Most outdoor dining sets are bought one size too big for the patio they end up on. The set looks proportionate in the showroom (which has 50 square metres of clear floor), then it arrives home and the chairs cannot be pulled out without hitting the wall. The fix is two minutes of arithmetic before you click buy, and a willingness to size down rather than up.
Six is the size, four is the better answer
The default UK garden-table purchase is six-seat. The honest question is how often you actually seat six in the garden, and for most British households the answer is "two or three times a summer". A four-seat set that fits the patio well is in use every weekend; a six-seat set that crowds the space gets less use because pulling chairs out is annoying.
So measure first. A six-seat dining set with chairs pulled out needs roughly 4.5 x 3 metres of clear patio. A four-seat set fits 3 x 2.5 metres comfortably. Garden dining sets at John Lewis, Cox & Cox and Habitat all publish footprint dimensions in the spec sheet; cheaper imports often skip the chairs-pulled-out figure entirely.
Round, rectangular, or extending
Round tables eat less floor space than rectangular ones because the corners are not there to walk around. They cap at six, though, so they are wrong for any household that occasionally seats eight. A 150cm round table seats six in comfort.
Rectangular extending tables are the workhorse choice for British gardens. Six chairs around a 180cm closed table, eight around the same table extended to 240cm, leaves stowed under the top when not in use. Wooden dining tables in teak or eucalyptus are the long-game spend; aluminium-framed versions are lighter to move and rust-proof.
Material recap
Hardwood lasts longest, costs most, and silvers gracefully if left untreated. Aluminium is light, rust-proof, and the practical mid-spend. Powder-coated steel is the budget tier that fails first when the coating chips. PE rattan dining sets sit between aluminium and hardwood on price and need their cushions stored indoors when the season ends. The full material walk-through is in the garden furniture buying guide.
The walking-margin calculation
The single most-skipped step is the walking margin. A chair pulled out from a 180cm table needs 60cm of clear floor behind it for someone to actually sit down. Six chairs around the table means 60cm clearance behind every chair: that is the 4.5 x 3 metre figure for a rectangular six-seater.
The honest patio test is to chalk the table footprint on the ground, add 60cm in every direction, and stand inside it. If the chalk lines hit the wall, the set is too big. The set in the catalogue photograph is on a 50-square-metre showroom floor; your patio is not.
Storage, covers, and the off-season
The set survives one British winter much better with cushions stored indoors and a tied cover over the frame. Cover Up Designs and John Lewis both stock fitted covers in the £30 to £80 band; a sealed garden storage box for cushions costs £60 to £200 and pays for itself in extended cushion life within two seasons.
So measure the patio, write down the size category that genuinely fits, and let that decide the table, not the colour swatch or the price tag.
Set sizes at a glance
| Set type | Seats | Floor space needed (chairs out) | Price band |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bistro pair | 2 | 2 x 2 metres | £100-£400 |
| 4-seat dining | 4 | 3 x 2.5 metres | £300-£900 |
| 6-seat round | 6 | 3.5 x 3.5 metres | £500-£1,500 |
| 6-seat rectangular | 6 | 4.5 x 3 metres | £500-£1,500 |
| Extending 6-to-8 seat | 6 closed, 8 extended | 4.5 x 3 m closed, 5.5 x 3 m extended | £700-£2,200 |
| Corner / lounge dining hybrid | 5-7 | 4 x 3 metres | £900-£2,500 |
Common questions
- What size garden table do I need for six people?
- A 180 x 100cm rectangular table seats six in comfort, eight at a squeeze. Round tables work for six at 150cm diameter. Add 60cm of clear walking space on every side for chair pull-out, which most patio plans forget until the chair hits the wall.
- Round, rectangular or extending - which is better for a small patio?
- Round tables eat less floor space because they have no corners to walk around, but they cap at six. Extending rectangular tables are the practical choice if you sometimes seat eight; the leaves stow under the top and the resting size suits everyday meals.
- Should I match my chairs to the table, or mix them?
- A matching set is the safe default and the easier resale. Mixed sets (two carvers at the heads, four side chairs) read more lived-in, are easier to repair when one fails, and are the right answer if you already own the chairs and want a new table.
- Do I need to store garden chairs in winter?
- The cushions, yes - foam soaks British autumn rain within hours and mildews from the inside. The chair frames depend on material: hardwood and aluminium handle it; powder-coated steel benefits from a cover; PE rattan lasts longer with a tied cover and indoor cushion storage.
What each price band buys you
Under £400. Bistro pair in plastic or basic powder-coated steel, single-summer plastic dining sets. Useful for a balcony or starter outdoor setup. Plan to replace within three summers.
£400-£800. Four-seat or basic six-seat sets in mid-range powder-coated steel or entry rattan. Functional for five to seven seasons with a winter cover. John Lewis ANYDAY, Dunelm, Habitat mid-range, B&Q's premium tier.
£800-£1,500. Where six-seat dining sets in proper aluminium, UV-rated PE rattan, or basic acacia hardwood actually deliver their lifespan claims. Ten-year frame guarantees become standard. Cox & Cox, Out & Out, John Lewis premium ranges.
Above £1,500. Teak, eucalyptus, premium aluminium, designer-labelled. Heritage tier; the table and chairs both outlast the patio.
Three picks worth considering
For a balcony or under £350: a folding bistro from Robert Dyas
For genuinely small outdoor spaces, a 2-seat folding bistro set in powder-coated steel from Robert Dyas typically runs £80-£250. Folds flat for winter storage, weatherproof finish, parasol hole on most. Honest for balconies and small courtyards where you would rather have a small set that fits than a large set that crowds.
For 6-seat patio (£600-£1,200): a powder-coated aluminium set from Furniture in Fashion or Aosom UK
The mid-band sweet spot for most British six-seater patios. Powder-coated aluminium frames (no rust, lighter than steel), tempered-glass or slatted-aluminium tabletops, parasol hole, weather-resistant cushions. Furniture in Fashion covers contemporary styling; Aosom UK covers extending and modular designs. 8-10 years of life with covers and winter storage.
For premium (£1,500+): solid teak from Royal Craft
The once-and-done band. Royal Craft specialises in solid teak and hardwood garden furniture sets in the £1,500-£6,000 range. Frames are FSC-certified hardwood throughout, mortise-and-tenon joinery, finished with marine-grade oil. The spend that gives you fifteen-plus years if you maintain it (or twenty-plus with the silver patina rather than annual oiling).
Care, covers and what kills outdoor sets early
Most outdoor sets do not fail from age. They fail from how they overwinter. The pattern is the same across hardwood, aluminium and rattan. Water gets in, freezes, expands, and either splits the timber, corrodes the joint or cracks the weave. A breathable cover from Bosmere or Garland, sized to your set, solves most of it.
Avoid the cheapest tarpaulins. They trap condensation underneath, which is worse than rain. The damp sits against the surface for months. A breathable polyester cover with corner tie-downs runs £40-90 from John Lewis or B&Q and lasts three to four winters.
Material-by-material care is short. Hardwood: a coat of teak oil once a year if you want the warm tone, leave it for the silver patina if not. Aluminium: warm soapy water and a soft cloth, twice a season. Powder-coated steel: same as aluminium, plus touch-up paint on any chips before they rust. Rattan: a vacuum brush and an annual hose-down works for synthetic; natural rattan should not live outside year-round at all.
One thing kills sets faster than weather. Cushions left out in the rain. Even fade-resistant fabric from Sunbrella mildews if it stays wet against the foam. Lift cushions off after every use in changeable weather, or invest in a Keter cushion box. £80 of storage saves £200 of cushions every two seasons.
