Enter your wall size and frames, then press the button to see a to-scale layout with exact measurements.
What Is a Gallery Wall Layout Generator?
A gallery wall layout generator turns the three numbers you actually know — how wide your wall is, how many frames you have, and what size they are — into the one thing you actually need: a to-scale picture of the finished wall with every measurement written down. No tape-measure guesswork, no frames hung "about there", and no constellation of abandoned nail holes behind the sofa.
Gallery walls fail in predictable ways. The spacing drifts wider as you work across the wall. The whole arrangement ends up six inches too far left. One row hangs at eye level and the other at forehead level. Every one of those failures is a maths problem, not a talent problem — and maths is exactly what a layout planner is for. Give it the wall, the frames and the gap you want between them, and it computes a balanced grid, centres it on the wall, checks it truly fits, and gives you the corner and centre measurements for every single frame before you touch a drill.
This planner assumes a uniform grid — same-size frames in even rows and columns — because that is the layout most people want and the one where exact measurements matter most. It follows the two rules professional picture hangers use: keep the gap between frames consistent (2 to 3 inches suits most walls), and pay attention to the height of the arrangement's centre, which galleries traditionally set at about 57 inches from the floor.
How to Use the Gallery Wall Layout Generator
- Measure your wall. Width and height in inches, measuring only the usable area — above the sofa back, between the door frame and the corner, wherever the gallery will actually live.
- Enter the frame count and size. Pick the frame size you own (or plan to buy) from the list: 5 x 7 up to 24 x 36 inches, and choose portrait or landscape orientation.
- Set the gap. 2.5 inches is the default for a reason — it reads as intentional grouping without crowding. Drop to 2 inches for small frames, rise to 3 for very large ones.
- Press Plan My Gallery Wall. You get a to-scale diagram of the wall with numbered frames, plus the arrangement's total span, the side and top/bottom margins, the centre height, a per-frame measurement list and a parts list.
- Mark before you hang. Transfer the per-frame centre marks to the wall with painter's tape and a pencil, check the taped outline from across the room, then hang.
Worked example: a 120 x 96 inch wall, six 11 x 14 inch portrait frames and a 2.5-inch gap produces a 3-column by 2-row grid. The arrangement itself spans 38 inches wide by 30.5 inches tall, centred with 41 inches of margin on each side and 32.75 inches above and below — numbers the planner lists for you, along with the centre mark of every frame measured across from the left edge and up from the floor, which is exactly how you will mark the real wall.
The Rules Behind the Layout
The 57-inch centre rule
Museums and galleries hang artwork so its centre sits at roughly 57 inches from the floor — average eye level. The planner reports your arrangement's centre height so you can compare. On a full open wall, centre the arrangement on the wall and the number lands near that mark naturally; above furniture, treat the furniture, not the floor, as your reference (see tips).
Consistent gaps make the grid
A gallery wall reads as one artwork when the gaps are identical everywhere — same space left-right as up-down. The standard range is 2 to 4 inches: tighter for small frames in hallways, wider for large statement pieces. The planner applies one gap everywhere, which is the entire secret.
Centre the arrangement, not each frame
Amateur walls go wrong one frame at a time. The planner instead computes the whole arrangement as a single block, centres the block on the wall, and derives every frame position from that — which is why the margins come out equal and the finished wall looks deliberate.
Validation before decoration
If the frames cannot fit — too many, too large, gap too wide — the planner tells you plainly and suggests which input to change, instead of drawing you a fantasy. That check has saved more walls than any spirit level.
Tips for a Wall That Looks Professional
Tape it first, always. Cut painter's tape or paper templates to frame size and stick the full arrangement up using the planner's measurements. Live with it for a day. Moving tape is free; moving nails is plaster filler.
Above a sofa, plan to the sofa. Measure the wall area from about 6 to 10 inches above the sofa back upward, and treat that band as your "wall height". The arrangement should span roughly two-thirds of the sofa's width, and its bottom edge should sit in that 6-to-10-inch band above the back cushions.
Start from the centre frame's mark. When hanging, fix the centre-most frame first using its centre measurement, then work outward. Small errors then spread to the edges where the eye forgives them, instead of accumulating in the middle.
Mixing photos into the wall? A collage of prints planned here pairs beautifully with our Photo Collage Maker for the prints themselves, and our Minecraft Pixel Art Generator if the "art" in question is a game build rendered block by block. For planning where the furniture goes first, the Seating Chart Generator handles room-style layouts of people rather than frames.
Two hooks beat one on big frames. For 16 x 20 and larger, two hangers keep frames level against bumps and door slams; the parts list reminds you per size.
Leave the arrangement breathing room. If the planner's margins come out under about 6 inches on the sides, the wall is crowded — drop a frame or a size. Galleries look expensive because of their empty space, not in spite of it.
One Wall, Three Rooms: Layouts People Actually Build
The living-room grid above the sofa
The most requested layout in the world: six frames in two rows above a three-seat sofa. Measure the wall band starting 8 inches above the sofa back, keep the arrangement near two-thirds of the sofa's width, and let the planner centre the grid inside that band. Two rows of three 11 x 14s or 16 x 20s with a 2.5-inch gap is the classic answer, and the per-frame centre marks mean the second row lands exactly under the first instead of approximately.
The hallway run
Hallways suit a single row or a 2-row strip of smaller frames — 5 x 7s and 8 x 10s at a 2-inch gap — running at eye level along the wall. Enter the hallway wall's true width (door frames excluded) and the planner's fit validation earns its keep: it will tell you the honest number of frames the run can hold rather than letting you discover it with a drill.
The stairway caution
Stair walls break the one rule this planner is built on: a level grid. A staircase gallery should climb in steps that follow the slope, which no uniform grid can describe. The honest advice is to plan a landing wall or the flat wall at the top of the stairs with this tool, and lay the staircase itself out with paper templates taped along the slope.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much space should be between frames on a gallery wall?
Between 2 and 3 inches suits most walls and frame sizes. Use about 2 inches for small frames (5 x 7, 8 x 10) and up to 3 or 4 inches for large frames. The one rule that matters more than the number is consistency: the same gap everywhere, horizontally and vertically.
How high should a gallery wall hang?
The professional standard is to centre the arrangement at about 57 inches from the floor — average eye level. Above furniture, instead keep the bottom of the arrangement 6 to 10 inches above the furniture's top edge. The planner reports your arrangement's centre height so you can check it before hanging.
What if my frames do not fit the wall?
The planner validates the layout and tells you if the frames cannot fit with your chosen gap, rather than drawing an impossible plan. Reduce the frame count, choose a smaller frame size, or narrow the gap, then plan again.
Can I plan a layout with mixed frame sizes?
This planner is built for uniform grids — identical frames in even rows and columns — because those need the most precise measuring. For a mixed "salon" wall, plan the largest group of same-size frames here, tape that anchor group up first, then fit the odd sizes into the remaining space with paper templates.
How do I transfer the measurements to the wall?
The results list gives each frame's centre mark measured across from the wall's left edge and up from the floor. Mark those points lightly in pencil (or on painter's tape), double-check the full outline from across the room, then hang — starting with the centre frame and working outward.
What do I need to hang the wall?
The results include a parts list tailored to your plan: your frames, one nail or picture hook per frame (two per frame for 16 x 20 inches and up), suitable wall anchors, painter's tape, a tape measure, a pencil and a spirit level.
Is the gallery wall layout generator free?
Yes. It is free, runs in your browser, and needs no sign-up — measure, plan, tape and hang.