Room Layout Planner
Check whether furniture fits in a room from dimensions in feet or meters.
Returns usable area, furniture zones, and minimum walkway widths.
Room layout planning combines floor space calculation with furniture footprint sizing and traffic flow requirements. Getting these proportions right is the difference between a room that feels spacious and functional versus one that feels cramped and awkward — even when the square footage is identical.
Core formulas:
Total Floor Area = Room Length × Room Width
Furniture Footprint = Piece Length × Piece Depth
Usable Area = Total Floor Area − Furniture Footprints − Traffic Paths
Furniture Coverage Ratio = Total Furniture Area / Total Floor Area × 100
Variable definitions:
- Floor Area — total square footage or square meters of the room
- Furniture Footprint — floor space a piece of furniture occupies (not its height)
- Traffic Path — clear walking corridor between furniture pieces
- Coverage Ratio — percentage of the floor covered by furniture; ideal is 40–60%
Standard furniture dimensions:
| Piece | Imperial | Metric |
|---|---|---|
| 3-seat sofa | 7 × 3 ft | 2.1 × 0.9 m |
| Armchair | 3 × 3 ft | 0.9 × 0.9 m |
| Coffee table | 4 × 2 ft | 1.2 × 0.6 m |
| Queen bed | 5 × 6.7 ft | 1.52 × 2.03 m |
| King bed | 6.3 × 6.7 ft | 1.93 × 2.03 m |
| Dining table (6) | 6 × 3.5 ft | 1.8 × 1.1 m |
| Desk | 5 × 2.5 ft | 1.5 × 0.75 m |
Worked example: A 12 × 15 ft living room (180 sq ft). Furniture: sofa (21 sq ft), armchair (9 sq ft), coffee table (8 sq ft), TV stand (8 sq ft). Total furniture: 46 sq ft Coverage ratio = 46 / 180 × 100 = 25.6% — plenty of open space.
Traffic flow minimums:
- Main walkway (entry to exit): 36 inches (91 cm) — required by most building codes for accessibility
- Between sofa and coffee table: 18 inches (46 cm) — knees-to-table clearance
- Bedroom walkway around bed: 24 inches (61 cm) minimum on each side
- Dining chair pull-out: 36 inches (91 cm) behind each chair
Interior design rule: No single wall of furniture should exceed 2/3 the wall’s length. It creates visual balance and prevents the room from feeling like a furniture showroom.