Guide · For the trade
Entryway rug size: the numbers for a door, a foyer and a gallery entry
The entryway rug size that works in most houses is 4x6 inside a single 36-inch door, 5x8 in a foyer that is 8 feet wide or more, and 6x9 or an 8 ft round in a two-story foyer; a 2x3 is a doormat and a 3x5 only fits a vestibule. The rug should be at least a foot wider than the door opening, leave 12 to 18 inches of floor at the walls, and clear the door swing, which means a rug and pad under 3/4 inch at the door or a rug that starts past the arc.
This is the guide for the junior drawing the entry plan and the designer checking it before the order: the entry types and the rug for each, the door clearance that decides more specs than the width does, the runner, rounds, and the custom size when nothing standard fits. Fiber and construction are in the entryway rugs guide; this one is about size.
Start with the door, not the room
Three measurements decide the entry rug before the room does. The door width: a single door is 36 inches, a pair 60 to 72 inches, and the rug should run at least 6 inches past the opening each side, so a single door asks for 48 inches of rug and a pair for 72 or more. The door swing: an inswing door clears the floor by 1/2 to 3/4 inch, and a rug on a pad is 1/2 to 1 inch thick, so either the rug starts past the arc or the construction is a flatweave on a thin pad. The traffic line: the rug covers the path from the door to the hall or the stair, because a rug that ends 2 feet short of where people turn is the one that gets kicked up.
Rug size for entryway by entry type
| Entry | Typical floor | Rug | Floor showing | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Vestibule or apartment entry | 4 by 5 to 5 by 6 ft | 3x5 or 2.5x7 runner | 6 to 12 in | Flatweave or low pile so the door clears |
| Standard entry | 6 by 8 to 7 by 10 ft | 4x6 or 5x8 | 12 to 18 in | Rug at least 48 in wide for a 36 in door |
| Foyer | 8 by 10 to 10 by 12 ft | 5x8, 6x9 or 6 ft round | 18 in | Center on the door or the chandelier, not both |
| Two-story foyer | 12 by 12 ft and up | 8x10, 8 ft round or custom | 18 to 24 in | Scale to the stair and the fixture |
| Gallery or long entry | 4 to 6 ft wide, 12 to 20 ft long | Runner 32 or 36 in wide, 10 to 16 ft long | 12 to 16 in each side | Stop 18 in short of the stair nose |
The standard entry: why 4x6 and not 3x5
A 3x5 is 36 by 60 inches, the width of the door, so it reads as a mat. A 4x6, 48 by 72 inches, runs 6 inches past the door each side and 6 feet into the house, to the console or the first step; in a 6 by 8 entry it leaves 12 inches at the sides and 24 at the far end. Go to 5x8 when the entry is 7 feet wide or more, or when a bench or console should sit with its front legs on the rug.
The foyer: rectangle, square or round
In a foyer the rug is centered on something, and that sets the size. Centered on the door, a 5x8 or 6x9 with the long side running into the house. Centered on a chandelier or a round table, a 6 ft round in a foyer to 9 by 9 feet, an 8 ft round at 10 by 10 to 12 by 12, a 10 ft round above that; the round rug sizes guide has the table. A square foyer often wants a square rug, 6x6 or 8x8, cut from broadloom, because a rectangle in a square room points at a wall. Whatever the shape, hold it 12 to 18 inches off the bottom step.
The long entry and the runner
A gallery entry is sized like a hall: a runner 27, 32 or 36 inches wide with 12 to 16 inches of floor each side, from just inside the door swing to 18 inches short of the stair or the next doorway. A 4 ft wide entry takes a 27 or 32 inch runner; a 5 or 6 ft wide one takes 36 inches. Standard lengths are 8, 10, 12 and 14 feet; longer is a custom cut from broadloom, which is also how a runner and a foyer rug come in the same pattern. The hall runners guide covers the stair-to-hall transition.
When the entry rug is a custom size
Entries are the most irregular rooms in a house: angled walls, a closet door on the side, a 7 by 11 floor that no standard size fits. For those we cut and bind from broadloom, any width, any length, square or round, in 3 to 5 weeks, so the rug leaves exactly 12 inches at every wall and starts where the door swing ends. A wool flatweave or a low loop at 1/4 to 3/8 inch is the usual choice because it clears the door; the custom size rugs guide explains the ordering.
What to tell the installer
- Confirm the door clearance on site with the pad in hand before the rug is cut; 1/2 inch is the usual gap and a 3/8 inch rug on a 1/8 inch pad clears it.
- Pad full-size, 1 inch short of the edge, with a rubber or felt-and-rubber pad on stone, tile and wood; an entry rug without a pad slides.
- Center on the line the drawing names, door or fixture, square to the main wall, and hold 12 to 18 inches off the stair nosing and any threshold.
Questions designers ask
What kind of rug should be specified for an entryway?
A dense, low wool or wool-nylon construction in a mid-tone or a pattern, under 3/8 inch where it sits in the door swing, on a non-slip pad. The entryway rugs guide covers fiber and construction.
Does a round rug make a small entry look bigger?
It can. A round rug has no edges parallel to the walls, so the eye does not measure the room against it, and the corners stay open. In a square entry under 8 by 8 feet a 5 or 6 ft round often reads larger than a 4x6 rectangle, as long as 12 inches of floor shows at the nearest wall.
What is a 2x3 rug used for?
A doormat, a bath mat or a sink mat. At 24 by 36 inches it is narrower than a 36 inch door, so it is never the entry rug; it is the mat in front of a larger rug or on the step outside.
Is a 9x12 rug actually 9 by 12 feet?
Usually not. Machine-made rugs run 2 to 4 inches short each way, often 8 ft 10 in by 11 ft 10 in, and hand-made rugs vary by an inch or two. Draw to the nominal size with 18 inches of margin; if the fit is tight, a custom cut from broadloom is made to the inch.
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