I know how it can be when you’re shopping for a table and your eyes are glazed over at the sheer volume of tables available both online and in furniture stores.
I’ve been there. So, I’ve made it my mission to help simplify things as much as possible. Understanding the types of tables available can help you narrow down what you need and simplify things.
35 Types of Tables
The purpose of this guide is to help you explore all the tables that go into various rooms and spaces. I also intend to familiarize you with their functions so that you know the exact types of tables that you actually need.
The main types of tables include:
- Living room or bedroom tables
- Work tables
- Dining room tables
- Office tables
- Gaming tables
- Pedestal or decorative tables
Below is a chart of some of the different types of tables that fall into these various categories, helping you understand how they are classified.
| Table Type | Ideal Location |
| Coffee table | Living room |
| Accent table | Living room |
| Console table | Living room |
| Side tables | Living room |
| C-table | Living room |
| Drink table | Living room |
| End table | Living room |
| Bunching table | Living room |
| Drum table | Living room |
| Foyer table | Living room/foyer |
| Ottoman table | Living room |
| Bedside table | Bedroom |
| Dining room tables | Dining room |
| Kitchen table | Kitchen |
| Pub table | Dining area/bar area |
| Patio table | Deck/Porch |
| Workshop tables | Workspace |
| Conference table | Office |
| Computer table | Office |
| Office table | Office |
| Specialized Work Station Tables | Home office/outdoor office |
| Pool table | Game room |
| Ping pong table | Game room |
| Foosball table | Game room |
| Card table | Game room |
| Pedestal table | Any room |
| Credence table | Church/Inner room |
Living Room or Bedroom Tables
There are several types of tables designed for living rooms and bedrooms. These typically combine beauty and function and can act as statement pieces in these rooms.
1. Coffee Table
A coffee table is generally used in a living room or seating area and placed in front of the couch. You can place food and drinks or use it to display coffee table books, plants, or small knick-knacks. Depending on where you buy it from, some coffee tables are referred to as cocktail tables.
Source: Wayfair
2. Accent Table
Accent tables are a loose term used to cover a variety of table types, including end tables, coffee tables, and console tables. Don’t be afraid to get creative! A trunk, an antique chair, or a shelf can all double as accent tables. Most are small accent tables.
Source: World Market
3. Console Table
Console tables are often used interchangeably with end tables (also known as sofa tables) because they are long, thin, narrow, and fit nicely behind a sofa or in an entryway. If you need extra dimension or just a place to toss your keys, a console table near the front door is very useful.
Source: Pier 1
4. Side Table
As its name so aptly implies, side tables fit beside a sofa and provide a great place for a lamp or drink.
Source: Wayfair
5. C-table
A C-table gets its name from its unique C-shape, allowing it to swivel over a bed, chair, or couch. You can use it for a drink or hold your book or laptop.
Source: World Market
6. Drink Table
Drink tables are tiny and have just enough room for a drink. They can be tall but are usually on the shorter side.
Source: World Market
7. End Table
As previously mentioned, end tables are practically the same as accent tables.
Source: Overstock
8. Bunching Table (Stacking or Nesting Tables)
A bunching table can also be categorized as a type of coffee table or accent table. It merely refers to two or more tables that fit together or can be spread out. Of the several different types of tables, it is a great option when you don’t have a lot of space.
Source: Wayfair
9. Drum Table
The drum table was created in the 1700s and is a heavy, circular table. Sometimes, it’s tall enough to pull up a chair to. It can also have features like bookshelves, drawers, or a tooled leather top.
Source: Wayfair
10. Foyer Tables
Another occasional table is what we call a foyer table, which is a table for the foyer. Most are positioned against living room walls, but you can place round or square tables in the center of large foyers.
Source: Amazon
11. Ottoman Tables
A terrific multi-purpose table option is an ottoman that doubles as a coffee table. You can buy some large ottomans with a flat top designed to serve as a table. This furniture concept developed because people always put their feet on coffee tables.
Source: Amazon
12. Bedside Table
A bedside table, also known as a nightstand, is one of the more common types of tables for bedrooms.
A nightstand is a small table that sits next to a bed and is used to hold items like a lamp, alarm clock, book, or glasses. Nightstands are convenient because they provide easy access to these bedside items without getting up.
Most come in the form of a small table, although larger bedrooms can accommodate large bedside tables.
Source: Amazon
Tables for Meals
There are four different types of tables mainly used for meals:
13. Dining Table
Dining tables come in a wide range of sizes, accommodating between 2-10 people. They can have extra leaves to add additional seating.
If you have a formal dining room, your dining table might only get used for occasions. The rest of the time, you’d likely be using a kitchen table.
