Wall Shelves For Living Room

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Investing in a wall shelf for living room is a smart way to add storage and style to your living space. Modern wall shelves come in many varieties, from corner cubbies to set-top box holders, and fixed or floating pieces. Check out our top 10 designer-selected decorative wall shelves for living room that fit the traditional, contemporary, avant-garde, or rustic decor style.

13 Recommendations and 158 Ideas

Updated 09/03/2023
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1
Decorative Square Wall Shelf

Decorative Square Wall Shelf

Orren Ellis

This wooden decorative wall shelf for living room features intersecting cube shelves that create up to 14 platforms. These platforms are suitable for books, framed photos, or decor pieces that individually weigh up to six pounds. It comes in four classic finishes and a 90-day limited warranty.

$31.99 $48.99

Designer Advice:

This is one of our favorite living room shelving ideas that will add beauty to your modern minimalist living room. It requires full adult assembly but can be set up within 10 minutes. The weight capacity of each shelf is excellent for everyday objects that occupy modern living rooms. The best part is that you can use the cubes and their surfaces to create a statement with your shelving skills.

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2
Modern Corner Wall Shelf

Modern Corner Wall Shelf

Corrigan Studio®

This innovative manufactured wood corner shelf features two large square structures that make four platforms. The individual capacity of each shelf is 13 pounds. It is CPSIA (Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act) compliant with a 30-day limited warranty.

$83.99 $195

Designer Advice:

This is one of our favorite modern wall shelf decorating ideas for any living room. It is perfectly suitable in rooms with blank corner walls that need some jazzing up. The shelves are spacious, and there are multiple platforms to utilize, making it a functional piece. It requires some assembly but is easy to set up if you follow the template provided.

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3
Rustic 5 Tier Floating Wall Shelf

Rustic 5 Tier Floating Wall Shelf

Millwood Pines

This solid paulownia wood shelf is 45.28 inches tall and 11.8 inches wide and comes in two dark finishes. It features 6.1-inch shelves that hold up to four pounds of weight each. Its interesting design attracts attention and enlivens the space.

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4
5 Piece Iron and Wood Hexagon Wall Shelf

5 Piece Iron and Wood Hexagon Wall Shelf

Steelside™

This wall shelf design for living rooms features an eye-catching hexagonal design on five usable surfaces that can hold 4.4 pounds. The shelves range from 8.5 to 16 inches in height and 9.25 to 18.5 inches in width. You can arrange them in various configurations depending on your available space and needs. 

$65.99 $104.99

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5
Traditional 3 Piece Floating Shelf Set

Traditional 3 Piece Floating Shelf Set

Ballucci

This manufactured wood living room wall shelf decor idea has a Victorian crown molding design in two colors and three widths (12, 16, and 24 inches). The total capacity of each shelf is 8 pounds. It does not require any assembly, just installation.

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6
Chic Ladder Wall Shelf

Chic Ladder Wall Shelf

Mercer41

This stylish shelf idea for living room is built with wood and iron and features five shelves with an individual weight capacity of 50 pounds. It comes with a tip-over restraint device. The frame is available in two contrasting color options and a 1-year limited warranty.

$99.99 $129.99

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7
Contemporary Circular Accent Wall Shelf

Contemporary Circular Accent Wall Shelf

Mistana™

This circular living room wall shelf features a powder-coated metal frame and three asymmetrical solid mango wood shelves. The unit comes pre-assembled and only needs to be installed. Each shelf supports five pounds of weight and offers a spot for books, pots of plants but also for bottles and glasses when placed in your mini bar area.

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8
Minimalist Bamboo Floating Wall Shelf

Minimalist Bamboo Floating Wall Shelf

Union Rustic

This living room shelf idea features two 4 x 4-inch and two 4 x 5-inch shelf surfaces, not too spacious but great for displaying pots of plants or knickknacks. The brown, solid wood finish is perfect for rustic, country-style decor. It requires basic installation. 

