Measuring for Your Furniture

Measure the whole path, not just the room

Whether you're furnishing a rowhome in Catonsville, a split-level in Towson, or a high-rise in the Baltimore metro area, the room your new piece will live in is rarely the hardest part of the trip. Measure every point the piece has to pass through on the way there:

• Doorways — width and height, and whether the door itself can be temporarily removed from its hinges
• Stairwells — width, ceiling height, and the turn radius at each landing
• Hallways — width at the narrowest point and any corner pivots along the route
• Elevators — door opening width, interior depth, and diagonal clearance for apartment and condo deliveries
• Railings, light fixtures, thermostats, and door handles that project into the path

If any single point is tighter than the others, that's your limiting dimension — it doesn't matter how well the piece fits the room if it can't get past the stairwell landing.

How furniture dimensions are actually taken

Manufacturer spec sheets list width, depth, and height, but knowing exactly where those measurements are taken keeps you from guessing wrong:

• Width is taken at the widest point of the piece, including arms on a sofa or handles on a dresser
• Depth runs from the front edge to the back of the piece
• Height runs from the floor to the tallest point, including a sofa back or a headboard
• Diagonal depth — corner to corner, from the front bottom corner to the back top corner — is the number that determines whether a piece can pivot around a tight turn

For sectionals and large upholstery, ask whether the piece breaks down into separate sections for transport; many of the sectionals and reclining sofas we carry ship in modular pieces specifically to clear narrow Maryland rowhome stairwells. The same question applies to a solid wood dining table with removable leaves and to any storage bed or dresser that arrives as a single boxed unit.

Room-by-room measuring notes

Living room

Leave at least 30 inches of walking clearance around a sofa or sectional, and measure the diagonal wall-to-wall distance if you're placing a large entertainment console against a specific wall.

Dining room

Allow 36 inches between the table edge and the nearest wall or cabinet so chairs can slide out fully — a common miss when upgrading to a larger table from our dining room collection.

Bedroom

Confirm ceiling height against headboard height for tall poster or canopy beds, and measure closet door swing against dresser placement before finalizing your bedroom furniture layout.

Prepare for delivery day

Clear the room and the path before the truck arrives, and remove the piece you're replacing if it's staying in the house. Our crews set up and assemble your new furniture on-site, but they cannot move existing furniture out of the way or disconnect electronics, wall-mounted TVs, or wired sound systems — that has to be done ahead of time. Full pricing and scheduling details, including live truck tracking, are on our delivery page.