The best wooden garden furniture – 12 timeless outdoor designs

From timeless teak to affordable acacia, we've rounded up the best wooden garden furniture for a stylish outdoor space

A selection of the best wooden garden furniture as selected by the Ideal Home team
(Image credit: Future)

Tracking down the best wooden garden furniture for your outside space can be a tricky task, with cheaper metal, plastic and PE-rattan garden furniture seemingly making up the bulk of most retailer offerings. 

However, whether you're searching for a wooden garden table and chairs, a classic teak garden bench, or a durable wood outdoor lounge set, we think timber garden furniture makes a stylish and timeless addition to any outdoor space, blending naturally into almost any setting. That's why we've scoured the shops to round up the best-in-class. 

But when it comes to wooden garden furniture, what is the best? Well, if you want durability you'll want to invest in hardwearing and weather-resistant teak wood, but you will pay more for the longevity teak offers. If affordability is an important factor (and when isn't it!) then acacia and eucalyptus are viable alternatives. They don't offer quite the same durability as teak, but they're still hardwearing with the right protection – which can mean a regular top-up with wood preservative, or storing the furniture under cover for protection from the worst of the elements.

We've included a mix of wood types, price points, and style options in this guide, including bestselling designs from multiple leading retailers. You'll find more material options in our overall guide to the best garden furniture of the year, but if you know timber is the look for you then scroll on to uncover our favourite finds.


Best wooden garden furniture of {2023}

Why you can trust Ideal Home Our expert reviewers spend hours testing and comparing products and services so you can choose the best for you. Find out more about how we test.

Which wood is the best for outdoor furniture?

You'll find wooden garden furniture made from many types of timber, but when shopping for the most durable wooden outdoor furniture, it's hardwoods that you'll want to look out for.

Teak is the hardwood most prized for its strength and durability outdoors. As well as offering an extremely dense grain that prevents moisture from penetrating, teak retains high levels of natural oils in its timber once cut, which further helps to prevent the wood from weathering. You can top up the wood with teak oil to offer even more weather resistance, although many allow the timber to weather over time to its signature soft silvery patina.

However, this dense grain is down to teak's extremely slow-growing habit, and that slow growth, plus the difficulty of working with such a tough timber makes it one of the most expensive wooden options.

Like many woods, teak is also in danger of being harvested unsustainably. Reclaimed teak wood can be a more eco-friendly solution, or, as when buying any wood product, make sure to look for FSC-certification which should ensure the tree has been felled within a managed forest rather than contributing to damaging deforestation.

Cheaper and faster-growing alternatives that are now becoming very popular outdoor furniture choices are the hardwoods acacia and eucalyptus. These woods may be slightly less dense than teak but they are far-quicker growing, allowing them to be grown and managed to yield greater quantities of wood more sustainably – although again, it's important to look for FSC accreditation. A little low-maintenance upkeep with a coat of wood preservative each year should ensure these hardwoods retain plenty of weather resistance. hardwoods acacia and eucalyptus. These woods may be slightly less dense than teak but they are far-quicker growing, allowing them to be grown and managed to yield greater quantities of wood more sustainably – although again, it's important to look for FSC accreditation. A little low-maintenance upkeep with a coat of wood preservative each year should ensure these hardwoods retain plenty of weather resistance.

If you're looking for durability, then try to avoid garden furniture that is simply listed as a 'wood' or timber' build, as it's more likely these options are crafted from less weather-resistant softwoods.

Garden Trading Porthallow wooden outdoor corner sofa

(Image credit: Garden Trading)

Is wooden garden furniture OK left out in the rain?

If you want garden furniture that can be left outside all year round, then you'll want to opt for the most durable hardwoods, like teak. 

Teak wood furniture will still benefit from a yearly top-up with teak oil to maintain its natural moisture-resisting properties, but its dense grain and natural oils make it the most weather-resistant timber.

More affordable hardwoods such as acacia and eucalyptus are slightly less weather-resistant, so most manufacturers will recommend storing garden furniture made of these materials under cover to protect them from the worst of the elements.

A wooden outdoor lounge set

(Image credit: Cox and Cox)

To find the best wooden garden furniture for this guide we researched bestselling designs, got hands-on with products, dived into the specifications and materials to sort the wheat from the chaff, grilled the Ideal Home team for their expert knowledge, and took into account the opinions of those who own each product via online reviews. Click here to find out more about how we review products on Ideal Home.

Amy Lockwood
Sleep Editor

Amy is Ideal Home’s Sleep Editor. She’s spent the last three years researching and testing all things sleep for our audiences whether that’s sorting the wheat from the chaff in our hunt for the best mattress or learning about materials to uncover the best duvet for various sleep needs. She also lends her expertise to our furniture guides, sharing her design knowledge with our readers to help them choose the right sofa for their interior or the best garden furniture for their outside space.