The wall above your bed is one of the biggest spaces in the whole house, and one of the easiest to get wrong. Too small a print floats above the headboard like it's lost. Hung too high, it looks like an afterthought. Get the size and height right, though, and it's the easiest "instant finished room" fix there is.
Here's the sizing logic properly explained, plus the height rule, so you're not guessing.
The sizing rule: two-thirds of your bed width
The starting point is simple — your art (or your art as a group, if you're using more than one piece) should span roughly two-thirds the width of your bed, including the headboard if you have one. Any narrower and it reads as too small for the wall; much wider and it can overwhelm the room.
| Bed size | Bed width | Target art width (two-thirds) | Typical frame size to look for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Single | 90cm | ~60cm | Medium |
| Double | 135cm | ~90cm | Large |
| King | 150cm | ~100cm | Large / XL |
| Super king | 180cm | ~120cm | XL, or a pair of Large |
Treat this as a starting range rather than an exact science — a few centimetres either way won't make or break the room. But it explains why a single small print so often looks stranded above a bed: most beds simply need a bigger piece than people instinctively reach for.
The height rule
Once you've got the width sorted, height is the other place people go wrong.
- With a headboard: leave a gap of roughly 15–25cm (6–10 inches) between the top of the headboard and the bottom of the frame. Any more and the art starts to feel disconnected from the bed; any less and it can look cramped.
- Without a headboard: use the mattress top as your reference point instead, and aim for the centre of the piece to sit at roughly 147–157cm (58–62 inches) off the floor — this keeps it at a natural, comfortable eye height for the room rather than drifting toward the ceiling.
The goal either way is for the art and the bed to read as one composition — connected, not like two separate decisions made at different times.
One statement piece, or a pair?
For most beds, one larger piece is the simplest and most reliable choice — easier to hang level, easier to balance, and it gives the wall a single clear focal point. That's usually the better call over a single-width bed or double.
If you've got a wider bed — king or super king — and one piece doesn't comfortably reach the two-thirds width on its own, a balanced pair of two matching or complementary pieces, evenly spaced and centred together as one group, works better than trying to stretch a single print too wide. Avoid chopping one image across multiple panels here; two distinct, well-chosen pieces read as more intentional.
Our bedroom above bed art prints collection is sized and curated specifically for this spot, so it's a good place to start if you'd rather browse ready-scaled options than do the maths yourself.
What to actually put up there
The subject matters almost as much as the size. A bedroom is the one room in the house that's meant to help you switch off, so busy, high-contrast, or visually loud pieces tend to work against the room rather than with it. Calmer, quieter subjects and a controlled palette are generally the safer, more restful choice above a bed.
A few pieces from our range that work well in this spot:
- I Love You So Much II — soft, warm, and personal without being over-stated, good for a calm double or single wall.
- It Was All a Dream — a quieter, more dreamlike piece that suits a low-contrast bedroom palette.
- Get Naked XI — playful without being loud, works well as part of a considered rather than shouty bedroom scheme.
- Namastay in Bed XVIII — a bit of personality for a bedroom that wants a wink of humour rather than pure calm.
For more options sized and styled for the bedroom generally — not just directly above the bed — the full bedroom art prints collection is worth a browse.
Hanging it properly
Once you've picked the size and height, how you actually get it on the wall depends on your wall type, whether you're renting, and how heavy the piece is — we've covered that in detail separately, so it's worth a look before you reach for a hammer.
FAQ
How big should wall art above a bed be? As a general rule, art above a bed should span roughly two-thirds the width of the bed, including the headboard. For a double bed that's typically around 90cm; for a king, closer to 100cm.
How high should art be hung above a bed? With a headboard, leave a gap of about 15–25cm (6–10 inches) between the top of the headboard and the bottom of the frame. Without a headboard, centre the piece at roughly 147–157cm (58–62 inches) from the floor.
Should I use one large piece or two smaller ones above a bed? One larger piece is usually simplest and most reliable, especially over a single or double bed. For wider beds like king or super king, a balanced pair of two pieces, evenly spaced and centred together, often works better than one oversized print.
What kind of art works best above a bed? Calm, low-contrast subjects — soft landscapes, gentle abstracts, quiet botanicals — tend to suit a bedroom better than busy or high-contrast pieces, since the room's purpose is rest rather than stimulation.
Does the two-thirds rule apply to a gallery-style arrangement too? Yes — treat the full arrangement, frames and gaps included, as the "art width" when applying the two-thirds rule, rather than sizing each piece individually.
Browse the full range built for this exact spot in our above bed art prints collection, or explore bedroom art prints more broadly for the rest of the room.