Dining Table Buying Guide: Fixed, Extension & Round Tables
Choosing a dining table is one of the bigger furniture decisions in a home — it needs to suit the room you have, the way you actually use it, and the number of people you regularly seat. This guide walks through the practical differences between fixed, extension and round dining tables, and the sizing and seating questions worth thinking through before you buy.
Fixed, Extension or Round — What Suits You?
A fixed dining table has a single, permanent footprint. It's the simplest option to live with day to day — no mechanism to operate, no leaves to store — and works well where the table has a settled, dedicated position in the room. Our fixed dining table collection spans a range of shapes, sizes and finishes.
An extension dining table can be opened out to seat more people when needed, then closed back down for everyday use. It suits households that entertain occasionally but don't want a permanently oversized table taking up the room the rest of the time. Calligaris's Twins and Sandy are two examples from our extension dining table range.
A round dining table tends to suit smaller or squarer rooms, and creates a more sociable seating arrangement with no "head" of the table. Round tables in our range, such as the Twins and Sandy round dining tables, are generally offered as fixed sizes rather than extending — see the full round dining table range for the options available.
Choosing a Table for Your Room
Room shape has a bigger influence on the right table shape than most people expect. A long, narrow dining area generally suits a rectangular or barrel-shaped table, which makes efficient use of the space along its length. A square or more compact room often works better with a round table, which avoids leaving awkward corners of empty floor around a rectangular shape.
It's also worth thinking about how the table relates to the rest of the room — walkways to the kitchen or living area, and whether chairs need to be pulled out on all sides or just some.
Measuring Your Dining Space
As a general rule of thumb, allow around 90–100cm of clearance between the edge of the table and the nearest wall or furniture, so chairs can be pulled out comfortably and people can walk past while others are seated. This is a starting guide rather than a fixed requirement — the right clearance for your space will depend on the chairs you choose, how the room is used, and how much circulation space you need day to day.
Seating and Table Sizing
A commonly used rule of thumb allows roughly 60–65cm of table edge per seated guest. Applied to some of the table lengths available in our range — for example, a 200cm table (available as both the Twins and Sandy fixed dining tables) — this typically suits around 6 people, while a 250–300cm table can comfortably seat 8 or more along its length, particularly if extra seats are placed at the ends.
Round tables are sized by diameter rather than length. Both the Twins and Sandy round dining tables are available at 140cm and 160cm diameters — a 140cm round table generally suits around 4–6 people, and a 160cm table around 6–8, again depending on how snugly you like to seat guests.
These figures are general guidance only, not fixed rules — actual seating capacity is affected by chair dimensions, table base design and personal preference for space between diners.
How Chair Width Affects Seating Capacity
Table length alone doesn't determine how many people will comfortably fit — the width of the chairs you pair with it matters just as much. Wider upholstered dining chairs can take up noticeably more table edge per person than a slim timber or metal-framed chair, which can mean fitting one or two fewer seats than a generic sizing guide suggests. If seating capacity is a priority, it's worth measuring your chosen chairs and checking the fit against the table before finalising a size.
Table Bases and Leg Placement
How a table's base is designed can affect how many people actually fit comfortably, independent of the tabletop's overall size. A table with legs set well in from the corners generally leaves more usable knee room along the sides. Sculptural or shaped bases — such as the paired curved-metal base on the Twins range — create a striking visual result, but it's worth considering how a distinctive base shape interacts with chair placement, particularly at the ends of the table. A more conventional four-leg design, like the teardrop-profile legs on the Sandy range, tends to offer more predictable clearance for chairs on every side.
Understanding Extension Mechanisms
An extension table works by adding a leaf (or leaves) to the tabletop, increasing its length when needed. The Sandy Extension Dining Table, for example, opens from a closed length of 165cm, 203cm or 241cm out to 200cm, 248cm or 296cm respectively — adding between roughly 35cm and 55cm of extra length, depending on the size chosen.
When considering an extension table, it's worth thinking about a few practical points beyond the extra length: how easily the mechanism operates, whether the leaf needs to be stored separately or stays attached, and how often you're realistically likely to use the table in its extended state. A table that's extended only occasionally may be better chosen for its closed-size comfort first, with the extension as a bonus for larger gatherings.
Everyday Use versus Entertaining
If the table is mostly used for everyday family meals, a fixed table sized to your regular household is usually the simplest choice — nothing to open or close, and a consistent footprint in the room. If you entertain a few times a year but don't want a permanently large table, an extension table offers flexibility without the ongoing floor space cost. A round table can be a good middle ground for smaller households that still like to seat guests occasionally, since it seats efficiently without needing a large closed footprint.
Visit Our Richmond Showroom
The best way to judge scale, finish and comfort is in person. Our showroom at 477 Church Street, Richmond, has a range of fixed, extension and round dining tables on display, and our team can help you work through sizing and seating for your space. Browse the full dining table collection.