If you’re walking down Figueroa Street in DTLA, you probably don’t call it the Staples Center anymore. It’s been Crypto.com Arena for a while now, but let’s be real—everyone still types the old name into Google. One thing that hasn't changed, though, is the confusion surrounding the Staples Center seating capacity. You’d think a building made of concrete and steel would have one fixed number, right? Wrong.
It’s a shapeshifter.
Depending on whether you’re there to see LeBron James throw down a dunk, the Kings grind out a hockey game, or a massive pop star suspended from the ceiling in a glittery harness, the room literally moves.
The Basketball Breakdown: 19,067 and Why it Matters
For a Los Angeles Lakers or Clippers home game, the Staples Center seating capacity officially sits at 19,067. That’s the magic number. But have you ever noticed how some playoff games feel way more packed? That’s because "capacity" is often a suggestion rather than a hard ceiling when you factor in standing-room-only tickets and the coveted floor seats that put celebrities like Jack Nicholson inches away from the hardwood.
Basketball requires the smallest floor footprint of the major sports. This allows the arena to pull out those extra rows of telescopic seating. If you've ever sat in the "100s," you’re basically sitting on a motorized bleacher system that hides the ice rink underneath. It’s a marvel of engineering, honestly. They can flip the building from a Lakers hardwood floor to a Kings ice sheet in a matter of hours, but that transition sacrifices nearly a thousand seats.
Hockey and the "Frozen" Capacity
When the ice comes out for the LA Kings, the Staples Center seating capacity drops to about 18,118.
Why the loss? Physics.
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A hockey rink is significantly larger than a basketball court. To fit that massive oval of ice, the venue has to retract several rows of the lower-bowl seating. You lose that intimacy of being "on top" of the play that you get in basketball. However, hockey fans will tell you that the sightlines from the 200-level are actually superior for seeing the plays develop.
There's a weird quirk here, too. For "Frozen Fury" or high-profile NHL matchups, the team sometimes squeezes in a few more bodies, but you rarely see it cross the 18,500 mark. It’s just too tight.
The Concert Configuration: Where Things Get Wild
This is where the math gets messy. For a center-stage "in the round" concert—think Ed Sheeran or Metallica—the Staples Center seating capacity can actually balloon to over 20,000. When the stage is in the middle, every single seat in the house is sellable.
But most tours use an "End-Stage" setup.
When Taylor Swift or Bruce Springsteen rolls into town, the stage is pushed to one end of the arena. Suddenly, several entire sections behind the stage are "killed." They’re draped in black fabric and completely off-limits. In this scenario, the capacity might dip to 15,000 or even lower depending on the size of the pyrotechnics and the LED walls.
Suite Life and the Hidden Numbers
We can't talk about capacity without mentioning the three levels of luxury suites. There are 160 of them. Most people forget to count these when they’re visualizing the crowd. Each suite holds anywhere from 12 to 24 people.
Then you’ve got the Premier Seats.
These are the roughly 2,500 seats located in the middle tier that come with waiter service and club access. They are the bread and butter of the arena’s revenue, and they stay consistent regardless of the event. Whether it's a monster truck rally or the Grammys, those mid-level seats are always there, providing a buffer between the "loud" fans in the 300s and the "rich" fans in the 100s.
Why Does Google Show Different Numbers?
If you search for the Staples Center seating capacity, you’ll see 18,997. Then you’ll see 19,060. Then 20,000.
It’s annoying.
The discrepancy usually comes from how the venue reports "attendance" versus "seating capacity." Attendance counts every human soul in the building—security, ushers, the guy selling overpriced hot dogs, and the players. Seating capacity is supposed to be "butts in chairs."
Also, renovations happen. In recent years, the arena has undergone significant upgrades to the "Impact Sports Bar & Grill" and the Chairman’s Board Room. Sometimes these renovations remove a few seats to make room for a new bar or a wider concourse. In the world of modern stadium design, "fan experience" (read: places to buy beer) is becoming more valuable than cramming in ten extra seats in the nosebleeds.
The 300 Level: The "Cheap" Seats
Let’s talk about the rafters. The 300-level is where the real atmosphere lives. It’s steep. If you have vertigo, it’s a nightmare. But from a capacity standpoint, this area is the most rigid. You can't move these seats. They are bolted into the concrete.
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While the floor level is a transformer, the 300-level is a fortress. It holds roughly 6,000 people who are all praying the jumbo-tron is working that night.
Comparing LA to the Rest of the World
Is it a big arena? Sorta.
Compared to the United Center in Chicago (which can hold nearly 21,000 for basketball), the Staples Center seating capacity is actually on the smaller side for a major market. But AEG, the owners, designed it that way on purpose. They wanted intimacy. They wanted every seat to feel like you’re part of the action, even if you’re technically a quarter-mile away from the court.
Madison Square Garden in New York is the only real rival in terms of "fame," and its capacity is remarkably similar, hovering around 19,800 for hoops. It seems 19,000 is the "sweet spot" for modern NBA arenas—large enough to make a fortune, small enough to keep the noise loud.
How to Choose Your Seat Based on Capacity
If you’re actually planning to go, don’t just look at the section number.
- For Basketball: Aim for the 200-level corners. You get the benefit of the full 19,067-person energy without the 100-level price tag.
- For Hockey: Avoid the first three rows. The glass distorts the view. Since the hockey capacity is lower, being higher up actually helps you see the puck.
- For Concerts: If it’s "In the Round," the 100-level is worth the splurge. If it’s an end-stage, stick to the sides of the stage rather than the far end; you’ll be closer to the artist than the people on the floor who are five-foot-two and staring at someone's back.
The Staples Center seating capacity is a living number. It breathes. It changes with the season. Next time you're there, look at the floor and try to imagine where those extra 900 seats go when the ice comes out. It’s a pretty cool trick.
Actionable Takeaways for Your Visit
To get the most out of the arena's layout, keep these practical points in mind for your next ticket purchase:
- Check the "Obstructed View" tag: Because of the way the 18,000+ seats are angled for different events, some concert stages will block your view of the big screens. Always double-check the seating chart on the official venue site, not just the ticket reseller.
- Arrival Timing: For high-capacity events (19,000+), the security lines at the 11th Street entrance are notoriously slower. Use the Star Plaza entrance near the statues; it handles the flow better.
- The "Hidden" Bathrooms: When the house is at full capacity, the concourse is a mosh pit. Head to the ends of the Premier Level (200s) if you can sneak in, or use the restrooms located near the corners of the 300-level which are often less crowded than the ones right behind the main food courts.
- Verify the Event Type: Before assuming the capacity, check if the event is "curtained off." Some smaller concerts or circus events use a "theatre setup" where they drop a massive curtain halfway through the arena, cutting the capacity to about 7,000 for a more intimate feel.