Updated October 28, 2026
To plan a gallery wall, lay the frames out on the floor or tape paper cut-outs to the wall before anything gets hung, keep 2 to 3 inches between frames, and hang the whole group with its center about 57 inches from the floor in a grown-up room, and 48 inches in a nursery or any kids' room. In a kids' room, size the group to about two-thirds of the furniture below it and use one set in one size, and the layout nearly plans itself.
That's the method. The rest of this post is the measuring, and seven layouts I use on real kids' room walls.
When a gallery wall goes wrong, the art is rarely the problem. The trouble starts at the tape measure: frames too small for the wall, gaps that wander from 1 inch to 4, a group hung a foot higher than anyone looks. Every layout below comes with numbers you can copy. They're built around our gallery sets, where every print in a set comes in the same size, because matching sizes are the fastest way to a wall that looks planned.
Jump to a section:
- How do you plan a gallery wall?
- How do you measure a gallery wall?
- Gallery wall layouts for kids' rooms
- What frames work best for a gallery wall?
- How do you hang a gallery wall safely in a kids' room?
- Questions parents ask
How do you plan a gallery wall?
I use the same seven steps every time, whether it's three prints over a crib or six over a bed.
- Start with the furniture, not the wall. Measure the crib, bed, dresser or bench the art will sit above. The group should cover about two-thirds of its width. A 54-inch crib wants about 36 to 40 inches of art. A 40-inch dresser wants about 27.
- Pick one set in one size. Same-size prints keep every gap even without any fiddling. Each of our gallery sets lets you choose 1, 2, 3, 4 or 6 prints from one look, all in the same size.
- Choose the shape. A row, a pair, a grid, a looser salon cluster, a slant up the stairs or a ledge. The layouts below show which one suits which wall.
- Lay it out on the floor. Put the frames on the floor in front of the wall and move them around until the group looks balanced. Take a photo from standing height. It shows you things your eye skips over.
- Make paper templates. Trace each frame onto kraft paper or leftover wrapping paper, cut it out and mark where the hanger sits on the back. Tape the templates to the wall with painter's tape and leave them up for a day.
- Mark the hanging points through the paper. Once the templates look right, mark each nail or hook point straight through the paper, then peel the paper away.
- Hang from the middle out. Hang the center frame first and work outward. Check each frame with a level, and keep a scrap of cardboard cut to your gap size as a spacer.
Renting, or not ready to put holes in the wall? My How to hang pictures without nails post covers strips, hooks, ledges and rails, and how much each one holds.
How do you measure a gallery wall?
Three numbers do most of the work: how wide the group is, the gaps between frames, and how high its center sits.
Start with the width. Add up the widths of the frames in one row, then add the gaps. Three prints 12 inches wide with two 2-inch gaps come to 40 inches. Three 16-inch prints with the same gaps come to 52. The widths in this post are prints plus gaps. Your frames add a border on every side, so measure one frame and redo the math before you mark the wall.
Then the gaps. Keep 2 to 3 inches between frames, and keep that number the same everywhere. I use 2 inches for small prints and closer to 3 for big ones, so the gap grows with the art. Uneven gaps are the first thing a visitor's eye finds.
Then the height. Hang the group so its center sits about 57 inches from the floor, and leave 6 to 8 inches between the bottom of the frames and any furniture below (Architectural Digest). That 57 marks the center of the whole group, not the top of one frame. When the furniture is tall, the 6 to 8 inches above it decides the height instead.
Kids' rooms bend that number down. Over a crib I center the group at about 48 inches, where you actually see it from the glider, and my nursery gallery wall post walks through why. It can stay at 48 as your child grows, in a toddler room and a big kid's room too. My How high to hang pictures (and art above a crib) post has the heights for every wall in a kids' room.
Last, the nail point. You hang a frame from its hanger, not its center, so here's the sum. Take the height you want the frame's center at, add half the frame's height, then take away the distance from the top of the frame down to its hanger. For an 18-inch-tall frame centered at 57 inches with its hanger 2 inches below the top: 57 plus 9 is 66, minus 2 is 64. The nail goes in 64 inches up.
