Most traditional home furnishings are made with unsustainable (and toxic) materials that may pose a risk to you, your family, and the environment. So if you do need to buy new furniture, this list of more sustainable furniture brands will help limit those risks.
3 Reasons To Choose More Environmentally Friendly Furniture
Shopping for furniture can feel overwhelming, not least because there are a ton of styles, materials and finishes to consider but also because of the different environmental, social, and health-related impacts, including:
- The furniture industry is one of the largest consumers of wood globally. This high demand contributes significantly to deforestation which accounts for ~12% of man-made greenhouse gases, and also drives habitat destruction and biodiversity loss.
- The rise of “fast furniture”—inexpensive, low-quality items designed for short-term use—has led to a significant increase in furniture waste. In 2018 alone, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency reported that 12.1 million tons of furniture were discarded, with the majority ending up in landfills.
- Many conventional furniture pieces are manufactured using synthetic glues, varnishes, and finishes that emit volatile organic compounds (VOCs). These emissions contribute to indoor air pollution and can pose health risks, including respiratory issues and other ailments.
It’s our goal to lighten the load by compiling this list of sustainable furniture companies for low-impact lounging and sustainable snoozing. We focused our search on brands who make high quality, durable furniture from responsibly sourced materials, such as FSC-certified wood or reclaimed timber; use low-VOC or VOC-free finishes; manufacture ethically and take extra steps to reduce their negative impact.
Our Brand Rating System now offers a deeper look at brands’ sustainability credentials across 22 criteria including things like chemical management, biodiversity impact, waste management and product performance. Brands need to opt in to be rated so look out for those furniture brands who have done so below and find other rated brands in our directory.
We independently research all featured brands and we ask them to confirm their claims. In many cases we personally review recommended products. This post contains affiliate links which means we may earn a commission if you buy something. Learn more here.
The Best Sustainable Furniture Brands
MasayaCo offers a wide range of beautiful, minimalist teak furniture, made from FSC®-certified teak grown predominantly in their own regenerative tree farms. The brand champions biodiversity and uplifts local communities through fair employment. MasayaCo has been comprehensively rated by us on their sustainability credentials – find the full rating here.
Medley’s furniture is made in the USA from FSC-certified wood, finished with organic furniture polish made with beeswax, carnauba wax, and olive oil. Cushions are made from either CertiPUR-US®-certified synthetic foam or GOLS-certified organic latex.
Cisco Home’s made-to-order furniture is made with FSC®-certified, reclaimed, or repurposed wood, and natural fabrics. Their “Inside Green” options include organic latex and organic cotton. Skilled makers create their pieces by hand and receive liveable wages, and health insurance.
Index: Best Eco-Friendly Furniture Brands
- MasayaCo Jump to brand
- Cisco Home Jump to brand
- Medley Jump to brand
- Etsy Reclaimed Furniture Jump to brand
- What WE Make Jump to brand
- Sabai Design Jump to brand
- Urban Wood Goods Jump to brand
- Emeco Jump to brand
- Maiden Home Jump to brand
MasayaCo
Ethical Sourcing
Raw materials have been sourced ethically with people and planet in mind.
Handcrafted
Products have been made by hand, typically by an artisan or group of artisans.
Locally Made
Products are made local to the brand's headquarters.
Made To Order
Products can be made to order, thus limiting unnecessary production
Non-toxic
All products are made with ingredients or materials that are currently considered non-toxic
Sustainable Materials
Either all or most products are made with sustainable materials
Traceable Supply Chain
Brand is able to fully trace their entire supply chain from end to end.
Woman Owned
This brand is owned by a woman or a group of women.
FSC®-certified
For minimalist and multi-functional pieces that scream “sustainable style” turn to MasayaCo. Their furniture range includes accent chairs, armchairs, rocking chairs, stools, benches, beds, tables, and outdoor furniture.
Responsibly-harvested solid teak, finished in different looks with low-VOC natural oil is what you’ll come home to with environmentally friendly furniture from MasayaCo. FSC-certified, their locally sourced hardwoods are mostly sourced from their own forests and are dried in solar-powered kilns. Their Seed to Seat business model is helping to reforest land depleted by cattle farming.
