First attempt: I measured the living room, not the hallway. The IKEA sectional fit the space, but I spent an hour twisting it through the front door. The instruction manual's diagrams don't show your walls. Here's what I learned after four moves and three IKEA sectionals.
Measure the door, not just the room
The Kivik sectional I bought had a chaise on the left. It looked perfect on the floor plan. But my apartment's front door opened inward, and the chaise blocked the hinge. I had to lift it over the railing. Lesson: measure the path from the street to the spot. Door width, hallway turns, elevator size. IKEA's packages are long. The Backsalen's chaise is 60 inches wide; the shortest box is 33 inches. Door openings under 30 inches might not work.
Chaise side: which one is actually your left?
I sat on a display at the store. The salesperson asked, "Left or right?" I said left without thinking. Got it home—wrong. From the front, the chaise was on the right. I returned it. The left-arm facing chaise sectional mistake cost me a $200 delivery fee. I Measured the Wrong Side of My Left Arm Facing Chaise Sectional covers the exact way to avoid this.
Width and clearance: the one number you skip
Most people measure the sofa's width and depth. They forget the clearance—the gap between the sofa and the opposite wall. My Uppland sectional needs 18 inches to walk behind it. I gave it 12. Now I squeeze sideways. The Uppland's depth is 35 inches. With a 12-foot-wide room, that leaves 9 feet across. Fine. But my dining chair pulls out 20 inches. Clearance is 15. Chair hit sofa. Uppland Sectional IKEA: The Width I Didn't Measure and How to Get It explains the math.
The delivery day surprise
I bought a Gronlid sectional online. The website said "free delivery." The truck came with two guys and no boxes. Flat-packed, they assembled in 40 minutes. But they charged $89 for "inside delivery" because my building had no freight elevator. The Groland's chaise is 100 pounds. I couldn't have moved it alone. Check the delivery terms before checkout. The store didn't mention the extra fee.
What actually decides the buy
Door path. Not color, not fabric, not price. If it doesn't fit through the door, you're returning it. I've done that twice. The Italsofa Sectional — Measure This Before You Click Buy article lists the three measurements I never skip: door width, hallway turn, ceiling height. IKEA's sectionals are good for the price—the Uppland's slipcover washes well, the Kivik's cushions flatten after a year. But the one factor that makes or breaks the buy is whether you can get it inside. Measure the door frame twice. Order once.
If you're starting from scratch, check What to Actually Check Before You Walk Into a Sofa Store and Six Sectionals I Actually Measured so you don't repeat my mistakes.