If you’re looking to add comfort or a statement piece to a room, an area rug may be just what you’re looking for. We’ve put together the ultimate area rug size guide to ensure you get the perfect area rug for your home.
What Are the Advantages of Using an Area Rug?
While area rugs can add character and warmth to your space, area rugs have functional uses as well.
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Area Rugs Make Your Space Quieter
There are certain areas of your home you may want to keep on the quieter side. An area rug is one way to achieve this as they have a sound-dampening effect. So, if you have kids, pets, or just a loud family, an area rug can help you create a quiet place in your home. And if you have downstairs neighbors, they’ll appreciate it too!
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They Protect Your Floors
Hardwood floors are beautiful, but they can easily become scratched or gouged. Area rugs can help protect your floors in high traffic areas of your home. An added bonus? They’re easy to move or replace if you decide to switch up the style of your space.
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They Warm Up a Room
Living in a cooler part of the country can leave you dreading your heating bill. Area rugs are one way to add heat to a room. Rugs help trap warmth, which means a warmer home to relax in.
Is it Better for an Area Rug to Be Too Big or Too Small?
Design and style are important factors when trying to decide on an area rug, but making sure that area rug will fit your home is crucial. You may be thinking it’s better to go smaller with an area rug, but it’s almost always better to go bigger. An area rug that is too small can throw off the whole vibe of your room, making the room feel and look smaller than it actually is.
How Can You Tell if a Rug is Too Big or Too Small for a Room?
Knowing if a rug is too big or too small for a room will depend on which room you’re placing the rug in and how you want it to fit in the room. For an area rug in your living room, most people often want the rug six to eight inches wider than their sofa on both sides. And the rug will generally be the length of the sofa.
If you want all of your furniture to fit on the rug, then you’ll want to leave approximately eight inches of space between your furniture and the end of the rug. If this is the set up you’re thinking of, then you’ll want to aim for ten to twenty-four inches of space between the rug and the walls.
What size rug is right for my space?
Common area rug sizes measure 8’x10’ or 9’x12’. However, you’ll find 5’x8’ and 6’x9’ are area rug sizes often found in smaller rooms. While it’s helpful to know common area rug sizes, this is when you should break out a measuring tape. We even suggest measuring out where you’d like the rug to go with painter’s tape to really see how it’ll fit into your space. Rugs are an investment, so you want to be sure it’ll fit your space before getting out your wallet.
If you really want to find an area rug that perfectly fits your space instead of settling for standard sizes, you may want to consider finding a company who can create custom area rugs for you, such as Floor Concepts. We can cut any roll of carpet in our inventory to your desired size, leaving the option of both style and exact size completely up to you.
If you’re looking for an area rug for only one room in your home, we suggest bringing in measurements for the longest and widest part of your room. These dimensions allow us to help you choose the right size area rug for your home. And if you’re looking for rugs or even full room carpeting for multiple rooms, Floor Concepts offers free, in-home measurements.
Should an area rug be centered in a room or on furniture?
Your area rug’s placement is really up to your personal preference, and this can change as your tastes change. However, there are five popular ways to style an area rug.
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Front Loaded
This is a pretty common area rug placement. In this style, the front legs of your sofa and chairs rest on the rug. Just make sure your furniture is level so no one wobbles when they sit down.
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All Aboard
You might have guessed it by the title, but this area rug placement requires all of your conversational furniture to fit on the area rug. If this is the case, we suggest buying a rug that fits eight inches beyond your furniture.
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Too Small But I Love It
Maybe you purchased a rug before knowing about our ultimate area rug size guide and you love it, but it’s just not working with your space. Fear not. We have a solution. Layer it!
Yep, you read that right. Layering complimentary rugs can add a dash of character to your room. A great way to make this work is using a solid rug under a smaller, patterned rug and vice versa. Another popular option is to use a natural jute-like rug as the bottom layer.
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A Floater
You may think your seating has to be touching your rug, but that’s not the case. As long as the gap from your couch to the rug is no larger than five inches, this can really enhance a coffee table as the centerpiece of your room.
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A Touch of Character
The design of your rug will play an important part in the placement of your area rug. Maybe your rug isn’t symmetrical, so the styles above just don’t seem quite right. That’s okay! The best way to style this type of rug is to have the legs of the majority of your seating on the rug. So mix and match some of the above area rug placement options to get the perfect fit!
One final note: consider your end tables. If you have end tables next to your couch and chairs or other living room furniture, you may want to consider sizing up in area rug size with your end tables in mind if you want them to fit on your rug, or you can size down if you want your end tables to be off your area rug.
I Know the Size Area Rug I Need. Now What?
Now it’s time to pick out your area rug! To do this, narrow down your options by deciding on the type of carpet you’d like your area rug made out of. Carpet styles include berber, plush, and textured.
Berber carpet is made up of loops, making it the most durable. It’s often used in public places like airports and doctor offices. Plush carpet is, you guessed it, designed for comfort. While it’s not as durable as berber, it holds up well in high traffic areas and is the most popular type of carpet.
Can’t decide between the two? Then maybe textured is what you’re looking for. Textured carpet is a combination of berber and plush carpet. It’s more comfortable than berber but more durable than plush.
Don’t settle for something standard if it isn’t exactly what you’re looking for. As we mentioned above, Floor Concepts offers custom area rugs. We are able to cut any of our carpet that’s in stock, or you can special order a carpet you like, to create the perfect custom area rug to fit both your style and space. And because we bind and serge your area rugs in-store before sending them home with you, you can get a beautiful, custom area rug for a fraction of the price of other specialty retailers!
Floor Concepts provides local flooring solutions to greater Pittsburgh, PA and the North Hills, free in-home measurements and estimates, and worry-free installations. Visit our Wexford, PA showroom or contact our team today to start the process of picking out an area rug that’s perfect for your home.