MasayaCo was originally founded as a reforestation project but grew into a furniture company thanks to the talent of the artisans in the area. Their furniture is handcrafted in Nicaragua, helping to support craftspeople and designers in the region.
MasayaCo has been rated by Sustainable Jungle. Find the full rating here.
My Personal Review of MasayaCo’s Zapatera Shower Stool:
“I personally love the versatility of our Zapatera Stool. Living in a tiny house, I’m super limited on how much and what kind of furniture I can have, so things that have multiple uses like these are so appreciated. I use the stool as guest seating, a portable coffee table, a storage surface, and more, just depending on the season and need. Plus, the quality of the wood is truly top-notch, and the natural finish gives a smooth and shiny surface that goes so well with almost any type of home aesthetic.”
Review by Amber McDaniel, SJ’s Head of Content
Cisco Home
Cisco Home has not been rated.
Price range: $850–$30K
Cisco Home handcrafts made-to-order furniture that blends classic, heirloom pieces with a strong focus on comfort. Their range includes sofas, sectionals, chairs, benches, ottomans, beds, and more.
They use only FSC®-certified, reclaimed, or repurposed wood, and partner with vendors who are Certified Fair Trade. They have set their own standards of responsibility for suppliers.
We would recommend their “Inside Green” options when choosing filling and fabrics which include organic latex and organic textiles respectively. Finishes are water-based and low-VOC. Their broader textile collection also includes leathers which we would personally avoid.
Every piece is built start to finish by skilled artisans—never on an assembly line—in Cisco’s Los Angeles workshop, where makers earn liveable wages, and health insurance.
Cisco is a founding member of the Sustainable Furnishings Council and a top scorer on the Wood Furniture Scorecard. They give back to their community through two non-profits that they founded.
Medley
Medley has not been rated.
Price range: $995–$7,135
Founded by two brothers, Medley is on a mission to give the furniture industry a sustainability overhaul. They offer timeless and durable furniture for every room in the house: sectionals, accent chairs, sleeper sofas, beds, ottomans, benches, accent tables, dining tables, and storage pieces.
Medley sources FSC-certified wood like kiln-dried alder, solid walnut and maple, and low VOC plywood (used only for backs and drawer bottoms). The wood is finished with USDA organic natural furniture polish made with beeswax, carnauba wax, and olive oil. For cushions, choose between CertiPUR-US®-certified synthetic foam and GOLS-certified organic latex.
Other eco materials include OEKO-TEX cruelty-free Eco Wool (in their mattresses), natural jute webbing, GOTS-certified organic cotton upholstery lining, and either recycled or Greenguard Gold-certified synthetics. All the pieces are free of VOC adhesives, fire retardants, fluorocarbons, heavy metals, pesticides, preservatives, phthalates, formaldehyde, and azo dyes.
Everything is ethically handcrafted in Portland, Los Angeles, or Chicago. Their alder hardwood frames are backed by a lifetime warranty and mattresses with a twenty-year warranty.
Etsy Reclaimed Furniture
Etsy Reclaimed Furniture has not been rated.
Price Range: Various
Etsy is also one of the best places to shop for affordable sustainable furniture. With a near-constant influx of new designs and shops, there are plenty of unique pieces, from reclaimed barrel wine holders to coffee tables made of salvaged driftwood.
Our favorite Etsy eco-friendly furniture stores include Reclaimed Wood USA and Urban Billy (pictured), both of which specialize in using reclaimed materials to make rustic, farmhouse-inspired furniture.
There’s no end to the innovative upcycled materials individual makers use in some seriously creative ways. Common materials include wood (from salvaged lumber, antique barn wood, fallen logs, and palettes) and metal (upcycled iron, copper and iron piping, and chicken wire).
What WE Make
What WE Make has not been rated.
Price Range: $425–$5,755
Chicago’s What WE Make is a master in handcrafted, customizable, reclaimed wood furniture. With sleek, contemporary lines and minimalist silhouettes, the timeless pieces will suit any modern home. Choose between tables, seating, eco-friendly bedroom furniture, bathroom furniture, storage items, media stands, home office pieces, and more.
Reclaimed old-growth hardwoods (at least a century old) and sustainably sourced hardwoods finished with no or low VOC finishes are used across WWMake’s collection of sustainable coffee tables and more. They also use hand-welded metal and durable, special-blend concrete.
