Arcade Machine Dimensions: Standard Size, Height, Screen

Deluxe 32 multi-game arcade machine with an 80s theme

There is no official standard size for an arcade machine. A full-size upright home cabinet is typically 160 to 170cm tall, 64 to 84cm wide and 52 to 62cm deep, with a screen of 24 to 32 inches. Weight varies far more than size, so check it before you order.

That's the short answer. If it's all you needed, you can stop here. The rest covers height, screen size, weight and how to get a cabinet through your door.

What is the standard size of an arcade machine?

There isn't one. No governing body sets arcade cabinet dimensions, so every maker builds to its own plan.

The best guide is the range you'll actually be choosing from. The three upright cabinets in the Deluxe range measure:

Cabinet Height Width Depth Screen
Deluxe 24 160cm 64cm 52cm 24 inch
Deluxe 27 170cm 74cm 62cm 27 inch
Deluxe 32 170cm 84cm 62cm 32 inch

The jump from the smallest to the largest is 20cm in width and 10cm in depth. That's the difference between a cabinet that tucks beside a sofa and one that dominates a wall.

Some cabinets don't publish figures at all. The Pac-Man reproduction is built to match the original's shape and size, but its page asks you to message for exact measurements. Do that before you order.

How tall is the average arcade cabinet?

Around 160 to 170cm for the upright cabinets above, from the Deluxe 24 at 160cm to the Deluxe 27 and 32 at 170cm.

Other formats differ. Pinball machines are a separate shape. The Dimensions database gives a typical pinball machine as 51 inches (130cm) long, 28.5 inches (72cm) wide and 75.5 inches (192cm) tall, and notes that these vary between machines.

So a pinball table is taller than a Deluxe upright by 22 to 32cm, and much longer from front to back.

How big is an arcade machine, and how much room does it need?

The footprint is smaller than people expect, and the playing space is larger. A Deluxe 27 occupies 74cm by 62cm of floor, but you also need room to stand at the controls without backing into a sofa or a doorway.

Leave a clear standing zone in front of the cabinet, and more width if two or more people will play side by side. The four-player Grand 27 is a larger cabinet, and its page asks you to message for measurements and leave space for four people at the controls.

Measure the room the way you would for any large games-room piece. The room size guide for pool tables shows the same logic: the object is only part of the space you need.

An honest concession: if you will mostly play alone or with one other person, a four-player cabinet wastes floor space. The smaller Deluxe 24 is the better fit for a tight room, and a tabletop machine is smaller still.

What size monitor does an arcade cabinet use?

Original cabinets used small tube screens. Posters in a 2002 Arcade Controls forum thread say typical sizes were 19 inch and 25 inch, with the original Street Fighter II cabinet commonly recalled as 19 inch.

Modern home cabinets use flat panels, and they are bigger. The Deluxe range uses 24, 27 and 32 inch screens, and the 24 and 32 inch pages describe 120Hz IPS widescreens.

One trap if you are comparing sizes. The same 2002 thread notes that arcade tubes were measured by visible area, while computer monitors were measured across the whole tube. Compare screen sizes across eras with care.

Bigger is not automatically better. A 32 inch screen suits side-scrolling games and two players, but it brings an 84cm-wide cabinet with it. If your doorway is tight, the 24 or 27 inch cabinet is the safer choice.

How heavy is an arcade machine, and how much does it weigh?

It depends on the cabinet, and the honest answer is "heavy enough to need two people". The Deluxe product pages list the weight as confirmed on request, so ask Rossa before you order rather than assuming.

For old-school wooden cabinets, the only figures available come from third parties. In a 2005 forum thread, one poster estimated a standard 25 inch wood cabinet at about 300lb (roughly 136kg), while another put theirs at about 520lb (roughly 236kg). A 2006 thread on the same forum gives 300 to 400lb, or about 136 to 181kg.

Those are CRT-era machines, owner estimates, and mostly American. No verified weight for a modern flat-panel cabinet was available, so none is quoted here.

How do you move an arcade machine?

With at least two people, a hand truck with straps, and a plan for the stairs.

Posters in the 2005 thread describe a mix of experiences. One said a two-person job was doable and no worse than moving a cooker or sofa. Another struggled with six stairs and advised taking out any large monitor first. A third said stair turns were barely wide enough and needed four people.

In the 2006 thread, posters advise removing the control panel and monitor to lighten the cabinet and to check the cabinet fits before wedging it up a stairwell.

The consistent lesson across all of them is to measure first. Your route matters as much as your destination:

  1. Measure the cabinet's widest point, including any control panel overhang.
  2. Measure every doorway, hallway and stair turn on the route.
  3. Take out removable parts if the cabinet's design allows it.
  4. Use a hand truck with straps, and a helper at each end.

On weight, the HSE's manual handling guidance says that "the law does not set specific weight limits". That page covers workplaces, but the point holds at home: a number on a spec sheet doesn't tell you whether a carry is safe. The route, the grip and the number of helpers do.

For a related route problem, the upstairs pool table guide and the slate weight guide cover floors and access for much heavier items.

Delivery on the Deluxe range is free to mainland England and Wales, while Scotland, Northern Ireland and offshore areas are quoted separately. Each cabinet is built to order, with a lead time of around 6 weeks on the Deluxe pages. Read the delivery and installation page before you order.

Which size should you choose?

Choose the Deluxe 24 for a tight room, the Deluxe 27 for the best balance of screen and footprint, and the Deluxe 32 only if you have a clear route in and space to stand back. Measure your doorways first.

If you want a specific game cabinet, the Pac-Man reproduction keeps the original's proportions, so check that its measurements fit before you commit. Browse the full arcade machines collection to compare.

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