If you're still choosing sizes, my Picture frame and print sizes: the complete chart post lays out the standard sizes side by side.
Gallery wall layouts for kids' rooms
Each one below comes with its measurements and a few of our sets that suit it. Widths are prints plus 2-inch gaps unless I say otherwise.
1. Row of three over the crib
If I could only teach one layout, it would be this one. Three matching prints in a straight row read as one calm block, and a row is the easiest gallery wall there is to hang level.
Measurements:
- Three 12x18 prints: 40 inches wide, a comfortable fit over a 54-inch crib.
- Three 16x24 prints: 52 inches wide, nearly the whole crib.
- Center the row at about 48 inches. With 18-inch-tall prints, the bottom edge lands around 39 inches.
Best for: a crib, a long dresser or a window seat.
These three sets each make a soft row. Polar bears swim between ice floes and curl up with their cubs under peach pink skies, in peach, misty blue and snowy white. Elephant mothers and babies wade through water lilies and pink lotus flowers in a gentle watercolor style, in warm cream, soft grey and blush pink. Whales swim under a pale gold moon among seaweed and bubbles, in slate blue and sea green. All three keep to soft, pale colors, which is what a crib wall wants.
Over a crib, hang the art securely with proper hardware, never tape or one small nail, and choose the framed version with kid-safe plexi, not glass.
For more calm sets that suit a crib wall, browse our neutral nursery wall art.
2. A pair over the changing table
Two prints, side by side or stacked, suit the smaller walls in a nursery, like the one beside the glider or either side of a window. Over the changing table they're my first choice.
Measurements:
- Two 8x12 prints side by side: 18 inches wide. Good over a small changing table.
- Two 12x18 prints side by side: 26 inches wide.
- Two 12x18 prints stacked: 12 inches wide and 38 tall, for a narrow strip of wall between a door and a corner.
- On either side of a window, line the tops of the frames up with the top of the window trim.
Best for: a changing table, a narrow wall, a window.
Baby farm animals on blush pink, each in a pink polka dot bow tie, from a foal dozing in the hay to a smiling piglet, in blush, cream and honey tan. Or little fairies among clouds and butterflies, one curled up asleep on a lilac cloud, in powder blue, blush and lilac. The fairies are a best seller, and both read sweet at arm's length, which is where changing-table art gets seen.
Over the changing table, I hang the frames high enough that a baby on the pad can't reach them. My above the changing table post has more ideas for that wall.
3. Grid of four over a dresser
Two rows of two make a neat block that stays tidy even in a busy room, which is why I use it so often in playrooms. It sits well over a chest of drawers, a toy chest or a playroom bench.
Measurements:
- Four 8x12 prints: 18 inches wide and 26 tall.
- Four 12x18 prints: 26 inches wide and 38 tall, about two-thirds of a 40-inch dresser.
- Leave 6 to 8 inches between the top of the dresser and the bottom row.
Best for: a dresser, a toy chest, a playroom bench.
Animals out sailing in a soft watercolor style, a lion scanning the sea through a spyglass and a dolphin napping in a rope hammock on deck, in sea blue and gentle green. Cowboy geese in brown hats on warm tan, one galloping on a chestnut horse and one strumming a banjo by the campfire. Or folk-art-style jungle animals inside blue-and-green striped borders, a tiger lying among tropical leaves and a hippo resting in a little pond. All three have enough going on to hold their own on a busy playroom wall.
Anchor the dresser to the wall too (CPSC).
More playroom-ready art is in our playroom wall art collection.
4. Grid of six over a bed
Two rows of three give a big wall plenty to look at, without one huge frame hanging over a sleeping child.
Measurements:
- Six 8x12 prints: 28 inches wide and 26 tall. This one sits well over a twin bed.
- Six 12x18 prints: 40 inches wide and 38 tall, for a full or queen.
