Renter-Friendly Upgrades
Calculators that help you plan upgrades you can undo: how much to buy, what size fits and what it really costs over your lease.
Walls and floors
Cover walls, backsplashes and floors with materials that come off when you move.
Peel and Stick Wallpaper Calculator
Enter your wall and roll size to see how many rolls of peel-and-stick wallpaper to buy, with pattern matching and trim included.Open the calculatorPeel and Stick Tile Calculator
Enter your backsplash or floor size and pick a product to see how many sheets, packs or boxes of peel-and-stick tile to buy.Open the calculatorVinyl Plank Flooring Calculator
Pick your plank and enter the room's size to see how many boxes to buy, how many rows fit across the room and how wide the last one is, with the gap and stagger the makers ask for.Open the calculatorRug Size Calculator
Pick a room, sofa, bed or dining table and get the standard rug size that fits, using the spacing guidelines rug makers recommend.Open the calculator
Hanging things and windows
Plan a gallery wall, hang frames and dress windows without guessing at weights and sizes.
Command Strip Calculator
Enter your item's weight and size to see which adhesive strip size to use and how many pairs, based on the manufacturer's published ratings.Open the calculatorGallery Wall Layout Generator
Enter your frame sizes and where the wall goes to get a balanced gallery wall layout: the total size, the space between frames and where each frame goes, measured from the floor.Open the calculatorTV Size & Viewing Distance Calculator
Enter the distance from your seat to the screen to see which sizes Samsung's rules point to (2 times the size to 1.2 times, a 40° field of view), or check a size for its width, its fit and the height to hang it (42 in to the center, SANUS's seated eye level).Open the calculatorCurtain Size Calculator
Enter your window and ceiling measurements to get the panel width, number of panels, ready-made length and rod length, plus how high to hang the rod.Open the calculator
Lighting
Work out how many lumens a room needs and how many plug-in lamps that takes, and how high to hang a pendant.
Lumens Calculator
Pick the room and enter its size to see how many lumens it needs, how many bulbs that takes in plug-in lamps, and how much light to aim at a desk, a counter or a book.Open the calculatorPendant Light Height Calculator
Pick where the pendant hangs and enter your ceiling and fixture to see how high its bottom should be, the cord or chain that leaves, how to space pendants over an island, and the cord a plug-in swag pendant needs.Open the calculator
Kitchen and bathroom
Swap cabinet knobs and pulls that fit the screw holes already there, check the room an island, a cart or a dining table needs, and find how high towel bars and the toilet paper holder go.
Cabinet Hardware Size & Placement Calculator
Measure the screw holes already in your cabinets to get the pull size that fits them, check it against the makers' size guides, or find where new knobs and pulls go on each door and drawer.Open the calculatorKitchen Island & Cart Clearance Calculator
Enter the open floor in your kitchen and the island or cart you have in mind to see whether it leaves room to cook, walk past and sit, and the largest top that fits.Open the calculatorDining Table Size Calculator
Enter the open floor where the table goes to see the largest rectangular, round or square table that leaves NKBA's room behind every chair, how many it seats at 24 in a place, and which of the makers' common sizes fit. Or check a table you have your eye on.Open the calculatorTowel Bar & Toilet Paper Holder Height Calculator
Pick what you're hanging and the towel or robe it holds to see the lowest height that keeps it off the floor or vanity, the reach range for someone in a wheelchair, and where the toilet paper holder goes.Open the calculatorSmall Bathroom Layout Calculator
Enter the room, the fixtures along the long wall and the door to see whether the layout meets the 21 in and 15 in code minimums and NKBA's roomier 30 in and 18 in, drawn in plan, with the floor left for a shelf or cabinet.Open the calculator
Cooling, heating & air quality
Size a window or portable AC, a space heater, a dehumidifier or an air purifier for your room.
Window AC BTU Calculator
Enter your room size, how sunny it is and how many people use it to see how many BTUs your window air conditioner needs and which common size to buy.Open the calculatorPortable AC BTU Calculator
Enter your room size, sun and household to see the SACC rating a portable air conditioner needs, the number on the box that tells you how much it really cools.Open the calculatorSpace Heater Size Calculator
Enter your room's size and a few details about the building to see how many watts of heat it needs, whether one plug-in heater is enough and what it costs to run.Open the calculatorDehumidifier Size Calculator
Enter your room size and how damp it feels to see what dehumidifier capacity to buy, based on ENERGY STAR's sizing chart. You can also convert an older pint rating to today's labels.Open the calculatorAir Purifier Size Calculator
Enter your room's size and ceiling height to see the minimum smoke CADR an air purifier needs, for everyday use or wildfire smoke, or check a purifier you already have in mind.Open the calculator
Planning and furniture
Check what an upgrade costs per month of your stay, and whether the couch makes it through the door.
