How to Choose a Dining Table: A Complete Guide for Australian Homes
Dining tables are arguably one of the most used pieces of furniture in your home. It’s where you eat every day, where kids play or do homework, where friends and family gather for a dinner party. Dining tables can be a big investment (and rightly so) so it’s worth taking the time to get it right and choose one you’ll love for years to come.
This guide covers everything you need to know before you buy: size, shape, timber and what nobody tells you about living with a solid wood table.
Step 1: Get the size right first
Before deciding on a table, measure your dining space. Getting the proportions right is key to ensure the dining table aligns with the room.
The rule of thumb is to leave at least 90cm of clearance between the edge of the table and any wall or other piece of furniture. This gives people enough room to pull out their chair, sit down and stand up without bumping into anything.
A practical example: If your dining area is 4m x 3.5m, subtract 90cm on each side and you're left with a usable table footprint of roughly 2.2m x 1.7m. A 1800mm x 900mm table fits comfortably. A 2400mm table does not.
If you're not sure, use masking tape on the floor to mark out the table dimensions before you commit. Trust us - it takes five minutes and saves a lot of regret!
How many people do you need to seat?
Allow approximately 600mm of table width per person for comfortable seating - just enough room for a plate, a glass, and elbows (yep, elbows on the table are allowed unless you’re a Royal).
Table size guide:
Table size Seats comfortably
1400mm x 800mm 4 people
1600mm x 900mm 4-6 people
1800mm x 900mm 6–8 people
2200mm x 1000mm 8–10 people
2400mm x 1000mm 10–12 people
At B.A. Furniture, most dining tables start from around 1400mm but they can be made to any length you need. If you regularly host large gatherings, or have a large dining room, we can customise the table to the size that suits you (something you definitely can’t find off the shelf).
Step 2: Choose the right shape
Rectangular tables
This is the most versatile choice for most Australian homes. They work well in both square and rectangular rooms, allow for flexible seating arrangements (whether chairs or a bench), and scale effortlessly when you need to accommodate more people.
Round tables
The best option for smaller spaces. A round table with no corners takes up less visual space, creates a more intimate dining feel which means nobody gets stuck in a corner. A 1200mm round table seats 4–6 people comfortably and works well in apartments and open-plan spaces where the dining area is compact.
Oval tables
The best of both worlds. An oval table gives you the flowing shape of a round table but seats more people along the sides. Good for rooms that are slightly awkward in proportion.
Our recommendation: If your space is tight or square, go round. If you entertain regularly or have a long room, go rectangular. If you're in between, oval is worth considering. The leg frame and design of the dining table can impact on the seating capacity - if unsure, contact us and we’d be happy to help.
Step 3: Understand your timber options
This is where a custom solid timber table is genuinely different from anything you'll buy at a mass-produced furniture store, and it's worth understanding what you're choosing between.
Australian hardwoods
Blackbutt is one of Australia's most respected native hardwoods. It has a warm, pale golden tone with a straight, even grain. Exceptionally hard and resistant to daily wear, and well suited to families and heavy use. The Rio Negro dining table in our range is made from solid Blackbutt.
Tasmanian Blackwood is a darker, more characterful timber with rich brown tones and a wavy, sometimes figured grain. No two pieces are the same. It's softer than Blackbutt but still durable, and it brings warmth and depth to a room in a way few timbers can match.
Spotted Gum is one of the hardest Australian hardwoods available. Strong, durable and striking, with a distinctive interlocked grain that creates a natural shimmer. A good choice if you want something that looks unlike anything else.
Wormy Chestnut is a recycled or reclaimed timber with character marks: small natural holes and variations in the grain that make every piece unique. Loved by people who want something with history and personality.
Imported premium timbers
American White Oak is one of the most popular choices in contemporary Australian interiors, and for good reason. It has a light, warm tone with a fine, consistent grain that suits both modern Scandinavian-influenced spaces and more traditional homes. Hard, stable, and ages beautifully. The Neuquén and Belgrano dining tables in our range use solid American White Oak.
American Walnut is a premium cabinet-making timber with deep, rich chocolate-brown tones and a straight grain with occasional natural figuring. It's striking, it's different from anything mass-produced, and it only deepens and improves with age. The Madero dining table is our flagship Walnut piece.
Which timber should you choose?
If you want something light and versatile that suits most interiors: American White Oak. If you want something dark, rich, and distinctive: American Walnut. If you want a local Australian hardwood that's built for daily use: Blackbutt. If you want something with character and personality: Tasmanian Blackwood or Wormy Chestnut.
Step 4: Understand what solid timber actually means for daily life
This is the part most furniture retailers skip. Solid timber is a natural material, and can last for generations with the right care and maintenance.
All our dining tables are finished with Hardwax Oil - specifically OSMO or Rubio Monocoat. These are premium eco-friendly finishes used by professional furniture makers worldwide. They penetrate the timber rather than sitting on top of it, which means the wood can breathe, the natural grain remains visible and the surface can be repaired or refreshed without stripping and refinishing the whole table.
What this means practically:
Wipe up spills promptly. Water left sitting on any timber surface will eventually cause marks.
Use placemats and coasters. Hardwax Oil is durable but not impervious to heat or prolonged moisture.
Avoid harsh chemical cleaners. A damp cloth with mild soap is all you need for everyday cleaning.
Over time, high-use areas may show wear. This is normal, and the finish can be touched up with a small amount of matching oil without having to refinish the whole table.
A solid timber table is a long-term investment, not a maintenance-free product. But it's also repairable in a way that lacquered, veneer or mass-produced tables are not. If a lacquered table gets scratched, you're usually stuck with it. All of our dining tables can be sanded and re-oiled to look new again; and depending on the scratch you may even be able to spot fix-it. These are just some of the benefits of traditional furniture making.
Step 5: Standard product or built to suit your needs?
One of the main reasons people come to B.A. Furniture is that they can't find exactly what they want off the shelf. Standard retail dining tables come in standard sizes with standard timber options and standard leg styles. You may be able to mix and match some of it (if you’re lucky!) but that’s usually as far as flexibility goes. Custom furniture doesn't. You can tell us what you want and need, and we can make it a reality!
When you order a table through us, you choose:
Dimensions - any length, width or height
Timber species - from the options above, or ask us about others
Leg style - from the designs in our range, or something specific you had in mind
Finish - we'll advise based on your chosen timber and your lifestyle
Our usual lead time is 8–10 weeks from order confirmation, and all tables are made by our team at our Brookvale workshop in Sydney.
Questions to ask before you buy
Before committing to any dining table - from us or anyone else - it's worth asking yourself:
Have I measured the space and left 90cm clearance on all sides?
How many people do I need to seat regularly, and how often do I have more?
What's the light like in my dining area? Darker rooms suit lighter timbers like Oak; well-lit rooms can handle Walnut or Blackwood.
What's the rest of my furniture like? Matching or complementing timber species creates a more cohesive interior.
Am I comfortable with the care requirements of solid timber?
If you can answer all five, you're ready to choose.
Visit us or get in touch
Check our dining table range online, or visit us at our Sydney showroom and check some of our designs in person (we recommend booking an appointment here). All our tables are made to order, so if you don't see exactly what you want in our range, or have a design or idea of your own, we can build it for you. We also ship all over Australia.
Book a free 15-minute consultation or contact us to discuss your dining table goals.