- Leave 6 to 8 inches between the top of the headboard and the bottom row.
Best for: a twin, full or queen bed.
Six only works with a set that has six or more designs to choose from, and these three have plenty. Puppies and dogs in a loose watercolor sketch style on white, from a boxer puppy in a play bow to a grey schnauzer with a bushy beard (12 designs). Soft grey woodland animals among bright folk flowers on tan, each in a pink dashed border, from a bunny leaping over a flower bed to a curled-up hedgehog (9 designs). Or mermaids in cream, aqua, mint and rose pink, one holding a lotus flower among butterflies and one sitting on a rock with koi fish (11 designs). Each set keeps to one palette, so any six you choose go together.
Over a bed I use the same rule as over a crib: proper hardware into a stud or a wall anchor rated for the weight, and kid-safe plexi rather than glass.
Browse more in our above-bed wall decor collection.
5. Salon wall in a reading corner
Here the sizes mix: frames sit in a close cluster, and the outer edge of the group makes a loose rectangle. It's the most personal layout and the easiest to get wrong, so I build it around one larger print and keep every gap the same.
Measurements (one way to do it):
- One 18x24 print in the middle.
- On the left, a 12x16 above an 8x10. On the right, an 8x10 above a 12x16.
- With 2-inch gaps, the group is 46 inches wide and about 28 tall.
- Over a reading chair in a kids' room, the same 48-inch center works.
Best for: a reading nook, a long wall with no furniture, a playroom corner.
For a reading corner I'd keep it to one story, a night in the woods: a big brown bear and a little boy by a campfire under a swirling starry sky in the middle, with a bunny on a log under glowing fireflies, a tiny mouse on a stump looking up at the moon, a white bear holding a lantern under the stars, and a fox curled up asleep on soft moss. Each one feels like the start of a bedtime story. They all come in the same upright sizes, which is what makes a salon wall of singles line up.
There are more storybook animals in our woodland wall art sets.
6. Staircase gallery
A slanted wall is the one place where the line of frames climbs, and a set that tells a little story works well on the way up to bed.
Measurements:
- Mark 57 inches up from the front edge of the lowest step under the art, and again from the highest step. Run painter's tape between the two marks. That slanted line is where every frame's center goes.
- Keep 3 inches between frames, and let each one step up with the stairs.
- Four 12x18 prints take about 57 inches of wall from side to side. Six 8x12 prints take about 63.
Best for: a staircase, or a sloped attic wall.
Horses under misty blue skies, from a mare and foal galloping across a meadow to three white horses walking out of the mist. Bears under pink skies and blue mountains, two cubs climbing a mossy log. Or bold orange tigers on deep navy wrapped in swirling teal lines, from one curled asleep to one sitting tall with its chin raised.
On stairs I want every frame on proper hardware. Nothing should be able to drop onto a child on the steps.
For more, browse all our kids' wall art.
7. Picture ledge
Families who like to change things should start here. The frames lean on a narrow shelf with a lip, so you can swap a print, add a drawing from school or reshuffle everything without a new hole.
Measurements:
- Check the ledge's limits before you choose frames. IKEA's 45¼-inch MOSSLANDA ledge, for example, lists a maximum load of 16.53 pounds and is recommended for pictures no taller than 17¾ inches (IKEA). Screws aren't included, so pick fasteners that suit your wall.
- On a ledge like that I stick to small prints, like an 8x10 or an 8x12, and still check the framed height against the ledge's limit.
- Layer them: the tallest frame at the back, the smaller ones in front, each overlapping the one behind by about a third.
- Mount the ledge so the frames' centers land near 57 inches, or at 48 in a playroom or kids' room.
Best for: a playroom, a toddler room, any family that swaps art often.
Leaning frames lift off easily. That's the point of a ledge, and it's also the thing to watch with a climber in the house. I mount ledges above toddler reach and choose kid-safe plexi for everything on them.
