30 Brilliant TV Wall Ideas That Don’t Sacrifice Style

Let’s be honest: A television is often the centerpiece of our living rooms — but admittedly, they’re not the most attractive feature of the space. But if you don’t have the budget for the covetable Samsung Frame TV that doesn’t mean you’re destined to be stuck with an enormously large black box in the middle of your living area.

In this article, we’ll give you 30 TV wall ideas to get the creative juices flowing. Trust us — there’s definitely a way to fit your TV into your living room’s decor, no matter what sort of setup you have. 

Mounting a TV on the wall isn’t always an option, especially if you are in a rental. But if a mounted TV is the route you’re taking, make sure it’s at the perfect height. 

“People tend to mount TVs too high, which puts the neck in an unnatural, uncomfortable position while watching,” says Laura Webb, design center director at Artful Provisions. “As a simple rule of thumb, your TV looks best mounted six to eight inches above a media cabinet or other piece of furniture that functions in the space.”

There isn’t a definitive rule for styling the rest of the wall around your TV, whether mounted or not. Depending on your style, try one of these ideas: 

• Choose a neutral wall shade for a classic vibe. TVs generally look nice against whites, off-whites, and grays.  
• If you’re looking to camouflage your screen a bit, consider going with a dark paint color like black or deep navy blue. You can also surround your TV with a vibrant gallery wall, so it blends in. 
• Want an eye-catching home theater? A bold paint color, such as mint green or red, will make your TV take center stage. 

Check out some of our favorite TV wall decor ideas below, and maybe you’ll be inspired to finally figure out how to decorate around your screen.

The owners of this Brooklyn townhouse nailed the eclectic library vibes in their living room. They surrounded their TV with built-ins filled with books on books on books, which prevents your eye from focusing too much on the big black screen in the center of the room.

If you want to camouflage your TV, go dark, like the owners of this eclectic Austin home did. Paint (or install wainscoting on) a black accent wall behind your television. When the TV is off, you’ll hardly know it’s there. Add matching dark furniture to pull everything together.

If you can’t seem to make a TV look good in your space, keep it low-profile. The living room in this London house shows off a 70s-inspired interior, with vintage decor pieces and a funky fireplace. The TV sits on a rolling cart in the corner of the room.

With oversized cabinets, sculptures, and lamps, the TV in this historic LA home blends in seamlessly. It sits on top of decorative vintage corner cabinets, making it look like another piece of decor.

Whimsy is definitely not lacking in this colorful Oakland apartment where Rachel Kaplan found a renter-friendly way to camouflage her bulky TV that doesn’t quite match the vibe. She placed a colorful striped tapestry over her television that sits on top of a wooden TV stand, allowing it to blend in with the rest of her fun decor.

The artwork above the TV in this Scandinavian-inspired Netherlands apartment is like a gallery wall, but it strictly consists of unique 3-D mirrors. The mirrors make the room look bigger while taking focus away from the television.

If you live in a small space and have a fireplace, it likely takes up the whole room. But that doesn’t mean you need to hang your TV above the fireplace. Add a long console table, like the one in this minimal California house and add a couch opposite of it so you can be comfy while you catch up on your shows.

Why not get rid of your TV altogether? That’s easier said than done (how else are you going to watch your comfort movies?), but this NYC renter shows how he did it in his minimal apartment. Simply swap out the TV with a pull-down projector screen. You can pull it down for movie night and push it back up into the ceiling to make more room when you’re not watching. If you have a tight living area, this is the perfect space-saving solution.

As evidenced by Millie Sims’s Charleston home, oversized art works perfectly when it’s strategically positioned behind large TVs. Not only does it create a lovely focal point, it’s much less effort than a gallery wall. 

This designer decluttered her TV room — and simultaneously made it more stylish and functional — by using guitars (which were formerly stored on the floor) as art pieces. 

Soozi Danson transformed her TV wall by sketching out shapes onto her wall with a pencil, then filling in each shape with paint sample pots. She chose a black background for behind the screen, which creates an aesthetically pleasing camouflage.

Though Apartment Therapy author Kelsey Mulvey’s very detailed lease didn’t technically prohibit mounting a TV on her rental wall, she wanted to be a great tenant. Placing the television in one of her large built-ins created a pleasantly off-center look and balanced the identical, book-filled built-ins on the opposite side of the fireplace.

“There’s nothing that brings the vibe of a room down more than a big black box when the rest of the space is bursting with color,” says designer Giovanna Macejka. That’s why she covers her TV with a big, fluffy blanket and lets her other decor do the talking!

Blogger Mary Ann Pickett designed a black-and-white photo wall surrounding her son’s TV. This decorating move keeps the space looking calm and collected but adds some visual interest when the television is not on. If you’re looking for a clever way to showcase those favorite family pictures, this might be the right solution for you.

