Average Sq Ft Of A Bedroom

Check out our guide for the size of the average bedrooms in the US and how measurements have changed over time, as well as the costs of additions.

Primary Bedroom with dark hardwood flooring, gray walls, candle chandelier, wooden furniture, cozy seats, cowhide rug and a French door leading out to the balcony.

Though the size of the average American family has decreased since the mid-twentieth century, over the same amount of time the average bedroom size in the United States has exponentially increased, as well as the average house size in the US.

Over the past 30 years families have seen a 25 percent decrease in size, but the average house sizes have grown by almost 50 percent. The average square footage of a house in the mid 1970s was around 1,500 square feet. In the decades since, this average has increased to an average house size of over 2,000 square feet. Where in the past bedrooms and especially bathrooms were shared among multiple family members, it is now common for every member of a family to have their own bedroom, if not their own bathroom as well.

Master Bedroom Average Size

Spacious primary bedroom with carpet flooring, beige walls, white framed windows, comfy chaise lounge, sitting area, dark wood furniture, and a drum chandelier.

The master bedroom in the house is the largest of all the bedrooms. It's also frequently known as the primary bedroom. A master bedroom tends to take up about 11.3 percent of the space of the average home in the United States. Master bedrooms in newly-constructed homes average about 14 feet by 16 feet, or 224 square feet (20.8 square meters or 32,256 square inches). Typically, a master bedroom is built in a rectangular or square shape, but can be found in more varied shapes, as well.

Today's master bedroom is more often a master suite, complete with a large or walk-in closet and full bathroom. Often, master bedrooms are built with a walk-in closet that can measure about 150 square feet. The increase in the amount and size of closets and bathrooms in master suites alone can partially explain why the average size of a US home has increased so greatly in the past decades.

The modern conventional wisdom surrounding home construction is that a master bedroom should be at least large enough to house a king size bed, which has a frame of 10 feet by 12 feet. People often keep other furniture pieces in their bedrooms as well, and need to be able to move around their bedroom easily. The average master bedroom size measurements are smaller for queen beds, which are approximately 60 inches by 80 inches, or five feet by 6.67 feet. While a bedroom with a smaller bed, like a queen size bed, would need to be smaller than a bedroom with a larger bed, like a king size bed, a smaller bed can still be used in a master bedroom that can fit a larger bed size.

The average ceiling height in a home at present is 9 feet (2.7432 meters). Many people feel cramped when they find themselves under a ceiling of a height lower than 9 feet, so nowadays people building homes frequently opt for 10 foot ceilings. Fifty years ago, in the 1970s, the average ceiling height was 8 feet (2.44 meters). Though it may seem that one foot could not be significant so long as a ceiling is well above the average person's head, an additional foot or two greatly opens up a room to the eye.

When it comes to average bedroom door sizes, there is an established standard height but there is not one standard width. Instead, there are several different standard door width sizes for bedrooms that are typically used. The standard height of a bedroom door is 80 inches or six feet eight inches, while the width of a door can be anywhere from 24, 28, 32, to 36 inches.

White door with chrome handle opening to a luxury primary bedroom.

Windows are an essential feature of any room. They let natural light illuminate a room, and allow for occupants to view the world outside. There is no true standard window size for any room, but there are recurring patterns within window sizes in the average American home. The windows in an average American home can vary in width from 36 to 84 inches, while the height can vary from 24 to 60 inches.

Kids Bedroom Average Size

Kids bedroom with wide plank flooring, white walls, light wood dresser, comfy bed, pendant light, ladder and cute posters.

Children's bedrooms are often smaller than the master bedroom, and are also often considered the standard size bedroom in a house. There are often more than one standard size bedrooms in a house.

Most standard bedrooms share a set of common characteristics. For example, they usually have only one window and a much smaller closet than that of the master bedroom. This closet is also not typically a walk-in closet, but rather a reach-in closet. It is also common to see that these bedrooms converted into other rooms. Some examples include a gym, a guest bedroom, or a study. Standard bedrooms take up, on average, about 17 percent of the overall house size.

