A Hunt For the Best Sofa Under $500 Led Us to These 11

May 30, 2023

The linen-upholstered sleeper made us do a double take.

Updated Aug 1, 2023 12:11 PM

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This story was part of Sofa Week, our seven-day stretch of, you guessed it, sofas. After years spent styling, sitting on, and searching for the best of the best—from bespoke designs to rare under-$500 gems—we’re compiling our couch knowledge in one comfy spot.

We’re going to be honest with you because, phew, this guide was a doozy to put together: It is incredibly difficult, if not nearly impossible, to find the best sofa under $500. For starters, best is such a relative term; one man’s trash is another man’s treasure, etc. Secondly, we are of the mindset that a good couch is one of life’s big investment purchases—meaning it’s likely going to cost you more than $500 if you want a well-made, enduring design you won’t grow sick of sitting on every day for years to come. However, it would be entirely imprudent not to acknowledge that both budgets and needs vary when it comes to furniture shopping. So here we are, up to our eyeballs in a polyester pool of mid-century modern designs. (Don’t worry, it gets better.)

After what felt like an innumerable amount of time spent shaking the Internet upside down and sending Slack SOS chats to fellow Domino editors, we narrowed down seven top contenders for the best sofa under $500. How did we make such resolute conclusions from this objective, uphill endeavor? We looked at an ungodly amount of reviews, weighing the firsthand pros and cons, studying how the upholstery appears in actual pictures, and deciding whether or not the sofa in question looked exactly like the five other velvet-upholstered options before it.

Below, find our prevailing favorites chosen by category—from the best love seats and sectionals to outdoor and sleeper sofas—followed by a handful of runners-up that nearly made the budget cut. And because the under-$500 crowd can lack a bespoke charm, we also padded a small section with tips on how to customize your couch. If you’re still sitting with us, read on. (Also, be sure to check out our running list of the best sofa deals to shop this week.)

Materials: 100% polyester upholstery; solid wood frame and legs; foam-filled cushions | Dimensions: 35.5-by-50-by-35 inches | Weight: 67 pounds

What we like:

Worth noting:

The under-$500 love seat offerings are teeming with designs that skew a little too traditional (think: chunky square two-seaters) or too modern (think: glam velvet settees with slanted gold legs). In either case, the result is an aesthetic that feels either outdated or kitschy. We really had to dig in order to land this classic style with just enough positive reviews to back it. The slipper silhouette and spindle front legs give off a bespoke British vibe without treading too far into stuffy or overdone territory.

As more than one reviewer points out, the cushions cannot be removed, as the product’s description states, but the fabric itself is described as pretty, durable, and linenlike.

Materials: Linen upholstery; solid wood frame and metal legs | Dimensions: 79.5-by-43.5-by-35.5 inches | Weight: 83 pounds

What we like:

Worth noting:

A daybed is a clever hack for an affordable deep-seat or sleeper-style sofa; score the frame for under $500, an accompanying mattress for $65, and…voilà! We’re fans of this olive option from Queer Eye’s exclusive Walmart collection—not just because it offers an uncomplicated design and price point but also due to its elevated linen upholstery along with the ability to outfit its mattress in a contrasting cover. (We love this affordable clover-patterned style for the bold and this solid case for the minimalists among us.)

Materials: 100% polyester upholstery; solid beechwood frame and legs | Dimensions: 30.5-by-50-by-30.25 inches

What we like:

Worth noting:

While this sofa is bordering on chair-and-a-half-size territory, its compact size is more than made up for with a generous marshmallowy silhouette and cozy bouclélike upholstery that’s reminiscent of the infamous Gwyneth Paltrow chair. The accompanying reviews call it everything from cute to comfy to perfectly sized for small spaces—with many touting its ease of assembly, which simply includes screwing on the supporting legs. While some reviewers caution that the cushions are firm, there is the assumption that they will soften with time and use.

Materials: 100% polyester upholstery; solid wood frame and legs; foam-filled cushions | Dimensions: 29.53-by-72.05-by-33.07 inches | Weight: 55 pounds

What we like:

Worth noting:

This clean-lined sofa is a prime example of an affordable mid-century style that doesn’t feel cheap or overdone—thanks to its unencumbered walnut-colored wood frame paired with soothing mauve-toned upholstery. Reviewers note that, aside from firm cushions, the piece is comfortable, sturdy, and well made.

Materials: 100% polyester upholstery; powder-coated aluminum frame | Dimensions: 31.5-by-48.03-by-28.94 inches | Weight: 28.93 pounds

What we like:

Worth noting:

Going the budget route when shopping for new outdoor furniture is a big gamble; odds are you’re going to end up with a piece that’ll get you through a season or two before it ultimately succumbs to the elements and needs to be replaced. Our advice? Skip the cheap “wood” options that are suckers for water damage and opt for a frame that’s made of metal—like our favorite under-$500 find here from Target.

Reviewers have dubbed assembly for this two-seater as a less-than-30-minute affair; described its overall design as clean, simplistic, and fancy; and called out the cushions as incredibly soft with a spring-back-into-place sturdiness post-sitting.

Materials: 100% linen upholstery; solid wood and manufactured wood frame; solid wood legs; foam-filled cushions | Dimensions: 33-by-77-by-32.5 inches | Weight: 101.5 pounds

What we like:

Worth noting:

We did a double take upon discovering this 100% linen sleeper in the raging sea of polyester options. As an added bonus to its A+ upholstery and understated silhouette (we appreciate a softly sloped arm), the Wayfair gem comes backed by a lot of buzz (we’re talking 3,000-plus 5-star reviews).