This family-owned and operated brand hand-makes the furniture in Algonquin, IL. Each durable furniture piece is made-to-order with quality craftsmanship, and any scrap wood and sawdust is donated locally to be used for fires and agriculture.
Sabai Design
Sabai Design has not been rated.
Price range: $195–$5,795
Sabai Design creates stylish, sustainable furniture with a focus on affordability, circularity, and low-impact materials. Their range includes made-to-order sofas, coffee tables, and home décor.
Their sofa and chair frames are built using FSC-certified wood, and upholstery options include GRS-certified recycled velvet made from post-consumer water bottles, upcycled Greenguard Gold-certified olefin, hemp, or cactus leather alternatives.
Sabai is a Certified B Corp and their furniture is produced in a family-owned factory in High Point, North Carolina, where the company ensures fair wages and safe working conditions.
Customers are encouraged to repair rather than replace, with replacement parts readily available. Their Sabai Revive program extends product life even further by refurbishing and reselling pre-loved pieces at up to 50% off.
Urban Wood Goods
Urban Wood Goods has not been rated.
Price Range: $845–$7,960
Urban Wood Goods began with one bench that female founder and CEO Erin True made for herself (following inspiration from a DIY salvage magazine article). Today, the furniture company specializes in reclaimed wood tables of all sorts and sizes, from desks to conference tables to quaint two-seaters for your breakfast nook.
If you can’t get enough of the dichotomous metal and wood aesthetic, upgrade your home storage with reclaimed pipe shelving units and commission custom pieces.
Unless otherwise noted, all lumber is reclaimed barn wood and centuries-old “Old Growth” lumber complete with original warps, nail holes, textures, and other character elements. The wooden table tops are combined with salvaged metal pipe accents and American-made steel structures.
This company has a team of 20 craftsmen working in their very own Chicago woodshop. All reclaimed lumber is salvaged from local sites, and other materials come from nearby USA suppliers.
Emeco
Emeco has not been rated.
Price Range: $330–$4,785
Emeco was initially commissioned to make non-corrosive, fire-resistant, and torpedo-proof chairs for the US Navy almost a century ago. Today, they are still challenging the unsustainable furniture industry by creating chairs, stools, benches, tables, and shelves, all made out of recycled materials and built to last 150+ years.
Their first eco-friendly chair, the classic 1006 Navy Chair, is still available today. Each piece is understated enough to use indoors and durable enough to act as outdoor furniture.
90% of Emeco’s line uses recycled furniture materials. Recycled aluminum and a VOC-free anodizing finish is their golden (er… metallic) boy. They also use cork, locally reclaimed or sustainably harvested wood, and recycled PET. Emeco is also pioneering its own sustainable materials, including Reclaimed Wood-filled Polypropylene (made from leftover plastic from the factory floor mixed with sawdust) and Eco Concrete (made from recycled glass bottles and calcium sulfoaluminate cement).
Emeco hand makes their recycled material furniture in a LEED-certified family factory in Hanover, Pennsylvania, using an intensive 77-step process. Because their expertise is metal, they rely on nearby Amish woodworkers to craft their sustainable wooden furniture.
Maiden Home
Maiden Home has not been rated.
Price Range: $500–$9,895
With minimalist timeless pieces, handcrafted using heritage techniques, Maiden Home is “slow furniture” at its best. Whether you’re looking for sustainable bedroom furniture, living room, or dining furniture, they offer plenty of different designs.
All hardwoods (like the solid oak used in many pieces) bear sustainable forestry certifications from the SFI, and any steel is recycled. Their cushions feature CertiPUR-US®-certified soy-based foam.
They use several different upholstery materials, including 100% performance linen, a cotton and linen blend, Merino wool, Mohair and leather. There’s not much detail available on their ethical approach to animal-derived fabrics so we’d recommend sticking to the linen.
Some of the collections feature down and feather-filled cushions, but a down alternative (micro-denier, an ultra-fine synthetic fiber) is available on request. Low VOC, water-based glues and finishes are prioritized, and all furniture is free from flame retardants and formaldehyde.
All pieces are handcrafted to order by North Carolina artisans who use heritage techniques to slow craft the pieces.
Thank you so much for sharing this! As a mom, I want to support brands that have green business practices. Happy to learn about these brands.