The average size of a kids' bedroom is 11 feet by 12 feet, or an average square footage of 132 square feet. However, the average children's bedroom can be as small as 10 feet by 10 feet (100 square feet or 9.29 square meters). The code to which a bedroom must be built is a minimum of seven by 10 feet. Any room smaller than this minimum bedroom size is considered not up to code.

Kids bedroom with sky blue walls, hardwood flooring, glazed windows, blue bed, white desk and chair, wall clock and board, white sconce and a soccer ball bean bag.

When it comes to other aspects of the room, the average measurements tend to be the same regardless of whether it is a master or standard size bedroom. Just like a master bedroom, the average ceiling height for a kids' bedroom is 9 feet (2.7432 meters). For a bedroom to be up to code, the ceiling height must be at least 7 foot 6 inches high. Windows and doors tend to follow the same trends as those of master bedrooms, though they also tend toward the smaller side.

Small Bedroom Problems and Solutions

When it comes to any kind of bedroom, it's important to remember one essential element that can make a space more or less inhabitable: the bedroom layout. There shouldn't be too much furniture in a bedroom, and any bedroom furniture should be able to open and close fully and easily without having to move the furniture piece every time. Additionally, one should be able to move around the bedroom without bumping into things.

Here are a few ways to save space in smaller bedrooms and also make them feel larger.

In a Master Bedroom:

Consider smaller bedroom furniture pieces, or bedroom furniture that serves more than one purpose. For example, instead of placing a bench at the end of your bed, you could consider a storage bench or chest that can be used both for seating and storage.

Try to declutter the master bedroom. This includes picking clothes up from the floor and making the bed. You'd be shocked how a neat and tidy room makes any space seem so much larger!

In a Kids' Bedroom

Use vertical space. This can be done in many different ways, but we'll place two below.

If you have limited space, and you have to have some of your children share a bedroom, consider adding bunk beds to the kids' bedroom! This allows you to put two beds within the floor space of one twin bed. Plus, what kid doesn't want a bunk bed?

Additionally, you can use vertical space by adding shelves, whether wall-mounted or in the form of a bookcase. Using vertical space not only allows you more storage than simply using horizontal space, it also leaves more room on the floor – for playtime, obviously!

Bed Dimensions Chart

Bed dimensions chart

We'd be remiss to not include bed sizes when writing about the average bedroom size for different types of bedrooms.

Crib dimensions: 28″ W x 52″ L (some cribs are bigger though).
Twin bed dimensions: 38″ W x 75″ L
Twin XL bed dimensions: 38″ W x 80″ L
Full/Double bed dimensions: 54″ W x 74″ L
Double XL bed dimensions: 54″ W x 80″ L
Queen bed dimensions: 60″ W x 80″ L
King bed dimensions: 76″ W x 80″ L
California King bed dimensions: 72″ W x 84″ L
Wyoming King bed dimensions: 84″ W x 84″ L
Alaska King bed dimensions: 108″ W x 108″ L

Quotes From Architects

Bedroom drawing gradation into photograph

Brett Hand Architect, P.C

Brett not only responded within an hour, he was also incredibly helpful. He told us that his hourly rate is $125, and the amount of time it take to build a master or standard size room varies depending on the materials used. He said that building rooms can vary in cost from $3,000 to $30,000. If you are interested in learning more about Brett, or in contacting him about a new room or renovation to your existing bedroom, click here.

The average cost of adding a new bedroom on a house ranges from $50 to $250 per square foot. The material used for the room, along with its finishes, can increase the cost of a room addition quickly, as well. If you are considering hiring an architect to design your room addition, you should know that is going to add anywhere from $875-$2,500 to the cost of your addition. However, we would strongly recommend hiring an architect. If you're going to spend a lot of money on a room renovation or addition, you want it done right. So, hiring an architect, whose job is to design buildings and rooms, is an excellent decision.

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Average Sq Ft Of A Bedroom