What TV size actually fits your room?
Answer five quick questions and get the screen size the SMPTE and THX viewing-distance standards actually support — plus 1–3 TVs from our cited database that fit your room, your light, and your budget.
The 60-second Room-Fit quiz
The interactive quiz needs JavaScript — if it isn’t showing, the cited table below gives you the same answer: find your seating distance, read across.
The viewing-distance math table (SMPTE · THX)
How the quiz computes your size: a 16:9 screen’s width is 0.872× its diagonal, so each viewing angle maps to a minimum diagonal per distance. SMPTE’s 30° is the “cinematic feel” reference; THX’s 36° is its back-row certification minimum and 40° its recommended best seat (distance ≈ diagonal ÷ 0.84).
| Seating distance | SMPTE 30° minimum | THX 36° back row | THX 40° best seat | Common sizes that fit |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4 ft | ≥ 30″ | ≥ 36″ | ≥ 40″ | 32″ / 40″ / 42″ / 43″ |
| 5 ft | ≥ 37″ | ≥ 45″ | ≥ 50″ | 40″ / 42″ / 43″ / 48″ / 50″ |
| 6 ft | ≥ 44″ | ≥ 54″ | ≥ 60″ | 42″ / 43″ / 48″ / 50″ / 55″ / 60″ |
| 7 ft | ≥ 52″ | ≥ 63″ | ≥ 70″ | 50″ / 55″ / 60″ / 65″ / 70″ |
| 8 ft | ≥ 59″ | ≥ 72″ | ≥ 80″ | 60″ / 65″ / 70″ / 75″ / 77″ / 83″ |
| 9 ft | ≥ 66″ | ≥ 81″ | ≥ 90″ | 65″ / 70″ / 75″ / 77″ / 83″ / 85″ |
| 10 ft | ≥ 74″ | ≥ 89″ | ≥ 100″ | 75″ / 77″ / 83″ / 85″ / 98″ |
| 11 ft | ≥ 81″ | ≥ 98″ | ≥ 110″ | 83″ / 85″ / 98″ |
| 12 ft | ≥ 89″ | ≥ 107″ | ≥ 120″ | 98″ |
| 14 ft | ≥ 103″ | ≥ 125″ | ≥ 140″ | 98″+ (or a projector) |
4K note: with 20/20 vision (1 arc-minute, Snellen), 4K detail stops being fully resolvable beyond ~1.56× the screen diagonal — the THX seat sits comfortably inside that limit; the SMPTE minimum sits right at its edge. Sub-4K panels (720p/1080p) in our database are flagged on their cards.