Put your feet up and relax with the eco-friendly and non-toxic ottomans from these incredible sustainable furniture brands.
What Is A Sustainable Ottoman?
There are a lot of considerations that go into making sustainable furniture. Some brands may meet more of these criteria than others, and some criteria may be more or less important to you.
You might also engage with sustainability differently depending on your lifestyle, budget, aesthetic preferences, among other factors. But here’s a general idea of what to look for:
Look Secondhand
Used ottomans and benches are going to the most sustainable option since these furniture pieces have already been produced! Plus you’re preventing that furniture from heading to a landfill. You could browse an app like OfferUp or check your local Facebook Marketplace.
You can also check secondhand furniture sites like:
Shopping for new sustainably-made ottomans and benches? Check out the following tips:
Eco-Conscious & Durable Materials
With the rise of fast furniture, the quality (and the sustainability) of materials used in furniture has declined.
A sustainable ottoman (or sustainable bench) would be made durably so it lasts and would be constructed from responsibly sourced materials such as FSC-Certified and/or locally sustainably-harvested wood, recycled fabrics and organic natural fabrics for the upholstery, and non-toxic — ideally zero VOC — finishes. This guide has more non-toxic furniture brands.
Responsibly Made
Look into where the brand is producing their ottomans, benches, and/or poufs. Is it in their own workshop or a nearby production facility? Is it in a fair trade artisan workshop? A brand should have full transparency and traceability of their supply chain.
They also should ensure workers are earning living wages and work in safe environments. (One great way to check for this is to look at the materials and finishes used, making sure they’re non-toxic.)
Circular Practices
The EPA estimates that 12 million tons of furniture are thrown out annually. Yikes. A brand selling sustainable benches and ottomans would ideally consider the following:
- Quality construction so the furniture lasts a lifetime (or several)! If you’re moving a lot, it’s also worth considering how easy that piece of furniture is to move around and deconstruct/reconstruct if necessary.
- Repairability. Is that material repairable? Does that brand have replacement parts? Is it a material that could be refinished easily?
- Secondhand program or resellability. It would be incredible if the brand had a resale program for their furniture. Not many brands do, though. So you might also just think about if the style and quality of the piece would make it easy to sell again if you do think you might outgrow it.
Where to Find Sustainable Ottomans
Phew, that was a lot! But don’t worry: we’ve done the hard work of sifting through brands to curate the best options available right now. Check ’em out!
Note that this guide includes affiliate links, which means we may earn a small commission at no additional cost to you if you make a purchase which helps us continue to run this site. We only feature brands that meet strict standards for sustainability we love, and that we think you’ll love too.
1. Maiden Home
This woman-owned direct-to-consumer furniture brand has some seriously gorgeous sustainable ottomans. Maiden Home’s modern furniture is made in North Carolina using natural materials like solid ash wood and stonewashed linen. Many reviewers compliment the design, quality, and value of their ottomans and benches from the brand.
Conscious Qualities: High Quality, Handcrafted in US, Green Manufacturing Practices
Price Range: $500 – $1775
Ships to: Contiguous US States
2. Savvy Rest
Savvy Rest has a non-toxic ottoman made from solid maple hardwood, GOTS-certified organic cotton and/or hemp upholstery, and Cradle to Cradle GOLD-certified Talalay latex. The brand also has a sustainable bench crafted by skilled woodworkers in Charlottesville, Virginia from sustainably-sourced maple. All of their furniture is available unfinished or with zero-VOC finishes.
Conscious Qualities: Non-Toxic, Organic & Natural Materials, Built In Virginia
Price Range: $699-$999
Ships: Internationally (White Glove Delivery available for US + Canada only)
Use code CONSCIOUSSTYLE20 for 20% off!
3. The Citizenry
This fair trade artisan home goods store also has furniture, like their ethically made ottomans and benches. Each piece is handcrafted from natural materials like cotton, wicker, and solid wood in a fair trade process that’s guaranteed by the World Fair Trade Organization. You can learn more about the artisan workshop that made each ottoman or bench in the product details on The Citizenry’s site.
Conscious Qualities: Fair Trade, Artisan-Made, Natural Materials
Price Range: $295 – $650
Ships To: All US States + Canada
4. Medley
Medley has sustainable poufs, ottomans (including storage ottomans!), and benches handcrafted in California and Oregon to the highest quality standards. To back up their claims, they offer industry-leading warranties on their furniture. Their benches and ottomans are made from domestically-sourced FSC-certified Alder hardwood and eco-friendly fabrics (including GREENGUARD certified fabrics and natural fabrics like cotton and linen; check details on your fabric selection here).
Conscious Qualities: US-Made, Quality Warranty, Many Certified Eco Materials
Price Range: $376 – $1595
Ships: Internationally (contact them if your location is not an option when checking out)
5. Sabai
Sabai’s made-to-order sustainable seating and ottoman considers not only the production practices (like using recycled fabrics, FSC-certified wood, and CertiPUR-US certified foam) but also its use and end-of-life. The company offers replacement parts and has a buy back & resale program.
Conscious Qualities: Recycled & Natural Materials, Secondhand & Repair Program
Price Range: $395
Ships To: All US States + Canada
6. Masaya & Co
Originally founded as a reforestation project, this sustainable furniture company is seriously committed to responsibly-made furniture, planting 100 trees with every order. Masaya & Co has a wide range of ottomans and benches handcrafted in Nicaragua from solid sustainably-sourced hardwood. Most pieces are suitable for outdoor use as well. (Check out more outdoor furniture in this guide.)
Conscious Qualities: Responsibly-Sourced Wood, Reforestation Projects, Artisan Handmade to Order
Price Range: $260 – $1,100
Ships To: US States & Territories
7. VivaTerra
Green lifestyle retailer VivaTerra has options for every part of your space: they carry poufs, indoor/outdoor benches, garden stools & garden benches, storage benches, and accent stools (they even have a “zen bath stool!”). You’ll find benches and stools made from reclaimed wood, acacia wood and teak, among many other natural and repurposed materials.
Conscious Qualities: Eco-Conscious Materials, Artisan-Made
Price Range: $159 – $1600
Ships To: US States & Territories
8. Natural Home
Natural Home by Futon Shop has non-toxic ottomans made from 100% natural materials. Their NBJ modular ottomans are crafted with natural Dunlop latex, coconut coir base, and wool upholstery. They also have a vegan ottoman made with potato-based PLA fiber. And if you want to go the extra mile, you can upgrade to organic latex fill for your custom ottoman.
Conscious Qualities: Non-Toxic, Natural & Organic Materials, Woman-Founded, Gives Back
Price Range: $630+
Ships To: Contiguous US States
9. Loll Designs
Loll Designs creates outdoor furniture (including an outdoor ottoman) from partially recycled high-density polyethylene (HDPE) — mostly from milk jugs – and the upholstery is made from Sunbrella acrylic, a long-lasting performance fabric. All of Loll’s materials are purchased within the US and the furniture is produced in Duluth, Minnesota.
Conscious Qualities: Recycled Materials, Made in the US
Price: $895
Ships: US & Internationally through Made Trade
10. Emeco
Handcrafted in Pennsylvania from recycled aluminum and responsibly-harvested Accoya wood, Emeco’s eco-friendly benches are built to last. In fact, every product passes commercial grade standards — so you know it’s durable. Emeco’s benches are also Cradle to Cradle Gold certified and are free of VOCs.
Conscious Qualities: Recycled & Sustainably Sourced Materials, Durable, Made in the US
Price Range: $1,610 – $1,675
Ships to: US & Internationally through Made Trade
More Sustainable Furniture Guides:
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