For most households, one must-have item in the living room is a TV – usually a large flatscreen TV that serves as a focal point for the room. Something that people often need help with concerning this item though is placement and getting their living room looking balanced with their TV and furniture.
I want to give you some inspiration in this regard and below I have provided seven tips on where to put a TV in a living room. These tips help if you have bought a new unit, are remodelling your room, or are moving into a new home.
1. Consider the Size and layout of Your Living Room
Before you do anything you have to know what space you have to work with. You can then position your furniture and TV accordingly to optimize your living room. Measure the lengths of each wall and look at the floor space.
Remember that not all living rooms are square or rectangular and you may have to accommodate irregular wall angles or even an L-shape living room for example which makes TV placement more difficult.
2. Look at the Existing Furniture You Have
If you are upgrading your TV or rearranging your living room it’s important to take stock of the furniture you have including your living room carpet, sofas, chairs, and other things like side cabinets and storage.
By taking an inventory and measuring your furniture you know what space you will have left to position your TV. Looking at things like seating also helps you determine the optimum viewing position for your TV which we look at below.
3. Could Wall Mounting be an Option?
A TV doesn’t have to be freestanding on a dedicated unit. Perhaps you have a large blank wall space that could be perfect for wall mounting your TV? This has the benefit of giving you extra floor space to work with for your furniture and you don’t have to try and accommodate a TV unit.
The downside is the additional work and the fact that you either have wiring hanging down the wall or have to try and do DIY work to feed the wiring into your wall and out again to a power socket.
4. Think How Light Sources Will Affect Viewing
Have you ever been watching TV on a bright day and noticed that you can barely see the picture and instead can see the reflection of your living room window? If so, you’ve probably got your TV in the wrong place!
TV screens are often reflective and any light source will simply bounce off and disrupt your viewing experience. Therefore, the ideal placement is in front of a light source such as a window. By doing this, the light cannot reflect onto the screen.
5. Find the Central Viewing Position
In my living room, I have two sofas positioned along the walls in an L configuration. Because of this. My TV is in the opposite corner and angled diagonally inwards. This means that regardless of which sofa you sit on, you can view the TV easily.
Simply put, make sure your TV is in a central viewing position where possible so that no seats have an obstructed view.
6. Where are Your Power Points?
Oftentimes where to put a TV in a living room is a limited thing based on where your power sockets are and your external TV connection if you have freeview or a subscription TV service. If you have a smart TV you also have to consider your WiFi connection or the ability to connect an ethernet cable.
If your power sockets and ports aren’t close to where you want the TV, can you easily hide the cables such as fixing them to the top of your skirting boards?
7. Consider if You Want the TV to be a Focal Point
I’m writing this article from the point of your TV being a focal point in your living room but this isn’t always the case.
Differentiating family and living rooms is an important factor as you may use your living room or family room primarily for reading, entertainment, or relaxing and TV positioning may not be important. Think about how you use your living room and position your TV accordingly.
Positioning Isn’t Permanent – Test and Adjust if Needed
With these tips on where to put a TV in a living room, you should now be sorted and have a rough plan in mind. The great thing about TV positioning is that nothing is fixed (unless you jump the gun and fix a wall mount!).
This means you can easily test different layouts and positions until you find something that works. Just be careful when moving the TV to avoid damage and injury!
