How to Wallpaper a Corner

Why Wallpaper Corners Are the Hardest Part of a DIY Install

Three things go wrong at a wallpaper corner. First, almost no wall corners are perfectly vertical. A corner that looks plumb from a few feet away is usually off by a fraction of an inch from top to bottom, and a strip wrapped around that drift will pucker. Second, the corner edge itself is not sharp. It has a slight radius from drywall mud or paint buildup, and a single strip cannot lay flat through that radius without lifting. Third, any seasonal movement in the wall (humidity, temperature, settling) shows up at corners first. This is what makes corners the tricky part of any first attempt at wallpaper.

The pro fix for all three is the same: cut at the corner, overlap a small wrap, and hang the next wall as a fresh start with its own plumb line. The technique is simpler than it sounds once you walk through it once.

Preparation: Tools and Materials

Good preparation for a corner install is mostly about discipline with three tools: a smoothing tool for pressing the panel flat without trapping air bubbles, a soft-bristle brush for working the wallpaper into the corner from top to bottom, and a sharp trimming knife with a fresh blade for cutting the excess paper away at the ceiling and floor. The Tempaper "Installation Guide" sums up the install challenge: "Working around corners and smoothing out bubbles is a breeze with our step by step instructions." The step-by-step principle is the same for traditional paste-the-wall wallpaper and for peel-and-stick: do the corner before you move to the next wall, and never assume the corner is plumb.

• A 4-foot level (essential for plumb lines)
• A sharp snap-blade knife with extra blades (a fresh blade for every wall)
• A 6-inch metal straight edge or wide putty knife
• A plastic smoothing tool or squeegee
• Pencil and tape measure
• Damp sponge or damp rag for wiping residual wallpaper paste at seams (wallpaper paste can be washed away with a damp rag while still wet)
• Wallpaper seam adhesive (for finishing the overlap edge)

How to Hang Wallpaper in an Inside Corner: Step by Step

The most common case in residential rooms. Many inside corners in a typical home meet at near-90 degrees but never exactly. Here is the tutorial in order.

1. Hang the strip leading up to the corner as normal, smoothed down its full length on the first wall.
2. Measure from the seam of the previous strip to the corner at several heights (top, middle, bottom). Take the longest measurement and add 1/2 inch.
3. Cut your next strip to the longest-measurement-plus-1/2-inch width. The 1/2 inch will wrap onto the second wall. Take your wallpaper section and confirm the cut is square before mounting.
4. Hang this strip aligned to the previous strip's seam, with the extra 1/2 inch wrapping into the corner and onto the second wall. The wallpaper section nearest the corner should sit flat without forcing.
5. Place the smoothing tool against the wall and press firmly into the corner with your smoother or putty knife to get the wrap to lay flat. Gently work out any air bubbles around the corner while smoothing, and chase each bubble outward toward the edge rather than pressing down on it.
6. Drop a fresh plumb line on the second wall, measuring 1/2 inch from the corner. This is where the next strip's edge will land.
7. Cut the next strip to full width using a sharp snap-blade knife to cut a square edge. Hang aligned to the new plumb line, with its edge landing 1/2 inch from the corner. This means it overlaps the wrap from the previous strip by 1/2 inch.
8. Smooth the overlap flat. Once the corner is cut and pressed, the 1/2 inch overlap is intentional and almost invisible at the corner.
9. Trim the excess paper at ceiling and floor with the same sharp knife to cut clean against a straight edge. Trim excess paper at top and bottom in one continuous motion for a neat result.

The reason for the overlap rather than a butt seam: corner walls drift. A butt seam at a corner will gap within weeks. The 1/2 inch overlap absorbs the drift without showing.

How to Hang Wallpaper Around an Outside Corner: Step by Step

The corner where two walls meet at a convex angle (think the corner of a chimney that protrudes into a room, or the edge of a built-in cabinet). This is the case where you literally wrap around the corner.

