Wall Art Size Guide

Choosing a size is the part of buying art online that people most often get wrong. The print arrives, it goes up, and it is smaller than the wall wanted. This guide has every size we print, drawn to scale, in inches and centimetres, and a size to start from for each of the walls people ask about most.

Portrait sizes

Portrait print sizes drawn to scale All nine portrait inch sizes from 8 by 12 to 30 by 40 inches, drawn to scale beside a 5 foot 8 figure.Portrait sizes, drawn to scaleEvery inch size we print, against a 5 ft 8 figure.5 ft 8 infor scale2:3 shape8×1212×1816×2420×3024×363:4 shape12×1618×2424×3230×40Five sizes are the taller 2:3 crop, four are the squarer 3:4.

Most designs in the shop are portrait. They come in nine inch sizes plus A1 to A4. The inch sizes are not all the same shape: five of them are a 2:3 crop, which is tall and narrow, and four are 3:4, which is squarer and reads wider on the wall. It is worth checking the shape as well as the size, because 18 × 24 and 20 × 30 in are close in height but sit very differently above a sofa.

Size (inches) Centimetres Shape Works well
8 × 12 20.3 × 30.5 2:3 A desk, a shelf, or one square of a gallery wall
12 × 16 30.5 × 40.6 3:4 Hallways, and grids of four
12 × 18 30.5 × 45.7 2:3 Pairs above a console or a narrow wall
16 × 24 40.6 × 61 2:3 Above a desk, or sets of three above a sofa
18 × 24 45.7 × 61 3:4 Pairs above a sofa or a bed
20 × 30 50.8 × 76.2 2:3 A single print above a full bed
24 × 32 61 × 81.3 3:4 One statement print on an open wall
24 × 36 61 × 91.4 2:3 Above a queen bed, or a three-seat sofa
30 × 40 76.2 × 101.6 3:4 A feature wall, or a tall stairwell

Landscape sizes

Landscape print sizes drawn to scale All seven landscape inch sizes from 12 by 8 to 54 by 36 inches, drawn to scale beside a 5 foot 8 figure.Landscape sizes, drawn to scaleHorizontal designs, all of them a 3:2 crop.5 ft 8 infor scale12×818×1224×1630×2036×2448×3254×3654 × 36 in is 4 ft 6 in across, wider than a standard doorway.

Horizontal designs run on their own ladder, and every one of them is a 3:2 crop. They go considerably wider than the portrait sizes. The largest, 54 × 36 in, is four and a half feet across, so measure the wall before choosing either of the top two.

Size (inches) Centimetres Works well
12 × 8 30.5 × 20.3 A shelf or a desk
18 × 12 45.7 × 30.5 Above a console
24 × 16 61 × 40.6 Above a desk or a headboard
30 × 20 76.2 × 50.8 Above a loveseat
36 × 24 91.4 × 61 Above a three-seat sofa
48 × 32 121.9 × 81.3 A wide feature wall
54 × 36 137.2 × 91.4 The widest wall in the house

A1 to A4

A1, A2, A3 and A4 paper sizes nested A1 to A4 metric paper sizes nested inside one another with centimetre and inch measurements.A1 to A4, nestedMetric sizes for ready-made European frames.A1A2A3A4SizeCentimetresInchesA159.4 × 84.1 cm23.4 × 33.1 inA242 × 59.4 cm16.5 × 23.4 inA329.7 × 42 cm11.7 × 16.5 inA421 × 29.7 cm8.3 × 11.7 inEach size is exactly half of the one before it.

A sizes are the metric standard, and they exist here for anyone buying a ready-made frame in Europe or the UK. They are a slightly narrower shape than the inch sizes. Each one is exactly half of the size before it, so an A3 print fills half an A2 frame.

Size Centimetres Inches
A1 59.4 × 84.1 23.4 × 33.1
A2 42 × 59.4 16.5 × 23.4
A3 29.7 × 42 11.7 × 16.5
A4 21 × 29.7 8.3 × 11.7

What comes on paper, and what comes on canvas

Not every size is offered in every material. The smallest size and the A sizes are printed on paper only, because canvas does not stretch well at those dimensions. The size menu on each product page shows what is actually available for that design.

Design Size Materials
Portrait 8 × 12 in Paper
Portrait 12 × 16 in to 30 × 40 in Paper, matte canvas, framed canvas in white, black, espresso or natural
Portrait A1 to A4 Paper
Landscape 12 × 8 in Paper
Landscape 18 × 12 in to 36 × 24 in Paper, matte canvas, framed canvas in white, black, espresso or natural
Landscape 48 × 32 in Matte canvas and framed canvas
Landscape 54 × 36 in Paper
Landscape A1 to A4 Paper

The measurements on this page are the printed image. A floating frame adds a little to the outside measurement, so allow for that when you are fitting a print into a tight alcove.