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9
Large Wooden Floating Wall Shelves

Large Wooden Floating Wall Shelves

17 Stories

This wide wall shelf design for living room has a large surface area with a weight capacity of 29 pounds. It features two black metal brackets that hold the shelves in place. The shelves come with a 30-day limited warranty and require partial assembly.

Designer Advice:

This is a perfect fit for those looking for more functionality from their living room wall shelves. Each shelf has more than enough space to hold books, succulents, figurines, alarm clocks, headphones, and other decor pieces you are passionate about. If you don’t want to drill too many holes, this is a great large wall shelf for living room.

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10
Industrial Style Wood and Metal Wall Shelf

Industrial Style Wood and Metal Wall Shelf

Williston Forge

This wall shelf for living room features a zig-zag pipe frame that holds a single shelf with a 20-pound weight capacity and natural wood grain color - perfect for an industrial interior. It requires 16 installation holes and at least two adults for the assembly. 

$149.99 $203.99

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11
3 Tiered Industrial Modern Wall Shelves

3 Tiered Industrial Modern Wall Shelves

Williston Forge

Best for: Blended material style

What we like: Versatile look

Not great for: Use around water

This three-tiered wall shelf embraces all that is beautiful and elegant with mixed material industrial nuances. It starts with the three notched manufactured wood shelves to the sturdy 1” thick metal pipe frame in a vintage ash brown finish. 

$109.99 $155.99

Designer Advice:

Metal and wood wall shelves for living rooms can look great in any environment, from vintage to ultra-modern interior themes. This style of shelving is great for displaying heavy decor due to the sturdiness of the metal frame and the wood’s thickness. But the shelves don’t have an edge to prevent items from falling off, so it might not be the best choice for thin, unstable walls that frequently vibrate.

What Users Say:

This shelving unit is pretty and solid and easily assembled and hung. I love it.

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12
Slim Minimalistic Wall Shelf Design

Slim Minimalistic Wall Shelf Design

Ebern Designs

Best for: Minimalistic, understated look

What we like: Slim profile

Not great for: Expansive storage

This set of three varying-sized floating wall shelves comes in white or black for a slim, minimalistic nuance. Raised rims keep your decor secure on the shelves, while the thin profile and neutral finish fit into any interior design scheme.

$40.01 $39.99

Designer Advice:

Some living room wall shelf units store decors like photos and vases on floating shelving with a slim, minimalistic profile. The advantage of this design style is that the shelving doesn’t protrude too far out from the wall, allowing you to have usable space along your walls. The downside is that there is no width for large decor pieces. 

What Users Say:

These shelves are perfect for spicing up wall areas with stacking pictures to brighten up walls.

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13
Geometric Mixed Material Decorative Wall Shelves

Geometric Mixed Material Decorative Wall Shelves

Zipcode Design™

Best for: Geometric visual interest

What we like: The combination of wood and metal

Not great for: Heavy storage

Your walls will look fantastic adorned with this contemporary three-shelf wall display rack. The rustic mango wood planks add a simple, minimalistic look, while the double black metal diamond accents add an open storage with a 3-dimensional visual interest. 

Designer Advice:

Choosing a decorative wall shelf unit is a great way to add more style to your space. And the combination of materials is excellent for multiple themes, making it a versatile piece of decor. Metal and wood are a classic combo that is versatile enough to go with any room style and existing look.

What Users Say:

Solid, functional, trendy, easy to hang.

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Wall Shelves For Living Room

Buying Guide

Organizing through the use of living room wall shelves can be an enjoyable experience! Whether you are searching for storage ideas out of decorative desire or necessity, we are certain our buying guide will help you as we've made sure our readers can find the best shelving and storage solutions for them.

To determine how much space is available for a shelving unit, ask yourself some basic questions. What will you be storing in the shelves? Vinyl, DVDs, books, vases, and artworks perhaps? Take a moment and think about these aspects as they'll lead you to the units that are perfect for your space.

To get a clear idea of how much wall space you can work with, measure the depth, width, and height of the spot where you plan on mounting the wall shelves. By now, you already know what you'll be storing on the shelves. If the items differ in height, you'll need adjustable wall shelving. If you'll be showcasing something specific on your living room shelving, take its dimensions to ensure it fits the unit/s you will be purchasing.

