You’re walking into your new home without any furniture when your dream couch arrives. Now, it’s time to figure out furniture placement. Where does it go?
Chances are you’re already imagining a couch pressed up against a wall. While that may seem like the best idea to create more space, it can actually cause more harm than good.
“People often believe they’re adding space to a room, but instead, they may make it feel smaller and disjointed,” says Gabriela Eisenhart, founder and principal designer of Silo Studios. “Flow space is incredibly important when laying out a room. You want to make sure there is enough open area around furniture for energy to move freely.”
If this goes against everything you once thought about space planning, you’re not alone. We spoke to several interior designers, and most agreed that pushing furniture up against the wall is just a natural instinct. But that doesn’t mean it can’t be broken. Below, design pros share the reasons why you shouldn’t always push your furniture against the wall, along with tips on how to change your layout for the better.
It can limit conversation.
If you place your couch and other seating against the walls, you might unintentionally create a more distant atmosphere where conversation doesn’t flow as well.
“Creating space between the furniture and the walls promotes better flow and a more functional floor plan, says Steph Schlegelmilch, founder and creative director of Studio Seva. “As long as there’s adequate walking room, it allows the space to breathe and feel more open while also creating an intimate and conversational setting.”
Moving around the house might be more difficult.
Floating furniture in the center of a space doesn’t only apply to living rooms. Think about the dining room, for example. Although dining nooks or booths in the corner of a room can work well for smaller spaces, it often makes most sense to enhance the flow of a space by allowing for more room around the table.
“Your dining room is used every day, and it’s so important that people can move comfortably around the table,” says Victoria Armour of Stil James.
When you think about any space, keeping furniture pressed up against the wall, although it can create more space in the center, limits pathways around the house. There’s only one way to get to the other side of the room, and that’s through the middle of everything.
It can throw the space off balance.
Sometimes, especially in small spaces, you simply might not have enough room to float furniture away from the walls. In that case, it’s all about balance. If your couch or television console is pushed against the wall, try floating smaller pieces throughout the room.
“In a smaller living space, it’s perfectly fine to place a couch against the wall. Sometimes you don’t have an option. Just try to balance it with other elements and float the accent chairs in the space so everything isn’t hugged up against the wall,” says Eisenhart.
However, if you have a larger space to work with, designers recommend maintaining that distance, even if it’s just a few inches, to keep the room balanced.
You could have an awkward space between furniture.
Although it might not sound possible, there is such a thing as too much space, especially in a large living room.
“With all of the biggest furniture volumes pushed up against the wall, the room ends up feeling like it has a void in the center. Also, so often the sofa ends up awkwardly far from the coffee table, from armchairs, etc.,” says Amelia Strat and Anna Kroesser of Kroesser + Strat Design.
If you can’t reach the coffee table from where you’re sitting, your first instinct might be to move the table closer to your couch. Instead, try pushing your couch inwards. The result will be a centered, balanced room without any awkward space.
Your furniture might sink into the background.
As a homeowner, the last thing you want to happen after spending money on furniture is for all of it to sink into the background. We intentionally purchase pieces we love so that we can admire and use them every day. Why not do all we can to make each one stand out?
“Resisting the urge to push furniture against the walls can transform a room from being stiff and boxy to warm and dimensional, ” says Sarah West of Sarah West Interiors. “And as a bonus, by floating key pieces, like a sofa or an armchair, it lets each piece of furniture shine on its own, turning the space into an engaging, layered experience rather than a single, static view.”
Laura Millar (she/her) is the assistant editor for Good Housekeeping, where she covers home design. Prior to joining Good Housekeeping in 2024, she wrote for NBC’s TODAY.com where she covered everything from entertainment news to product reviews to pop culture updates.
