Interiors of apartments – an individual space at your fingertips

Last Updated on 30. November 2025 by Noremax

To feel at home in a small space can be a real challenge. Since the space feels more limited, it can be very difficult to maintain functionality when deciding upon a floorplan. To achieve a both functional and homey apartment, the primary focus should lay in spaciousness, as apartments usually occupy a significantly smaller area than houses.

How to design an apartment?

The first step in achieving a successful floorplan, whether it is a house or apartment, is to draw up the floorplan to scale. This gives you a better perception of what furtniture fit into the spaces and please also take note of features such as widnow height, electric sockets, heaters and position of doors, as these play an important role when furnishing a room. Remember to consider how much natural light will enter the space as less natural light requires more artificial light to be plaed throughout the apartment.

For smaller spaces like apartments, a common thread that runs troughout the entire apartment is preferable. We therefore, suggest you decid upon a style your like and stick to the same deisgning principles in every room. It will create an ambience of being well thoughtout and organised. To decid upon what style to choose, consider your space and your own needs and wants. Do you like the minimalistic and Scandinavian design that feels clean and modern, or do you prefer a cosier space with lots of decorations and a strong personality? Remember that a home should be designed after the users lifestyle and preferences, not surrender to the temptation of trends and others opinions.

Zones in an apartment

A house often offers several different zones and it is proven a successful method of deisgning. However, an apartment is often far more limited as to how much space is available. We therefore suggest dividing the apartment into two zones – one public and one private. The design principle helps to guarantee privacy and it also tells you where to focus your energy the most. Whether you are a person who treasures privacy and want your bed- and bathroom to be the main focal point when designing the interiors, or if you love having people over and want to showcase a greatly designed kitchen and livingroom – the design principle is proven successful.

The apartment kitchen

The kitchen is known to be the heart of every home because it is where life happens. Aesthetical and functional – a kitchen should be adapted after the lifestyle of the user and their wants and needs. So, the first thing to consider is whether you want a closed off kitchen area or an open floorplan towards the living room. An open floorplan give a sense of more space, as well as it allows for more light to travel through the apartment. However, a closed off space will detain loud noises and smells to entre other areas and distrupt the peace. A valuable tip, if you decide upon an open floorplan, design both areas in the same style and colour scheme to visually enlarge the space even further.

Since an apartment often holds a smaller kitchen, the best kitchen designs for these spaces should include heaps of storage space, a good light source and pleanty of working are in the form of worktops. This is all in addition to the regular appliances necessary for food preparation – frigde and freezer, stove, hob, ventilation rangehood, sink and taps. All arranged with consideration to the deisgn principle “work triangle”.

Interiors design of apartments – bathroom

The bathroom is another important room in an apartment. Therefore practical and aesthetical functions are of equal importance. First, conside if you’d prefer to installa bathtub or a shower, or, if the size of the bathroom allows it, both. However, do not forget that you need at least 50-100 cm of free space to be able to move around freely. It is also worth considering what heating system you’d prefer to install – floor, electric or mixed. If you choose a wall radiator, it can also be used as a decorative element in a modern, minimalist interior design style.

Interiors design of apartments – living room

In addition to the kitchen, the living room is where it all happens! The perfect interior for a living room is therefore both functional and aestethically pleasing. It should be comfortable space, associated with relaxation, but also a room to show-off to visitors. Most oftenly the design journey starts in the kitchen or living room and the rest of the home kind of follows that chosen aestethics. Therefore it can be advised that the interior design style is moderate and simple. However it is still important that the room fulfills the needs and preferences of the user.

Living room areas are often designed in one of the following styles:

Scandinavian – where bright colours, natural wood, soft materials, living plants and a sense to nature reign
Minimalist style – a modern arrangement that consists of a minimum amount of colours and decorative accessories.
Industrial style – also quite minimalistic but combined with the raw severity of brick, concrete and steel.
Traditional style – where cosiness and the feeling of familiarity reigns. Wooden furniture, decorative ornaments, pillow and different textiles and a lit fireplace are characters that will make the living room feel rustique and traditional in an instance.

Interiors design of apartments – bedroom

A bedroom is a very intimate place where we must feel good and comfortable. It’s a room where we sleep, rest, relax and it is the place where we start and end our day. The main element that needs to dictate the interior deisgn of the room is ofcourse the bed – the size, the support of the mattress and the height of the bed is all important factors to consider. However the one feature which will determine the design of the space is the bed frame. Upholstered headboards are the domain of modern, Scandinavian, boho, and even loft style. The classic-style bed has a wooden headboard and the bed if decorated with lots and lots of pillows for an extra cosy ambience. In addition to the bed, a bedroom also need storage space in the form of wardrobes, bedside tables and perhaps a dresser. Make sure to match the furniture with your choisen design style.

In the search of more space

Like weave mentioned before, apartments are often limited in regards to space. It is therefore no coincidence that the principles often used in interior design of an apartments are about opening up more space. Among the kitchen organization ideas, we present a very practical solution which will free up the space. The solution is an open floorplan. Open up and connect several different rooms and create an illusion of more light and air within the apartment.

Let us paint a picture. You enter the apartment and step into the bright and light hallway. There are floor to ceiling wardrobed to your left and the wooden floor continuously runs into the kitchen. All of the furniture here are made to measure. The tall cabinets are built in and the overhead cabinets reach all the way up to the ceiling to provide additional storage opportunities. The colour scheme matches the hallway which we came from and seamlessly blends in with the living room. The wooden floor provides warmth and the light coloured walls makes the space feel even larger, cleaner and fresher. The kitchen and living room zones are connected with a beautiful wooden dinner table with a counter top that matches the stone benchtop of the kitchen. The dining chair matches the table and are placed on a beautiful carpet whose brother rests under the sofa table. Everything is connected, well thought-out and gorgeously seamless. The arrangement is not just pleasing for the eye but also very practical and customized after the features of the apartment as well as the lifestyle of the users. It is both aestethical and functional.