How high to hang it

How high to hang a print A print centred 57 to 60 inches from the floor, and a print hung 6 to 10 inches above a sofa.How high to hang itCentre the print at eye level, whatever the ceiling.On an empty wallAbove furniture24 × 36 incentre of the print57-60 in · 145-152 cm18 × 24 in6-10 in15-25 cmOver furniture the gap decides it, not the ceiling height.

Hang to the eye, not to the ceiling. The centre of the artwork wants to sit 57 to 60 inches from the floor, which is where galleries hang and where most people look. A high ceiling does not change this. Raising a print because the wall is tall is the single most common hanging mistake, and it leaves the picture floating with nothing under it.

Over furniture the gap decides it instead. Leave 6 to 10 inches, or 15 to 25 cm, of clear wall between the top of the sofa and the bottom of the frame. Closer than that and the two read as one lump. Further and they stop belonging together.

Above a sofa

Three ways to hang art above a sofa One 24 by 36 print, a pair of 18 by 24 prints and a set of three 16 by 24 prints above an 84 inch sofa.Above a sofaA three-seat sofa is 84 in (213 cm) wide.One large print24 × 36 inLeast to hang.Reads small here.A matching pairtwo 18 × 24 inCovers more width.Leave 2-3 in between.A set of threethree 16 × 24 inFills the wall.Bottom edges aligned.Aim to fill about two thirds of the width below.

Aim to fill roughly two thirds of the width of the furniture below. On a standard three-seat sofa that is about 56 inches of artwork, which is wider than any single portrait print, so a pair or a set of three usually works better than one piece.

Sofa Width Start with
Loveseat 60 in · 152 cm One 18 × 24 in, or a pair of 12 × 18 in
Three-seat sofa 84 in · 213 cm One 24 × 36 in, a pair of 18 × 24 in, or three 16 × 24 in
Sectional 100 in · 254 cm and up Three 20 × 30 in, or a pair of 24 × 36 in
Landscape design Any of the above One 36 × 24 in over a three-seat sofa

Above a bed

Print sizes above twin, full, queen and king beds Recommended print sizes shown above a twin, full, queen and king bed drawn to scale.Above a bedMatch the artwork to the bed, not the wall.Twin · 38 in16 × 24 in, or A2Full · 54 in20 × 30 inQueen · 60 in24 × 36 in, or two 18 × 24King · 76 intwo 24 × 36 inKeep the set narrower than the headboard.

Match the artwork to the width of the bed rather than the width of the wall, and keep the set narrower than the headboard. Art that overhangs a bed on either side reads as a mistake even when the size is technically right.

Bed Width Start with
Twin 38 in · 97 cm One 16 × 24 in, or A2
Full 54 in · 137 cm One 20 × 30 in
Queen 60 in · 152 cm One 24 × 36 in, or two 18 × 24 in
King 76 in · 193 cm Two 24 × 36 in, or three 20 × 30 in

Desks, consoles and hallways

Print sizes over a desk, a console and in a hallway A 16 by 24 print over a desk, two 12 by 18 prints over a console and two 12 by 16 prints stacked in a hallway.Desk, console and hallwayThree narrow walls, and the size that suits each.Over a desk · 48 in16 × 24 inclears the monitorOver a console · 40 intwo 12 × 18 in2-3 in apartNarrow hallway12 × 16 in stackedkeeps a tight wall calm

These are the narrow walls, and they punish oversizing. Over a desk, a 16 × 24 in print clears the top of a monitor without crowding it. Over a console, two 12 × 18 in prints hold the width better than one piece stranded in the middle. In a hallway, where nobody can stand far enough back to take in a large print, two 12 × 16 in stacked one above the other work harder than a single big one.

Hanging a set

Four gallery wall layouts A pair, a set of three, a grid of four and a staircase run of three prints.Hanging a setFour ways to build a wall one print at a time.A pairtwo 18 × 24 inbottom edges alignedA set of threethree 16 × 24 inone subject, one styleA grid of fourfour 12 × 16 inthe calmest layoutUp a staircasethree 12 × 18 infollow the slopeLeave 2-3 in (5-8 cm) between frames, and keep every gap equal.

Leave 2 to 3 inches, or 5 to 8 cm, between frames, and keep every gap the same. Treat the whole set as one rectangle: find the centre of that rectangle, and hang it at the same 57 to 60 inches a single print would want.

  • A pair is the easiest set to get right. Align the bottom edges and keep both prints the same size.
  • Three in a row fills a sofa wall properly. Use one subject and one style so the run reads as a series.
  • A grid of four is the calmest layout of all, and the least forgiving of uneven gaps.
  • Up a staircase, follow the slope rather than the steps. Keep the centre of each print the same distance above the stair nose.

Still deciding

Cut newspaper to the exact size, or run painter's tape around the outline, and leave it on the wall for a day. It costs nothing and it settles the question faster than any chart.

Caught between two sizes, take the larger one. Rooms almost always take more than they look like they will, and a print that is slightly too big still reads as deliberate. One that is too small never does.