How High to Hang Pictures: Simple Tips For Getting it Right!

Using {this 34″ high floral bouquet picture} that I hung during our kitchen remodel as an example, dividing that height in half is 17″. Then adding 57-60″, it should be hung so the top of the picture is 74-77″ from the floor:

Kitchen Sources: Gray geometric rug  |  Black & white dish towel  |  Kitchen sink  |  Cabinet pulls  |  Cup pulls

I hung {this large art print} (30″ x 40″) on the DIY shiplap walls in the bedroom of our previous home centered at 57″ since the ceilings were a low 7’6″:

You can use the same rule of thumb when hanging two pictures with one directly above the other. Simply treat the two art pieces as one large picture with the center point between them being 57 – 60″ from the floor.

When hanging a larger collection of pictures on the wall with no furniture pieces under them, treat them as one large piece, centering the grouping at that same 57-60″ measurement. The same holds true if you’re hanging other objects such as this arrangement of plates I hung in our dining room – the center of the grouping was 57″ off the floor:

Dining Room Sources: Wood bead chandelier  | Table & chairs – no longer available  |  13″ Rattan chargers (similar)  |  Green & white plaid napkins  |  Table runner (similar)  |  Wood vases – no longer available  |  Faux pink tulips  |  Faux white tulips  |  White wall plates  |  Patterned wall plates  |  Drapes – no longer available

Check out my post on how to hang plates on the wall for more details on how I planned out our plate arrangement and the plate holders I used to hang them.

How High Should I Hang Art Above A Bed, Sofa, or Dresser?

What if your pictures aren’t simply hung on a blank wall but are instead hung over a bed, sofa, dresser, or other furnishings? Instead of following the 57-60″ rule, hang your picture so the bottom of the frame is between 3-8″ above the furniture piece. As an example, I chose to hang {this large piece of framed canvas art} (40″ x 30″) about 4″ above the headboard in my daughter’s room but would have hung it in inch or two higher if I had chosen a smaller piece of art:

Room Sources:  Blue grasscloth wallpaper  |  Gold quatrefoil pendant  |  Canvas surf scene art  |  Blue fringed pillow covers (other pillow covers no longer available)  |  Leather weave bench  |  Acrylic lamp  |  Blue & white planter

These abstract art prints including {this Sorento I print} and {this Sorento II print} (24″ x 30″) that I just hung above the beds in my girls’ bedroom are hung a little over 3″ above the peak of each bed’s arch and 8″ above the bed at the frame’s ends:

Room Sources: Gray damask peel & stick wallpaper  |  Globe light ceiling fan  |  Arched wood beds  | Framed art (left)  |  Framed art (right)  |  Gray tasseled pillows  |  Duvet covers  |  White dresser  |  Rattan lamp

When I hung {this square floral art print} (30″ x 30″) that’s also in my girls’ bedroom, I left about 5″ of wall space between the art print and the dresser:

Room Sources: Floral artwork  |  Acrylic lamp  |  Faux fern in wood planter (similar)  |  Coral (similar)  |  Dresser  |  Dresser knobs

If you’re wondering about the best width for a picture over a dresser or sideboard, about ⅔ the width of the furniture piece is a good rule of thumb for how wide your picture should be (I wouldn’t go much narrower than ⅔, but a bit wider than ⅔ works too!).

How Far Apart Should I Hang a Group of Pictures?

When hanging multiple pictures in a grouping such as a gallery wall, a good rule of thumb is to leave spacing of about 1 ½ – 4″ between pictures. Smaller pieces of art can be hung a little closer together (1 ½ -2″) than larger pieces (2-4″ apart). When hanging a gallery wall of same size pictures in a grid, the spacing between them should be consistent such as in my family room:

Family Room Sources: TV console (similar)  |  Chandelier (satin bronze)  |  White tasseled pillow cover  |  Blue linen pillow cover  |  Green & blue block print pillow cover  |  Faux fiddle leaf fig tree  |  Rug  |  Pair of floor poufs  |  Art prints (details in {this post}  |  Acrylic coffee table (similar)  |  Coffee table tray (28″ square)  |  Black and white striped box (on coffee table)  |  Brass cricket (on coffee table)  |  Wood beads  |  Basket planter  |  Rattan chair

However when you’re hanging an eclectic gallery wall like this one in our home office, the spacing doesn’t need to be consistent. A spacing of around 2-3″ between pictures is a good place to start but some can be closer and others farther apart depending upon what looks right to your eye.

Sources:  Desk (similar)  |  Rug  |  Semi flush mount ceiling light  |  Acrylic curtain rods  |  Faux fiddle leaf fig tree (similar)  | Console is thrifted  |  Elephant art print  |  Woven tray  |  Wood planter

The best way I’ve found to hang an eclectic grouping of art like this without putting a ton of holes in the wall is to plan your whole wall out before hanging anything. Lay all of your pictures/objects out on the floor and move them around until the arrangement and spacing seems right. You can find more tips for creating and hanging gallery walls in my post on gallery wall ideas.

What Are the Best Shops For Buying Art Prints Online?

My favorite and most used source for art prints is Minted {here}. You can buy prints unframed and frame them yourself or you can have your artwork matted and framed and delivered to your doorstep completely ready to hang on the wall! I have Minted artwork in several rooms of my home including our family room, my daughter’s bedroom in our previous home, the girls’ room in our current home, and our primary bedroom. {This gorgeous art piece} that we’ve used in the entryway of our previous and current homes is also from Minted:

Entryway Sources: Wallpaper  |  Raffia console  |  White table lamp  |  30″ x 40″ Framed art print  |  Decorative ivory box  |  Decorative snail  | Wave coral – HomeGoods  |  Shallow wood bowl  |  Glass beads  |  Cube ottomans

Minted even has a pretty awesome new feature that allows you to change up the colors in some of their art prints (you can find their customizable art prints {here})! For example, you’ll see that under the size options for {this art print}, there is a clickable option to “Customize this print to fit your decor”. It allows you to rotate the art print, zoom in on it, or completely change the colors in it.

Simply click “Customize” to zoom/crop it yourself and add notes on any changes in color that you want made by Minted’s art specialist. You can even give them specific paint colors (for ex., say “Please match color to Sherwin Williams Lucky Green”) or send them photos of a fabric piece, rug, or whatever else you’d like your art to match with. Once you place your order, an Art Specialist will email you a proof of your revised artwork – you can accept it or make any further revisions needed.

Another great online source for art is Artfully Walls {here}. I used a grouping of three Artfully Wall pieces on our kitchen eat-in wall:

Sources: Capiz pendant  |  Geometric gray rug  |  Faux peonies  |  Rattan chargers  |  Large blush abstract framed art  |  Blue floral framed art  |  Pink floral framed art  |  Slipcovered dining chairs (similar)  |  Table runner no longer available

A lot of the art on Artfully Walls has an Anthropologie-esk vibe. You can actually find many of the art prints sold at Anthropologie on Artfully Walls’ site, often at a lower price and in more size options.

I also love shopping on Etsy {here} – it’s full of independent artists selling original art pieces and prints like {this floral print} I bought for the shelving in our bathroom:

Shelf Sources: Brass wall shelf (similar)  |  Rose print – 11 x 14  |  Hello Sweet Cheeks – printable  |  Brass frame  |  Rattan TP holder  |  Llama planter

And I just hung {this tropical bird art print} in our hall bathroom:

I share all of the other sources for our powder room remodel in my post on bathroom shiplap.

And with that… you’re ready to hang artwork like the pros! If you’d like to keep this info handy for the next time you need to hang a picture, Pin the image below: