If you're looking for teen bedroom ideas, it's tricky to know where to start. When they were kids, bedroom design was usually based on what they were obsessed with – Paw Patrol, Disney Princesses, Pepper Pig. Now your teens are starting to develop their own 'taste' that you probably have to take into consideration when decorating their bedroom.
- Find all our bedroom ideas in one spot, on our dedicated page.
'As your children become teenagers, their room definitely needs to reflect their personalities.' says Medina King of MK Kids Interiors. 'An extra bed for sleepovers, a desk for study with plenty storage shelves, a chillout zone and cool lighting are essential for a teenager's bedroom.'
Unfortunately, decorating a teen’s bedroom will need you to relinquish some control over color and furniture choices. But as it’s unlikely they’re paying for it, you have fiscal control – use it to veto their worst ideas. We've put together plenty of bedroom ideas for teens to help you come up with the perfect design for them (and you!).
1. For sharers, invest in high level and low level beds
Why do this? Well, it creates a degree of separation and tons more space, with the area beneath the bed being used for hang-out or study space. See the curtains round the high sleeper bed? Another great trick. It's a great solution for a bedroom in the eaves and it's just generally a good way to make a small bedroom feel larger.
2. Create a girly space that's not super girly
If your child is just about growing out of pink but still clinging to it just a bit, this decorating scheme is bang on – grown-up monotones, tempered with pale pinks. If you are working will a small space or more likely, knowing most teenagers, a messy and crowded room, then a single bed with a pull out bed and storage can be the elegant solution that you can actually control (unlike them). In fact, any piece of furniture that is multi-purposeful is always a handy buy.
For more girl's bedroom ideas head over to our galley.
3. Can't agree a scheme? Work up a Pinterest board
If ‘dunno’ is the answer to your questions about favorite colors or themes, set up a Pinterest pinboard and invite your offspring to add photos that appeal. Good keywords to kick things off include ‘retro’, ‘monochrome’, ‘tropical’ and Scandi’. Complete disinterest is basically a green light to do what you want, so don’t lose it if you’re not getting the desired feedback.
More likely, your child will get carried away with suggestions, and you’ll need to diplomatically rein things in. Explain how the most successful schemes have one or two core colors, then find inexpensive accessories that will bring in pattern and texture.
- See also: 13 kids' room ideas to transform their space
5. Plan the layout of a teenage bedroom
The main difference between a teenager’s bedroom and any other age group is they essentially live in them. Approach the layout like a studio apartment and include an area for lounging with friends (bean bags are gold for those who can still get up off the floor without grunting), and a desk for homework/gaming.
If space is tight but you have high-ish ceilings, get the bed up off the floor and you’ll effectively double the room size. Layered lighting, with adjustable lamps by the bed and desk, will prevent eyestrain while they are glued to screens. Speaking of which, save the biggest one for a family room to ensure you see them beyond meal times.
6. Let them express their personality
Allow teens to express their sense of style and achieve a space that feels their own via the walls. Temporary solutions can be easily switched once they’ve left home so look for teenage bedroom ideas that can be removed easily. Framed photos of friends and band posters are to be encouraged, graffiti and anything X-rated, not so much. Wall decals and stickers will do minimum damage to the plasterwork, or use picture shelves to prevent the wall acne fallout of excessive Blu-Tack.
There’s a strong chance your tastes will clash, or your teen will make them clash just to be contrary. Stay sane by remembering the number one rule of parenting – 'This, too, shall pass'.
7. Choose a sturdy desk in a teen's bedroom
When it comes to choosing the best desk – go for the best you can afford to achieve a sturdy study base that looks like it means business. The aim is to encourage revision away from the nap-temptations of bed. Make sure the chair is genuinely comfortable for those inevitable late-night swotting sessions. A chair with an adjustable seat will grow with your teen, helping to maintain comfortable spine alignment. Their feet should sit flat on the floor with knees at a right-angle to hips.
8. Create a display space
Look out for bedroom ideas for teens that encourage an organized mind. For us this means pinboards. Make one using corkboard, then paint or cover in fabric (attached with a staple gun) for color co-ordinating kudos. A blackboard wall opens up the potential for creative freedom, use magnetic paint if you still want to be able to display photos and postcards. To add storage to the mix go for a pegboard with shelf, hook and caddy components.
9. Make room for sleepovers
Stop your searching because we've found the perfect time- and space-saver for your kids' sleepovers: a foldable mattress is super easy to put away and under the bed, but when guests are staying it works as a single bed. Or get a couple and stack them to create a cushiony floor or a raised bed.
We've also found a solution to finding a space for all the small knick-knacks around the room: a pegboard. It has space to store pens or jewelry, put reminders or calendars on – or they can just use it to display their favorite photos. Either way it'll stop them tacking stuff to the walls and it's a fun piece of storage.
Find loads more bedroom storage ideas that can also be used in a teen bedroom in our gallery.
10. Buy a platform bed to make space for storage
When it comes to finding them workspace and storage we've got it covered with a desk with shelving unit. We've all run out of room for all our books and papers and ended up carpeting the floor with them, but this on-desk shelf has three levels so there's plenty or room to store whatever you need. Another great tool for students is that classic clip on desk light which can be attached to a bedhead, desk leg or shelf – perfect space saver.
