TV Size Calculator
Drag the couch to your seating distance and get a viewing-angle-based size recommendation — or start from a TV size and find the best distance.
Distance ↔ size, both directions
At 8 ft: 59″–80″(SMPTE 30° → THX 40°)
Recommended: 59″–80″
59″ fills SMPTE's 30° cinema minimum; 80″ reaches THX's 40° immersive angle.
size = 2 × 8 ft × tan(θ/2) ÷ 0.872 → θ=30°: 59″ · θ=40°: 80.2″
TV size to distance, at a glance
| TV size | Immersive (THX 40°) | Standard (SMPTE 30°) | Dimensions |
|---|---|---|---|
| 43″ | 4.3 ft | 5.8 ft | 43″ dimensions → |
| 50″ | 5 ft | 6.8 ft | 50″ dimensions → |
| 55″ | 5.5 ft | 7.5 ft | 55″ dimensions → |
| 65″ | 6.5 ft | 8.8 ft | 65″ dimensions → |
| 70″ | 7 ft | 9.5 ft | 70″ dimensions → |
| 75″ | 7.5 ft | 10.2 ft | 75″ dimensions → |
| 77″ | 7.7 ft | 10.4 ft | 77″ dimensions → |
| 85″ | 8.5 ft | 11.5 ft | 85″ dimensions → |
| 98″ | 9.8 ft | 13.3 ft | 98″ dimensions → |
How to choose
Frequently asked questions
›How far should I sit from a 55 inch TV?
About 5.5 to 7.5 feet. At 5.5 ft a 55-inch screen fills THX's recommended 40° of your field of view (immersive); at 7.5 ft it fills SMPTE's 30° cinema minimum. Both are comfortable — closer favors movies, farther favors casual viewing.
›What size TV should I get for a 10 foot viewing distance?
Roughly 74 to 100 inches by viewing-angle standards: 74" fills SMPTE's 30° at 10 ft and 100" reaches THX's 40°. If that's larger than your budget or wall, a 65–75" TV at 10 ft is still within the comfortable range most people choose.
›Is a bigger TV always better?
No — past about a 40° viewing angle the picture overwhelms your field of view and you start moving your head to follow the action. Screen size should follow seating distance, not the other way around.
›Does 4K change how close I can sit?
Yes. With 20/20 vision you stop resolving individual 4K pixels beyond roughly 0.8× the screen diagonal, versus about 1.6× for 1080p. That means 4K lets you sit close enough for a truly immersive angle without seeing pixel structure — the main practical benefit of the resolution.
›How is TV size measured?
Diagonally, corner to corner of the visible screen, excluding the bezel. A 65-inch TV is about 56.7 inches wide and 31.9 inches tall in a 16:9 shape — check the per-size dimension pages for exact width and height.
›What formula does this calculator use?
Screen width = 2 × distance × tan(angle ÷ 2), with SMPTE's 30° as the standard recommendation and THX's 40° as the immersive end, converted to diagonal for a 16:9 screen. The worked formula is shown under every result.
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