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Photo: Mytour / Brian KopinskiA great coffee table is essential for any living space—it not only anchors the room but also provides a functional spot for drinks, showcases your style, and helps store items out of sight. Choosing the perfect coffee table is crucial when decorating your home, but it requires some effort to find the ideal one.
To identify the top coffee tables, we spent countless hours reviewing a variety of options, weighing factors such as dimensions, design, material, and storage. We also consulted interior designers Alicia Cheung and Eva Bradley for their expert guidance.
Best Glass
This coffee table boasts an almost invisible design featuring a sleek glass top and a lower shelf available in various finishes, offering additional space for books and decorative items without overwhelming your other furniture. The sturdy steel frame ensures durability, allowing you to relax without worrying about its stability.
This artistic coffee table is perfect for smaller spaces. Its circular top fits neatly into tight areas, and its cut-out design includes a shelf for added storage, helping to keep your room organized. You can choose from a brown or white finish to complement your home’s aesthetic.
This bold coffee table combines form and function. Constructed from steel, glass, and marble, the striking materials elevate your space while providing plenty of room to display coffee table books or small decor. The recessed base gives the illusion of the table floating, adding a touch of minimalist sophistication.
Perfect for decorators who can’t make up their minds, this coffee table features a reversible colored glass top—light gray on one side and pink on the other—allowing you to easily switch between a neutral or more vibrant look. Plus, its round design ensures you won’t bump into sharp edges.
Best Wood
This farmhouse-style coffee table adds a touch of rustic elegance to your living room without breaking the bank. Choose from five different finishes to match your decor, and enjoy the stability provided by its metal cross bars. Additionally, it features a convenient shelf perfect for storing baskets to help manage clutter.
This versatile nesting coffee table is perfect for a variety of needs. Whether you’re looking to expand your workspace for home office tasks or need extra surface area for appetizers during a gathering, these solid wood tables can be rearranged to suit any situation. Its compact size also makes it easy to move and set up in different spaces.
You can’t go wrong with a classic mid-century-inspired coffee table. This option from AllModern is crafted from durable acacia wood, which resists warping, ensuring your table retains its charm for years to come. It features a drawer and additional shelves, offering ample storage space to keep your living room tidy and stylish.
This elegantly simple coffee table will serve as a strong focal point in your living room without overpowering the space, thanks to its open design. Made from kiln-dried wood, it resists warping and scratches for exceptional durability. Best of all, Pottery Barn’s white glove service will handle all the assembly for you.
Best Metal
This affordable coffee table is made with durable materials, perfect for any home. The steel and metal frame ensures it won’t warp or break over time, while its lightweight design allows you to move it around with ease. Its clean and open design also offers endless styling possibilities.
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While it doesn’t have extra storage, this coffee table is an excellent choice for smaller apartments or any home. Weighing under 10 pounds, it’s incredibly easy to move around, and its minimal frame helps create the illusion of a larger room. The round tabletop is also easy to navigate around.
This modern coffee table features a sleek two-tiered design for extra storage. The sturdy metal frame stands up to frequent use and requires minimal maintenance—just a quick dusting now and then. Plus, no assembly is needed, so you can enjoy it right out of the box.
This coffee table is a worthwhile investment, especially for larger spaces. Its striking base adds a sculptural element to your room, while the spacious surface provides ample space for guests to place their drinks as they relax on your couch. The durable aluminum tabletop also makes it easy to wipe away spills.
Best Marble
Featuring a sleek pedestal base and a glossy marble surface, this coffee table combines the earthy warmth of wood with the elegance of marble, adding a touch of luxury to your space. Its round top makes it easy to move, even in tighter areas, and its compact size ensures it can fit into a variety of living room layouts.
Rather than featuring a marble top, this coffee table incorporates a marble base, giving it a unique and contemporary flair. You can personalize its appearance by mixing and matching the base and tabletop colors. With its compact, low-profile design, this table can easily fit into any room. Additionally, the foam-padded base prevents any damage to your floors.
This stunning coffee table lets you have both style and durability. Its solid wood base promises longevity, while the marble top adds a touch of luxury to your living space. The angled legs lend a sleek touch to its design, making it perfect for small rooms as well.