A little space explorer having a picnic on the edge of a glowing planet, sandwich and juice in hand, under a sky full of golden stars. A space shuttle launching into the stars. A small dinosaur with a very big grin. The shuttle and the dinosaur are best sellers, and all three come in the 8x10 size that suits a ledge.
More space art lives in our space wall art sets.
What frames work best for a gallery wall?
I'd match them: one color, one profile and one size, so the art does the talking. If you want to mix, change only one thing: matching frames with mixed sizes (the salon wall), or mixed frames with matching sizes. Change both and the wall starts to look like a yard sale.
Our frames come in natural oak, walnut, white and black, with kid-safe plexi or real glass. Every print in one of our gallery sets comes in the same size and the same finish, so the frames match without any effort on your part. You can also choose framed canvas in a floating frame, or unframed prints if you already have frames you love.
How I'd choose:
- Natural oak for most kids' rooms. It's warm and it suits almost any palette.
- White oak for a pale, airy nursery.
- Walnut when the room already has darker wood furniture.
- Black for bold, graphic art, like vintage airplanes or race cars, in an older child's room.
Over a crib, over a bed or anywhere a child can reach, I choose kid-safe plexi. Our gallery wall sets offer it in every frame color.
How do you hang a gallery wall safely in a kids' room?
In a nursery I center a gallery wall about 48 inches from the floor, eye level from the glider. I keep the same 48 inches in a toddler room and a big kid's room, so the art can stay put as your child grows. Over a crib or a toddler bed, choose the framed version with kid-safe plexi. Leave 6 to 8 inches between the bottom frames and any furniture below.
Keep the crib itself empty except for a fitted sheet (NIH Safe to Sleep). For art over the crib, hang it securely with proper hardware, never tape or one small nail, and choose the framed version with kid-safe plexi, not glass. Anchor dressers and bookcases to the wall too (CPSC).
Adhesive strips are handy for light frames on other walls, but Command's own instructions say not to hang its picture products over beds (Command). Over a crib or a bed, I always use proper hardware.
Gallery wall questions parents ask
What is the easiest gallery wall layout for beginners?
A row of three matching prints. It's one straight line, the gaps are easy to measure, and it suits a crib, a dresser or a bed. Use the same size for all three and keep 2 inches between them.
How far apart should pictures be on a gallery wall?
2 to 3 inches between frames, and the same gap everywhere. I go closer to 2 inches for small prints and closer to 3 for large ones.
How high should a gallery wall be?
In a grown-up room, center the whole group about 57 inches from the floor, and keep 6 to 8 inches between the bottom frames and any furniture below. Over a crib I center it at about 48 inches. In a toddler or big kid's room I keep it at 48 too.
How many pictures do you need for a gallery wall?
Three is the smallest group that reads as one piece. Four and six make tidy grids, and a salon wall can take as many as the wall holds. Our gallery sets come as 1, 2, 3, 4 or 6 prints from one look, which covers every layout above except the salon wall.
Should all the frames on a gallery wall match?
In a kids' room, I'd match them. Matching frames keep a wall full of animals, stars and color from looking busy. If you want variety, mix the sizes and keep the frames the same.
How do you plan a gallery wall without making holes?
Paper templates and painter's tape leave no marks, so do all the planning with those. For the hanging itself, light frames can go up on adhesive strips (never over a crib or bed), and a picture ledge or rail lets you change the art without new holes. My How to hang pictures without nails post compares all four.
What size prints work for a gallery wall over a crib?
Three 12x18 prints make a row about 40 inches wide, a comfortable fit over a 54-inch crib. Three 16x24 prints make a row about 52 inches wide, nearly the whole crib. My nursery gallery wall post shows both on the wall.
Shop gallery wall sets
Each layout above begins with one look: choose 1, 2, 3, 4 or 6 prints from it, all the same size, in our gallery wall sets. For the bed wall, browse our above-bed wall decor. If the wall is in a nursery, our nursery wall decor is the place to start, and my Nursery ideas: the complete guide covers the rest of the room.
Tape the paper up first. Everything gets easier once you've seen it on the wall.