Pick an arrangement and frame size to get the total footprint, exact spacing, hanging heights, and a to-scale preview.
Hanging heights assume a standard 57" eye level, the museum convention. Raise the centre a few inches if the wall sits above furniture, and measure to the hanging hardware rather than the frame top when you mark the wall.
Every hole you patch is a hole you measured wrong. Five minutes here saves an afternoon of filler and touch-up paint.
Pick a grid or a row and get a to-scale preview plus the total footprint, so you know it works on the wall you actually have.
Centre-to-centre spacing and heights from the floor — the numbers you mark on the wall, not vague advice about eyeballing it.
Uses frame dimensions rather than print sizes, because an 8×10" print in a mat needs about 11×14" of wall.
No signup. Try arrangements until one fits, then write the numbers down.
Why frame size is the number that matters, the spacing that makes frames read as one piece, and how to get the height right the first time.
The single most common gallery wall mistake is measuring with print dimensions. A frame adds moulding, and a mat adds two to three inches on each side, so the wall space a piece occupies is considerably larger than the art inside it.
| Print size | Typical framed size | Extra wall space |
|---|---|---|
| 5×7" | 8×10" | +3" each way |
| 8×10" | 11×14" | +3–4" each way |
| 11×14" | 16×20" | +5–6" each way |
| 16×20" | 20×24" | +4" each way |
| A4 | A3 frame | +3–4" each way |
Across a 3 × 3 grid that difference compounds: nine 8×10 inch prints span 24 inches unframed but around 33 inches framed, before any gaps. That is the gap between a layout that fits and one that does not.
Symmetry beats cleverness
Grids and straight rows of identical frames are forgiving: they look intentional even if your measuring is a little off. Salon-style arrangements with mixed sizes need real planning and a paper template on the floor first.
Galleries hang so that the centre of the work sits at roughly 57 inches from the floor, which is average standing eye level. For a multi-frame arrangement, treat the whole block as one piece and centre that block at 57 inches — not each individual frame.
Two situations justify breaking the 57-inch rule: above furniture, where you leave 6 to 10 inches of clearance above a sofa or console, and in a stairwell or hallway with high ceilings, where the whole arrangement can sit higher.
A grid layout demands a coordinated set. Nine unrelated images in matching frames still look like nine unrelated images, which is why gallery walls are usually sold as collections rather than single prints.
Before you send a set to print, confirm each file can print sharp at the size you need.
Everything you need to know about this free tool.
Two to three inches is the standard for a grid, and it reads as one composition rather than scattered frames. Go to 1.5 inches for small frames in a tight grid, and no more than 4 inches for large pieces — beyond that the arrangement stops looking deliberate.
Centre the whole arrangement at about 57 inches from the floor, which is standard gallery eye level. This tool converts that into the top and bottom edge heights for your specific layout, so you can measure straight onto the wall.
Leave 6 to 10 inches between the top of the sofa and the bottom of the lowest frame, and keep the arrangement narrower than the furniture — roughly two thirds of the sofa width looks balanced. That usually means raising the centre above 57 inches.
The frame's outer size. A framed and matted 8×10 inch print occupies roughly 11×14 inches of wall, so planning from print dimensions leaves an arrangement that is far wider than you calculated.
Yes, completely free with no signup.
That's InkEngine. Give it one idea and it generates a whole matching, print-ready collection — the coordinated set a grid layout needs, at 300 DPI and sized for standard frames. Start free, no credit card.
A grid only works when the pieces belong together. InkEngine generates a whole coordinated, print-ready collection from one idea — on autopilot.