TV size for viewing distance
Measure from your eyes to the screen, find the row, and pick within the range. Both columns are geometry from published viewing angles; the last column is the screen size from which 4K looks sharper than 1080p to 20/20 eyes.
| Distance | SMPTE 30° | THX 40° | 4K beats 1080p from | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4 ft | 30" | 40" | 31" | Details |
| 5 ft | 37" | 50" | 38" | Details |
| 6 ft | 44" | 60" | 46" | Details |
| 7 ft | 52" | 70" | 54" | Details |
| 8 ft | 59" | 80" | 62" | Details |
| 9 ft | 66" | 90" | 69" | Details |
| 10 ft | 74" | 100" | 77" | Details |
| 11 ft | 81" | 110" | 85" | Details |
| 12 ft | 89" | 120" | 92" | Details |
| 13 ft | 96" | 130" | 100" | Details |
| 14 ft | 103" | 140" | 108" | Details |
| 15 ft | 111" | 150" | 115" | Details |
| 16 ft | 118" | 160" | 123" | Details |
Why two numbers
SMPTE's 30° is the widely quoted figure for everyday viewing; THX's 40° is a home-cinema figure. They differ by about a third in screen size at any distance, which is the honest range: a living room used for everything sits near the first, a dedicated film room near the second. The last column shows why the 4K argument depends on the room: at 10 feet, 4K only looks sharper than 1080p on screens of about 77 inches and up.
How to measure your distance
Sit where you normally watch and measure from your eyes to where the screen will be, not to the wall. A TV on a stand sits several inches in front of the wall; a full-motion mount can bring it a foot or more forward. If several seats are used, measure the main one and check the farthest: if the farthest seat is more than about a third further away, the screen will feel small from there at the SMPTE size, so lean toward the THX figure.
Rooms by distance
- 4 feet: Four feet is gaming-chair and desk distance: a console player pulled up close, or a TV doubling as a computer...
- 5 feet: Five feet is a small bedroom with the TV on a dresser at the foot of the bed, or a reading nook. Viewing is...
- 6 feet: Six feet is a typical apartment bedroom or a narrow den. A wall-mounted screen gains you the depth of a stand,...
- 7 feet: Seven feet is a compact living room — a loveseat facing a media unit — or a generous bedroom. It is also the...
- 8 feet: Eight feet is close to the classic sofa-to-wall distance in an average living room. It is the distance most TV...
- 9 feet: Nine feet is a roomy living room with a coffee table between sofa and screen. Two people on a three-seat sofa...
- 10 feet: Ten feet is a large living room, or a room where the sofa backs onto a walkway. This is where many households...
- 11 feet: Eleven feet often means an open-plan room with the seating in the middle. Sound starts to matter as much as...
- 12 feet: Twelve feet is a great room or a long lounge. The standards call for screens most TV lines don't make, so the...
- 13 feet: Thirteen feet is a large basement den or a family room with a sectional along the far wall. At this distance a...
- 14 feet: Fourteen feet is usually a dedicated media room or a very deep living room. Only the very largest TVs approach...
- 15 feet: Fifteen feet is the back row of a home theater or a long converted garage. Rooms like this are normally built...
- 16 feet: Sixteen feet is beyond the depth of most living rooms and into home-cinema planning. Even the everyday 30°...
For any distance not listed, use the calculator. The method is on the methodology page, and the room-size guide walks through it with examples.
Viewing distances are geometry from published viewing angles: a 16:9 screen's width is 0.8716 x its diagonal, and the distance at which it fills a horizontal angle A is width / (2 x tan(A/2)). Resolution distances use the 20/20 acuity limit of one arcminute per pixel. The same formulas reproduce the reference figures quoted in the source (30 degrees = 1.6264 x diagonal; 31.2 degrees for 1080p; 58.37 degrees for 4K).