The best time to buy furniture
Furniture turns over on a seasonal schedule that creates predictable clearance windows. Here's when to buy indoor and outdoor pieces.
- Indoor furniture clears in January and July before new collections arrive.
- Patio furniture bottoms out in late summer and early fall.
- Floor models offer deep discounts for minor cosmetic wear.
- Holiday weekends layer extra markdowns on the seasonal cycle.
- Open-box and as-is sections carry returns and overstock for less.
Indoor: January and July
New furniture collections typically launch in February and August, so the months just before — January and July — are when stores clear existing stock to make room. That's when sofas, dining sets, and bedroom pieces are cheapest.
If you're eyeing a current-collection piece, buying it in that clearance window before the refresh is the reliable play — the same off-season logic as our price-cycles guide.
Outdoor: end of summer
Patio and outdoor furniture hits its lowest prices in late August through September as retailers make room for winter goods. Buy then and store it for next season for the deepest discount of the year.
The trade-off is thinner selection late in the window, so if a specific set matters, shop early in the clearance rather than waiting for the last markdown — see our outdoor savings guide.
Ask about floor models
Display pieces are sold at a steep discount to clear floor space, often with only minor wear from being shown. This is rarely advertised, so you have to ask a salesperson what floor models are available.
Inspect the piece for the specific wear before buying and negotiate — a floor model is a one-off the store wants gone, which gives you leverage on the price.
Layer holiday sales
Furniture also discounts over the big holiday weekends — Presidents' Day, Memorial Day, Labor Day, and Black Friday — which can overlap with the seasonal clearance windows for compounded savings.
When a holiday sale lands during a collection-transition month, that's the best-case timing: an already-clearing piece with an extra holiday markdown on top.
Shop open-box and as-is
Many retailers, online and in store, have an open-box, clearance, or 'as-is' section carrying customer returns and overstock at a discount. For furniture where minor wear doesn't matter, it's a reliable saving.
Check the condition notes and return terms, and pair it with a price comparison across the retailer's sister sites — the same approach as our Wayfair guide.