A sofa that fits the wall can still ruin the room. What matters is the space it leaves for people to walk, sit and open doors. These are the clearances designers use.
The four numbers
- Main walkway: 36 in. 30 in is the tight minimum for a path you use every day.
- Sofa to coffee table: 14 to 18 in. Closer and knees bump; further and you can't reach your drink.
- Sofa to TV: about 1.5 to 2.5 times the screen size. A 55 in TV wants 7 to 10 ft.
- Door swing: keep the full arc clear. A 32 in door needs a 32 in quarter circle of empty floor.
Measure the wall, then subtract
Take the wall length, subtract the sofa width, and split the rest between the two sides. If one side is a walkway, it needs its 30 to 36 in first. An 84 in sofa on a 120 in wall leaves 18 in a side: fine next to a corner, too tight if a door opens there.
Depth is the number people forget
Sofas run 34 to 40 in deep. Add 14 to 18 in to the coffee table, the table itself, then 30 to 36 in of walkway behind it. A deep sectional can eat 8 ft of a 12 ft room before anyone walks through.
Check it before you buy
Tape on the floor works. So does a photo: with Fits Here you take one picture of the empty room, tap the wall and a door, and see the sofa at its real size with the space left around it.