9 Expert Tips for Spacing Wall Decor Well

Hanging art is where a lot of people freeze. They either hang everything too high, cram it together, or scatter it so far apart it looks accidental. You don’t need a designer’s eye to make it work—you just need a few simple spacing rules that you follow every time.

1. Aim for eye level in main living areas

The center of your main piece (or grouping) should land around eye level—roughly 57–60 inches from the floor. That keeps art from floating too high or sinking too low. Once you know that height, it’s much easier to plan everything else around it.

2. Keep a “hand-width” gap above furniture

Over sofas, consoles, and headboards, leave about 6–10 inches between the top of the furniture and the bottom of the art. A gap that’s too big makes the art feel like it’s levitating; too small and it looks like it’s crowding the furniture. A hand-width zone is usually a safe bet.

3. Treat multiple pieces as one big shape

When you’re hanging a gallery wall, think about the outline of the whole arrangement—not each frame on its own. You want that overall shape centered over the furniture or on the wall, even if the individual pieces are different sizes. It keeps things from looking scattered.

4. Use consistent spacing between frames

For groups, pick a spacing and stick with it—usually 2–3 inches between frames. That rhythm is what makes a collection feel intentional. If you’ve got everything jammed together in one spot and spread out in another, your eye doesn’t know where to land.

5. Balance heavy pieces with lighter ones

If one frame is huge or visually heavy, balance it with either:

• A similar-size piece on the other side, or
• Several smaller pieces grouped together

You’re trying to avoid one side of the wall feeling loaded and the other feeling empty. If the wall looks lopsided, shift things until it feels even even if the pieces aren’t perfectly symmetrical.

6. Leave breathing room at the edges

Don’t shove art right up against a corner, door frame, or ceiling. Leaving open space around the whole arrangement makes it feel calmer and more deliberate. Think of it like a margin on paper—your brain likes the blank space.

7. Use painter’s tape to test layouts

Before you start hammering, use painter’s tape to mark out frame sizes on the wall. You’ll see immediately if things are too tight, too high, or weirdly spaced. It’s faster to move tape than patch a bunch of random nail holes.

8. Match the wall’s shape

On wide walls, stretch your art out horizontally. On tall, narrow walls, stack pieces vertically. Fighting the shape of the wall with a random cluster almost always looks off. When your arrangement echoes the wall itself, it reads as “meant to be there.”

9. Anchor big walls with something substantial

If you have a truly large wall and only tiny art, it’s going to feel lost. Use at least one substantial piece, or build a gallery that fills a solid chunk of the space. Tiny pieces floating on a huge wall make the whole room feel unfinished, no matter how cute they are.