Christmas tree size guide: which height fits your room

Four numbers decide whether a tree fits: the ceiling height, the tree height including the stand, the width at the base, and the tip count that sets how full it looks. This guide works through them in order, in feet and centimetres.

1. Start with the ceiling

Measure from the floor to the ceiling where the tree will stand. Then take off 15 to 30cm for the topper and the gap above it; a tree that touches the ceiling looks cramped and the topper has nowhere to go. What is left is the maximum height of tree plus stand.

Ceiling height	Largest comfortable tree	Tree plus stand and topper
2.1m (older flats, loft rooms)	5ft (150cm)	about 1.8m
2.4m (most homes since the 1960s)	6ft (180cm)	about 2.1m
2.5m to 2.6m	7ft (210cm)	about 2.4m
2.7m or more (period houses, halls)	8ft (240cm)	about 2.7m

Tree heights in the shop are given as the maker states them, in feet with the centimetre equivalent, and the stand is included in that figure unless the listing says otherwise.

2. Check the width

Height gets all the attention, but width is what makes a tree block a doorway or push the sofa out of place. A standard 6ft tree is 100 to 130cm across at the base; a 7ft tree is 120 to 150cm; an 8ft tree 140 to 170cm. If floor space is the limit, a slim or pencil tree gives the height at half to two-thirds of the width. The diameter is in the specification table on every tree.

3. Read the tip count

Tips are the individual foliage ends on the branches. Two trees of the same height can carry very different numbers of them, and the one with more tips looks fuller and hides the trunk better. As a rough guide for a 6ft tree: 600 to 1,200 tips is a budget tree, 1,200 to 2,200 mid-range, and 2,000 or more premium. For a 7ft tree add about a quarter to each band. Compare tip counts between trees of similar width and shape; a pencil tree will always have fewer tips than a full tree of the same height and that is not a fault.

4. PE or PVC tips

PE (polyethylene) tips are moulded from a cast of a real branch, so they have depth and look like fir needles close up. PVC tips are cut from flat sheet and look softer and flatter; they cost less and are often used inside the tree where they are not seen. Many trees mix the two: PE on the outer tips, PVC inside. Where the maker states the material it is in the listing. If the tree will be looked at closely and photographed, PE tips are worth the extra.

Which size for which room

• Flat, small living room, dining room, bedroom: 5ft. Light to carry, stands on a low table if space is tight.
• Standard living room with a 2.4m ceiling: 6ft. The size most light sets and bauble packs are planned around.
• Large room or hall with a 2.5m ceiling: 7ft. Needs 120 to 150cm of floor width.
• Double-height hall, period house, shop or venue: 8ft and above, with two people to assemble.
• Hallway, landing or corner: a pencil tree at 6 to 7.5ft.
• Desk, mantel or windowsill: a tabletop tree at 2 to 3ft.

Assembly and storage are part of the size

A 7ft tree arrives in two or three sections in a box that is about 1.2m long and heavy enough to need two people. Hinged branches fold against the trunk for storage, so the tree packs down to roughly the box it came in; keep that space in mind in the loft or under the stairs. The storage guide covers bags, boxes and lofts.