Calculator + chartEnter your measurements below and it works the answer out.
Measure four things: the room's length and width, the narrowest doorway on the way in, and the piece itself. Enter them and the calculator checks that the piece fits with a walkway, and that it gets through the door.
| Space | Minimum | Comfortable | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Main walkway | 30 in | 36 in | The path from the door through the room |
| Between sofa and coffee table | 14 in | 18 in | Close enough to reach, far enough to walk |
| Around a bed | 24 in | 30 in | On each side you get out of |
| Behind a dining chair | 36 in | 42 in | To pull the chair out and walk behind it |
| Doorway swing | Door width | Door width + 2 in | Nothing inside the arc of the door |
A piece that fits the wall but leaves less than 30 inches of walkway will feel too big every day.
Fit on the wall. The piece's length is compared to the wall you chose; the calculator also checks that the other dimension leaves a walkway of at least 30 inches across the room (36 inches is comfortable).
Through the door. A piece gets through a doorway if its smallest dimension (usually depth or height, whichever is smaller) is at least 1 inch less than the door width. Sofas are often tilted on end, so the calculator checks depth and height, not length.
Floor share. The footprint of the piece as a percentage of the floor. Under 25% reads as spacious, 25–40% as furnished, over 40% as crowded — for one piece.
Measure the length and width wall to wall at floor level, then the width of every doorway the piece must pass through, and note where windows, radiators and outlets are. Then measure the piece: length, depth and height.
30 inches for a walkway you use every day, 36 inches for the main path from the door. Between a sofa and a coffee table 14–18 inches; around a bed 24–30 inches.
If the sofa's depth or height is at least an inch less than the door width, yes — it goes through on its end or side. If both are bigger than the door, it needs a wider door or legs removed.
A sofa reads right at about two-thirds of the wall it sits on. On a 12 ft wall that is around 96 inches; a 14 ft wall takes a 108–112 inch sofa or a sectional.