This coffee table is a true showstopper. Featuring elegant curved brass details and a soft pink marble top, it brings a touch of refinement and a distinctive element to your decor. With a convenient bottom shelf for styling your items, and no assembly required thanks to Anthropologie's white glove service, it's as practical as it is beautiful.
How to Shop for Coffee Tables Like a Pro
Size and Shape
Coffee tables are available in a wide variety of shapes and sizes, including rectangular, circular, oval, and nested. Round tables work best in spacious areas with abundant seating, whereas rectangular tables are ideal for connecting smaller rooms.
Size is another important factor to consider when selecting a coffee table. Cheung and Bradley advise leaving 18 inches between your seating and the coffee table to find the right dimensions for your space. For larger rooms, they recommend using multiple identical tables to create a versatile and personalized arrangement. "For example, you can combine two or three rectangular tables to form one large surface, or you could arrange them closer to each person for activities like game nights, snacks, or building with Legos," they suggest.
Material
Cheung and Bradley are fond of using wood, stone, metal, or combinations of these materials in their coffee tables. While all of these options are durable, they do require some maintenance. Wood is a popular choice for high-quality, long-lasting tables, although it tends to be pricier. For a more budget-friendly yet robust alternative, consider a wooden table with metal legs or a purely iron design for an industrial flair. Particleboard, which resembles wood, offers an affordable option, but it lacks the durability of solid wood.
Glass coffee tables are favored for their sleek, minimalist aesthetic. While they exude elegance, they are more fragile than other materials, so they may not be the best choice for homes with children. For a chic and durable table, marble or concrete are great options. These materials are modern, versatile for both indoor and outdoor use, and resistant to wear and tear. However, they come with a higher price tag, and marble can be prone to scratches, requiring more care and upkeep.
Storage
Some coffee tables double as storage pieces, offering extra space to display your favorite items or tuck away clutter. Many feature a lower shelf that's perfect for keeping magazines or showcasing mementos. Cheung and Bradley particularly recommend tables with drawers, as they are compact and not overly bulky. Drawers provide a discreet way to store your belongings, creating a clean, organized appearance.
Questions You Might Ask
How much should you spend on a coffee table?
There's no one-size-fits-all answer to this—it really comes down to your budget and what you're hoping to find in a coffee table. If you're looking for a high-quality table that will stand the test of time, it's worth investing in something made from durable materials like solid wood or metal, such as the Pottery Barn Folsom Coffee Table or the CB2 Titus Round Coffee Table. If you're someone who moves often or isn't ready to splurge, you might want to opt for a more affordable option like the Fadidio Rectangular Coffee Table.
How tall should a coffee table be?
According to Cheung and Bradley, your coffee table shouldn't rise more than 1 inch above your seat height. The ideal range for a coffee table height is between 14 and 20 inches, but you can adjust this depending on your personal taste. If you like to put your feet up, a shorter table might be more comfortable for you.
What size should a coffee table be in relation to a sofa?
The size of your coffee table relative to your sofa depends on your personal style, but a general guideline is to choose a table that is about two-thirds the width of your couch. If you're working with a sectional sofa, a round coffee table might be a great option so that everyone has easy access. According to Cheung and Bradley, 'As long as everyone has a spot to place a drink or phone nearby, that should be your main consideration when deciding how much table space you actually need.'
What are some ways to style a coffee table?
Cheung and Bradley recommend adding layers to your coffee table with items like coffee table books, a candle, and a box to store remotes. You could also arrange fresh flowers in your favorite vase, use trays to organize small items, or display decorative pieces to create an artistic arrangement. If you want something more minimal, just a candle and a stack of coasters will do the trick.
Take Our Word for It
This article was written by Jen Woo, a seasoned writer and content strategist specializing in design, lifestyle, and culture, with over 10 years of expertise. To craft this article, she dedicated significant time to researching coffee tables, carefully examining aspects like size, shape, material, and storage to identify the finest options. For expert insights on how to shop for coffee tables, she consulted designers Alicia Cheung and Eva Bradley.
