How to Choose a Sofa Size: Width, Depth and Seat Height

Short answer: Choose a sofa size using three numbers, in this order: the width of the wall or area it will sit in, the floor depth you can give it once you leave a walkway (at least 90 cm, or 36 inches, is a common minimum), and the seat height that suits how you sit. Our regular-size two-seaters with arms run from 164 cm (64.6 inches) wide for the Neptune to 196 cm (77.2 inches) for the Atmosphere with rounded arms, with overall depths between 88.5 and 104 cm (34.8 and 41.0 inches) and seat heights between 42.5 and 54 cm (16.7 and 21.3 inches).

A sofa that looks right in a photo can feel wrong at home when it is too wide for the wall, too deep for the walkway or too high or low for the people using it. Measuring three things before you shop avoids most of that.

On This Page

1. How do I choose a sofa size?
2. How do I measure for walkway space?
3. How wide should a sofa be for my wall?
4. How deep should a sofa be?
5. What seat height should I choose?
6. What size sofa fits a small room?
7. Our recommendation
8. Explore our sofas

How do I choose a sofa size?

Work from the room outward, not from the sofa inward. Each step narrows the choices before you compare styles.

• Width: measure the wall, or the stretch of floor, where the sofa will sit. This sets the longest sofa you can fit.
• Depth: measure from that wall to the nearest obstacle in front (a TV unit, a door swing, the opposite wall), then subtract the walkway you want to keep. The result is the depth available for the sofa and anything in front of it.
• Seat height: compare it with a chair you already find comfortable. It decides whether the sofa feels grounded and relaxed or upright and easy to stand up from.

Our guides cover the next questions in detail: how many modules do you need turns a width into a module list, and our sofa seat depth and height guide explains how the seat feels. This guide helps you decide which size to look at in the first place.

How do I measure for walkway space?

Walkway space is the clear floor you keep for walking, opening doors and moving a coffee table. It is the measurement most often skipped.

1. Measure the clear floor. Record the distance from the sofa wall to the nearest obstacle in front, and the width of the wall.

2. Choose a walkway. Our sectional size guide recommends at least 90 cm (36 inches) as a minimum walkway, with 105 to 120 cm (42 to 48 inches) more comfortable on busy paths. This is general advice, not a product specification, so measure the route you actually use.

3. Subtract. Clear floor minus walkway is the depth you have for the sofa, the gap in front of it and a coffee table.

4. Mark it out. Use masking tape to outline the sofa on the floor, walk around it, and open any doors that swing into the area.

For example, say a room has 305 cm (120 inches) of clear floor. Leaving 90 cm (36 inches) for the walkway gives 215 cm (84 inches). A Ciello Regular seat module is 95 cm (37.4 inches) deep, which leaves 120 cm (46.6 inches). A gap of 45 cm (18 inches) plus an Ombra coffee table at 55 cm (21.7 inches) deep takes 100 cm (39.7 inches), so it fits, with about 20 cm (6.9 inches) to spare. Our coffee table guide explains the table gap, and our guide to choosing a sofa configuration for your lounge room goes deeper on clearances.

Include anything that extends the footprint: a chaise, an ottoman or an open sleeper. A Ciello Regular two-seater with a chaise is about 190 x 174 cm (74.75 x 68.5 inches), and an Orian opens to about 203 cm (79.75 inches) deep as a queen bed.

How wide should a sofa be for my wall?

The sofa has to be narrower than the wall, but how much narrower depends on what else shares it. A side table, a floor lamp or a window edge all take space at the ends, so a sofa that fills the wall from corner to corner leaves nowhere to put a drink.

Our side tables are mostly 50 to 55 cm (19.7 to 21.7 inches) wide, so a side table at one end takes about 50 cm (20 inches) from the wall. Our side table guide compares them. Width also changes with arms: an armless layout is narrower, but you give up a place to lean.

Here is how our two-seaters with arms compare on all three numbers. Overall depth is how much floor the sofa takes, back included, and seat height is measured from the floor to the top of the seat cushion.

How wide should a sofa be for my wall?

Gaia XL, Ciello XL and the Atmosphere with square high arms are wider again: 184, 204 and 206 cm (72.4, 80.25 and 81.1 inches). The Atmosphere seat height is for the regular seat, and the storage and sleeper seats differ. Read the complete assembled size in the configurator before you order.

How deep should a sofa be?

Depth has two meanings, and mixing them up is a common mistake. Overall depth is how much floor the sofa takes. Seat depth is how far back you sit, measured from the front of the seat cushion to the front of the back cushion.

They do not move together. Our Cassini is 91.5 cm (36.0 inches) deep overall with a 67 cm (26.4 inch) seat depth. Our Ciello Regular is 95 cm (37.4 inches) deep overall but has a 55 cm (21.7 inch) seat depth. Ciello XL is 102 cm (40.2 inches) overall with a 67 cm (26.4 inch) seat.

So match each number to its job. Use overall depth to check the room, and seat depth to check comfort. A deeper seat suits curling up, while a shallower one makes upright sitting easier. Our sofa seat depth and height guide compares every collection side by side.

What seat height should I choose?

Seat height decides how the sofa sits against your body. A lower seat feels grounded and relaxed, while a higher seat is generally easier to stand up from. These are general comfort observations rather than rules, and they depend on leg length and how you like to sit.

Our collections fall into two groups. Neptune, Orian, Cassini and the regular Atmosphere seat sit between 42.5 and 44.5 cm (16.7 and 17.5 inches) high. Ciello and Gaia sit at 54 cm (21.3 inches).

The simplest test is to measure a dining chair or sofa where you sit comfortably, then compare. If you sit with your feet flat and stand up easily on it, look for a seat height close to that number. Seat height also matters for tables: our coffee table guide suggests a table at seat height or slightly below, and our lowest tables are under 36 cm (14 inches).

What size sofa fits a small room?

A small lounge room is usually short on width, short on depth, or both. Check which one limits you, then look at the options below. Each width is for the two-seater named, and our guides to sofas under 80 inches and sofas for small apartments and condos compare more layouts.

What size sofa fits a small room?

Width is only half the story. A narrow sofa that is deep can still block a doorway, and Gaia, at about 88.5 cm (34.8 inches) overall depth, is our shallowest sofa in this comparison. An L-shape can use a corner that would otherwise sit empty. Because our sofas are modular, you can start small and add modules later.

Our recommendation

Start with the tape on the floor, then pick by the limit that matters most in your room.

• Narrow wall: an armless Cassini (135 cm, 53 inches) or Atmosphere (150 cm, 59 inches), or a Neptune with arms (164 cm, 64.6 inches).
• Shallow room or tight walkway: compare overall depth first. Gaia Regular is about 88.5 cm (34.8 inches) deep and Cassini is 91.5 cm (36.0 inches).
• Room to stretch out: Ciello XL or Gaia XL, with seat depths of 67 and 65 cm (26.4 and 25.6 inches), the Atmosphere with a round back at 75 cm (29.3 inches), or a Ciello chaise if the floor allows the extra depth.
• Upright sitting and a lower seat: Neptune, Orian, Cassini or Atmosphere, all between 42.5 and 44.5 cm (16.7 and 17.5 inches) high.
• A room that doubles as a guest room: Orian or Neptune, planned with the open bed depth in mind.

If your measurements sit between two sizes, check the configurator for the exact size of each layout before you decide.

Explore our sofas

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• Sofa beds

Product specifications can change. Check the current dimensions on the product page before ordering.