Gather round! The best coffee tables for design lovers, from the colourful to the sculptural

The coffee table often serves as the centrepiece of a living room, combining functionality with artistic expression. While its modern form emerged in Victorian England, inspired by the growing trend of informal social gatherings, its roots trace back to cultures like the Ottoman Empire and East Asia, where low tables played central roles in daily life.

By the mid-20th century, designers such as Isamu Noguchi transformed the coffee table into a sculptural statement, pushing the boundaries of form and function. Today, its large, flat surface offers designers a canvas for experimenting with innovative materials and techniques, making it a statement piece that reflects the personality of its maker – and its owner.

See also: our favourite floor lamps and bedside lamps.

‘Meltingpot’ table by Dirk van der Kooij

In Dutch designer Dirk van der Kooij's studio, nothing goes to waste. The 'Meltingpot' coffee tables are crafted daily by the studio's colourist using unwanted plastic prototypes and colour tests, melted and pressed into moulds to create one-of-a-kind pieces. With their distinctive, plasticine-like patterns, each table tells a story of invention, circularity, and material transformation.

From €7,600, dirkvanderkooij.com

'Slon' coffee table by Ana Kraš for Matter Made

Ana Kraš’ 'Slon' tables, named after the Serbian word for 'elephant', debuted in 2015 with Brooklyn-based brand Matter Made. The design rode the rising edge of the 'chubby furniture' movement, which later defined an era of rounded, monolithic forms. Balancing cylindrical legs with a lightweight top, the 'Slon' collection includes a variety of pieces, from benches to tables, among them this portly coffee table.

From $7,100, Matter Made

'Hewn' coffee table by Sebastian Cox

British craftsman and environmentalist Sebastian Cox had been advocating for circularity in design long before it became a major topic in industry circles. The 'Hewn' coffee table, debuted in 2014 as part of his studio's 'Underwood' collection, is crafted from coppiced hazel sourced from his woodland in Kent, South England. The table’s hazel legs feature a rough, almost crude finish that provides a striking contrast to the smooth, neatly tenoned English ash top, grounding the design in its natural origins and highlighting the character of the materials​.

£625, sebastiancox.co.uk

'Plinth' coffee table by Norm Architects for Audo

A collection we admire for its simplicity and versatility, the 'Plinth' series was created for Danish brand Audo by Norm Architects, masters of soft minimalism (who also designed Audo's Tokyo store in 2024). The sleek marble podiums, celebrating the beauty and monolithic nature of stone, function seamlessly as side tables, coffee tables, or platforms for plants, sculptures, and lamps. Shown here is the 'Plinth Grand’, which is offered in four different marble types as well as Kunis Breccia stone.

From £1,250, available through Monologue

'Berg' coffee table by John Pawson for WonderGlass

Appearing like an ice sculpture, the chunky glass 'Berg' coffee table is the result of a collaboration between esteemed designer John Pawson and the skilled craftsmen at WonderGlass in Veneto, Italy. Made from cast glass, which gives its surface a slightly uneven ice-like quality, the table’s sculptural form highlights the possibilities of glass as a medium for delicate yet dramatic design.

£15,055, available through SCP

'Fortune' coffee tables by Egg Collective

Highlighting the hidden powers that objects and symbols hold, the sinuous 'Fortune' coffee tables by New York-based studio Egg Collective nestle together like jigsaw pieces. Available in three sizes and 12 shapes, the modular tables can stand alone or combine to create larger surfaces or sculptural landscapes. Crafted in burnished or polished stainless steel, select pieces feature an optional inlay composition that showcases symbolic motifs from Egg Collective’s 2023 ‘Snake Eyes’ collection. These symbols – such as Protection (Eye), Transformation (Serpent), and Eternal Love (Hand + Heart) – reinforce themes of mysticism and personal meaning.

From $14,000, Egg Collective

'Undique Mas' tables by Patricia Urquiola for Kartell

In 2023, Patricia Urquiola reimagined her existing collection of ‘Undique’ tables for Kartell to create ‘Undique Mas’ – softer, fuller and more generous pieces with an almost cartoon-like appearance. Realised in polyester-lacquered beechwood, the tables are available in three different shapes and sizes and in three complementary colours so that they can be easily arranged in convivial groups.

From £658, Kartell, also available from Heal's

'Monjiro' coffee table by Sori Yanagi for HIDA Sangyo

Japanese designer Sori Yanagi, a pioneer of postwar industrial design, combined simplicity and functionality with modern forms. His 'Monjiro' coffee table, part of the ‘Yanagi’ collection for HIDA Sangyo, features a round solid white oak top supported by a criss-crossed chrome base. Produced in Gifu Prefecture, it reflects HIDA’s century-old woodworking expertise and dedication to sustainability.

£1,818, available through Rarify

Coffee table by Si Hyun Park

Despite its industrial appearance, this bent stainless steel coffee table by Royal College of Art graduate Si Hyun Park is rooted in the practical values of Shaker furniture. Sturdy, lightweight, and low maintenance, the sandblasted stainless steel surfaces feature nature-inspired patterns such as tree bark and animal skin, resulting in an intriguing fusion of references. First spotted by us at London Design Festival 2024, Park later participated in 'Adaptions', a group show of hacked USM furniture at London design store Aram.

£2,300, Si Hyun Park

'Pastille' coffee table by Vonnegut Kraft

The 'Pastille' coffee table was created in 2018 through a collaboration between Brooklyn-based ceramist Natalie Weinberger and designers Vonnegut Kraft. Featuring a tactile matte black ceramic top with a pitted glaze, the table’s graphic stretcher base creates optical illusions, with moire patterns that shift depending on the viewer's perspective.

POA, available through Colony