5' x 8' rugs are an excellent transitional size for spaces that are somewhere in the middle: larger than a hallway but smaller than a dining room. Like 4' x 6' rugs, these also play well with other rugs. Like the 6' x 9' rugs, they can work to pull together a larger space.
On Your Floor:
This is the smallest size to use if you want to center the living room around the rug, with a coffee table on the rug and nothing else touching. Personally we would go up to an 8’x10’.