Choose a bedroom set with bedside tables by measuring the gap either side of your bed first, then matching the table height to the top of your mattress. A table within five centimetres of mattress height, no wider than the space you have and with the storage type you actually use, will serve you well. Finish and style come after those three measurements, not before.
Bedside tables are the pieces people regret most. They are bought last, chosen quickly, and then used every single day. A set that includes them from the start removes that risk, but only if the sizing is right for your room and your bed.
Three numbers decide almost everything.
The first is available width. Measure from the edge of the bed frame to the wall, or to the next obstruction such as a radiator or a door swing. Subtract five centimetres for comfortable clearance. Whatever remains is your maximum table width.
The second is mattress height. Measure from the floor to the top of the mattress, not the top of the frame. Divan bases and deep pocket sprung mattresses can sit surprisingly high, and a low table beside a high bed means reaching down awkwardly for a glass of water in the dark.
The third is depth. Bedside tables that project further than the bed frame create a pinch point in the walkway. In rooms under three metres wide this matters a great deal.
Write those three numbers down and take them shopping. They rule out perhaps half of all options immediately, which makes the rest of the decision far easier.
The general rule is to keep the table surface level with the mattress top, or slightly above by two or three centimetres. Level feels natural when reaching sideways. Slightly above gives a small lip effect that stops items being knocked off.
Significantly lower is the common failure. Tables designed for low platform beds look elegant in photographs but become impractical beside a tall divan. If you already own a high bed and love a low cabinet, a small stack of hardback books under a lamp is a legitimate correction, though it is better to buy the right height in the first place.
Taller than mattress level by more than about eight centimetres starts to crowd the bed visually. It also blocks light from a bedside lamp, casting shadow across the pillow rather than onto the page.
Open shelf tables are light in appearance and suit smaller rooms. They also display everything you own, including the charging cables and the half read paperback. They work best for people who keep very little at the bedside.
Drawer units hide small clutter and are the most popular choice for good reason. One drawer suits minimal storage. Two or three drawers turn the table into genuinely useful bedroom storage, though the top drawer often becomes a collection point for everything without a home. Our selection of modern bedside cabinets UK sale covers single drawer, multi drawer and combination designs in most common bedroom finishes.
Cupboard fronted cabinets hold taller items such as books, water jugs or medical supplies. They suit guest rooms and bedrooms where the bedside doubles as general storage.
Think about what actually sits on your bedside table now. Count the items. If it is a lamp, a phone and a book, an open shelf is fine. If it runs to eight or nine things, buy drawers.
A bedroom set works because pieces repeat details. The bedside tables are the smallest pieces, so they carry those details at a smaller scale: the same handle, the same edge profile, the same foot.
Buying the tables as part of a set solves the problem automatically. If you are assembling a room gradually, look for a full modern bedroom furniture set UK where the bedside cabinets are sized sensibly rather than shrunk down versions of the chest of drawers.
Watch the scale relationship with the bed. A substantial upholstered bed with a tall headboard needs tables with some visual weight. Slim legged tables beside a heavy bed look temporary. Conversely a slim metal framed bed pairs well with lighter tables, and heavy cabinets would overwhelm it.
Two matching tables give symmetry, which is restful and easy to style. It is the default for a reason.
One table is a reasonable choice in rooms where the bed sits against a wall on one side, or where a radiator occupies one flank. In that case make the single table slightly larger and balance the other side of the bed with a wall light or a tall plant so the arrangement does not look unfinished.
Two different tables can work if they share a height and a tone. This asymmetric approach suits older properties with awkward alcoves and reads as characterful rather than accidental, provided the heights line up.
Wooden tables hide fingerprints and dust reasonably well, and small marks blend into the grain over time. They suit family rooms and anyone who dislikes constant wiping.
High gloss tables bounce light around and are a genuine advantage in darker north facing bedrooms. They do show fingerprints, particularly in darker colours, so choose handles that keep hands away from the surface. Pale gloss shows far less than black or navy gloss.
Mirrored tables suit rooms with plenty of natural light and a softer, more decorative scheme. They need regular cleaning but they visually disappear, which is useful in a tight space. The wider mirrored bedroom furniture UK sale range shows how mirrored pieces sit alongside painted and wooden items without clashing.
Metal framed tables bring an industrial edge and are the lightest option to move, which matters if you vacuum around the bed regularly.
Sockets. Look at where the plug sockets sit before choosing a solid backed cabinet. A back panel that covers the only socket beside the bed is a daily irritation. Some cabinets have a cable cutout, and if yours does not, a unit with an open lower shelf gives cables somewhere to run.
Radiators. Many UK bedrooms have a radiator on the bed wall. Furniture placed hard against a radiator blocks heat and can dry out timber over time. Leave a gap of at least ten centimetres.
Door swings. Check that the bedroom door, wardrobe doors and any cupboard doors on the bedside table itself can all open without collision.
Drawer clearance. A drawer needs the same space in front of it as its depth. In narrow rooms, a cupboard door that swings sideways may be more practical than a deep pull out drawer.
Assembly. Consider whether the piece arrives flat packed and whether you have space to build it in the room. Assembling a wardrobe in a hallway and then discovering it will not pass through the door is a familiar problem.
Once the bed, tables, wardrobe and drawers are settled, the room needs one or two things that are not furniture: a rug that extends beyond the bed on both sides, a lamp on each table, and window dressing that suits the tone of the set.
Lighting deserves particular thought. Bedside lamps should throw light downwards onto a book rather than outwards into the room. A shade that is wider at the base than the top does this well. If bedside surface space is limited, a wall mounted light frees the table entirely.
If you want to see how complete rooms are put together before deciding, the coordinated collections at Furniture in Fashion show beds, cabinets and storage photographed as full schemes, which makes proportion far easier to judge than looking at single items in isolation.
Measure the gap beside the bed. Measure mattress height. Decide how much storage you genuinely need. Pick the set that satisfies all three. Then, and only then, choose a finish you like. Working in that order avoids the most common outcome, which is a beautiful cabinet that is too low, too wide or too shallow to be useful.
Level with the top of the mattress, or up to three centimetres above it. Measure from the floor to the mattress surface rather than to the bed frame, as divan bases add considerable height.
Measure the gap between the bed and the wall, then subtract five centimetres. In most UK double bedrooms that results in a table between forty and fifty centimetres wide.
No, but they should share a height and a colour tone. Matching pairs are the simplest route to a calm room, while a deliberate mismatch suits period properties with uneven alcoves.
Drawers suit anyone who keeps more than a few items at the bedside, since they hide clutter. Open shelves keep the room feeling lighter and work well in small bedrooms with minimal storage needs.
Yes, and it often makes sense if your existing bed is a strong match already. Aim to repeat one detail, such as handle finish or leg shape, so the pieces still read as a family.
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