Clothes racks get written off as a dorm room fix, something you buy until you can afford a real closet. I get why, but I think that reputation sells them short. A good one is a real piece of furniture, and I'd rather look at a nicely loaded rack than a closet door that won't shut.
In an ordinary room, a rack reads best when it's not competing with everything else. Put it against a plain wall and let the clothes be the color. A rail of denim and white shirts against a dark wall looks sharp. A rail crammed with every color you own against a busy wallpaper just looks like laundry day. I keep mine near a window because clothes on open display pick up light in a way folded clothes in a drawer never will, and a coat in a good color deserves that. Think of it almost like hanging art, the rack is the frame, your clothes are the thing being shown.
For sizing, measure your tallest hanging item first, not the rack. A full length coat or a maxi dress needs real clearance off the floor, and a short rack will have hems pooling on the ground, which looks sad and gets dusty fast. Standard height works for shirts and jackets, but if you live for long coats, go taller or get an adjustable rail. Width matters too, a narrow rack packed tight crushes everything and you end up ironing more, not less. Leave room for air between hangers. The most common mistake is buying a rack sized for the room instead of for the wardrobe, and ending up with something either too dainty to hold a winter coat or too massive for a studio apartment.
When you're shopping or unboxing one, check the base. A narrow footprint on a tall rack is a recipe for tipping, especially with a toddler or a dog in the house. Check the weight rating too, cheap metal rails bow in the middle under a load of coats within a month. Look at how the joints are finished, exposed screws catch on sweaters, and a rough weld will snag your good knits before you've worn them twice.
If you're starting with nothing, go with a simple metal rack in black or brass rather than a trendy colored one. It disappears into most rooms and lets whatever you're hanging do the talking, which, coming from someone who thinks beige is a cop out everywhere else, is about as neutral an opinion as I'll ever give you.
What a rack can't do is hide anything. Everything on it is on display, wrinkles, stretched collars and all, so it only looks good if what's hanging on it does too.
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