1. Hang the strip leading up to the outside corner as normal.
2. Measure from the previous strip's seam to the outside corner. Add 3/4 inch (slightly more than the inside corner wrap, around 2 inches if the corner is uneven).
3. Cut your strip to the measurement plus 3/4 inch.
4. Hang the strip with the extra 3/4 inch wrapping around the outside corner onto the next wall. Press firmly into the corner and tack the wrap edge before the paste sets so the wrap lies flat.
5. Drop a fresh plumb line on the next wall, 3/4 inch from the corner.
6. Cut the next strip to full width and hang aligned to the new plumb line. The strip's edge should land at the plumb line, overlapping the wrap by 3/4 inch.
7. Use a sharp utility knife to trim any small drift in the overlap after smoothing. Use a metal straight edge along the corner edge for a clean cut. Wipe any residual wallpaper paste off the face with a damp rag before it dries.

Outside corners need the slightly larger wrap because the wallpaper needs to flex around the convex edge. A 1/2 inch wrap on an outside corner often pulls back over time as the wallpaper tries to flatten. Reposition the wallpaper as needed during install while the paste is still wet, and you will be able to slide it gently into place without tearing.

How to Wallpaper an Uneven Corner

Older homes often have corners that are not even close to plumb. The corner itself may be 1/2 inch out of vertical from top to bottom. Layered paint, rounded drywall mud, or general settling can all cause this.

The fix: take the longest measurement at any height (top, middle, bottom) and use that as your wrap reference. The wrap will be too long at narrower heights, but the excess can be smoothed flat or trimmed flush along the corner edge with a sharp snap-blade knife to cut and follow the corner edge.

For severely out-of-plumb corners (more than 1 inch of drift from top to bottom), consider:

• Floating a thin strip of joint compound to flatten the worst of the drift before hanging wallpaper.
• Choosing a wallpaper pattern with strong vertical elements that distract from the visual mismatch.
• Choosing a busy or random pattern that hides the alignment issue and gives the wall depth and dimension.

Solid colors, geometric patterns, and stripes all amplify uneven corner alignment. Floral and abstract patterns hide it.

How to Wallpaper a Corner with a Pattern

Pattern matching at a wallpaper corner adds one decision: where the patterns match (or do not) after the corner. The right side pattern matched call depends on the room.

For most corner installs, the pattern intentionally does not match perfectly across the corner. The 1/2 inch overlap consumes part of the pattern, so the new wall starts with the pattern slightly shifted. This is industry standard and reads as normal in real rooms when you decorate around the corner with consistent trim.

If you need a tight pattern match set (rare in residential, common in high-end commercial), the technique is:

1. Hang the corner strip with the wrap as normal.
2. For the next strip, align the pattern to where the corner strip's pattern picks up at the wrap edge, not to a plumb line.
3. Accept that the next strip may not be perfectly plumb.
4. The drift will be invisible at the start (matching pattern) but compounds as you continue across the wall. Plan for an inconspicuous spot to drop a fresh plumb line and absorb the drift.

For most homes, the small pattern shift across a corner is the right tradeoff. It is barely noticeable and prevents pattern drift from compounding across multiple walls. Tips and tricks from pro installers (one favorite shown in every wallpaper tutorial making the rounds on the internet and YouTube) usually agree: small shifts beat compounded drift.

Do You Overlap Wallpaper at Corners?

Yes, always at corners. Modern wallpaper is generally designed for butt seams in the middle of walls (no overlap), but corners are the exception. The 1/2 to 3/4 inch overlap is necessary for the install to last.

The overlap should be on the side most likely to be in shadow. For inside corners, hide the overlap edge against the wall that gets less direct light. For outside corners, the overlap is usually visible from one angle but not the other. Choose accordingly to keep the wall looking seamless.

