Furniture Clearances: How Much Space to Leave Around Furniture
A room rarely feels cramped because the furniture is too big. It feels cramped because the space between the furniture is too small. These are the clearances interior designers work to. Use them as a checklist once your furniture is in the plan.
The quick-reference table
| Space | Minimum | Comfortable |
|---|---|---|
| Main walkway through a room | 900 mm (36 in) | 1,000–1,200 mm (40–48 in) |
| Secondary path (e.g. past the end of a bed) | 600 mm (24 in) | 750 mm (30 in) |
| Sofa to coffee table | 350 mm (14 in) | 400–450 mm (16–18 in) |
| Between facing seats in a conversation group | — | 1,200–2,400 mm (4–8 ft) apart |
| Beside a bed | 600 mm (24 in) | 750–900 mm (30–36 in) |
| Dining table edge to wall (chairs in use) | 900 mm (36 in) | 1,050–1,200 mm (42–48 in) |
| Kitchen aisle, one cook | 1,000 mm (40 in) | 1,050–1,100 mm (42 in) |
| Kitchen aisle, two cooks | 1,200 mm (48 in) | 1,200–1,350 mm (48–54 in) |
| In front of a desk (chair pulled out) | 750 mm (30 in) | 900 mm (36 in) |
| In front of a wardrobe or chest of drawers | 750 mm (30 in) | 900 mm (36 in) |
These are general design guidelines, not building regulations. Accessible design and some local codes require more space. For wheelchair turning, plan a clear 1,500 mm (60 in) circle.
Walkways: plan the paths first
Before placing a single chair, trace how people will move through the room: from the door to the sofa, from the kitchen to the dining table, from the bed to the wardrobe. These paths should be straight-ish and at least 900 mm wide. Furniture goes around them.
A common mistake is a path that runs through the middle of a seating group, between the sofa and the TV. Every trip across the room then interrupts whoever is watching. If you can, route the main path behind the sofa or along one side of the room.
Living rooms
- Coffee table: close enough to reach a mug without standing, around 400–450 mm from the sofa front. Aim for a table about two-thirds the length of the sofa.
- Side tables: roughly the same height as the sofa arm, within ±50 mm.
- TV distance: for a 4K screen, sit roughly 1–1.5 times the screen diagonal away; for 1080p, 1.5–2.5 times. A 65-inch (165 cm) 4K TV works well from about 1.7–2.5 m.
- Conversation distance: seats facing each other more than about 2.4 m apart start to feel like separate zones.
Bedrooms
Leave at least 600 mm on each side of a bed you get into from both sides, and ideally 750 mm or more. At the foot of the bed, 900 mm lets you walk past comfortably and open a chest at the end. If the bed is against a wall, only the open side needs the full clearance, but making a bed pushed into a corner is a daily chore.
Check drawers and wardrobe doors in their open position. A 600 mm-deep wardrobe with hinged doors needs around 600 mm of swing space plus room to stand.
Dining areas
A dining chair needs about 600 mm (24 in) of table edge per person, and about 750–900 mm behind the table edge to pull out and sit down. If people need to walk behind seated diners, allow 1,050–1,200 mm from table edge to wall. Our dining table size guide has the full maths.
Kitchens
Aisles between benchtops (or between a bench and an island) need 1,000–1,200 mm. Wider than about 1,350 mm and the cook is taking extra steps all day. Check that the dishwasher, oven and fridge doors can all open at the same time without clashing, and that someone can stand in front of an open dishwasher. More in our kitchen layout guide.
Checking clearances in the planner
Every item in Home Room Planner is placed at real-world size, so you can check these clearances directly:
- Switch to Floor Plan view for an overhead view. It's much easier to judge gaps from above.
- Select an item and nudge it with the arrow keys: 0.1 m per press, or 0.5 m with Shift. Counting presses gives you the gap.
- Use the size steppers on a selected item to try a smaller sofa or table before you buy.
Try this in 3D: Open the Modern Living (3D) sample