Renter Upgrade Cost Calculator
Enter what an upgrade costs, how long you'll stay and what you'll keep when you move to see its real cost per month, with the deposit risk spelled out.Open the calculatorWill My Couch Fit Through the Door?
Enter your sofa's measurements and your door, hallway or elevator to see whether it fits, and which way to carry it.Open the calculator
Upgrades that come off when you move
Most leases let you decorate, but they expect the unit back the way you got it. That's why these calculators lean toward changes you can undo: peel-and-stick wallpaper and tile, rugs, curtains, adhesive strips instead of nails, and appliances that plug in and leave with you.
Shopping for the hardware too? The no-drill curtain rod guide matches each kind of rod to a window and says how it comes off at move-out, the guide to hanging curtains without drilling shows how to put one up step by step, and the blog collects the other guides as they're published. For storage, the over-the-toilet storage guide compares units that stand on the floor with ones that need the wall, and the over-the-door organizer guide matches organizers that hang from a door to what you want to store. The storage ottoman guide adds a seat that hides things, the vacuum storage bag guide shrinks off-season clothes and bedding, and the shoe storage guide finds a spot for shoes without built-ins. In a studio, the room divider guide splits the bed from the living space with screens and curtain frames that need no drilling. For bare windows, the no-drill blinds guide matches shades on a spring rod, stick-on shades and magnetic door blinds to a window, and the jewelry organizer guide keeps necklaces and rings tidy without nails. No closet? The clothing rack guide compares rolling racks, open wardrobes and closet systems, and for a room with no ceiling light, the floor lamp guide matches plug-in lamps to a dark corner.
Each one asks for a few measurements and gives you a number you can shop with: rolls, packs, panels, a rug size, a BTU or watt rating. The page under every calculator shows the formula and the assumptions behind the answer, so you can check it against the package or the product listing before you buy.
Hanging art? The gallery wall layout generatorarranges your frames with even spacing and gives the height of each one, so you can plan the wall on paper before a single strip goes up. For a room without a ceiling light, the lumens calculator works out how many lumens it needs and how many plug-in lamp bulbs that takes. Underfoot, the vinyl plank flooring calculator counts the boxes of click-lock or peel-and-stick planks for a room and works out the rows.
In the kitchen, the cabinet hardware calculator turns the screw holes already in your cabinets into the knob and pull sizes to shop for, so a hardware swap needs no new holes. The kitchen island calculator checks whether an island or a rolling cart leaves room to cook, walk past and sit, and the dining table size calculator finds the table a dining nook takes with room to pull out the chairs. In the bathroom, the towel bar height calculator works out how high to hang a towel bar, ring or hook for your towel, and where the toilet paper holder goes. The small bathroom layout calculator checks a bathroom's clearances against the code minimums and NKBA's guidelines, and shows what floor is left for storage. The TV size calculator picks a screen for the distance to your sofa, checks whether it fits the wall or stand, and gives the height to hang it.
Know the risk before you start
Some upgrades need your landlord's permission, and a few can cost part of your deposit if they leave marks. Where they apply, the calculators show three badges:
- Deposit Risk: how likely the upgrade is to leave damage you could be charged for, from fully reversible to holes or a permanent change.
- Landlord Permission: whether you can usually go ahead, should check your lease, or need written permission first.
- Take It With You: whether the upgrade moves with you when you leave.
The badges are general guidance, and leases differ. When you need to ask, the permission to paint letter shows how to put a request in writing, and the other letters and checklists cover repairs and moving out.
Comfort that plugs in
A window or portable AC, a space heater, a dehumidifier or an air purifier can change how a rental feels without touching the walls. Sizing one for your room keeps you from paying for a unit that can't keep up, or one that's bigger than the space needs. The sizing calculators use ENERGY STAR, AHAM and manufacturer guidance, and show what a unit costs to run.
Plan the whole project
Before you buy, the renter upgrade cost calculator spreads the price over the months you'll live there, minus what you can take with you or resell. And if the upgrade is a new couch, check that it fits through the door first.