Are you furnishing your new home or first apartment, and you need to figure out how much to budget? Or, maybe it’s time to refresh your living room or bedroom furniture, and you’re trying to figure out how much it’s going to cost you? This post will help you understand the average cost to decorate a room, whether it’s your living room, bedroom or dining room. Read on to determine how to allocate your money for different items within the room, no matter what your overall budget may be, so that you can create a beautiful and functional space to suit your lifestyle.
For each room, I’ve given you a range of costs to furnish the entire space. There is the “Low Budget” category for anyone with a tight budget or a very small room. There is the “Average” category, which represents a typical size room and purchasing furniture through local and online retail stores. And finally, there is the “High End” category for anyone that has an unlimited or higher overall budget. The High-End budget category is for those seeking out luxury items, or desiring one-of-a-kind pieces, regardless of price.
In general, I’ve found that most homeowners tend to underestimate how much it will cost to furnish a room. They think about the cost for some of the major items, but fail to include the cost for things like accessories, art, and window treatments. All of those small extras are necessary to give the room a finished and completed look, and can really add up to a significant amount.
How do you set up a decorating budget?
For each room, it’s important to start by thinking about your wants and needs for the space. You can start by creating a wish list of everything you’d like to do, or buy, to decorate the room (assuming money were no object). Then, prioritize your list into “must haves” – things that either need replacement, or are functionally necessary for your space.
In this post, you’ll see a list of furniture and decor items that are typical for each room. You can customize these lists to your specific wants and needs, and use them to help you come up with an overall decorating budget for your home.
Here’s a few more things to keep in mind as you set up your decorating budget…
- The budget ranges I’m going to share with you assume that you’ll be buying all (or most) of the items on the list, to completely furnish your space. You can reduce your budget and spend less if you are inheriting furniture pieces from a friend or family member, or if you can repurpose items you already have.
- The budgets also don’t include any professional services or labor you might need to update the space. For example, if you’re going to be hiring a painter to freshen up your walls, or a handyman to install a new fireplace mantel, you’ll need to add that cost in separately.
How much should you spend when decorating your home?
I want you to keep one important thing in mind as you read this post…great design does not depend on how much money you have to spend! You can create a beautiful, functional, stylish looking home at any price point.
The example budgets I’m going to show you in this post will give you a ballpark estimate of how much you should spend to completely decorate the rooms in your home. You can spend less by repurposing items you already have, or shopping for bargains, and the Low Budget Range will be a good estimate for you to create your overall budget. If luxury and high-end finishes are a priority, use the High End Range for each room for an estimate of total cost.
Cost to Decorate a Living Room
The living room is often the most expensive room in the house to furnish because it’s typically the largest room with the most furniture. Here are some typical ranges for furnishing a living room, categorized into Low Budget, Average, and High-End. If you have a smaller living room, you can assume your budget will be on the smaller end of the ranges shown. However, a larger living room may require more furniture or larger furniture, and your overall budget will need to be higher to take that into account.
- Low Budget Range: $4000 – $7500
- Average Range: $10,000 – $20,000
- High End Range: $30, 000 – $40,000
Living Room Budget Breakdown
Here is a list of items you should take into account when furnishing a living room, and determining your budget. Depending on the size of your space, you may not need all of these items, or you may need to add additional items, like a console table or extra sofa.
- sofa/sectional
- 1-2 accent chairs
- area rug
- chandelier or ceiling fan
- coffee table or ottoman
- window treatments
- 1-2 side tables
- art/mirror
- lamps (table and/or floor)
- throw pillows
- decorative accessories
When it comes to furnishing a living room, you should start with the three most important purchases…your sofa, rug, and accent chair(s). Those items will constitute a sizable chunk of your overall budget, and are critical for establishing the look and feel of your space.
A good quality sofa should take up about 25-30% of your budget. The next two most expensive purchases for a living room will be an area rug, accent chair(s), and any large light fixtures (like a chandelier or ceiling fan). These items individually represent about 10% of your overall budget, or around $1000 each. A coffee table or ottoman will take up about 8-9% of your budget, and side tables will be about 7% of your budget. The remaining 25% of your budget should be allocated to throw pillows, decorative accessories, window treatments, art/mirrors, and lamps.
Example Budget for Decorating a Living Room
Here’s an example breakdown for a $15,000 living room budget:
Want to know when to splurge on your furniture or home decor, and when to save your pennies? Check out this post.
Cost to Decorate a Dining Room
The budget for your dining room will depend on the size, and could also depend on how formal or dramatic you want the space to look. If you want to create a unique accent wall, or buy a statement chandelier, your costs will be higher. On the other hand, a minimal, casual dining space could be fairly inexpensive.
Source: Pottery Barn
Here are the ranges (by category) for the cost to decorate a dining room.