You may already know that wall-mounted shelves come in different styles. So, would you be interested in getting statement pieces? If you answered no, then you are probably on the lookout for simple, straightforward, and practical shelves. It does not matter what style your shelves come in, but the design must match or complement your living room's aesthetics to ensure the entire room's look is coordinated.

When it comes to flexibility, wall shelves fall into two broad categories: modular and adjustable/removable.

Modular wall shelves offer versatile storage as you'll be able to add more shelves when the need arises. After a given time, you'll be able to create a whole wall of storage. When manufacturers develop their products, they consider the end use of the shelves, which means you'll find shelves that are capable of adapting according to your needs.

Adjustable or movable shelving is recommended for people who are looking for units that offer customization. This type will prove to be useful when you find something large like an artwork or massive book collection to showcase. With removable shelving, you can simply take out the shelves that are not needed to create more storage space.

The most common materials used are plywood and wood veneers (layers of thin wood). Both materials are cost-effective. But, other materials including stainless, iron, walnut, oak, and maple are sturdier. The downside to the materials is they are more expensive compared to plywood and wood veneers. If you're looking for advice on which materials you should opt for, the only thing we can say is you need to choose according to your living room's style.

With everything you've just learned, you're ready to check out your incredible options online! Let us know if you've found a unit that you love!

Best Ideas

Shelving units living room

A perfect example of a clean, minimalistic contemporary living room design. The smooth, wooden shelves are a great replacement for a chunky entertainment unit, and the beautiful leather sofa gives an excellent contrast to the dark back wall.

Wall mounted wood shelves

Add your living room decor a cool, urban style. This set of wall mounted will create a cool, contemporary composition for i.e. industrial spaces, like lofts or other modern apartments.

Living room wall shelves

Simple sturdy wall-mounted shelves of solid wood with a finish in mid-brown tones. These quite thick rectangular shelves are wall-to-wall long and fixed to a wall with using heavy-duty metal anchors.

Wall shelves ideas living room

The pictures, frames and plants organization - the ideal decoration for the most visible wall in your living room. Put your personal, family photos to show the visitors how important is your family for you.

Living room wall shelves 1

A great way to make use of empty walls and simultaneously add some new storage space. This set of hexagonal shelves create a great proposition for storing books, photos, flowers or your sentimental stuff.

Cubby Wall Shelf

Cubby Wall Shelf

Wall shelf with seven storage cubbies. This makes it perfect for storing knickknacks or displaying photos. It's made of strong MDF, and each cubby has weight capacity of six lbs. Additionally, the shelf has no visible hanging hardware.

Wall shelves for living room

A great way to create a stylish display on your own. These living room wall shelves feature an eclectic mix of decor. It will fit well both to contemporary and traditional or rustic decors.

Attractive book shelf living room

attractive book shelf living room

Living room wall shelves 2

I love ladder bookcases... use in dining room or kitchen or bathroom for extra storage.

Wall shelves for living room 15

Wall shelf for storing books, display decorations and more. It is completely made of wood. Application in all kinds of interiors according to taste and need.

Shelving ideas for living room walls

Wall shelves for living room applications. They provide space for books, pictures in frames and decorations. Each shelf is durable, but not very heavy, so it is suitable for wall mounting. White finish matches any home stylization.

Floating shelves in living room

If the white shelf is to be used for displaying books, it is worth checking what depth, a width of the shelf will be the most suitable to accommodate them and keep their weight - this set of living room white wall display shelves, holds all kinds of objects.

Slim Line Floating Wall Shelf

Slim Line Floating Wall Shelf

It is very simple and extremely modest shelf on the wall. Its great advantage is that you can not see the fixings. Shelf looks like it was glued to the wall. It is very casual and including hiding its beauty.

Shelves in living room

Love the shelves for displaying pictures - great idea for small spaces! maybe along side each side of the television?

Small love seats 6

The areas around windows are great for utilizing extra space for storage. More storage solutions:

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