Rug Size Guide
No room is complete without a rug: they bring colour, warmth, and that cosy underfoot feeling to your home. But, while shopping based on appearance is often easy, finding the perfect rug size to suit your room is often much less straightforward. A rug that’s too small will look lost in your space, while a rug that’s too large will make your room look crowded and overly busy. So, it’s crucial to find a size that will fit with the shape and dimensions of your room, and the positioning of your furniture.
To help you take the guesswork out of picking, we’ve put together this rug size guide to help you find the perfect match. We’ll talk you through a few of the things you need to consider when choosing a rug, so you can be sure it’s the ideal size for your space, including:
- Standard rug sizes in centimetres and inches
- Essential rug sizing tips
- Which rug size is right for my home?
- Rugs sizes for the living room
- Rug sizes for the dining room
- Rug sizes for the bedroom
Standard rug sizes in centimetres and inches
To help you pick the right rug for your home, we’ve shared the standard rug sizes in centimetres and inches, along with examples of how each size relates to some common items of furniture for scale. You should bear in mind that, as we stock a huge selection of rugs from lots of different brands, the exact dimensions can vary between designers. So, be sure to check the individual measurements of each rug carefully before you buy.
| Rug size | Good for… |
| 80 x 150cm or 2’7’’ x 4’11’’ | Slightly bigger than a standard coffee table, this is a great choice for compact spaces. |
| 120 x 170cm or 3’11” x 5’7’’ | Approximately the same length as a two-seater sofa, this works well in smaller living rooms, or as a coffee table rug in a mid-sized lounge. |
| 160 x 230cm or 5’3’’ x 7’7’’ | This mid-sized rug fits nicely underneath a rectangular six-person dining table. |
| 200 x 300cm or 6’7’’ x 9’10’’ | A good choice for larger living rooms, this size works well underneath a floating (not positioned against a wall) three-seater sofa. It’s also the ideal size for underneath a standard double bed. |
| 240 x 340cm or 7’10’’ x 11’2’’ | This size makes a brilliant area rug for spacious living rooms, or underneath a king or super king size bed. |
| 280 x 360cm or 9’2’’ x 11’10’’ | This long, wide rectangular shape works well with large corner sofas, or as an area rug in big living rooms with two or three floating sofas. |
Rug sizing tips for every room
With so many rug sizes to choose from, it can be hard to know where to start. Here, we’ve compiled our essential tips to help you pick a rug for any room in your home.
Position your rug in a way that mirrors your room
You should always position your rug in a way that works naturally with the shape of your room. For instance, in a rectangular room, you’ll want to choose a rectangle rug and place it so that the longest side is parallel to the longest wall. This brings a sense of order and an organic ‘flow’ to your space.
Follow the 18-inch rule
If you want a large area rug that will fill the majority of your floor space, then remember to follow the 18-inch rule: choose an area rug that leaves roughly an 18-inch gap between the edges of the rug and the walls of your room. This border of bare flooring will create a subtle visual contrast, which adds texture and interest to a room.
If your room is on the smaller side, and you think an 18-inch gap will make your space look too bare, then a narrower margin may be more appropriate: around 8–10 inches should look the part.
When in doubt, go for a larger rug
If you’re stuck between two similar sizes, then it’s almost always better to go for the larger size. While it might seem counterintuitive, a slightly-too large rug will make your home feel bigger, while a rug that’s too small will have the opposite effect. This is especially true of statement rugs, which won’t have as much impact if they’re too small.
Use tape to help you visualise the size
It can be tricky to visualise exactly how a rug will look before you buy, so if you want to get a better idea of how it will look, use masking tape to recreate the dimensions on the floor. This will give you a good indication of whether it will look right, and whether it not it will fit with your existing furniture. You can also use this method to check whether your chosen rug will get in the way of any doors or cupboards.
When buying a rug, it’s important to measure your space accurately, so take a look at our guide to measuring for a rug to learn how to get it spot on.
Which rug size is right for my room?
A rug does more than look and feel lovely: it can also unify furniture, create a focal point, or split an open-plan room into distinct ‘zones’, depending on which size you choose and how you position it. In this section, we’ll talk in more detail about picking the right size for each room in your home, including a few ideas for different layouts to help you position your rug.
