The Best Furniture Pieces to Buy on Amazon, According to Designers

Materials

When it comes to furniture, the Amazon’s inventory truly runs the gamut. It’s important to pay close attention to what materials a piece is made from, as it can help you determine its quality.

“I like to focus on items that are made of certain materials such as natural stone, cane, real wood, and rattan.” says Kraiem. These kinds of materials, often referred to as “noble materials” are exceptionally more durable and better-looking than popular cheap alternatives, like particle board. Steel and engineered wood can also be good quality, even though they are often less expensive than solid wood or stone.

When shopping for upholstered items, consider the fabric. For example, linen, bouclé and cotton are typically indicative of better quality pieces than synthetic fabrics, like polyester and nylon. While some synthetic materials can feel extremely luxurious, it’s harder to tell online, so opt for natural materials whenever possible.

Size

Ordering furniture online can be tricky when it comes to choosing the right size pieces. To make sure you don’t end with furniture that’s either way too big or way too small, take detailed measurements and compare them against the specs of each piece listen on Amazon. Make sure you consider how much clearance you’ll need to walk around your furniture, and if you’re purchasing a table and chairs, be sure their heights complement one another.

For large pieces of furniture, you may want to take your measurements a step further by laying out painter’s tape on your floor to see what its footprint will look like in your space. For some people the visual can be tremendously helpful in determining whether or not its a good fit before adding a piece to your Amazon cart.

While you can almost always return furniture purchased from Amazon, it can be difficult to disassemble it, put it back in its box, and schedule a pick up or drop it off to be shipped back.

Price

Furniture prices on Amazon span a very broad range, starting at under $50 and going as high as tens of thousands of dollars. While you certainly could spend thousands on Amazon pieces if you wanted to, both Chaumien and Kraiem recommend keeping your Amazon purchases to the lower end of the pricing spectrum.

“The key from shopping at Amazon is not to spend as much as in a brick and mortar store,” says Kraiem. “Depending on the piece, anything below $1,000 might make sense!”

“I think Amazon is a great place to find affordable furniture,” says Chaumien. “What I would do is build a mix of more expensive furniture, for important pieces like your sofa, and more affordable ones from Amazon for things like table lamps, side tables, etc.”

If you’re willing to splurge on more expensive pieces, you’ll definitely want to visit a brick and mortar location where you can test them out and see how they look and feel before making such a substantial investment.

Reviews

The beauty of shopping on Amazon is that you have the opportunity to peruse other customers’ reviews before adding a piece of furniture to your cart. Other customers might help you decide that a piece is perfect for you, or they might help you steer clear of an item that’s less than stellar.

It’s important not to only read reviews, but to check the photos attached to customer reviews. “People will share photos of how the item actually looks in their space. Take some time to review them, to see if it fits what you’re looking for,” Chaumien says. “I would never purchase anything that doesn’t have at least 4 stars.”