You’re Shopping for Furniture Wrong: Expert Reveals 7 Tricks That Could Save You Hundreds

Finding the best price for furniture online may require more than waiting for a sale or entering a discount code at checkout.

According to furniture expert Deirdre McGettrick, shoppers can often reduce their spending simply by changing the way they search, compare prices and decide when to buy.

McGettrick, the founder of furniture search platform uFurnish.com, said several commonly overlooked strategies can help consumers avoid paying more than necessary for beds, sofas, tables and other household items.

Search Beyond the First Retailer

Finding the perfect piece of furniture at one online store does not necessarily mean you have found the best price.

McGettrick recommends searching for the exact product across several retailers before placing an order. Products from the same manufacturer are increasingly being sold by multiple retailers, meaning the same item can sometimes have noticeably different prices.

Consumers who discover a piece they like should therefore avoid immediately buying it and instead check whether another retailer is offering the identical product for less.

Generic Searches Could Make Shopping More Expensive

Typing a broad term such as “sofa”, “bed” or “desk” into a search engine can produce an overwhelming number of results.

McGettrick believes shoppers can make the process much more efficient by deciding what they actually want before beginning their search.

Colour and material are among the most useful details to include because they can dramatically reduce the number of results.

Shoppers should also add characteristics relevant to the furniture itself. Someone looking for a dining table, for example, could include a feature such as “extendable”, while dimensions and seating capacity can help narrow down other types of furniture.

The objective is to search for the specific product rather than relying solely on its generic category.

The Cheapest Price May Not Be the Cheapest Deal

A furniture item with the lowest advertised price is not necessarily the option that will cost the least by the time the purchase is completed.

Delivery charges can make a significant difference, particularly when buying large or heavy furniture.

McGettrick warned that delivery for bulky products can add as much as 10 per cent to the item’s value. A mattress priced at $1,500, for instance, could potentially incur a delivery fee of around $150.

That means shoppers should examine delivery charges before comparing retailers. A product that initially appears more expensive could ultimately be the better deal if shipping is included in the price.

Huge Discounts May Not Always Be Genuine

A dramatic reduction on a furniture website can create the impression of an exceptional bargain, but shoppers should investigate the previous price before assuming they have made a major saving.

McGettrick warned that some retailers can manipulate the appearance of discounts by increasing a product’s reference price before reducing it again during a promotional period.

The resulting “saving” may therefore look much larger than the difference between the normal selling price and the sale price.

Consumers should be particularly cautious when a supposedly discounted item has suddenly acquired an unusually high “was” price. Checking how long the product was actually offered at that price can provide a better indication of whether the promotion represents a genuine saving.

Don’t Chase a Sold-Out Bargain

Running out of stock can sometimes make a product appear even more desirable, but shoppers who miss a discounted item should not automatically rush to buy it when it returns.

McGettrick said some sold-out products can come back at a higher price, particularly seasonal items such as Christmas decorations and garden furniture.

Limited availability can increase demand, and retailers may have more room to raise prices when customers are eager to secure newly replenished stock.

Waiting and monitoring the product’s price can therefore be preferable to immediately purchasing it when it reappears.

Waiting Can Sometimes Deliver a Bigger Saving

For shoppers who are not in a hurry, patience could be one of the most effective ways to reduce the cost of furniture.

McGettrick said the typical timeframe for a furniture price reduction is around 150 days. Consumers who can wait may therefore benefit from tracking an item rather than buying it as soon as they find it.

However, she stressed that waiting is not always practical. Anyone who urgently needs a bed, sofa or other essential item may be better off buying when they find a suitable price rather than waiting several months for a possible reduction.

Black Friday Shopping Should Start Earlier

Consumers hoping to take advantage of Black Friday furniture deals may also benefit from starting their search before the event itself.

According to McGettrick, furniture promotions can begin appearing from November 1, with discounts becoming more aggressive as the month progresses.

Long-lead-time products such as sofas and dining tables may require earlier ordering if shoppers want them delivered before Christmas.

Waiting until Black Friday itself could therefore mean missing out on popular products that have already sold out.

January Could Beat Black Friday

Despite the popularity of Black Friday, McGettrick believes shoppers may find some of the year’s strongest furniture discounts after Christmas.

Retailers generally look to clear autumn and winter stock by the end of January, creating an opportunity for consumers who are prepared to wait.

For shoppers who do not need an item immediately, monitoring prices into the New Year could therefore produce a better deal than purchasing during the heavily promoted Black Friday period.

Watch the Calendar When Comparing Deals

Another factor consumers should consider is when retailers intensify their promotional activity.

McGettrick said retailers often increase sales activity shortly before payday and toward the end of the month, when they expect consumers to have more money available to spend.

That makes timing another potentially useful part of a furniture-shopping strategy.

A Smarter Way to Buy Furniture Online

The biggest savings may not always come from finding a dramatic coupon or waiting for a major sale.

Comparing the same product across different retailers, searching with specific details, checking delivery charges and questioning unusually large discounts can all help shoppers establish the true cost of a purchase.

For those who have time on their side, tracking prices and considering January clearance periods could provide another opportunity to save.

The overall lesson is simple: finding the right furniture is only part of the process. Knowing where, when and how to buy it can make an equally significant difference to the final bill.