The best garden furniture stores to help you spruce up your outdoor space
Having a garden, or any kind of outdoor space, is a real privilege–and one which should be maximised to ensure it is not taken for granted. Purchasing the very best garden furniture, from a charming outdoor shop or garden centre, is one of the top ways to curate and design your space. However, the process of choosing the right garden furniture for your house can be notoriously difficult as you contend with not just aesthetic but the practicality of your chosen furnishings too.
Now that summer is in full swing, there's no time like the present to invest in some stylish garden furniture. To help you make your decision regarding which bits you need, the House & Garden team have compiled our thoughts on all the best garden furniture shops to pick from now - and how to design the best alfresco space for your home.
What is the best garden furniture to buy?
The best garden furniture for you will be largely dependent on the amount of space you have. If you have a small garden, or even just a tiny rooftop or balcony garden, the most versatile thing to buy is a smart little bistro set in rattan or metal. Rattan is particularly on trend at the moment and has a pleasing vintage look, especially the French café-style sets that we're seeing all over the high street at the moment. Rattan effect, or faux-rattan, is a practical choice too as it is more weather resistant and can be cleaned with soapy water. Teak and acacia wood furniture is designed to be left out all year around. Metal garden furniture tends to be cheaper and we love the classic options made by Garden Trading.
John Lewis & Partners
The high street stalwart is your best bet for bigger furnishings, so we recommend purchasing either a garden sofa or set of garden chairs, as well as home tech equipment such as pizza ovens and barbecues (opt for the Big Green Egg Large Egg BBQ & Acacia Wood Table Bundle here).
What to buy: An outdoor sofa is a great, hardworking piece of furniture that can be used to spend languorous afternoons reading but also as a back up bit of extra seating around the garden table. They come in a wealth of sizes, from love seats to two seater sofas to corner sofas. John Lewis' range are really comfortable, hard wearing and affordable. Alternatively, opt for something from their even more affordable range, Anyday, which offers John Lewis's famed quality for more affordable prices.
Barker and Stonehouse
Barker and Stonehouse sell a very elegant selection of garden furniture, from dining sets to sun loungers and accessories. Whilst the options aren't endless - most categories consist of either a faux rattan or a powder coated steel option - what is on offer is very stylish.
What to buy: Larger furnishings that will stand the test of time.
OKA
OKA is a classic homeware destination and they are well known for their brilliant edit of furniture. What is less well known, perhaps, is that their offering of garden furniture is just as good. OKA's rattan garden furniture is timelessly elegant. After all, it's one of the most glamorous and stylish materials you can choose for your garden furniture. Thankfully, OKA's range features weatherproof, or faux rattan, styles which means it can be left out all year without worry.
What to buy: Beyond the rattan, we look to OKA for very stylish garden benches that look utterly charming. A place to sit and admire your handiwork is always a good idea when it comes to gardening. A few moments of peace on a bench can be both inspiring and invigorating after a day’s labour in the soil. So, if your outdoor space is minimal, a bench is probably the best purchase you can make as they provide seating for two or three and can be used as a sun lounger if desperately needed (though don't overlook OKA's range of these too).
Graham and Green
A fantastic all-rounder, Graham and Green offer a full range of garden furniture: from two-seater sofas to outdoor lighting.
What to buy: The latter are what we'd likely focus on from Graham and Green, as they offer everything from swan neck sconces to fairy lights and wall lights - there's even a moon shaped seat lamp which is particularly fun. Garden lights can do wonders for your spaces, creating a sparkling atmosphere once the sun goes down. We recommend selecting yellow bulbs, rather than bright white, as these will be more elegant and less ‘high security prison.'
What are the best garden furniture stores at a glance?
Below, you'll find our breakdown of the best garden furniture shops, filled with 19 great places to pick garden furniture from. However, if you're after ‘at a glance’ information, look no further:
- Best overall garden furniture store - Oka
- Best garden store for dining sets - Barker and Stonehouse
- Best garden furniture store for lounge sets - John Lewis
- Best contemporary garden furniture store - Amara
- Best garden furniture for accessories - Rose & Grey
- Best garden furniture store for unusual investment pieces - Raj Tent Club
- Best garden furniture store for garden lighting - Pooky
Amara
Best for: Amara is a brilliant place to shop garden furniture online, as they carry such a large range of designers. We head to Amara for stylish garden parasols, as well as bigger pieces such as garden chairs. Part of the reason for this is that their site offers an enormous choice: you can pick from metal outdoor dining chairs, rattan armchairs and foldable bistro chairs that are really lightweight and easily portable.
