There's a certain thrill to mounting a TV on the wall. After all, it feels clean, modern, and almost like you've leveled up your entire living space over the course of a single afternoon. The problem, however, is that where you mount your TV matters just as much as how you mount it. Getting this right means you'll have a comfortable and immersive viewing experience for years to come, but if you get it wrong, you might be in for a world of different problems.
Over the years, I've seen (and admittedly, made) some rather questionable TV mount placement decisions that may have looked great at the moment, but felt terrible for years to come. So, no matter how expensive your brand-new TV may be, there are certain areas in the house where you absolutely can't mount it.
Don't mount your TV directly across from a window
Sunlight will always win the battle against your screen
Yes, I know that modern TVs today come touting "anti-glare" panels on the brochure, but when they go up against the nearest star in the solar system, the sun, they're not going to win. Sure, when the sun goes down, you might not notice any problems with your display at all, but for the rest of the day, you're going to be battling the glare of sunlight. Even with blackout curtains, trying their hardest, some sunlight will seep in, or you'll always have to choose between a zero-sunlight room and a decent TV-watching experience during the day.
In fact, even during the evenings, there's also the privacy issue — why would you want the entire neighborhood to know what you're watching anyway? So, if you're ever installing or mounting a new TV, just make sure that it has no windows directly across from it, no matter what. Even if you have the best panel in the world, it won't completely eliminate glare, leaving you with a diminished experience. This can even become a problem if your TV is next to a window, not just across from it. That's why it's always a tricky task to figure out the best place for your TV. You do want ample sunlight in the room, but the TV, of course, shouldn't be close enough for all that light to directly reflect off the panel.
Avoid mounting your TV above the fireplace
Heat damage and neck strain are a terrible combo
Mounting a TV above a fireplace seems all too commonplace, even when it's wrong for two major reasons. Of course, there's always the urge to mount a TV above the mantelpiece, creating a clean, horizontal divide on the wall, but that simply shouldn't be the case. For starters (pun not intended), the heat from a constantly burning fireplace below the TV can damage the TV's internal components and its wires.
If it doesn't outright damage them, it can still shorten their lifespan, leading to repair costs or quick replacements.
Additionally, a TV mounted above a fireplace can't be at eye level. As such, you're going to be straining your neck if you ever decide to watch something that lasts longer than thirty minutes. Speaking of which, try to avoid mounting a TV across from the fireplace, too, since you'd have to try hard and ignore the fire's glare on the TV screen throughout the winter.
Keep your TV away from doorways
High-traffic entry points will ruin the experience daily
This is a mistake I'm guilty of. Having just bought a new TV at the beginning of the year, and then placing it next to the living room door, I couldn't believe how constantly stressed I was. Merely two days later, I decided to change the TV's location, and for good reason. Firs, having your TV next to a doorway means that your viewing experience will be constantly interrupted, distracting you from what's on the screen.
That problem was unarguably the biggest one for me, too, since I had to ask anyone who used the door to be careful while going around the TV. No matter how little you think a door will be used, it absolutely will be used much more than that, especially if you live with family. This is why it's never a good idea to mount or place a TV next to a doorway. Instead, your TV should always have its own wall, preferably away from the room's entryways.
Don't mount your TV too high on the wall
Eye-level viewing exists for a reason
It often feels like half the world is guilty of making this mistake — mounting the TV way too high on the wall, well above eye-level. We all know that on paper, it's always recommended to place or mount a TV at eye level. And yet, we have all, at least once, made the mistake of mounting a TV high up on the wall, or we perhaps know someone who has. If you're placing your TV on its stand on a TV unit, you might not have this problem. But if you're looking to free up space, mounting the TV high on the wall sounds like a good idea. It isn't.
The neck strain is definitely going to be an issue, but another problem you will have to contend with is terrible viewing angles. Even with a half-decent TV, you'll end up ruining your viewing experience, with a single fixed angle for everyone in the room, regardless of whether they're sitting or lying down while watching the telly.
Never place your TV under a big chandelier
Or even across from a bright light source
There's a reason home theater setups obsess over controlled lighting, because you could end up making a mistake that's the opposite of controlled lighting. If you place your TV directly under a chandelier or across a strong light source like a wall-mounted lamp or even tube lights, it might look symmetrical on day one. However, the moment you turn that light on, your screen will effectively become a mirror. You'll see reflections, hotspots, and blown-out highlights all over the panel, and even on an OLED or QD-MiniLED panel, darker scenes will become borderline unwatchable.
Ceiling lights, decorative fixtures, and even a simple bulb can create shifting glare, depending on where you're seated while watching the TV. As such, you'll wrestle with the switches, constantly dimming lights, angling your head, or even worse, just putting up with it and learning to live with it. What a TV needs is a neutral, distraction-free wall, and not one that competes with the brightest object in the room.
Avoid placing your TV in the corner of the room
Saving space at the cost of everything else
I almost made this mistake a couple of months ago, since it seemed to be the only good mounting solution at the time. Since I had an L-shaped sofa in the corner of the room and only one orientation I could pick that wouldn't turn the TV panel into glare-city, I almost decided to have a triangular TV unit made. When wall space is limited, mounting a TV in the corner of the room might seem like a clever workaround, but it's not efficient. In fact, it's perhaps the quickest way to compromise your entire viewing setup. Not only does a corner-mounted TV force awkward viewing angles, but it also makes it impossible for everyone in the room to have a comfortable perspective.
Further, the bigger the TV, the more space you'll need to leave in the corner to make it fit, which means you could lose a lot of floor space that goes completely to waste. Then there's the fact that corner TV mount brackets are not all that common, so you'll have to hunt for one that fits your TV. This isn't as simple as a regular wall mount, where nine times out of ten, you could pick a mount blindly off the shelf, and it would work. With a corner-mounted TV, the room layout and furniture placement become a puzzle you never quite solve. So, instead of a leftover angle you're convincing yourself "works," make sure you mount your TV on a focal wall instead.
Avoid the paths of pets and toddlers, too
It's one accidental nudge away from disaster
Now, I haven't mounted my TV. Instead, I keep it on its stand on a TV unit I got built. And that's fine, since not everyone wants to wall-mount their TV, either. However, placing a TV (or unit) in the direct path of pets or toddlers is just asking for trouble. Thankfully, I have neither, but that doesn't mean I don't host the occasional party where a couple of toddlers come around. Since TVs today are thinner, lighter, and more fragile than ever, it doesn't take a lot to send them toppling over, be it an overenthusiastic pet or a curious nudge.
Beyond the obvious risk of damage, there's also a genuine safety concern here. A falling TV is sure expensive, but it's also dangerous. Even if you think your setup is stable, daily movement around the house will beg to differ. So, if you're going the TV unit route, keep it away from high-traffic zones and consider securing it with anti-tip straps.
A great TV setup should feel invisible, not uncomfortable
Mounting a TV is a long-term commitment to how you experience everything you watch. That's why it's more than just a design decision. The best setups aren't always the ones that look the cleanest in a photo, but the ones that let the content take center stage instead.
Get the placement right, and you'll never think about it again. Get it wrong, however, and it will keep reminding you every day, with every glare and awkward angle. As such, make sure you always take extra time, trust your instincts, and build around comfort first. That's what a great TV show deserves, after all.