And the bed? One with plenty of storage beneath is a dream: saves on a space-sucking chest of drawers.
11. Protect your ears by soundproofing a teen's bedroom
If your teen’s an aspiring musician, it won’t hurt to take noise-dampening action. A thick cut-pile wall-to-wall carpet with decent underlay can be preferable to wooden or laminate floors. Acoustic panels keep noise out of the room and improve acoustics inside – great for budding podcasters. Upgrade to a solid door – Jeld-Wen’s ProCore Quiet Door can cut sound emission by 50 percent compared to a hollow door.
12. Encourage tidiness (good luck with that)
Messiness is a universal teenage trait that is to be accepted with grace (for your sanity’s sake). If you are blessed with a tidy teen, congratulations! But don’t be too smug, they can turn at any time so look for teenage bedroom ideas that will keep the room as clutter-free as possible. Under-bed drawers are perfect for clearing the duvet when mates come a-knocking, while shelves might work better than rails in a wardrobe if they reject hangers. Get the biggest waste bin possible, and an air-tight container to keep trainer odor under wraps. And get used to the phrase 'floordrobe'.
When fitting loads of storage into a small room the golden rule is: think tall. That way, you don't take up all the floor space and be really efficient with storage space. However, tall storage can make a small room feel smaller too, which means you need a clever trick up your sleeve: and that's to visually break up the unit like in this room above. You can do with color, with open shelving and with mirrors. Simple.
13. Turn the loft into a bedroom
Locate your teenagers in the loft – they’ll be further away from the ground floor so you won’t have to listen to Stormzy at full bore all evening. Plus it’s harder to sneak unauthorized guests up two flights of stairs. Go with the cool loft-living vibe and embrace industrial influences in the décor – try exposed brickwork (or wallpaper effect for a cleaner finish), rustic A-frames and steel venting. You’ll save money on boxing in and plastering in the process.
Check out more attic bedroom ideas for loads of inspiration.
- See also: want to convert your loft into a teen bedroom? Find out if your loft is suitable with our expert advice
14. Don't ditch the bunk beds – repurpose them
If a shared room suddenly becomes a space for one, use this budget-saving trick: turn bunkbeds into a high sleeper with sofa space beneath. Couldn't be easier!
Another tip we love that we've taken from this room? Hunt down storage that's decorative, too. This doll's house wall shelf (above the top bunk) makes storage fun, even for teenagers.
15. Plan in extra power sockets
Avoid the potential fire hazard of extension leads and over-burdened adapters by getting extra sockets with USB ports installed before you decorate. Position them near the desk, not the bed. The health risks of 24-hour mobile phone exposure are still murky but it’s better for their quality of sleep not to have devices pinging near them through the night. Furniture and lamps with built-in wireless charging are widely available (see the Ikea smart light with this function, above), reducing trails of cables.
11. Spend your budget on a teen bedroom wisely
Like any room, the key to longevity is to go for timeless style on the expensive elements, like furniture, and use accessories and accents to inject the latest trends. Invest in a quality bed or headboard with a grown-up feel for your teen now, and for the guest space their room is likely to become when they leave home. Ditto wardrobes. Upcycle solidly made secondhand furniture with paint.
- See also: The best paints for kids' rooms
16. Choose a space-saving bed
High sleeper and loft beds are taller than bunks, and designed with older children in mind due to safety. A bed guard is recommended – even adults sometimes topple out of bed (usually alcohol is involved). Underneath, it’ll have space for a desk, sofa and/or wardrobe.
Make sure there’s sufficient head height for your teen to sit underneath without feeling claustrophobic. Changing the bedlinen will be challenging; flat sheets are easier than fitted. Find a ladder with decent depth flat rungs, instead of skinny rails that are painful on bare feet. Failing that, investigate beds with built-in storage and storage headboards – both great options for hiding and stashing clutter (and other stuff you probably wish you didn't know about).
How can you make a teen bedroom look good?
The best way to make a teen bedroom look good, is to first ensure you have plenty of storage. Clutter is pretty much guaranteed with teenagers, but having enough space to make sure most thing can be put away easily (baskets are great for throwing stuff in to free up floor space) will help the rest of the room feel bigger, brighter and, well just better.
When it comes to decor, use the ideas above to inspire you and try and get your teen involved with the process so their room reflects their tastes too. Pick out a color scheme together, decide on an overall style and choose artwork and prints that will bring in some personality.
What are the best color for a teen bedroom?
The best colors for a teen bedroom will come down to both of your tastes but if you are after something with longevity opt for a neutral color scheme – white, cream, grey. You can always add in pops of color with bedding and decor, as these will be easy to switch out as they grow and their tastes inevitably change.
How do you decorate a small teenage bedroom?
If your teenager's bedroom is slightly on the smaller side, stick to a white color scheme, as we all know that white expands a room like no other. Don't cram in too much furniture either, try and think about how pieces can double up as something else. Say a wardrobe that also has some roomy draws, a bed with PLENTY of under bed storage, even some floating shelves that can be used for both storage add decor will add to space without taking up too much room.