The Differences Between Sofas and Armchairs

When most people picture a living room, they probably see a couch and an armchair. But what are the differences between the two? Does it have to do with size alone, or is there something else going on?

Before we address the specific features that make an armchair different from a sofa, let’s define them each and take a quick look at their histories, starting with the sofa.

According to the Mirriam-Webster dictionary, the word “sofa” refers to “a long, upholstered seat usually with arms and a back.” The word comes from the Arabic word “suffah,” which refers to something like a bench. “Suffah” is an ancient word, but upholstery, as we know it today, wasn’t invented until the 17th century. Since our definition of “sofa” includes upholstery, we can assume that the seats that “suffah” referred to were benches and not sofas. That means the first true sofa was probably invented in the 17th century! (In fact, the first visual depiction of a true sofa comes from the French picture titled “Woman of Quality on a Canapé” from 1686.)

The definition of “armchair” is simply “a chair with armrests.” We tend to picture armchairs today covered in upholstery, but the very first armchairs probably didn’t have any fabric on them! The oldest example of an armchair may come from Egypt’s Valley of Kings, a site where pharaohs and powerful nobles were buried between the 16th and 11th centuries BCE. It belonged to Hetepheres I, the mother of Khufu, the second pharaoh of the Old Kingdom’s Fourth Dynasty. Armchairs were reserved for the wealthiest classes throughout history, but that all changed during the European Renaissance thanks to social changes to the class systems.

Today, both armchairs and sofas are accessible to almost everyone–that’s why they’re so common in living rooms around the world! Now that we have a clear definition for each of them, as well as a general history in mind about how each piece came to be, let’s take a look at the differences between sofas and armchairs.

The Differences Between Sofas and Armchairs

The most obvious difference between a sofa and an armchair has to do with size. Sofas are longer than armchairs, able to sit two or three people at once, while armchairs are built to seat one person. Additionally, while both armchairs and sofas have backs, armchairs typically have higher backs, especially antiques or vintage reproductions!

The second most obvious difference is one we briefly mentioned above, but it’s worth mentioning again: by definition, sofas have to have upholstering while armchairs do not. Since the mid-17th century, it’s probably fair to say that more armchairs have been upholstered than not, but there were thousands of years where armchairs didn’t feature any fabrics. An armchair without upholstery is still an armchair, but a sofa without upholstery is a bench.

The most distinctive feature of armchairs is the armrests on either side of the chair’s seat. Many sofas have armrests too, but even when sofas have armrests on either side of their elongated seat, they’re much too far away from each other to be used by one person. One person can sit on the right end and use the right armrest but can’t reach the left, and vice versa. On the other hand, an armchair has arm and elbow rests specifically to be used by one person; that’s how the chair got its name in the first place! This difference pertains to the size disparity between the two pieces, the sofa being larger and the armchair being smaller.

There are a wide variety of designs in today’s sofas and armchairs, but in general, armchairs sit on four legs while many sofas sit directly on the floor or at least have a long flap of fabric that hides the appearance of legs. Again, this isn’t so much true of antique or reproduction furniture as it is modern-day.

The last difference between sofas and armchairs doesn’t have as much to do with appearance as it does function. Sofas are designed to be used in the living room. Because an armchair is any chair with armrests, it's possible to be found in any room of the house. Many armchairs are used in living rooms, offices, dining rooms, and patios. They also have the flexibility, as we mentioned above, of being upholstered or left bare, which makes them easier to move into different rooms as needed.

Conclusion

There are many differences between sofas and armchairs, some more subtle than others. When in doubt, remember these key points: sofas are longer than armchairs and belong in the living room, as they are often upholstered to provide the utmost amount of comfort. On the other hand, an armchair is any chair with armrests, which means that it can be upholstered or wooden, placed in the living room or the dining room.