What to buy: Garden chairs are fantastic to have on hand for any unexpected guests and a few encircling a table always creates a welcoming spot. Don’t worry too much about coordinating them- there’s something really charming and welcoming about mismatched garden furniture.
Neptune
Best for: If clean lines and a minimalist slant is your bag, then Neptune will be a top contender for your garden. Think big wooden furnishings that are as practical as they are smart.
What to buy: We particularly love the Cheltenham collection: a decorative wrought iron set with crisp white cushions.
La Redoute
Best for: La Redoute are a great stand by for sweet bits of garden furnitute and accessories.
What to buy: They have a really brilliant selection of outdoor rugs, which we feel have got rather a bad rap. Sure, they didn't have the most stylish reputation in the past, yet this year's offerings are endlessly more chic than ever before. An outdoor rug makes a great focal point within a garden furniture set up, adding texture and softness to the space. Helpfully, you can double up an outdoor rug as a picnic blanket, so you will get plenty of use out of it. The high street retailer also do lovely little bistro sets that are ideal for balconies.
Cox & Cox
Best for: Cox & Cox outdoor furniture consistently offers one of the most stylish ranges of garden furniture and their rattan range is unmatched at their price point. Taking cues from pared-back, clean-lined Scandinavian designs, we think their garden furniture would suit almost any style of garden.
What to buy: Beyond the traditional garden furniture sets, Cox & Cox have a brilliant selection of fire bowls and chimineas: the two main types of fire pit. Both were as rare as gems last summer - and with good reason. They can extend your evenings outside by hours as they keep you warm long into the night. Chiminea fire pits are best for entertaining as the chimney funnels smoke upwards and away from your guests. Bowls are the more versatile option with plenty of cooking accessories that can be bought with them.
Marks and Spencer
Best for: Marks and Spencer sell almost every type of garden furniture you can imagine, from acacia wood side tables to high quality garden parasols and powder coated bistro sets. The latter are traditionally smaller and more lightweight than their garden table and chair counterparts and are at their best in compact spaces, such as balconies or patios.
What to buy: We think Marks and Spencer's bistro set offering is particularly impressive.
Rowen and Wren
Best for: Though perhaps not as well known as some of its peers, Rowen and Wren have been crafting and designing high quality furniture for a little over 12 years. Their latest garden furniture collection includes wrought iron sun loungers, cane furniture that is stylish enough to be used inside, as well as handsome garden benches.
They're are a bit of a one stop shop, with garden accessories and tableware that is ripe for your next outdoor lunch or dinner party. Waitlists can be a little lengthy, so get in there sooner rather than later if you're looking for summer 2023 pieces.
What to buy: Their Sudbury collection is particularly chic.
More garden furniture stores to browse:
Jennifer Newman
Award winning designer Jennifer Newman sells a range of quite iconic garden furnishings. Jennifer's style is really distinctive. It's stylish without taking itself too seriously. Her A Frame garden bench is an elevated take on the traditional picnic bench, whilst her pots and planters have the power to liven up spots that get little sun.
Posh Shed Company
For even more storage, you'll need a garden shed - and there's no better place to look than the Posh Shed Company. Their offering stretches from a nifty box no bigger than a cupboard, all the way to outdoor home office style options. If you’re simply after the former as a place to store tools, then check that it is secure (and lockable if needs be) and waterproof. If you want to use it as a place to work then look for ones that are suitably ventilated and insulated.
Garden Trading
As their name would suggest, Garden Trading have a whole range of garden furniture and accessories on offer. We'd head here for slighly more specialist products, like potting tables or wildlife friendly products. However, they also do a fine range of traditional garden furniture, fire pits and storage: including storage boxes, bin stores and garden sheds to keep your garden clutter-free.
Next
Next may be best known as a fashion brand, but it transpires that they offer a whole host more than just clothes. Next garden furniture is defined by a signature neutral colour palette and fresh sets of garden tables and chairs. If you're looking to fully furnish your patio or outdoor spaces, this is a great place to shop. Next rattan furniture is some of the best we've seen and is fully weatherproof for your peace of mind throughout the colder months. The Monaco Living Daybed is a clever, space saving furnishing that can do from day bed to dining suite in a matter of moments.
