11 Minimalist Living Room Ideas to Simplify Your Space

The living room is a place to gather and relax, so it’s the perfect place to achieve a minimalist style. Incorporating a minimalist design style is an easy way to get away from the hustle and bustle of everyday life so you can relax in an intentional and calm space.

If you’re imagining an all-white space with sparse furniture, think again. Just as you don’t want a minimalist room to look cluttered or cluttered, you don’t want a minimalist living room to seem impersonal or boring. Don’t be afraid to embrace colors, textures, and natural elements in your space, as long as they don’t overwhelm the room.

To help you update your living space, we’re sharing our best minimalist living room ideas. Stick to the essentials and add a few hand-picked details to capture your design style without adding clutter.

01. Use Clean Lines and Basic Shapes

Pair angular furniture (like this Better Homes & Gardens Mid-Century Solid Wood Chaise longue from Walmart, $197) with simple, classic shapes for a minimalist look without sacrificing functionality. Here, a large circular mirror and circular coffee table soften the lines of this unisex living space, while cosy textiles provide an enticing texture. When decorating a sparsely furnished room, choose luxurious textures and fabrics, such as blankets and rugs, to add comfort and personality that often comes from artwork or décor.

02. Hang a Personalized Mirror

To make a minimalist living room look spacious and airy, hang a mirror above the fireplace. If you don’t have a fireplace, you can decorate a blank wall. In this minimalist room, there is no traditional mantelpiece, making large octagonal mirrors popular. Crisp layups add an understated farmhouse feel and are perfect as a backdrop, while vibrant patterned rugs prevent the room from becoming monotonous.

03. Rely on Natural Textures

With limited décor and neutral tones, a minimalist living room design can easily become boring. An easy way to prevent this is to adopt natural textures whenever possible. Here, wood, leather, and jute upholstery add texture to neutral rugs and linen sofas, creating an inviting, earthy feel.

04. Simplify Your Color Palette

This monochrome living room shatters the myth that minimalist spaces must be all white. To add a color that isn’t cluttered, choose a single color with subtle variations in hue. Here, green wall paint creates a serene backdrop for green sofas and velvet armchairs. Small accents of warm yellow and gold make the space feel warm and inviting, but not crowded.

05. Embrace Natural Light

If you’re lucky enough to have large windows in your living room, use natural light as a decorative element. It immediately creates a bright, airy atmosphere that makes your space appear larger and more open. In this space, high ceilings and large windows without curtains allow the colorful furniture to stand out without overpowering the minimalist living room.

06. Invest in Practical Pieces

One of the principles of minimalist design is that all the furniture used in the space should be functional. The brown leather Eames-style chairs in this modern living room are both sophisticated and comfortable. As the walls, curtains, and artwork are all fairly soft, chairs and bright carpets secure the seating area.

07. Add Storage Space to Hide Clutter

Whichever décor style you choose, the living room needs to be a functional gathering place. If you have a lot of clutter, such as electronics or children’s toys, look for a storage solution that keeps everything accessible but out of sight. Here, simple furnishings and white interiors make the room look sparse while providing plenty of storage for all your home movie night essentials.

08. Scandinavian Style

This minimalist living room exudes Scandinavian style with pastel tones, natural touches and textures. Sloping walls and round tables add visual interest, while large branches provide colors that can be easily changed with the seasons. Large sofas and simple chairs provide ample seating without adding clutter to the space.

09. Choose Neutral Colors

Various shades of white and cream give this minimalist living room a sense of tranquility. The pure white brick fireplace complements the off-white walls and cream carpet, adding a subtle dimension without introducing new colors. The neutral base allows the personalized coffee table to be the focal point and inject personality into the living area.

10. Start with a Texture

This living room is textured, but neutral tones create an airy feel. With the exception of the sofa, each piece of furniture has an open base, which is extremely lightweight and in line with the minimalist aesthetic. The thin legs of coffee tables, ottomans, and feature chairs create more visual floor space, giving the illusion that the space is larger than it actually is.

11. Embrace Accent Colors

Minimalism doesn’t have to be colorless. While many minimalist living rooms feature neutral wall colors, it’s perfectly fine to adopt brighter tones (like this cheerful orange) while maintaining a streamlined look. The clean lines of the wall form give dimension to the space, while the monochrome accent wall provides a neat base for the intentional decorative pieces.