Rug size guide: living room and bedroom
By Nassim Hasni, publisher of DecoScale · published
For a three-seater sofa over 2 m and up to 2.2 m, a 160 × 230 cm rug at the very least; under a 160 × 200 bed, a 200 × 290 cm rug laid across it. The right size is worked out from the sofa or the bed, not from the room. Here are the rules in centimetres, and tables that apply them to standard sizes.
What size rug for a living room?
A living-room rug is chosen from the sofa, not from the room. Three conditions apply: it is at least as wide as the sofa, arms included; it goes under its front legs, by at least 15 cm of its depth; and it holds the whole coffee table. For a three-seater sofa over 2 m and up to 2.2 m, a 160 × 230 cm rug (roughly 5 × 7½ ft) is the minimum. For a longer sofa, or for a rug that clearly extends beyond each side, you need a 200 × 290 cm rug (roughly 6½ × 9½ ft).
The table applies these conditions to three typical sofas. The rug's minimum width is the sofa's. Its minimum depth adds up the strip under the front legs, the gap between sofa and coffee table (40 cm at the closest) and the depth of the table.
| Sofa (width × depth) | Sofa on the rug | Coffee table (depth) | Minimum rug (width × depth) | Smallest standard size | For 15 cm each side |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2-seater sofa — 160 × 85 cm | 15 to 51 cm of its depth | 50 cm | 160 × 105 cm | 120 × 170 cm (5 cm each side) | 140 × 200 cm (20 cm each side) |
| 3-seater sofa — 210 × 90 cm | 15 to 54 cm of its depth | 60 cm | 210 × 115 cm | 160 × 230 cm (10 cm each side) | 200 × 290 cm (40 cm each side) |
| Large sofa — 250 × 95 cm | 15 to 57 cm of its depth | 70 cm | 250 × 125 cm | 200 × 290 cm (20 cm each side) | 200 × 290 cm (20 cm each side) |
Example sofas and coffee tables. Standard sizes are picked from 120 × 170, 140 × 200, 160 × 230, 200 × 290 and 240 × 340 cm, long side along the sofa.
The fifth column is a minimum. Some retailers' guides recommend letting the rug extend 15 to 25 cm (6 to 10 in) beyond the sofa on each side. So the last column gives the smallest standard size that leaves at least 15 cm on each side, which is often one size up. In a small living room, where the rug must also leave the walkways clear, see small living room layout.
How much of the sofa should sit on the rug?
There are three positions:
- Front legs on the rug, back legs off. This is the reference position. DecoScale surveyed 26 inspiration images of Scandinavian living rooms (Pinterest screenshots analysed in August 2026, at least five of them 3D renders or retouched images). In the great majority, the sofa has its front legs on the rug or right at its edge, with the back off.
- The whole sofa on the rug. Only one image in that survey shows it, and it is a 3D render with a very large rug. DecoScale does not use this position: no more than 60% of the sofa on the rug.
- No legs on the rug. Best avoided: the rug floats in front of the sofa like an island and ties nothing together.
In the first position, the sofa rests on the rug by at least 15 cm of its depth and by no more than 60% of its footprint. The second column of the table turns that into centimetres. All the front legs rest on the rug. An off-centre rug that holds only half the sofa looks askew. And the coffee table, which has to stay on the rug, is no longer centred in front of the seat.
Should the coffee table be entirely on the rug?
Yes. In the same survey, 24 images have a rug, and in all 24 the coffee table sits entirely on it. A table straddling the edge looks unsteady, and on a thick rug sometimes is. Centre it in front of the sofa, 40 to 60 cm away: the table is what sets the rug's minimum depth.
What size rug for a corner sofa?
The same principle, on two sides. The rug sits in the hollow of the L and goes under the front of both sections, with the back left off. For the rug's minimum length, measure the long section from the inner edge of the short one to its end. Then add 15 cm to reach under the short section's front legs. Take the rug's width as the larger of two measurements. The first is the depth needed to hold the coffee table in front of the long section (see the table). The second is how far the short section projects beyond the front of the long one, plus 15 cm, so that all its front legs rest on the rug.
What size rug under a double, king or super king bed?
In a bedroom, the rug frames the bed. It goes under the foot of the bed, over at least 60 cm of its length and across its full width, then extends beyond the sides and the foot. It is often laid across the bed, its long side at right angles to it. Retailers' guides recommend sliding it under the lower two thirds of the bed, with about 50 cm of rug showing. The figures below assume a frame about 10 cm wider than the mattress. Under a 140 × 200 bed, 160 × 230 cm is the minimum (about 40 cm each side), and 200 × 290 cm gives the recommended border. Under a 160 × 200 bed, use 200 × 290 cm (about 60 cm). Under a 180 × 200 bed, use 200 × 290 cm (about 50 cm), or 240 × 340 cm for more. A UK double (135 cm) is close to the 140 row. A king (150 cm) sits between the 140 and 160 rows: with 200 × 290 cm, 60 to 70 cm each side. A super king (180 cm) is the 180 row.
