A console table is a narrow table built to stand against something, a wall, a sofa back, a stair. Narrow is the defining feature, and the specific narrowness is what makes it work or fail.
Depth: 12 to 18 inches, and usually less than you think
Depth is set by the corridor, not by what you want to put on it.
- 10 to 12 inches: a tight hallway. Holds keys, post, a lamp, a small tray. This is the right choice in any passage under about 42 inches wide.
- 14 to 16 inches: the standard. Works in most entryways and behind most sofas.
- 18 to 20 inches: generous, for a wide entrance hall or when the console doubles as a drinks table or a desk.
The test for a hallway: after the console is in, you need 36 inches of clear passage. Measure the hall, subtract 36, and whatever is left is the deepest console the space can take. If that number is 11 inches, an attractive 18-inch console is still the wrong piece of furniture.
Height depends on the job
Entryway: 30 to 34 inches. This is standing-use height, you drop keys on it, you check a bag on it, you do not sit at it. 32 inches suits most people.
Behind a sofa: match the sofa back, or sit 1 to 2 inches below it. Most sofa backs are 30 to 34 inches, which is why console heights cluster there. A console taller than the sofa back looks like a wall unit that wandered in. One much lower disappears.
Hallway display: 28 to 32 inches. Lower reads more furniture-like and less utilitarian.
Behind a dining seat or as a serving surface: 34 to 36 inches, to match counter height so serving does not mean bending.
Length: two-thirds the wall, or most of the sofa
Against a wall, aim for about two-thirds of the wall's width, leaving clear margin at both ends.
Behind a sofa, the console should be slightly shorter than the sofa, roughly the sofa length minus 6 to 12 inches. A console longer than the sofa sticks out past the arms and catches people walking by, which is both ugly and genuinely annoying.
Under a wall-mounted TV, match the console to the screen width or go a little wider. Narrower than the screen looks unstable even though it is not.
Clearance underneath, if anything goes under it
Baskets, shoes and a bench are the usual candidates. Measure before you assume:
- A pair of adult shoes: 5 inches high, 12 inches deep
- Boots standing up: 14 inches high
- A standard storage basket: 12 to 14 inches high
- An entryway bench tucked under: 18 inches high
If a bench goes underneath, the console's apron clearance is the number that matters, not the tabletop height. Many consoles have a stretcher or lower shelf that kills the idea entirely, check for it in the photographs.
See the benches if you are planning the pair together.
What goes on top
Sizing decides whether the table fits. What sits on it is a separate question, and the short version is three zones: something tall at one end, something low at the other, and a tray in the middle. Above it, a mirror or art hangs 4 to 8 inches above the surface and runs to roughly two thirds of the console's length.
The full method, including what changes when the same table sits behind a sofa, is in how to decorate a console table.
Weight and wall anchoring
A narrow, tall console is top-heavy by design. If it is deeper than it is wide at the base, or if there are children in the house, anchor it to the wall. Solid hardwood consoles are heavy enough that tipping needs real force, but a console loaded with a stone lamp at one end and nothing at the other is a different object from the one that left the workshop.
Measure in this order
- Width of the corridor or wall, minus 36 inches of passage, gives your maximum depth.
- Height of whatever it stands against, gives your height.
- Two-thirds of the wall, or the sofa minus a foot, gives your length.
- Check what goes underneath before choosing between a shelf and open legs.
Hallway widths are never standard. See the console tables or send us the hall measurement.
Common questions
How deep should a console table be?
12 to 18 inches, and usually less than you think. 10 to 12 inches suits a tight hallway, 14 to 16 is the standard, and 18 to 20 is generous for a wide entrance hall.
How much clearance does a hallway console need?
After the console is in, you need 36 inches of clear passage.
How long should a console table be?
About two thirds of the wall it sits against, or most of the length of the sofa it sits behind.
From the Rootelier range
Twisted Root Console Table and Organic Root Console Table, or see all console tables. Every piece is made to order, so sizes can be adjusted to the room.