For a fun, whimsical look, arrange a bunch of your favorite plants around your TV, like @martaa_grylewicz_h.o.m.e has done. Get creative with a combination of short and tall, and add some trailing vines to make it seem like the plants are “framing” your TV. 

The Samsung Frame TV (which we’ve reviewed here) is a great option for anyone who wants to transform their television into a work of art. Just pick a background or piece of art from their options to keep on the screen, then shock your guests when ESPN suddenly appears on it with just a click.

Blogger Carrie Waller decided to group her Samsung TV with a couple of other frames to create a mini gallery wall with boho flair above her console. That way, the television blends in seamlessly with its surroundings when it’s not on. Yes, this idea works best with thin televisions, but you can get a similar effect by mounting any flat screen TV this way.

Blogger Chrissy McDonald also owns a Samsung Frame TV and styled it solo in her living room. She picked a traditional background that complements the neutrals in the room, and the piece could easily be mistaken for an oversized piece of art! Keeping styling simple lets the background truly shine in her space. If you have a smart flat screen television, you could recreate this same effect with a favorite free wallpaper or family photo, too.

Blogger Kelly Larkin hung her TV above her living room fireplace and let her preppy accessories on the nearby shelves do the talking. If your television is displayed between built-ins that are styled out like this, try to keep the background behind the television itself simple and clutter-free, so as not to create too much visual stimulus. This will also help you focus on what you’re watching.

Blogger Katrina Blair implemented a similar setup in her living room, which once again demonstrates how placing a television atop a plain white backdrop certainly isn’t boring when there are built-ins involved. You can even use the surface directly below the television for a few objects, too. Just be sure to choose things that fit below the screen — or on its sides — so you aren’t obstructing the view.

Blogger Joanna Charron’s television blends right into her colorful, modern gallery wall! Her design proves that there’s no need to sacrifice personality and whimsy in order to incorporate technology into a space. Also, if blending your television into a gallery wall is your goal, don’t be afraid to add shelving and greenery to the setup. Anything you’d use in a regular wall art arrangement is fair game.

Prefer a minimalist look? Blogger Mackenzie Horan kept the wall behind her TV crisp, clean, and simple. Blue-and-white accents atop the media console tie in with her living room’s color scheme without overwhelming the space. And yes, you can totally use lamps around your television as long as you keep them to the sides of the screen (and keep them off while the TV is in use to prevent glare).

If you’re looking for fireplace wall ideas with a TV, this one is for you. Blogger Ashley Fultz also opted for a minimalist look, and her television fits perfectly in the space above her fireplace. If you prefer a sleek and modern space, such a setup is definitely ideal.

If your built-in shelving comes with a bench area as seen in this Australian home, don’t be afraid to jazz that surface up with some plants or other small items. A little greenery can go a long way, even when you are unwinding inside and streaming Netflix.

Blogger Dabito went bold and colorful with his Frame TV and styled it in a bedroom that couldn’t look like a more vibrant place to hang out. Like others with this television, he supplemented the background he chose with equally stunning pieces of framed artwork. And again, you could get a similar effect to this with any flat screen really, even if it just looks like a black rectangular box most of the time — it’ll still blend in better than if it were by itself on a wall.

Love shiplap? Make like blogger Becky Daly and design your own shiplap-backed entertainment center. Give your walls the attention they deserve by keeping other artwork and accessories to a minimum.

When creating a serene space, keep excess decor and artwork to a minimum. Blogger Tyler of Girl Meets Gold created the most relaxing living room, eliminating extraneous pieces around the television in favor of a simplified look. This is often your best bet if you’re placing a television on a small stretch of wall, like the bump-out fireplace area seen above.

Bloggers Sherry and John Petersik also found a creative camouflaging solution that doesn’t involve drilling into a piece of furniture but rather required moving around a power strip and installing an in-wall cord system. The couple has a full step-by-step tutorial on their site.

Just because your living room has a fireplace doesn’t mean you’re required to hang your TV above it. Blogger Shelley Westerman chose to mount her television beside her fireplace and surrounded it with a stunning gallery wall. This bold decorating move wouldn’t have been possible if she had mounted the TV over the fireplace, due to lack of space. Do what works best for you and your room.

This Cape Town home is another example of a situation where hanging a television over the fireplace wouldn’t be feasible (placing a sofa across the room would render the bar area unusable). Since the room already features a large piece of art, keeping the area surrounding the TV frame blank keeps the space looking nice and neat.

Blogger Jules Acree of Om and the City customized her Samsung TV by setting the background to feature some of her favorite personal photographs. This is an excellent way to display meaningful pieces while still contributing to a light, airy, and clutter-free look.