Sample Budgets For Living Rooms, Dining Rooms, and Bedrooms
Psst! If you haven’t read through my strategy for how to stay organized and on budget for a project, start there first and then come back here. It’ll provide some good context for this one!
No matter whether your budget is large or small, figuring it out ahead of time will serve you well and keep you on track so you know what you have to spend. I’ve found there’s freedom when you’re working within defined parameters - it makes the shopping part more fun and a really positive experience.
Sample budgets for decorating projects
I thought it would be helpful if I worked off of some real numbers for three different rooms at two different price points so you can get a sense for how things shake out piece-by-piece. Of course there’s no one right way to spend a chunk of change since everyone has different prioritizes, and different rooms have different needs, but this’ll get you started!
I created sample budgets for a living room at $5,000 and $10,000, a dining room at $5,000 and $8,000, and a bedroom at $5,000 and $10,000. Why these two price points? Because these are pretty typical amounts for many of my e-design clients - they’re ranges I know well! $5,000 is also a good base to work from generally - it’ll get you a few good pieces and you can mix in some budget-friendly items to round it out.
If you’re able to spend a little more, $10,000 is going to increase the quality of everything across the board and you’ll be able to invest in a few pieces that’ll last you a good while.
This isn’t to say this is what you should spend on your home - that’s completely up to you and your budget! My goal here is to give you a starting point for thinking through
Sample Budgets for a Living Room - $5,000 and $10,000
Living rooms usually require quite a few pieces of furniture and decor, so it’s easy to spend quickly! You have to be really thoughtful with a $5,000 budget (that’s about as low as I’d want to go to furnish a living space from scratch) especially if you’re hoping for decent quality sofa and chairs, but it can be done! Going up to $10,000 allows for a little more breathing room and you can upgrade the quality of a few more pieces as well.
Here’s how I’d spend $5,000:
And here’s how I’d spend $10,000:
Sample Budgets for a Dining Room - $5,000 and $8,000
$5,000 is a pretty nice budget to start with for a dining room and I think you can put together a great space for that amount. I bumped up the next tier to $8,000, which will give you more flexibility to invest more on a dining table, chairs, or buffet for example. Or, you could spend that extra $3,000 on things like adding wallpaper or built-ins, which aren’t things I included in my sample budgets, but they could certainly be added!
Here’s how I’d spend $5,000:
And here’s how I’d spend $8,000:
Sample Budgets for a Bedroom - $5,000 and $10,000
Finally, let’s take a look at a couple of sample budgets for a bedroom. Here I included typical items you’d need minus a mattress since I see that as a more personal decision that folks make on their own apart from the rest of the furniture and decor. I think $5,000 is a great starting point and will get you set up quite well with some good pieces that you can mix in with other more budget-friendly ones. If your budget is more like $10,000, that’ll go a long way - you can definitely add in some investment pieces at that price point.
Here’s how I’d spend $5,000:
And here’s how I’d spend $10,000:
As you’re planning your project, you can use these line item budgets to help you figure out how you’d like to allocate your pennies in your overall budget. Scale things up or down as needed!
