21 Small Dining Room Ideas That Will Make Your Space Feel Open And Comfortable

Decorating a small dining area can feel like a difficult task. And while an interior designer might seem like the obvious solution, I suggest that you take a step back and come up with a plan yourself. 

It doesn’t take a lot of imagination to make a small dining space become practical and comfortable, and that’s why I’ve collected some of my favorite small dining room ideas into this post. 

Let me show you how easy it can be. 

Our 21 Small Dining Room Ideas

1 – Let In The Light

When you’re dealing with a small dining area in your home, natural light is the number one thing to get as much as possible. This can be difficult depending on the size of the windows or doors, and the orientation of the room can make it even less practical.

But if you have a large window that faces the sun at least for part of the day, then make sure that your small dining room ideas ensure that you don’t block any of that light. 

Avoid using curtains and blinds, and don’t block the view from your dining space to the window with unnecessary accent pieces. 

2 – Draw Attention To The Ceiling

One of the first things that will stand out in small dining rooms is that you constantly feel like the ceiling is too close to you. 

To make the space feel less enclosing, it’s a good idea to introduce a clever ceiling light that draws attention upwards and tricks the mind into experiencing more space. 

Think of a modern chandelier style that creates a contrast to the rest of the room through shape, size, and color. 

3 – Gain Space With Extendable Tables 

Practicality is one of the most important aspects of a small dining area. And to make a small dining room more practical, you should consider buying an extendable dining table. 

These typically involve adding a section to the center or adding extension pieces to the ends of the dining table. For everyday use, this will save space, but you can still provide enough seating if you have some friends or family joining you for a dinner party. 

And the great thing is that these types of dining room tables come in all shapes and sizes to match your room layout and design. 

4 – Add A Round Table

This is another one of the more important small dining room ideas, as a round table will be a lot more space-saving. First of all, it allows you to add more chairs around it without someone being uncomfortably stuck at a corner section. 

And a round table will also have a smaller footprint meaning it will take up less square footage. 

But this isn’t just a good idea for a small dining room. Even in a large dining area, you’ll find that round tables are a lot more sociable as everyone faces each other for conversations. 

5 – Use Corner Spaces

One design problem many people approach the wrong way in small spaces is that they use layout ideas that work in a large dining area and try to scale it down for a small dining room. 

The best way to get around this problem is to change how you approach your seating arrangement around a dining table. 

Instead of placing the table in the center of your space, start by adding a corner bench and table. Then bring in a couple of chairs and notice how the center of your living space is freed up to move around. 

6 – Add More Seating With Benches

While benches work great for a corner seating arrangement, this type of banquette seating is an excellent way in general to save space. 

By standing a bench up against a wall in small dining rooms, you’re able to move a table out of the center area. And because you’ll fit a lot more people on a bench than on individual chairs, you’ll be surprised how much more practical this is to entertain more people with limited square footage. 

And if you’re very limited with space, then consider having a bench on both sides of the table. 

7 – Draw Attention To The Outside

The best way to make a small dining room look much larger is to draw attention to the outside. 

This works best if you have glass doors opening onto a patio or garden area. If you leave those completely unobstructed, then your view will be automatically drawn to the outside space. 

You can achieve something similar with a large window, especially if you have a nice view to keep your eyes occupied. 

Think about positioning the seating in a way that most people can easily look out, and consider drawing attention to the window or door by framing it with wall colors or accent pieces. 

8 – Expand Into A Kitchen Area

In many cases, a small dining room might actually be part of a small kitchen and dining area. This is very common in city apartments, where you have to be a bit smarter with your small dining room ideas. 

One way to do this is to have your dining table take up a bit of space from the kitchen area. 

Not only does this give you more flexibility, but you’ll also create a more natural flow from one area into the other. 

9 – Take Advantage Of Bay Windows

Most people simply look at a bay window as a nice architectural feature to look at. But in small spaces, you should take full advantage of such features to save space. 

One great option for a small dining room is to have a custom-made window seat made that will act as a banquette bench. Not only will it make more practical use of your available space, but it brings your seating arrangement close to the outside to create more of a sense of openness. 

And the better your view is out of that window, the more enjoyable your dining room will become. 

10 – Avoid All Types Of Clutter

You don’t have to go for completely minimalist designs with bare walls and practically no furniture. But clutter can quickly build up over time in small dining rooms, and the more stuff you have, the more oppressive the dining area will feel. 

Instead, aim to have only a few accent pieces and avoid adding larger pieces altogether. 

A good rule to have is that for every new piece you want to add to your dining room, you have to remove one existing one. 

11 – Add Enough Lighting

Another important thing to remember for your small dining room ideas is to examine how much lighting you need. 

If you have a small window, or your dining area is north facing, then you’ll have limited natural light to take advantage of. In that case, you’ll need to make sure that you brighten up the space with a combination of ceiling, floor, and wall lamps. 

