How to Choose the Best Sofa for Your Space

Choosing a sofa is, well, complicated. Between deciding on a size, material, and style, decisions abound. To make the whole decision-making process a bit more manageable, here are a few questions worth asking yourself in an effort to locate the perfect sofa for you.

What’s Your Floorplan?

Chances are your floorplan strongly dictates what size sofa will work best, as well as what configuration. Oftentimes, in narrow rooms, the only placement option for a sofa is against the longest wall. In these cases, your wall length will determine your sofa’s max length. For more spacious rooms, a sofa can often float in the middle, which can allow you to have more flexibility with length and shape. Typically, curved sofas and curved sectional sofas are most striking when you have enough room to float them away from a wall.

What Are Your Lounging Habits?

Nightly Netflix bingers often prefer a more lounge-y set-up than those who plan to only use their sofa for entertaining company. Assess how you plan to use your sofa in order to make the best decision for your needs. In general, those who like to sprawl out will want to look for more spacious silhouettes (i.e. sectionals) as well as sofas with deep seats. Those who don’t spend much time on their sofas can opt for more formal silhouettes like settees and loveseats.

How Many People Are You Looking to Seat?

Loveseats seat two people comfortably, while a standard 86” bench seats three comfortably, four in a pinch. Look to sectionals if you hope to seat several people on the regular.

How Often Do You Use Your Sofa?

If you use your sofa daily, you may want to pay more mind to its material. Leather sofas are genuinely more durable than those covered in velvet, cotton, or tweed. Linen, silk, and mohair sofas are best reserved for those who use their sofas sparingly.

Do You Need Your Sofa to Provide Sleeping Space?

If your sofa will occasionally be hosting sleepover guests, a pull-out sleeper may be in order. However, if couch-surfing guests are fairly rare, you can sometimes get away with a deep-seated sofa that’s a standard 86” long. Materials like performance velvet can also provide a cozier feel for guests than cool-to-the-touch leather.