Of all the decisions an interior designer makes, rug sizing is among the most consequential — and among the most frequently miscalculated. A rug that is too small makes a room feel disjointed, its furniture floating on an island that does not quite connect. A rug that is too large can overwhelm a space or create awkward intersections with walls and other floor surfaces.
Getting the size right is both art and discipline. Here is how to approach it with confidence, room by room.
The Cardinal Rule: Bigger Is Almost Always Better
If there is one universal principle in rug sizing, it is this: when in doubt, go larger. The most common mistake — by homeowners and designers alike — is choosing a rug that is too small for the space. An undersized rug makes everything around it feel cramped and unresolved, no matter how beautiful the rug itself may be.
A well-sized rug should feel like the room's floor plan was designed around it. It should create a visual boundary that organizes the furniture and defines the purpose of the space. This almost always means going larger than your first instinct suggests.
Living Room: The Anchor of the Home
The living room is where rug sizing matters most, because it is typically the largest room with the most furniture to coordinate. There are three accepted approaches:
All legs on. This is the most generous and often the most successful approach. The rug is large enough that all primary seating pieces — sofa, armchairs, coffee table — sit entirely on it. This creates a cohesive, enveloping feeling. For a standard living room with a full-sized sofa and two armchairs, you will typically need a 9-by-12-foot or 8-by-10-foot rug.
Front legs on. A practical compromise. The front legs of the sofa and chairs rest on the rug, while the back legs remain on the bare floor. This visually connects the furniture to the rug without requiring the largest possible size. A 6-by-9-foot or 8-by-10-foot rug works well for most configurations.
All legs off. The rug floats in the center of the seating arrangement, with all furniture surrounding it. This works best in small spaces or when you want the rug to be a featured object rather than a foundation. The rug should be large enough to extend at least six inches beyond the coffee table on all sides. A 5-by-7-foot rug is the minimum for this approach.
Regardless of the approach, maintain 12 to 18 inches of exposed floor between the rug's edges and the walls. This border frames the rug and prevents it from looking like wall-to-wall carpeting.
Dining Room: Function Meets Formality
Dining room rug sizing is driven by a single functional requirement: chairs must remain on the rug when pulled out from the table. Nothing undermines a beautiful dining room more than chair legs catching on the rug's edge during dinner.
The formula is straightforward. Measure your dining table, then add at least 24 inches (ideally 30 inches) to each side. This accounts for the depth of a pulled-out chair plus a small margin.
Rectangular tables: A 6-foot table needs at least an 8-by-10-foot rug. An 8-foot table needs at least a 9-by-12-foot rug. For tables that seat ten or more, custom sizing is almost always necessary.
Round tables: A 48-inch round table pairs well with an 8-by-8-foot or 9-by-9-foot rug. A 60-inch table needs at least a 9-by-9-foot rug.
For open-plan dining areas that flow into the living room, ensure the dining rug is proportionate to the living room rug. Two rugs of wildly different scales in adjacent spaces create visual tension.
Bedroom: Morning Comfort, Evening Warmth
In the bedroom, the rug's primary job is to greet bare feet. The sizing approach depends on how you want the rug to relate to the bed.
Under the bed. The rug extends beneath the lower two-thirds of the bed and projects at least 18 to 24 inches on each side and at the foot. For a queen bed, this typically means an 8-by-10-foot rug. For a king bed, a 9-by-12-foot rug is ideal. This creates a generous border of softness around the bed and visually anchors the sleeping area.
Flanking the bed. Two matching runners placed on either side of the bed, typically 2.5 to 3 feet wide and 6 to 8 feet long. This is a more tailored approach that works well in bedrooms with beautiful flooring you want to showcase.
At the foot. A single rug placed at the foot of the bed, extending the full width and projecting about three feet toward the door. This works in smaller bedrooms or as an accent to complement a larger rug under the bed.
Home Office and Study
In a home office, the rug should extend at least 12 inches beyond the desk chair's range of motion in all directions. If the chair has casters, choose a low-pile or flat-weave rug — like Kapetto's Yuka wool dhurrie — that allows smooth rolling. For a standard desk setup, a 6-by-9-foot rug provides comfortable coverage.
Hallways and Entryways
Runners in hallways should be at least 2 feet wide and leave 4 to 6 inches of floor exposed on each side. The length should extend most of the hallway, leaving 12 to 18 inches of bare floor at each end. For entryways, choose a size that allows the front door to swing freely over the rug.
When Standard Sizes Are Not Enough
Standard rug sizes — 5-by-7, 6-by-9, 8-by-10, 9-by-12 — work beautifully in most rooms. But there are situations where custom sizing is the right answer.
Unusual room shapes. L-shaped rooms, rooms with bay windows, or rooms with architectural features that standard rectangles cannot accommodate.
Extra-large spaces. Rooms that exceed the dimensions of a 9-by-12-foot rug — grand living rooms, hotel lobbies, restaurant dining areas — require custom dimensions.
Specific furniture configurations. A circular seating arrangement calls for a round rug. A long, narrow living room may need a rug in a proportion that does not exist in standard sizes.
Design intent. Sometimes the vision calls for a rug that fills a space in a very particular way. Custom sizing allows you to execute that vision precisely.
At Kapetto, every rug is available in custom sizes. We calculate pricing based on the square footage at a per-square-foot rate specific to each collection. Custom rugs typically require 23 to 30 weeks, depending on the material and complexity — timeline worth building into your project plan from the start.
A Note on Shape
Rectangular rugs are the standard for good reason — most rooms and most furniture arrangements are rectilinear. But round and oval rugs have their place: beneath round dining tables, in circular foyers, or as a counterpoint to the angular geometry of a very modern room.
When using a round rug, the general sizing principles still apply. The rug should be large enough to accommodate the furniture it sits beneath, with sufficient border for chairs to pull back without leaving the rug's edge.
The Practical Test
Before committing to a size, try this: tape the dimensions on your floor using painter's tape. Live with it for a day or two. Walk around the taped outline, sit in the furniture, push back dining chairs. This simple exercise prevents costly sizing mistakes and gives you confidence in your specification.
The right rug size is not about following a formula blindly. It is about understanding the principles, then applying judgment based on the specific room, the specific furniture, and the specific atmosphere you want to create. When the size is right, you do not notice it — you simply feel that everything in the room belongs.