By strategically placing them, especially in darker nook areas of the room, you can create the illusion of more openness and more floor space than you actually have. 

12 – Bring Nature Into Your Dining Room

If you’re stuck for ideas to best accessorize your small dining room, then consider bringing nature into your home. This can be a combination of real and fake flowers and plants, but also nature-themed patterns and images for accent pieces. 

Even just a few items added into a small dining space will break up the impact of larger pieces of furniture like a dining table and chairs. 

And by using completely natural elements it makes those pieces of furniture seem less heavy and intruding. 

13 – Extend Your Kitchen Island

In small dining rooms, you don’t have the luxury of keeping your kitchen area visually separate from the dining space. That means you’ll have to be a bit smarter with how you create a flow from your kitchen into your dining and living room. 

One way to achieve that is by having your dining table run directly from the end of your island. 

Rather than use barstools to have seating at the island, this will bring your dining space directly into the kitchen area, giving you more flexibility to open up the rest of the room. 

14 – Try The Modern Monochrome Effect

This doesn’t mean that you stick with black and white for your small dining room but rather explore combinations of black and one other color. Or even choose two shades of light and dark gray to create a very calming effect. 

The reason monochrome works well for a small space is that it reduces contrast and distractions on the color scale, allowing you to create balance through shapes and patterns. 

You can do this as subtle or as bold as you like, but it’s best to keep some sort of style flowing from a dining room into a living room. 

15 – Create One Clear Focal Point

The big question with small dining room ideas is where do you want to draw your attention to. In larger rooms, it’s typically going to be the dining table and chairs that you might highlight through creative ceiling lights. 

But drawing your attention to the largest piece of furniture in the room could have the opposite effect and close in the room. 

Instead, aim to maybe draw attention to one piece of artwork or a smaller piece of furniture to create the illusion of more space being available. 

16 – Clearly Divide Open Plan Areas

Even in small apartments, it’s important to create some form of division between functional areas. While you might not want to choose different wall colors in a small space, you can still use colors, style, and area rugs to separate the spaces. 

You can achieve this by having tiles in the kitchen area and wood flooring for the small dining room space. This visual divide will make it clear that there are two different areas that make the room feel more spacious than it is. 

Alternatively, you can consider a completely different style of accent pieces on the wall to provide a similar effect. 

17 – Get Creative With Patterns

Having a set flow of patterns and shapes in a small dining space can make sure that you break up the color scheme. While in large rooms, this creates balance to not end up with too much open space, it can have the opposite effect in a small dining room. 

Choose a pattern style like check, and then find accent pieces and furniture upholstery that keep to that same pattern throughout the room. 

You can even incorporate this with modern wall art to make the rooms less intrusive. It’s the perfect way to make it a more fun place to spend time with friends and family. 

18 – Introduce More Colors

In a completely different approach to the monochrome one above, it’s also possible to brighten up small dining rooms by adding more colors. While you want to have one dominant color theme, you can break that up with some carefully chosen accent pieces. 

Try to add more interest with a few cushions in a bright yellow color, or maybe add some pieces of art that contrast with the wall color to completely stand out. 

By making smaller things stand out more, they will make the overall room seem more spacious. You can even highlight these colorful items with carefully placed lighting so that even darker areas will brighten up with light and color. 

19 – Go For A Cafe Style

If you have very limited square footage in a small dining room, then you should consider going for a cafe or bistro-style design. Don’t try to force it into a dining room that can accommodate large parties, as the end result typically is a cramped space that doesn’t work most of the time. 

Instead, choose a small bistro table with just a couple of chairs that are practical for everyday use. And if you do plan to entertain guests, then try to make it informal with people standing rather than sitting down for a meal. 

20 – Add Mirrors To Broaden Your Senses

One of the final things I always recommend to improve small dining rooms is to add at least one large mirror. Whether it’s a door-size mirror from the floor up or you choose a large picture frame mirror, you’ll immediately create the illusion of space. 

Floor standing mirrors can work best as they almost make you feel like there is an additional room just off to the side. Even if your eyes only catch it with your peripheral vision, you’ll end up feeling more comfortable and less confined. 

21 – Draw Attention To Height

And finally, when you’re dealing with any small space, you need to draw attention to the height of the room. You can do this with vertically striped wallpaper or paneling that makes the walls look higher than they are. 

But it’s also possible with a statement ceiling light that demands your attention. Whether it’s the physical design or the patterns of the light and shade it creates on the ceiling, this simple trick can transform a dining room. 

Browse Our Small Dining Room Furniture Today 

No matter how constricted you are for space, we have a large selection of furniture perfectly suitable for small dining rooms. With everything from tables to chairs and plenty of storage furniture, you’ll have all you need to begin designing your layout.

Start by browsing through our dining room furniture collection and get the inspiration for the type of style you want to achieve. 

And if you have any questions about the products we have on offer, then use the contact information on the individual product pages. 

Our customer service team is ready to help you make the right choice.