The Conran Shop
Famed furniture destination, The Conran Shop, focuses on design-led pieces that are just as iconic as they are timeless. With designers like Daniel Schofield and Adico on their roster, you're sure to find something you love. We recommend The Conran Shop for most bigger purchases, like reclining chairs and corner sofa sets but they do smaller bits like deckchairs and outdoor lighting well too.
Habitat
A good option for slightly less expensive furniture, Habitat offer a great range of affordable outdoor seating. We particularly like their sweet little hanging chairs and smart bistro sets for smaller spaces like balconies or patios.
Bramblecrest
Over the 20 or so years they've been making garden furniture, Bramblecrest have built up a reputation for making high-quality, stylish furniture. Their price point is on the more luxury end of the scale, so these are pieces to invest in and cherish of the years. One of the best features of their website is that you can filter their products by material, so if you simply want to see what rattan sofas or aluminium frame armchairs they have, you can!
Raj Tent Club
Raj Tent Club is a brilliant destination for really special pieces. They sell the most beautiful pieces of garden furniture, from parasols to tents and the most fabulous wrought iron day beds that are a lovely alternative to sun loungers. Whilst they are on the more expensive side, these furnishings are built to last, so you likely won't be replacing them in your lifetime. To elevate a space, simply add one of their White Metal Garden Benches, or their Palm Springs Gunmetal Chair and you're away.
Trouva
For all the garden accessories and lovely extras you might need, Trouva is an excellent choice. On their website you can shop from their selection of gardening tools (we think that a good set of gardening tools can be the difference between enjoying your time working in the garden and hating it), plant pots and outdoor lighting.
Dobie's
Whilst Dobie's is first and foremost a garden centre, not a furniture store, they do have a few bits that are worth perusing. Their weatherproof rattan day bed is quite charming, as well as their range of pots and planters. Additionally, they sell a range of generic, universal furniture covers to protect your furniture from the elements.
IKEA
Swedish flat pack retailer IKEA sell an enormous selection of lovely furniture for your garden. They have some really excellent 2-in-1 options, like garden benches with hidden storage or shelving units that double as potting benches, so don't overlook their outside offering!
Gaze Burvill
For stylish investment pieces and the very best of UK craftsmanship, look no further than Gaze Burvill. The Hampshire based garden furniture shop produce made to order pieces as well as beautiful ‘off the rack’ sets, so you'll undoubtedly find the right furnishing for you. We'd splurge on the Watts Seat, or the Splash Lounge set (pictured).
How to use garden furniture to zone an outside space
Should you be lucky enough to have a bit more space to play with, like a generous patio, creating different zones can help you make the most it. Of course, there are one million different variations to choose from but, ultimately, having an area to relax in and an area for alfresco dining will suit most needs.
In the former, using a sofa set, or lounge set, creates a more laidback atmosphere, designating an area for putting your feet up, sipping on an aperol spritz and reading a book on a warm afternoon. Grounding the pieces with a coffee table, or an outdoor rug, will create a very pleasant outdoor living room of sorts. If you are working with a smaller space, a corner sofa centred around a fire pit can result in a lovely entertaining area.
And why not set up a proper outdoor dining room? This will provide a delightful place to host lunches and dinners, and it's sheer heaven to eat breakfast outside on the first warm spring morning day. Opt for an outdoor dining set which boasts a dining table and armchairs for a smart, cohesive look. Alternatively, a table set with foldable seats will also make a nice choice and can be put away should you need the floor space.
How do I decorate my garden with furniture?
Once you've got the basics of your garden table and chairs in place, you can think about the optional extras that make a seating area prettier and more practical. Don't forget to decorate your outdoor space just as you would a room indoors. Placing some smart, weatherproof seat cushions on cheaper garden chairs can quickly revive them, so do think about how to upcycle what you have before buying new. Pick up some cheerful plant pots and create a little container garden, buy some festoon lights to hang from the trees (this will also make the garden look pretty as you look out at it from indoors), and find some cushions in bright fabrics to add comfort and texture. For outdoor dining, we like to use more colourful, rustic picnicware to create an informal feel.
Given the vagaries of British weather, you may want some sort of shelter or parasol in place. For warmth and for outdoor cooking, you might consider getting a fire pit or a more advanced piece of gear for cooking outdoors.
For more on plants and seeds, head to our guide on the best garden centres in the UK.
