Bedroom wall art ideas: what to hang above the bed

A bedroom is the one room where wall art should not compete for attention. It is the last thing you look at before sleeping and the first thing you see waking up, which makes it a poor place for anything visually loud. The goal is a room that feels settled.

That single idea drives almost every decision below.

Start with the wall above the bed

The wall behind the bed is the natural focal point, and it is where most bedrooms either work or fall apart. The bed is already the largest object in the room, so art placed above it has to relate to the bed rather than float independently.

Two arrangements reliably work:

• One larger piece, centred. The cleanest option. Aim for a print roughly two thirds the width of the bed. Above a queen bed that means A1 or a large A2. Anything smaller looks stranded on the wall.
• A pair, side by side. Two matching A3 or A2 prints with a consistent 5 to 8 cm gap. This suits a wider wall and feels more deliberate than three or more pieces, which start to get busy directly above a sleeping area.

Whichever you choose, centre the arrangement on the bed, not on the wall. If a wardrobe or door means the bed is off-centre in the room, the art still follows the bed. Your eye reads the bed and art as one unit.

Get the height right

Above a bed, forget the standard eye-level rule. Measure from the headboard instead. Leave roughly 15 to 25 cm between the top of the headboard and the bottom of the print.

Too much gap and the art appears to drift toward the ceiling. Too little and it feels cramped, and you risk knocking it when sitting up against the headboard. If you do not have a headboard, work from the top of the mattress and add a little more clearance.

Choose colours that settle the room

Bedrooms suit a narrower, warmer palette than living areas. Soft, low-contrast artwork reads as restful; high-contrast, high-saturation work reads as energetic, which is the opposite of what the room is for.

Practical directions that work well:

• Warm neutrals. Clay, sand, terracotta, and cream tones feel calm without being cold. These work in almost any bedroom and date slowly.
• Soft botanicals and line art. Light, airy, and easy to live with. Good for bedrooms that already have a lot going on with bedding and curtains.
• Muted greens and deep blues. Nature-referencing tones that feel restful. Effective if your bedding is neutral and you want the art to carry the colour.

Pull one colour from something already in the room, such as bedding, a rug, or curtains, and let the art echo it. That single repetition is what makes a room look considered instead of assembled.

Matte paper in a bedroom

Every paper print is supplied on 200gsm matte fine art paper; there is no gloss option. Matte diffuses light instead of reflecting it, which is what you want when a bedside lamp or a window faces the wall — a reflective finish would put a bright patch above the bed at exactly the wrong moment.

Matte also reads a little softer and deeper than a screen preview. Compare the design against the wall in the evening as well as in daylight before ordering a larger size.

Small bedrooms and shared rooms

In a small bedroom, resist the urge to fill every wall. One well-scaled piece above the bed and nothing else will make the room feel larger than four small prints spread around it. Empty wall is a design element, not a gap to fill.

For a shared bedroom, the pair arrangement above the bed is a practical way to reflect two tastes without the wall becoming an argument. Two prints that share a palette but differ in subject read as intentional.

Other bedroom walls worth using

The wall facing the bed is underused. It is what you actually look at while lying down, so it suits a piece you genuinely enjoy rather than one chosen only to match the bedding.

A dressing area or the wall above a chest of drawers works well for a single smaller print in A4 or A3. Keep it in the same palette as the main piece so the room stays coherent.

Mounting above a bed

Anything hanging above where someone sleeps needs more care than a picture on a hallway wall. Confirm the mount is rated for the full frame weight and the wall surface, follow its preparation and curing instructions, and check it periodically.

A shelf or picture ledge avoids the question entirely. If you are using adhesive strips, fix them to a frame rather than to the print. The guide to hanging without drilling sets out each option and its limits; the size guide has the measurements.

Ordering from the UK

The UK range is unframed matte paper prints on 200gsm fine art paper, supplied without a mount or hanger, plus assembled Classic framed prints in A4, A3 and A2. Metal posters and desk mats are made in our Pakistan studio and are not sold in the UK.

Prints are A-series: A4 is 21 x 29.7 cm, A3 is 29.7 x 42 cm and A2 is 42 x 59.4 cm. Classic frames use the same sizes.

Prints are made to order and delivered in 5–10 business days. Delivery costs £5.95, or is free on orders of £55 and above. Pay by credit or debit card. Prices are in pounds.

Fixed-design prints can be cancelled for any reason within 14 days of delivery. Custom prints made from your own image cannot be cancelled. If an order arrives damaged, defective or incorrect, tell us within 30 days and we will replace or refund it.

Shop matte paper prints or Classic framed prints, or print your own artwork. Delivery and returns are set out in full on their own pages.