How much does a custom dining table cost?

Most of my commissions fall in the $6,000 to $20,000 range, and a dining table is the most common of them. Some come in under that and some go over it. Where a particular table lands depends mostly on the size of the top, the wood it is cut from, and the work the base asks for.

What moves the price

The size. A longer, wider top takes more material and more hours. Every table is drawn to your room’s dimensions; see building to your room.

The wood. The species, and how rare and figured the slabs are. A single wide slab is a scarcer thing than a bookmatched pair or a multi-board top of the same size, and the price follows the scarcity. The trade-offs are in single slab, bookmatched or multi-board.

The base. A plain base and a sculptural one are different amounts of work.

The distance. Across Chicagoland, I generally handle delivery and installation personally. Farther away the table travels white glove, and the farther it goes, the more that costs.

Working to a budget

Tell me the budget first. Size, species and base all move, and I adjust them to land the table inside the number you give me.

Why there is no price list

Every table is one-off: drawn to one room, from the slabs that will actually be used. A price list would have to assume a size, a wood and a base, and each of those is yours to set.

How the money works

Nothing is cut until you approve the drawing. After that, a 40% deposit of the initial approved project price books the commission, with 5 business days to cancel. The deposit answer covers what happens after that window. The build then takes 6 to 12 weeks from design approval.

How to get a number

Tell me the size, the wood you are drawn to and the budget you have in mind. I can usually give you a rough price on the first call, and a written proposal follows the drawing. Begin a commission.

By Rob Showalter, furniture maker in Geneva, Illinois.