Source: Overstock
14. Kitchen Table
You’ll typically find kitchen tables in kitchens. They’re designed to be used daily by families for meals, play, crafts, and work. Sometimes, they’re only large enough to seat two (though usually, in that case, they’re known as bistro tables), but more often, they sit four to six people.
You can get a regular small dinner table set or something with more of a space-saving feature, such as corner breakfast nooks.
Source: Wayfair
15. Pub Table
Pub tables are tall and come with stools. They usually seat two to four people. They may sometimes be as tall as bar tables but are generally a little shorter.
Source: Wayfair
16. Patio Table
Patio tables are designed to handle the elements on a deck, porch, or other outdoor space (though some must be wintered indoors if you live in a harsh climate). Today’s patio furniture isn’t limited to ugly white plastic, and often looks nice enough for indoor use!
Source: Lowes
Work Tables
Four different types of tables are used specifically for work.
17. Workshop Table
Work tables are highly utilitarian (though not necessarily unattractive) and are usually built with a specific job in mind: woodworking, art, gardening, or other. They come in a wide variety of sizes and finishes, depending on whether you use them standing up, sitting down, inside, or outside.
Source: Lowes
18. Conference Table
Similar to dining tables, conference tables are very large and often very grand. Unlike dining tables, conference tables often have plugs and ports for laptops and phones.
Source: Overstock
19. Computer Table
A computer table is designed specifically for use with a computer. Typically it has holes in the back for cords and a keyboard drawer. Sometimes it also has a shelf designed to hold a printer. There can be a lot of additional parts that come with computer tables.
Source: Wayfair
20. Office Tables
Office tables or desks have a flat surface and may or may not feature drawers, depending on your preference. These are usually minimal in design, since the point is to place your office belongings on the table.
Source: Amazon
21. Specialized Work Station Tables
Work stations come in different forms and can be customized depending on their purpose. For instance, a writing desk could be a flat surface with drawers, while a painting table may have specific structures attached to hold paint brushes. A drafting table falls into this category as well.
Game Tables
Four main types of game tables are specifically used for fun and games.
22. Pool Table
A pool table is used for billiards. It has a solid frame, a total of six pockets on its sides, and a playfield that can be made out of either polyester or woolen cloth. Pool tables come in different sizes, styles, and finishes.
Source: Amazon
23. Ping Pong Table
If you’re into sports but not the typical outdoor person, then a ping pong or table tennis game will satisfy your craving for an indoor activity. A ping pong table is divided into two parts with a net. It usually has a dark, matte finish so the ball can bounce properly.
Source: Amazon
24. Foosball Table
Foosball is a football-inspired, table-top game usually seen in arcades and playrooms. Foosball tables come in different styles. Some have a luxury finish, while others have the classic and standard form.
Source: Amazon
25. Card Table
Card tables come in a variety of sizes, styles, and materials. Some common options are wooden or metal card tables. Standard card tables have fixed legs, while folding card tables can be collapsed for easy storage and space-saving. Folding card tables are useful when you need a temporary table but don’t have much room.
Source: Amazon
Specialty Tables
Specialty tables are created for a very specific and niche purpose. I have two examples of these below.
26. Pedestal Tables
Pedestal or decorative tables, as they indicate, are mainly used for decorative purposes, to enhance a space’s style and aesthetic. However, they may also serve various functions, like holding decorative figures like figurines.
Source: Amazon
27. Credence Table
A credence table is mainly used for religious purposes. They are small side tables you would commonly spot in churches and chapels and serve as a surface for holding mass or Communion items. You can also have this in your house to hold your religious items.
Table Shapes
Once you’ve thought through the type of table you want, you need to decide what shape makes the most sense for the space you’re getting the table for.
28. Round or Oval
Rounded tables are great for small spaces, where you need to fit as many people as possible around for a meal or conversation.
They also make discussions much more equitable and possible since there’s no clear head at the table. Legend has it that King Arthur created his famous round table when his knights argued about who was most important and deserved the “highest” seating.
They’re also pleasing to the eye, especially if your existing space has many hard lines. An oval or circle table adds an organic fluidity to your space.
Source: World Market
29. Square or Rectangle
Undeniably the most common shape for any table, you can’t go wrong with four sides and four corners! Square and rectangular tables are often better for long, narrow places than round tables.
Whether you’re hosting a holiday meal or fitting work tables into an office space, a rectangular table can fit the bill perfectly.
Source: Overstock
30. Unique Shapes
Semi-circles, hexagons, octagons, diamonds… the list goes on. There’s no rule that you have to pick a traditional shape for a table; in fact, the more unique, the better. However, it probably won’t surprise you that an unconventional shape will be harder to track down.