Measure the frame, not the mattress. A bed frame is wider than its mattress, by a few centimetres up to fifteen or so, and more for an upholstered bed or an overhanging headboard. It is the frame's width that the rug must exceed.
| Bed (mattress size) | Rug laid across | Border each side of the frame | Length of bed on the rug | Against the recommended border (≈ 50 cm) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 90 × 190 cm | 120 × 170 cm | 35 cm | 60 to 120 cm | minimum |
| 140 × 200 cm | 160 × 230 cm | 40 cm | 60 to 145 cm | minimum |
| 140 × 200 cm | 200 × 290 cm | 70 cm | 60 to 200 cm | recommended border |
| 160 × 200 cm | 160 × 230 cm | 30 cm | 60 to 125 cm | minimum |
| 160 × 200 cm | 200 × 290 cm | 60 cm | 60 to 200 cm | recommended border |
| 180 × 200 cm | 200 × 290 cm | 50 cm | 60 to 180 cm | recommended border |
| 180 × 200 cm | 240 × 340 cm | 75 cm | 60 cm to the whole bed | recommended border |
Frame taken as 10 cm wider and longer than the mattress, for the example: measure yours.
Should the rug go under the whole bed?
Only if it is big enough. A rug whose area is more than 60% covered by the bed disappears underneath. It frames nothing, and you pay for an area nobody sees. Hence a simple calculation: the length of bed that can rest on the rug is at most 60% of the rug's area, divided by the bed's width. That is the fourth column of the table: a large rug can take the whole bed, while a rug that is only just wide enough takes part of it.
Bedside rugs, one on each side, are the other common solution, especially in a narrow bedroom. They cover the two sides you get out of bed on, not the foot. For a small bedroom, see small bedroom layout.
Which rug sizes are there, and what are they for?
- 60 × 90 and 80 × 150 cm: bedside rugs, hallways, in front of an armchair.
- 120 × 170 cm (about 4 × 5½ ft): two-seater sofa of about 1.6 m, or under a single bed.
- 140 × 200 cm: two-seater sofa with a border, or a sofa of up to 2 m at a push.
- 160 × 230 cm (about 5 × 7½ ft): three-seater sofa up to 2.2 m; 140 or 160 bed, at the minimum.
- 200 × 290 or 200 × 300 cm (about 6½ × 9½ ft): three-seater sofa with a border, large sofa; 140, 160 or 180 bed with the recommended border.
- 240 × 340 cm (about 8 × 11 ft): 180 bed with a generous border, or a very large sofa.
Which mistakes should you avoid?
- A rug that touches no seat: it defines nothing, it is just a patch on the floor.
- A rug narrower than the sofa or the bed: the legs on one side stay off it and the whole arrangement looks askew.
- A rug pushed against the TV unit: leave 60 cm of bare floor between the rug and the unit, along the screen wall. It is a walkway.
- A door that catches: near a door that opens over the rug, check the gap under the door before choosing the pile height.
- Measuring the mattress instead of the frame, or the sofa without its arms.
How does DecoScale place the rug?
DecoScale refurnishes a living room or a bedroom from photos of the room, with real retail products, rugs included, at the dimensions the merchant publishes. When it places a rug, its engine applies these rules:
- the sofa's front legs on the rug, by at least 15 cm of its depth;
- no more than 60% of the sofa on the rug;
- the coffee table at least 98% on the rug;
- the bed resting on the rug over at least 60 cm from its foot, without covering more than 60% of the rug;
- 60 cm of bare floor in front of the TV unit or a wall-mounted screen.
These are penalties, not bans: in a small room, the engine looks for the layout that breaks the fewest. The other advice on this page is not checked by the engine: the border around the sofa and the bed, the corner sofa, the standard sizes. The living-room rules rest on the image survey quoted above. The two bedroom limits are set by DecoScale from the practice of furniture guides, without any survey of bedrooms.
The other measurements are on the layout dimensions page, and the gap between sofa and screen on TV viewing distance.
Frequently asked questions
What size rug for a 3-seater sofa?
A rug at least as wide as the sofa, arms included, and deep enough to go under its front legs and hold the whole coffee table. For a three-seater over 2 m and up to 2.2 m, 160 × 230 cm (roughly 5 × 7½ ft) is the minimum. Some retailers' guides recommend 15 to 25 cm of rug beyond each side of the sofa. That often means 200 × 290 cm, which extends 40 cm beyond each side of a 2.1 m sofa.
What size rug under a double bed?
At least 160 × 230 cm, laid across the bed. With a frame about 10 cm wider than the mattress, it extends about 40 cm beyond each side of a 140 × 200 bed, and a little more under a UK double (135 cm). For the roughly 50 cm that retailers' guides recommend, choose 200 × 290 cm (about 70 cm). Either way, the rug goes under the foot of the bed over at least 60 cm and across its full width.
What size rug under a king or super king bed?
A 200 × 290 cm rug laid across the bed. With a frame about 10 cm wider than the mattress, it extends 60 to 70 cm beyond each side of a UK king (150 cm) and about 60 cm beyond a 160 × 200. Under a super king (180 cm) it extends about 50 cm. Under a super king, 240 × 340 cm gives about 75 cm.
Should the sofa sit on the rug?
Its front legs, yes: at least 15 cm of its depth, across its full width, with the back legs off the rug. The whole sofa on the rug is mostly seen in architects' renders, and DecoScale puts no more than 60% of it on the rug. With no legs on it, the rug floats in front of the sofa.
Should a rug go lengthways or across under a bed?
Across, unless the rug is very large. The long side then extends beyond both sides of the bed, where you put your feet down when you get up, and the short side is enough to reach under the foot of the bed. Lengthways, the short side has to exceed the width of the frame, so the same border takes a much bigger rug. In a narrow bedroom, two bedside rugs are often simpler.
Round or rectangular rug in a living room?
Rectangular under a straight or corner sofa. A round rug only reaches under both ends of a sofa if its diameter exceeds the sofa's width: a 160 cm round rug holds the middle of a 2 m sofa, not its corner legs. A round rug suits a round coffee table, a reading corner or the centre of a circle of armchairs.