What Size Rug For My Living Room Is The Best?

What Size Rug For My Living Room Should I Buy?

What size rug for my living room, bedroom, or dining room should I buy is the most frequently asked question from designers. When it comes to designing your home, picking a rug is a vital element of any design as it’s considered the central foundation for a room design. The problem is that most of the time, we don’t even know how we should pick a perfect rug based on furniture placement and room size out of all the endless options that are out there!

Ten years ago, I had no clue about that either. Before I got into interior design, I always thought the rug should be far from your furniture. What..? Today, you will learn the nitty-gritty of rug finding rules, and I will also walk you through how to pick the perfect rug for your space!

What Is The Purpose Of Adding An Area Rug?

• To define and balance out any room
• To add a stylish look and essential functionality
• To protect your floor in high traffic areas
• To use as a focal point to compliment your space
• To use as a room divider
• To give a makeover to your room on a budget
• To provide comfort to your feet while hanging out with your loved ones
• To provide a cohesive look for your mismatched furniture in the room to tie everything together
• To gain acoustical benefits by eliminating the extra echoes in a large or hardwood-floored room
• To make any room an aesthetically pleasing space!

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Know Your Room Dimensions Before Buying A Rug?

Exposing your floor edges under the area rug makes your room look larger! For instance, if your room is 10’ x 12’, buy an area rug that is 8’ x 10’. Ideally, leave 18 inches to 24 inches bare flooring around the area rugs. However, it can be more or less as it depends on the room size.

Standard Rug Sizes Based On Different Room’s Size

Now, since you know the rug vs room sizes it should be a little less daunting to purchase a rug for your living room. Make sure you leave at least 6 to 8 inches of space on either side of your sofa while placing it on your rug.

An area rug helps to place your living room furniture in a friendly conversational style!

What Size Rug For Living Room With Sectional Should I Use?

Placing a perfect size rug beneath your sectional sofa depends upon the size of your sectional couch. You should leave at least 10 to 12-inches room on either side of the sectional. Sometimes 8 x 10 feet rugs feel very small for the sectional sofa unless you live in a small apartment and using a small sectional, I would prefer at least a 9 x 12 feet area rug.

Use The Tarp Method To Get An Exact Idea Of The Size Of The Rug

I would buy a tarp, like the one you would buy to cover your floor while painting. In my personal experience and opinion, that is the best method. I have done that with our sectional. I purchased two tarps and placed them together to know the desired area I was going to cover. Tarp works better than the painter’s tape, as with them you can see the exact size of how the rug would look under the sectional.

Either you place the sectional sofa’s front legs over the rug or half the sectional over it. It’s your personal choice as long as it doesn’t look awkward, and everything flows together as the rug lays the foundation of your style in the room.

What Size Rug For Queen Bed Is The Must-Have?

Many people use a queen-sized bed as it is perfect for a medium-size room, it’s essential to know what size rug for a queen bed is the must-have. Considering a standard queen bed size 60 inches wide by 80 inches long or 5 feet wide by 6 feet and 8 inches long, you should have an area rug at least 2 to 4 feet wider than the total width of your bed to go perfectly underneath your queen bed.

On the other hand, consider your total room size vs your area rug size as well. You can see the chart above to get an idea of the room sizes. 

What Size Rug Do I Need For My Dining Room?

Area rugs are the most inexpensive way to boost your design for a total steal and save a lot on your budget! Without replacing your furniture, consider buying a new rug to give your room a brand new look. However, a too-small rug can become an eyesore for the room.

The size of the area rug matters. Just like the material and make is critical to consider as you can’t avoid spills with kids. You also can’t eliminate the fact of pulling your dining chairs back every time you have to sit on them. Therefore, the most appropriate rugs are flat-woven or low pile rugs. You can read more about them at the bottom of this post.

Neither too small, nor too large. Choose an appropriate size rug for your dining room, never buy a rug with just guesswork. Use these design rules while shopping for your dining room rug.

• Your dining room rug should be at least 4 feet longer and wider than your overall table measurements.
• You need at least 2 feet on each side so you can pull your chairs back easily.
• Keep the rug only underneath your dining table and don’t bring your buffet table or any other furniture onto the area rug at all. It will make it look chaotic.

Solid Color VS Patterned Rugs

There are all sorts of rugs out there to go with any style, be it traditional, contemporary, minimalist, mid-century modern or eclectic. Regardless of what style or design you are using to decorate your home, as long as you know the basic principles of interior design, you can confidently enhance the look of any space. Let’s talk about the colors and the prints of the area rugs. 

You should pick a solid color rug if you have miss-matched furniture and more than two styles mixed in your design. For example, choose a low tone rug in a solid color or beautifully patterned rugs in neutral colors to go with for a more vibrant, eclectic style. Pick colorful Printed rugs to go with solid colored furniture.

A rug should connect your space as opposed to disconnecting it.

Three Main Constructions Types In Rugs

Flat Woven Rugs

Flat-woven rugs don’t have a pile as they are woven on a loom. These rugs are made by hand or machine by weaving vertical yarns through the horizontal strings. The vertical weaving is called the warp and the flat weaving called wets. The rugs are often reversible as they don’t have any knots shown at all. 

Loop Pile Rugs

Go with loop pile rugs for heavy traffic areas. They are the most durable rugs because the fibres have left in their looped form, creating a reliable, sturdy, low, and tightly woven carpet.

Cut Pile Rugs

These rugs are more like carpet. This style of rug is sheared, exposing the ends of the carpet fiber. This look is created when the fiber loops are cut. These cut pile rugs come in many different lengths and thicknesses. These are more durable and feel softer to touch and feel comfortable underfoot. Great for living rooms and bedrooms. 

Pro Tips: Unless you are shopping for an outdoor space, it’s usually best to avoid polypropylene rugs. Although they are weather and stain resistant, their appearance is cheaper looking. Instead, opt for natural fiber or natural fiber-blend materials.

Last But Not Least Rug Pads

What I have learned over the years is that pads are just as important, if not more than the area rugs. They spare you from slipping and tripping. They provide grip for safety and will increase the lifespan of your rug, as well! Don’t be afraid to invest in good quality, dual-sided, luxe hold rug pads as you can use them forever!

The Best Rug Sizes Chart For Your Entire Home

Here is the best rug size chart to save it for your décor reference for your entire home

put the image of the bed, living room and dining room on an image.

There you have it, my friends. You’re now on your way to becoming a rug-buying expert!

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Some of the best, and trendy area rugs for 2021!

Click on the image below to purchase them, before they run out of stock!