How to Wallpaper a Corner with Peel-and-Stick Wallpaper

The same principles apply, with one wrinkle. Peel and stick wallpaper's pressure-sensitive glue is less forgiving of overlaps than traditional wallpaper paste. The overlap can lift over time if the glue does not grip the wallpaper face beneath it.

Two adjustments for peel-and-stick corners:

1. Make the wrap shorter (1/4 inch) to minimize the overlap area.
2. Place the smoothing tool against the wall and press the overlap firmly with local pressure (a credit card or burnishing tool) for 30 seconds to maximize the glue contact. Reposition the wallpaper as needed during the first minute, since peel-and-stick lets you lift and re-place it gently while you align.

If the overlap still lifts after install, a small amount of clear-drying craft glue under the lifted edge re-adheres it cleanly. For the full peel-and-stick install process, see our How to Apply Peel and Stick Wallpaper. The same overlap rule applies around windows and door frames as it does at corners.

Common Wallpaper Corner Mistakes

• Wrapping a single strip around an entire corner. The wallpaper buckles or lifts within weeks.
• Not dropping a fresh plumb line on the new wall. Continuing alignment from the previous wall compounds any drift.
• Making the wrap too long. A 2-inch wrap is harder to hide and more likely to bulge at the corner.
• Making the wrap too short. A 1/4 inch wrap on traditional wallpaper is not enough to absorb wall drift.
• Forgetting to press the corner. The wrap needs firm pressure at the corner to lay flat. A bare hand is not enough. Use a smoothing tool or putty knife.
• Using a butt seam at the corner. Corners drift, butt seams gap. Always overlap.
• Leaving residual wallpaper paste at seams. Paste dries shiny and dulls the finish. Washed away with a damp rag while wet, it leaves no trace.

Frequently Asked Questions

How should I wallpaper a corner?

Cut at the corner, do not wrap. The strip from the first wall ends with a 1/2 inch (inside corner) or 3/4 inch (outside corner) wrap onto the second wall. The next strip starts on the second wall aligned to a fresh plumb line, overlapping the wrap. Place the smoothing tool firmly at the corner to ensure the wrap lies flat.

Do you overlap wallpaper in corners?

Yes. The 1/2 to 3/4 inch overlap at corners is the exception to the butt-seam rule. Corners have wall drift that butt seams cannot absorb without gapping later.

How do you wallpaper an inside corner?

Trim the first strip with a 1/2 inch wrap onto the second wall. Drop a plumb line on the second wall 1/2 inch from the corner. Hang the next strip aligned to the new plumb line, overlapping the wrap. Trim the excess paper from the top and bottom with a sharp blade.

How do you wallpaper an outside corner?

Same principle as inside corners but with a 3/4 inch wrap (slightly larger because the wallpaper has to flex around the convex edge). Press firmly at the corner edge and trim any small drift.

How do you wallpaper an uneven corner?

Take the longest measurement from any height (top, middle, bottom) of the corner and use that as your wrap. Excess at narrower heights smooths flat or trims flush. For severely uneven corners (more than 1 inch of drift), consider skim coating to flatten the corner first or choose a pattern that hides drift.

How do you wallpaper a corner with a pattern?

For most installs, accept a small pattern shift at the corner. The 1/2 inch overlap consumes part of the pattern, so the new wall starts shifted slightly. For exact pattern continuity, align the next strip to where the wrap's pattern picks up rather than to a plumb line, and absorb the resulting drift further along the wall.

Our Take

Most wallpaper failures at corners trace back to one decision: trying to wrap a single strip around a corner instead of cutting and overlapping. The wrap-and-overlap technique adds 5 minutes per corner and prevents nearly every type of corner-related failure (buckling, lifting, gapping, pattern drift).

Drop a fresh plumb line on each new wall, accept a small pattern shift across corners as normal, and use the wider 3/4 inch wrap on outside corners. For the rest of the install techniques, our How to Hang Wallpaper covers prep, first-strip alignment, pattern matching, and trim.

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Last updated: May 2026.