layout
- The path goes round the seating, not through it. Leave a way past one end of the group and one along its open side: 30″ (76 cm) for a main path, 36″ (91 cm) to be roomy. 24″ (61 cm) is a squeeze you would not want to use every day.
- Seats that face each other within 8′ (2.4 m). Past that, people raise their voices to talk, and the room stops feeling like one group.
- The coffee table 14–18″ from every seat, and about two-thirds of the sofa’s length: an 84″ sofa takes a 54″ table. The planner puts it 16″ away.
- The sofa’s back against a solid wall. A sofa facing chairs is deep, so it often goes on the SHORT wall; an L is wide, so it goes on the long one. The planner tries both walls and picks the one that leaves more room.
Room size for each layout
The room each layout needs with 30″ paths, along the sofa’s wall × out from it:
| Layout | 72″ sofa | 84″ sofa | 96″ sofa |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sofa facing two chairs | 8′ 6″ × 13′ 2″ | 9′ 6″ × 13′ 5″ | 10′ 6″ × 13′ 8″ |
| U: sofa with a chair at each end | 14′ 10″ × 9′ 4″ | 15′ 4″ × 9′ 5½″ | 15′ 10″ × 9′ 7″ |
| L: sofa and a loveseat | 11′ 8″ × 9′ | 12′ 8″ × 9′ 3″ | 13′ 8″ × 9′ 6″ |
| L-shaped sectional | 11′ 8″ × 9′ 6″ | 12′ 8″ × 9′ 6″ | 13′ 8″ × 9′ 6″ |
Pieces as drawn: sofa 38″ deep, armchairs 32″ × 34″, a loveseat 64″ × 38″, a sectional’s return 84″ into the room.
Three worked examples
A sofa facing two chairs in a 15′ × 12′ living room. The sofa goes on the 12′ wall, leaving 30″ at each end and 49″ behind the chairs. The chairs sit 4′ 11″ from the sofa, face to face: an easy distance to talk.
A small 12′ × 12′ living room. No layout fits with an 84″ sofa and 30″ paths. With a 72″ sofa, an L with a loveseat fits: 34″ past one end and 66″ on the open side.
A long, narrow 20′ × 11′ room. Put the sofa on the 11′ wall, facing two chairs: 48″ past one end and 109″ behind the chairs. That leftover 9′ is a second zone for a desk, a reading chair or a small dining table.
Common living room layout mistakes
- A path that cuts through the seating. If the way from the door to the kitchen crosses between the sofa and the chairs, every trip interrupts the conversation. Turn the group so the path runs past its end.
- Everything pushed against the walls. Chairs lined up round the edge end up 12′ apart. Pull them in to within 8′ of the sofa and let the path run behind them.
- A coffee table too far away. Beyond 18″ nobody can reach a cup from the sofa. Under 14″, there is no room for knees.
- The biggest sofa that squeezes in. A 96″ sofa that leaves 20″ to walk is a room you edge through. An 84″ one with 30″ is a room you live in.
Then size the rest of the room: the coffee table size calculator, the TV size and mounting height calculator for the distance to the screen, and the rug size calculator for the rug under the group.
Plan the whole living room: the free 2D room planner opens with a furnished living room you can resize and rearrange, drawn to scale.
Open a living room in the plannerRead next
- 13 living room layout ideas that maximize space
- Small living room furniture layouts
- Long living room layouts that stop feeling awkward
- Sectional ideas for small living rooms
- Living room furniture arrangement ideas
Living room layout questions
How do you arrange living room furniture?
Put the sofa’s back against a solid wall, the coffee table 14–18″ in front of it, and the other seats within 8′ of each other, facing the sofa or at its ends. Keep the walking path round the group, 30–36″ wide, never through it. Which wall depends on the layout: a sofa facing chairs is deep, an L is wide; the planner above tries both.
How much space should be between furniture in a living room?
30″ (76 cm) for a main walking path, 36″ (91 cm) to be roomy, and 24″ (61 cm) at the least for a squeeze you rarely use. Between the sofa and the coffee table, 14–18″.
How much space between the couch and the coffee table?
14–18″ (36–46 cm), edge to edge: close enough to reach a cup, far enough for your knees. The planner puts it at 16″.
How far should the couch be from the TV?
It depends on the screen. For a 55″ TV, about 5.5–7.5 ft from the sofa to the screen; a bigger screen wants more. The TV size calculator gives the range for any size, and the height to mount it.
What is the best layout for a small living room?
An L, with a sofa and a loveseat or a sectional along two sides: it takes less depth than a sofa facing chairs. In a 12′ × 12′ room with 30″ paths, an L of a 72″ sofa and a loveseat fits, while an 84″ sofa facing two chairs needs about 13′ 5″ of depth.
How do you lay out a long, narrow living room?
Put the sofa on a short wall, facing two chairs, so the seating runs along the length. A 20′ × 11′ room takes it with 109″ left behind the chairs: room for a second zone such as a desk, a reading corner or a dining table.
Is there a free living room layout planner?
Yes: the calculator above checks the seating, and the free 2D room planner opens a furnished living room to scale that you can resize, rearrange and save, with no download.