Rugs sizes for the living room
When choosing a living room rug, you’ll need to think carefully about what purpose you want your rug to serve, as well as the size and shape of your room and the position of your furniture. For instance, do you want a rug in the centre of the room that makes a statement with a bold pattern or colour? Or do you want an area rug that will bring your furniture together?
Once you know the purpose, you’ll have a better idea of whether a large area rug or a smaller style is going to suit you. You can then begin to think about how you’ll arrange your furniture around (or on top of) your rug. There are a few different ways to do this, each of which can create a different effect:
All furniture legs on the rug: In this layout, all the legs of the furniture are positioned on top of the rug to create a clearly defined seating area. This style is best suited to open-plan spaces, or larger living rooms with floating furniture.
You’ll need a very large rug for this — ideally a 240 x 340cm style or bigger — as it needs to be wide and long enough to fit all of your furniture on, with at least 20cm between the back of the furniture and the edge of the rug. This larger style of rug is sometimes called an area rug.
Half on, half off: With this style, the front half of your sofa, chairs, or side tables rest on the rug, and the back legs rest on the floor. This option is ideal if your sofas and armchairs back onto a wall, and it’s a great way to create an illusion of space in enclosed living rooms.
With the half on, half off style, you’ll need to remember that the furniture may become a bit wobbly if it is positioned with one or two legs on a plush rug and the others on a hardwood floor. In this case, you may need to steady your furniture by adding some pads to the legs. If your furniture is resting on bare floorboards, then this will also help to protect the wood from damage.
Coffee table only: With this layout, the rug is positioned underneath the coffee table in the centre of the room, and only extends as far as your sofa. This sort of layout is great for very compact living areas, as it will help to make them feel a bit more spacious. Ideally, you should leave at least a couple of inches between your rug and your sofa — this will stop your room from looking overcrowded.
Rug sizes for the dining room
Placing a rug underneath your dining table and chairs can give your seating are a more unified, cohesive look, and the luxurious underfoot texture can help to create a more relaxed ambience for dining, too.
When choosing a dining room rug, it’s especially important to make sure that the shape of your rug mirrors the shape of your table, whether it’s square, round, or rectangular. Once you’ve got the right shape, you can measure up your dining table and work out how large your rug needs to be. Ideally, your rug should be at least 80cm (31 inches) larger than your table: this will allow your diners to sit and stand without the chair legs getting caught on the edge of the carpet. If you have an extendable dining table, then don’t forget to account for this extra seating space when measuring for a rug.
To learn more about choosing a dining room rug, take a look at our guide to choosing a dining room rug.
Rugs sizes for the bedroom
When choosing a bedroom rug, you should start by thinking about the size and positioning of your bed, and work from there. The most important decision you’ll need to make is whether the bed will rest on the rug, or whether your rug will float. There are two popular ways of doing this:
The under-bed layout: In this arrangement, the rug is positioned underneath the bed, with the edges extending on either side. This will make your bed the focal point of the room, and bring a feeling of balance and calm to your sleeping area. It also ensures that both you and your partner get to enjoy that cosy underfoot feeling every morning and evening.
If you’re looking to place a rug under a standard double bed, then go for a style that measures at least 200 x 300cm, as this will extend 81cm on either side of the bed. For a king or super king bed, you’ll want to go for a 280 x 360cm style.
The twin rug layout: In this layout, a matching pair of runners or narrow rugs are positioned on either side of your bed. This makes a great alternative to the under-bed layout, but you won’t need to sit the bed on top of the rug, and you’ll get more of a contrast with your flooring. Ideally, you want to look for rugs which are same length as the bed. Be warned that this look will only work if your bed is placed right in the centre of your room, as the floorspace on both sides of the bed needs to be completely equal.
If you need some more help, take a look at our guide to choosing a bedroom rug.
Once you’ve settled on a layout and measured up your room and furniture, you’re ready get shopping. After you’ve decided on a size and style, be sure to have a look at our guide to keeping your rug in great condition to learn how you keep your purchase looking as good as new. Or, if you have any questions about any of our rug sizes, don’t hesitate to get in touch.