You’ll have better luck with smaller tables like end tables than you will tracking down octagon dining tables, but don’t let me stop you.
Source: Wayfair
Most Popular Styles Today
I don’t have time here for an exhaustive lecture on the history of furniture, but I can give you a brief overview, so when your friends compliment you on how “mid-century modern” your living room looks now, you can reply intelligently.
31. Industrial
Industrial design uses materials common around the turn of the century, notably exposed brick, distressed wood with natural stains, and exposed steel or other metal.
This can be an eye-catching design style. Even if you live in an apartment and can’t reveal exposed beams or put up an exposed brick wall, an industrial table made from metal and wood can be a great way to add your own personal spin to your home.
Industrial tables, especially, can be real works of art, with some seemingly composed of extant factory machines (even if they’re just replicas).
You don’t have to stick to replicas, either: “antiquing” usually implies dainty things your grandmother would love, but today, it includes finding beautiful industrial pieces that have weathered time and have the patina to prove it.
Source: World Market
32. Farmhouse
HGTV stars Chip and Joanna Gaines undoubtedly put farmhouse style on the map thanks to JoJo’s sophisticated take (and noticeable lack of cute roosters in the decor) and ubiquitous shiplap.
Today, the style is characterized by heavy, weathered wood and a return to craftsman details, such as over-the-door transoms and intricate molding. You’ll usually find big, white farmhouse sinks and aesthetic nods to the French and Italian countryside in lavender, greenery, and sometimes even stucco.
Farmhouse tables are often centerpieces for this decor and stunning pieces of artwork. Antique trunks, dressers, and even some vanities often double as accent tables.
Source: Pier 1
33. Shabby Chic
Shabby chic is similar to the farmhouse but differs in the lightness of woods used and often in the inherent femininity or “flea market chic” sense of style.
Brought to popularity by Rachel Ashwell in the 1980s, the style features pleasantly old and slightly mismatched furniture, usually in some variation of white or very soft colors. Faux patinas are usually given to wood furniture, making this an easy style to replicate for DIY’ers building coffee tables or farmhouse tables.
Shabby chic tables are often refinished in some shade of white, ecru, or pastel and are usually combined with flea market finds to give them some old-world charm, and it’s not uncommon to find shabby chic coffee tables made out of recycled pallets.
Source: Overstock
34. Mid-Century Modern
Mid-century modern refers to furniture created in the mid-1900s. It’s extremely popular today, and for a good reason: its natural, clean lines and use of organic and engineered ingredients are beautiful, comfortable, and very versatile.
Mid-century modern pieces encompass iconic designs like the tulip table, known for its futuristic curves and timeless white color.
Outside of the classic tulip table (also called the Saarinen table), mid-century modern tables are characterized by their low profiles and honey-stained natural wood, often engineered plywood. You can find pieces that are uber-modern and pieces that are more gently modern and casual.
Source: Wayfair
This one is similar to mid-century modern in that it utilizes clean lines and veers toward minimalism. However, the true Scandinavian style uses white and light colors and rarely uses carpet or plush textiles, favoring clean, light-colored wood floors in shades of white or grey.
What sets Scandinavian furniture apart is how useable it is. Usually slim yet elegant, tables are often made from engineered wood or metal and stained or painted in very light colors.
Ikea was at least partially responsible for bringing the style to the United States and selling its furniture in ready-to-assemble boxes.
Source: Overstock
Frequently Asked Questions
What Is a Long Dining Table Called?
Long dining tables have several names, including king’s table, vineyard table, royal table, farm table, console table, classroom table, or banquet table.
These types of tables for the dining room all have the same base feature of a long length and rectangular nature. They are most commonly used in wedding receptions or for setting up a dinner that would have many attendees.
What Is the Most Common Type of Table?
The most common type of table are dining tables, usually in a dining room. This piece of furniture is set aside for enjoying meals alone or with family and friends. They come is several styles to match your dining room decor.
They can also function as a games table; however, apart from functionality, they can also add to the space’s aesthetics.
What Tables Work Best In a Living Room?
Tables that work best in a living room include coffee tables, side tables, end tables, nesting tables, TV consoles, and console tables.
However, of all these, coffee tables rank the foremost in terms of use case. They can be placed between sofas, accent chairs, and other furniture items, allowing them to be used efficiently.
Conclusion
Tables come in a vast array of styles, sizes, and materials to suit a wide range of purposes. Whether you need a small accent table to complete your living room décor or a large banquet table to host family gatherings, there’s a table online or in a store that will fit your needs!
