To measure your room for a corner sofa set, record the length of both walls the sofa will sit against, note anything that interrupts them, work out the depth each side will take up, allow clear walkways, and then measure every door, hall and staircase between your front door and the living room. Do all of that before you choose a design and the sofa should fit first time.
Here is the process broken into fifteen easy steps, grouped into four short stages.
A metal tape measure is more accurate than a fabric one over longer distances. You will also want a notepad or your phone, a pencil, a roll of masking tape and ideally a second person to hold the other end of the tape. Photographs of each wall help later when you are comparing designs.
Draw the room from above. It does not need to be to scale, but it should show every wall, window, door, fireplace, radiator and alcove. You will add measurements to this sketch as you go, so leave plenty of space around the edges.
A corner sofa needs two walls that meet, or at least two directions it can run in. Measure each wall from the corner outwards to the first obstacle, then to the end of the wall. Measure at floor level, because skirting boards and uneven plaster can make a difference of a centimetre or two.
Mark the position and height of radiators, low windowsills, plug sockets, aerial points and light switches. A sofa can sit in front of a radiator, but it will block heat and may affect the covering over time. Leaving a small gap is sensible. Sockets behind a sofa are fine if you do not need regular access to them.
Measure the height of any windowsill the sofa will sit beneath, and compare it with the back height of the sofas you are considering. A high backed design pushed against a low sill can look awkward and block light. Note the height of shelves or alcove cupboards too.
Draw the arc of every door that opens into the room. A corner sofa that stops a door opening fully will quickly become frustrating. Include cupboard doors and any French or patio doors, which often need more clearance than you expect.
Corner sofas are described as left or right hand depending on which side the longer section or chaise sits. Retailers define this in different ways, most often as you face the sofa, so always check the product description or diagram before ordering. Look at your sketch and decide which side the longer run should go based on walls, windows and the television position.
It is easy to focus on length and forget depth. Each side of a corner sofa projects into the room, often further than a standard sofa, especially if one side is a chaise. Mark this depth on your plan along both walls. The area where the two depths overlap is the corner itself, and it takes up more floor than people expect.
Leave a comfortable route through the room. A gap of around 60 to 90cm is a useful guide for main walkways, with a little less acceptable where people pass only occasionally. Think about the route from the door to the window, to other rooms and to the television.
Most corner sofas are paired with a coffee table. Allow roughly 40 to 50cm between the front of the seats and the table so you can stretch out and still reach a drink. If space is tight, a set of our modern nest of tables UK gives you surfaces when you need them and tucks away when you do not.
This is the step people skip and later wish they had not. Using the dimensions of the sofa you like, mark its outline on the floor with masking tape. Include the chaise and the depth of each side. Leave the tape down for a day or two and walk around it. You will quickly see whether the room still feels open and whether doors and walkways remain clear.
Measure the width and height of the door opening with the door fully open, not the door itself. Hinges, handles and draught excluders reduce the usable width, so measure between the narrowest points. If there is a porch with an inner door, measure that too and note the space between the two.
Record the width of every hallway and note any tight turns, radiators, coat hooks or light fittings that stick out. A narrow hall with a sharp turn into the living room is often the real challenge, rather than the doorways themselves.
For flats and upstairs living rooms, measure stair width, the headroom above the stairs and the size of any landing where the sofa will need to turn. If there is a lift, measure its internal width, depth, height and door opening.
Check the height, width and depth of each section of the corner sofa, plus its diagonal depth, which is the measurement from the top of the back to the front edge of the seat. A sofa can often be tilted through a doorway if its diagonal depth is less than the door width. Also check whether the sofa arrives in separate sections and whether legs or back cushions can be removed, as both make the route easier.
Many British living rooms are not neat rectangles. A few extra checks help when the space is irregular.
Bay windows. Measure the straight wall either side of the bay rather than the curve itself. A corner sofa usually works best with its longer side along a flat wall and the bay left free for a chair or plants.
Chimney breasts and alcoves. Measure the depth of the chimney breast from the wall and the width of each alcove. A sofa running along the chimney wall will stop at the breast, so note exactly where it projects.
Sloping ceilings. In loft rooms and converted spaces, measure the height of the wall where the sofa back will sit. A low backed design may be the only option under a slope.
Through lounges. In knocked through rooms, decide first where the living zone ends. The corner sofa can then help divide the space, with its back towards the dining end.
Wherever there is doubt, take an extra measurement. It takes seconds and removes guesswork.
With your plan complete, you can shortlist designs confidently. Compact corner sofas with slim arms suit smaller UK living rooms, while deeper, larger corners work in open plan spaces where they help define the seating zone. Fabric softens a room and comes in a wide range of colours, so our corner fabric sofas UK are a good starting point for family spaces. For an easy care, tailored finish, explore our modern corner leather sofas UK.
Think about the rest of the room at the same time. If the television will sit in the opposite corner, one of our corner TV stands UK can make better use of that space and keep the viewing angle comfortable from both sides of the sofa.
At Furniture in Fashion, we list full dimensions on our product pages so you can compare them directly with your plan. We offer free delivery to most UK mainland postcodes, and Returns are available up to 30 days.
It can sit close to the wall, but leaving a small gap of a few centimetres protects the paintwork and allows air to circulate, particularly in front of a radiator.
Look for a compact design with slim arms, raised legs and a lower back. Taping out the footprint is the best way to judge whether a particular size feels comfortable.
Compare the door width, measured between the narrowest points, with the sofa’s height, depth and diagonal depth. If any of these is smaller than the opening, the sofa can usually be manoeuvred through.
Neither is better. It depends on your walls, windows, door positions and where the television sits. Your floor plan will usually make the choice clear.
Measure first. Knowing your room and delivery route narrows the options and prevents disappointment later.
Narrow dining spaces are common in British homes, from long back reception rooms in Victorian…
Windsor chairs and cross back chairs are both classic wooden dining seats with rustic roots,…
Padded seats make dining chairs more practical because they turn a chair used for a…
The cross back chair, with its distinctive X shaped back and French café roots, is…
Yes, a cross back chair can work very well in a small room. Its open…
Swivel dining chairs have moved from offices and bar counters to the heart of the…
This website uses cookies.