Let’s explore the nuances of designing a room for a teenager. Spoiler: the final decision should be theirs.

A teenager spends most of their time in their room. Here, they not only sleep but also study and entertain themselves. Therefore, it’s important to make the room as aligned with their tastes as possible. At the same time, the room should be functional. We’ve gathered recommendations from a psychologist and an interior designer on how to approach designing a teenager’s room.

The bare minimum in a teenager’s room includes a bed with a good mattress (which ideally should be an adult-size bed), a desk with a comfortable chair for studying, and a spacious storage system—preferably a closed one to avoid clutter. If the space allows, you can add a relaxation zone where the teenager can read or play video games. However, in standard apartments, large beds and desks often don’t fit easily. In such cases, it’s worth considering ergonomic solutions, such as a bunk bed with a desk underneath.

It’s best to come up with the design of a teenager’s room together with them. At this age, the child already knows what they want and will feel more comfortable in a space they helped create.

Teenagers often enjoy decorating their rooms with posters, photo collages, drawings, figurines, and other small items. Therefore, a foolproof option is to do basic renovations in the room without elaborate interior designs but add plenty of shelves and other spaces to place these items. Over time, the teenager’s tastes will change, and so will the items. Parents should not interfere in this process.

It may happen that the teenager, when asked to come up with a design for their room, presents some not-so-great ideas.

Parents often think that the best way to decorate a teenager’s room is to make it bright and multicolored. But this doesn’t always look good. A more reliable option is basic white walls. The room can be personalized with decorative items. As the teenager grows, the neutral color won’t interfere with adapting the room to their new hobbies and interests. Instead of white, a soft, light pastel shade can be used, such as pink, mint, or beige.