A modern family needs a living space that’s flexible enough to suit a variety of needs. It’ll need to be capacious enough to seat everyone at once, and it should be hard-wearing enough to contend with small children and family pets. If you don’t buy something that’s built to last, you’ll probably regret it!

Here, we’ll take a whistle-stop tour of the qualities you should be looking for in a sofa for the whole family. Let’s get started!

Size

Size should be your primary concern. Too small, and there won’t be room to fit everybody; too large, and the sofa will dominate the space. You should also consider the dimensions of your room. In some cases, a corner sofa makes the best bet, as it’ll make more efficient use of the available space than packing two sofas of the same size into the same area. You’ll need to think about who’s going to be crammed into the corner, however.

4-seater sofas strike a great balance between compactness and capacity. They’re big enough to seat most families, and they’ll fit comfortably into most living spaces.

Ease of Maintenance

As we’ve mentioned, it’s worth considering how easy your sofa will be to clean up. Fabric ones tend to soak up liquids, leather ones can, for the most part, be more easily wiped-down. Loose sofa covers can come in handy for fabric sofas – these make your sofa much easier to clean up by bearing the brunt of any spills or stains. Best of all, when accidents do happen, they can simply be removed and thrown in the washing machine, then re-fitted to leave your sofa looking good as new.  Bear in mind that dogs and cats of a certain age will delight in tearing your sofa to shreds, if you let them – so be sure that you’ve got them suitably distracted with a scratching post.

Flexibility

If you want the freedom to easily rearrange your living area, then it’s worth considering a modular sofa. These are made to suit a given space, and can be adapted to fit the changing needs of your family. As new members are added, or existing ones leave to make homes of their own, you’ll be able to change your modular sofa to suit your needs. If you find that you sometimes need extra space to accommodate guests, then a sofa-bed might be what’s called for.

They allow you to cut down on space in spare rooms, and free up more space in your home. Speaking of which, you can also find sofas with built-in storage under the cushions, which means you’ll be able to keep the living area tidy.

Comfort

Since this is where you’re going to be doing most of your relaxing, it’s vital that your sofa is comfortable enough to support you. If you’re willing to splash the extra money, then you might invest in a sofa with a built-in (or even automated) recliner. That way, you’ll be able to stretch back with the touch of a button.