How high to mount a TV above a fireplace?
164 cm (65 in) to the centre, above a 120 cm (47 in) mantel
Above a 120 cm (47 in) mantel, the centre of a 55-inch TV sits 164 cm (65 in) from the floor, with its bottom edge at 130 cm (51 in). From 2.7 m (8 ft 10 in) away you look up 19° to its top edge, more than the 15° home-cinema guidance allows; from 3.5 m (11 ft 5 in) away it comes within it.
Above a fireplace the mantel decides the height, not your eyes. The screen starts just clear of the mantel and everything else follows from that, which is why it ends up so far above eye height. The honest answer is that it is too high to be comfortable from a normal sofa distance.
Three things help. Sit further back, where the angle is gentler. Use a bracket that tilts the screen down. Or put the TV in the alcove beside the chimney breast at eye height, and give the wall above the fire to a picture or a mirror. Ask the fire's maker how much clear space it needs above it before fitting anything there.
Worked out for A 55-inch screen above a mantel 120 cm (47 in) high, its bottom edge just clear of the mantel, watched from 2.7 m (8 ft 10 in) away with your eyes 105 cm (41 in) from the floor. Change the numbers
The working
- A 55-inch 16:9 screen is 122 cm wide and 68 cm tall.
- Above the fireplace: 120 cm mantel + 10 cm + half the screen, 34 cm = centre at 164 cm (never below your 105 cm eye height).
- From 270 cm you look up 19° to the top edge; the limit is 15°.
You look up 19° to the top edge, more than CEDIA's 15°. From 349 cm away it would be within 15°; or stand the screen in an alcove beside the fireplace.
In one lab study, people chose to sit about 280 cm from a screen this size: further back than the industry figures.
The rules, and their sources
Look up no more than 15°
THX says a viewer should not have to look up more than 15°. CEDIA, based on SMPTE guidance, says no viewer should have more than 15° to the top or bottom of the screen.
An industry guideline Sources: Wikipedia, Optimum HDTV viewing distance, Screen height (checked 31 October 2026); Acoustic Frontiers, Home theater viewing angles, distances and sightlines (checked 31 October 2026).
Screen centre at seated eye height
A common rule: the centre of the screen sits at your seated eye height, which on most sofas is about 100–110 cm (around 42 in). Measure your own.
A rule designers use Source: Wikipedia, Optimum HDTV viewing distance: eyes level with the bottom or middle of the display (checked 31 October 2026).
Other mantel heights, same screen
The same 55-inch screen from the same seat. A lower mantel brings the screen down and the angle with it.
| Mantel | Screen centre | You look up |
|---|---|---|
| 100 cm (39 in) | 144 cm (57 in) | 15° |
| 110 cm (43 in) | 154 cm (61 in) | 17° |
| 120 cm (47 in) this page | 164 cm (65 in) | 19° |
| 130 cm (51 in) | 174 cm (69 in) | 21° |
| 140 cm (55 in) | 184 cm (73 in) | 23° |
Change the numbers
Your sizes will differ. The TV height and distance calculator opens with these numbers filled in: change any of them and the answer, the working and the drawing follow.
Editorial notes
Worked out by the Snuug team on 12 November 2026 with the same code as the TV height and distance calculator, so the two cannot disagree. Every rule cites its source, with the date we last checked it. A rule designers use is a convention, not a study.
Other sources the calculator draws on:
- Audioholics, How to find the right size TV, checked 15 October 2026
- Journal of the ITE of Japan 65 (2011), preferred viewing distance of HD LCD TVs, checked 24 October 2026