5 tips for arranging an apartment

If you want to brighten up a minimalistic interior, decorate it with textiles and pillows which brings life and warmth to the interior. Perhaps try a contrasting colour if you’re feeling extra bold.
A carpet will provide a cosiness factor to any interior. Just be careful not to bring in a too large carpet as it might make the space feel unproprtionally small in comparison.
Mirrors are a reliable solution which never fails to enlarge a space. You can also trust in mirrors introducing an additional light source as well as elegance.
Light colours, and glossy surfaces optically enlarge the interior. For kitchens, glossy furniture are also preferable as they are eaiser to keep clean.

We hope that you enjoy our interior design ideas for apartments. Please be aware that all of our tips are universal and work in any apartment. However, they are not rules to follow blindly. Consider our tips and tricks and you will be able to deisgn a space that is both functional, beautiful and adapted after your lifestyle and preferences. Just like every person is different, so is every room. Perhaps your apartment doesn’t need a large renovation, just a touch up. Then we invite you to rad our other article about kitchen paint ideas. Here you can find helpful and practical ideas that will help you decid what colour and what kind of paint to paint your kitchen fronts and completely renew the appearance of your kitchen.

Multi-functional furniture engineering

In modern interiors of apartments, especially in compact floorplans, multi-functional furniture is no longer a novelty but a backbone of efficient design. Small apartments require every square metre to perform multiple tasks, and the only way to achieve this is through furniture engineered with transformation, modularity and verticality in mind. The core of this approach lies in recognising that furniture is not static — it becomes architecture in motion. A bed is no longer a bed; it is a folded wall panel, a storage module, a sofa or a desk. A kitchen island becomes a dining table, workstation or concealed shelving. A wardrobe can extend into a room divider or integrate a hidden utility zone. These engineered hybrids allow the user to compress functions during the day and expand them when needed, maintaining comfort without sacrificing precious space.

Smart apartment interiors often start with a transformable core element: a wall-mounted bed system with hydraulic support, a sliding wardrobe that reveals a work zone, or a modular sofa with integrated storage. Engineering plays a crucial role here — gas-lift mechanisms, aluminium structural frames, concealed rails and lightweight composite panels ensure durability and safe operation. In very small layouts, such furniture creates opportunities for “space borrowing”: a desk that slides out of a kitchen peninsula, a breakfast bar retracting into cabinetry, or a bench with drawers that doubles as a guest bed. What distinguishes high-quality multi-functional furniture is precision — the ability to integrate electrical wiring, ventilation gaps for electronics, soft-close systems and cable management without disturbing the aesthetic harmony.

Vertical engineering is equally important in apartments with limited floor area. High units that reach the ceiling make the most of usually wasted space while maintaining a clean visual direction. Built-in seating zones can host deep drawers, and wall-hung cabinets free floor area, improving circulation. Multi-functional furniture also supports zoning: a bookshelf can serve as a soft divider, an island can separate the kitchen and living area, and a headboard can hide a shallow storage niche. When combined with consistent material palettes — light timber, matte laminates or lacquered fronts — the space appears cohesive, not crowded. Thoughtfully engineered furniture transforms even the smallest apartments into highly functional, flexible and comfortable living environments where no centimetre is wasted.

Acoustics and privacy in small apartments

One of the most underestimated aspects of interiors of apartments is acoustic comfort. Small spaces amplify noise easily, and open-plan layouts — though visually attractive — can undermine privacy if not engineered properly. Modern apartment design treats acoustics as a functional layer equal to lighting or furniture selection. Good acoustic planning makes everyday life calmer, reduces stress and helps separate private zones from public ones, even when no physical walls exist.

Acoustic performance in small apartments begins with material strategy. Hard surfaces like concrete, large-format tiles or glass reflect sound, creating an echo effect. Soft materials — textiles, upholstered panels, wool rugs, curtains — absorb acoustic waves and significantly reduce reverberation. A strategic combination of both ensures balance: upholstered headboards in bedrooms, fabric-covered panels behind a sofa, or a floor-to-ceiling curtain separating a sleeping area from a living zone can instantly improve privacy. For compact spaces with shared zones, ceiling-mounted baffles or acoustic slats become highly effective: they are visually light, customisable in colour and spacing, and create directional sound control without adding mass.

Furniture layout also plays a vital acoustic role. High bookcases filled with books act as excellent sound diffusers. A wardrobe placed against a shared wall with neighbours can reduce transmission noise. In micro-apartments, even a large plant cluster can soften acoustics while visually zoning the space. Another professional method is introducing “soft zoning”: using textiles, semi-transparent partition screens, sliding doors with acoustic cores or pivot panels. These solutions allow for privacy when required — e.g., during remote work — but keep the apartment open when retracted. Modern manufacturers provide systems with acoustic ratings that remain lightweight and aesthetically refined, ideal for minimalist interiors of apartments.

For kitchens or living rooms in open layouts, acoustic comfort heavily depends on appliance engineering. Silent extractor hoods, dishwashers with low decibel ratings and soft-close hinges significantly reduce daily noise accumulation. Additionally, placing noisy appliances away from bedroom walls prevents sound leakage during evening hours. Finally, lighting can enhance acoustic zoning: warm, dimmed lighting in a bedroom paired with acoustic wall panels creates a calming cocoon, while brighter task lighting in the kitchen signals a more active zone. Together, smart acoustic planning and privacy-oriented solutions redefine what comfortable apartment living means — creating quiet, restful interiors even in the smallest urban spaces.