- Low Budget Range: $2500 – $4000
- Average Range: $7500 – $12,000
- High End Range: $18,000 – $30,000
Dining Room Budget Breakdown
Here is a list of dining room items you should include when creating your dining room budget.
- table
- dining chairs
- area rug
- chandelier
- buffet/sideboard
- art/mirror
- decorative accessories
For a dining room, about 45% of your budget will go toward the table and chairs. The next most expensive purchase would likely be the buffet or sideboard, which should take up around 16-17% of your budget.
To enhance the overall design of your dining room, you may also want to invest in a patterned area rug and a gorgeous mood-setting chandelier. Those two items can go a long way toward setting the style of your room, and creating some drama (or wow factor). You should set aside around 25-28% of your budget to cover these two items. The remainder of your budget should go toward purchasing decorative items, like accessories, art (or a mirror), plants/florals, and window treatments.
Example Dining Room Budget
Here’s an example breakdown for an $8000 dining room budget:
For more tips on creating a fantastic dining room design, check out my post on Pro Tips for Decorating a Dining Room.
What size dining table should you buy?
Unsure what size table you should buy? Your dining room table needs to be proportional to the size of your dining room, and the cost of a table often relates to the size of the table, so it’s important to get it right. There’s an easy rule-of-thumb to keep in mind that can help you determine the maximum size table your room can accommodate.
Allow at least three feet (or about one meter) of space between the edge of your table and the wall on all sides.
For example, let’s assume your dining room is 10 feet wide by 12 feet long. All you need to do is subtract 6 feet (3 feet for each side) from each dimension to come up with the maximum total length and width of your table. In our example, the maximum width of the table would be 10ft – 6 ft = 4 ft. The total length of the table would be 12ft – 6 ft = 6 ft. Therefore, the largest table this dining room can host is 4ft x 6 ft. You can go smaller, but you don’t want to have a table that is too large for the space and makes it feel cramped.
Cost to Decorate a Bedroom
Homeowners often skimp on the design of their bedroom because they think no one will see it. But, you deserve a beautiful, restful retreat! And, if you’re decorating a guest room, you’ll probably want to spend enough money to make your guests feel comfortable, without breaking the bank. So, how much money should you allocate to decorating a beautiful looking bedroom?
- Low Budget Range: $3000 – $5000
- Average Range: $10,000 – $15,000
- High End Range: $25,000 – $35,000
When decorating a guest room, you can expect to spend a little less, and should aim for the low end of the budget ranges shown. The guest bedroom is usually smaller than a primary bedroom, and you may not need as much furniture, or as large of a size for your guests. You can also get away with slightly reduced quality pieces (I don’t mean poor quality!) because they may not be getting heavy, daily use like the furniture in a primary bedroom would.
Bedroom Budget Breakdown
For a bedroom, be sure to include the following items in your design and budget.
- bed
- bedding & pillows
- area rug
- chandelier
- decorative accessories
- dresser
- 1-2 nightstands
- 1-2 table lamps
- art/mirror
The top priority item for your bedroom should be the bed, and it also happens to be the biggest expense. The bed will often be the focal point of any bedroom, and can be a key piece of furniture for defining the style of the room. The bedding is also key for defining the color palette and style of the space. Together, you should allocate around 25-30% of your budget to your bed and bedding.
The next largest item on your bedroom budget will be a dresser, coming in at around 15-16%. It’s important to buy the best the best quality dresser you can afford, as it will likely get heavy use. Look for a dresser made of solid wood, with sturdy, smooth drawers. For two nightstands, you should allocated about 14-15% of your budget.
Speaking of nightstands, this is a great place to save a little money! You don’t need heirloom-quality nightstands in a bedroom. Rather, look for attractive nightstands at a lower price, and spend your money on other items that will have more influence on the overall design of the room, like your bed, bedding, and an impressive light fixture.
When I’m creating a bedroom budget, I typically allocate 15% to an area rug. However, if you have carpet in your bedroom, you can skip the area rug, and instead distribute that money toward other items on your list, like your bed, dresser, or window treatments. The remaining 30% of your budget should be allocated to things like decorative accessories, lighting, and art.
Example Budget for Decorating a Bedroom
Here’s an example breakdown for a $10,000 bedroom decorating budget:
Knowing the total cost to decorate a room upfront will not only help you create a reasonable budget, but it can also help you narrow in on the price range you should aim for when shopping for specific items. The ultimate goal is to end up with a beautifully furnished room that looks fantastic and reflects your style, so it’s important to have enough money set aside to buy the items you need to create a room you will love.
Learn the steps to decorating any room in your home
Need an easy, step-by-step recipe to follow to design and decorate any room in your home? Check out my Room Design Recipe course! It will teach you everything you need to know to decorate your home like an experienced pro.
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