Highlights range from shoppers touting it as easy to assemble and spot-clean to commenting on how beautiful and expensive the material looks in person. More than one points out that houseguests are unable to guess this sofa’s true sleeper identity. As far as comfort goes, the cushions are described as being on the firmer side for sleeping—but that’s nothing a twin-size mattress topper won’t fix when it’s time to transform it into sleep mode.

Materials: Chenille upholstery; metal frame; foam-filled cushions | Dimensions: 33.07-by-71.25-by-27.5 inches

What we like:

Worth noting:

While Amazon isn’t our go-to for big furniture buys, the Internet is not exactly overflowing with big comfy couches for under $500—so here we are. The reviews on this surprisingly good-looking deep-seater, while limited, are for the most part overwhelmingly positive. What really drove our decision home, however, were the pictures, which showcase the questionable chenille upholstery as looking smooth and almost linenlike instead of cheap and spotty. One reviewer even notes that the covers, apart from being soft and wearing well, are removable and can be tossed in the wash.

A handful of shoppers likened the vibe of this sofa to that of the IKEA Kivik or Rove Concepts Porter, a very tricky aesthetic to find for under $500.

Materials: 100% velvet-polyester upholstery; expanded polystyrene-bead fill | Dimensions: 71-by-35-by-28 inches | Weight: 33 pounds

What we like:

Worth noting:

This pick is the only sofa on our list lacking firsthand reviewer feedback—but we decided to take a chance. After all, UO offers a one-year furniture warranty and accepts returns within a 30-day window from the delivery date. While the thought of a beanbag sofa might conjure up haunting images of dorm rooms past, this sophisticated iteration makes a compellingly chic case. It comes in four subtly retro hues (from bold blood orange to minimalist ivory) and three sizes (single-, double-, and triple-seater). The legless design feels less like a bag of beans made for kids and undergrads and more like a variation of the modular sofa trend, with the ability to stand alone or cluster together for a playfully stylish lounge statement.

Materials: 100% polyester-linen upholstery; metal frame; plastic legs; foam-filled cushions | Dimensions: 36.75-by-75-by-30 inches | Weight: 79.25 pounds

What we like:

Worth noting:

Searching for one of the best slipcovered sofas under $500 was, as Cher Horowitz put it, like searching for meaning in a Pauly Shore movie—but we did the best we could, folks. This Wayfair winner was one of the only true slipcovered options we could wrangle that features an uncomplicated, classic silhouette (we love a rolled arm and skirted base), linenlike upholstery, and decent reviewer feedback—all of which points toward the piece being a more than decent purchase for the price point.

Let’s start with the cons first: The cushions are described as stiff, and the upholstery a bit thick (one reviewer called it “denimlike”). These two main points of contention don’t strike us as total deal breakers, as they can be easily remedied with a few of our upgrade hacks, featured below—read on to see what we mean. As for the pros: It’s easy to assemble (we’re talking 10 minutes), looks better in person (peep the pictures), and holds the washable promise of growing softer with time.

Materials: Linen-cotton upholstery; solid wood frame and legs | Dimensions: 54-by-80-by-30.75 inches | Weight: 132 pounds

What we like:

Worth noting:

We’ll end with the most monumental triumph on our list: an actually attractive, reviewer-vetted sectional sofa for under $500. How did we select it? For starters, it’s covered in cotton-linen upholstery and made from a solid wood frame securely situated atop wood legs paired with metal interior support reinforcement. What further sets it apart from the synthetic, manufactured rest is an understated silhouette and soft ivory-beige colorway—a rarity in the harshly mid-century modern–style, 50-shades-of-gray group that we fought through to find it. Then there’s the customizability of the L-shaped sofa, featuring a movable chaise that can reconfigure to sit left, right, or function separately as an independent ottoman. And to top it all off, the bonus of two included bolster cushions.

Positive feedback from Amazon reviewers dubs it the “perfect neutral couch” as well as the ideal sofa size for a small space or studio apartment. Others even tout the cushion covers as being easy to remove and toss in the wash. Negative feedback commonly touches on the piece’s low profile (which one reviewer remedied by replacing the legs—more on that, below) and overall small size for a sectional sofa. As far as comfort goes, the consensus is that its cushions are substantial and surprisingly cozy.

Materials: Polyester upholstery; solid wood frame and legs | Dimensions: 90-by-31-by-35 inches

What we like:

Worth noting:

Another strategy for scoring the best sofa under $500 is to go the vintage route. Aside from scouring Facebook Marketplace and thrifting at local antiques haunts, we’re partial to surfing the deeply discounted offerings from used homewares site Kaiyo (think of it like the RealReal for couches). Our latest favorite? This pretty patterned sofa with a skirted bottom and chic rolled arms. Be sure to check the product descriptions and pictures closely for signs of wear and tear; this particular couch is described as “gently used,” which, judging from pictures, looks nearly new to our deal-hungry eyes. However, even those sofas that seem a little worse for wear can be given a new lease on life with a reupholstery project—or with a good-looking couch cover tossed on top. (See two other vintage Kaiyo favorites, below.)

While, yes, this is a story about sofas under $500, we couldn’t resist tossing in a few top contenders that missed the mark by a couple of bucks. And in some cases, a couple hundred. However, getting what you want—especially where good design is concerned—is worth the extra investment. All of our runners-up are under $1,000, come vetted with positive reviews, and feature enticing materials—from a cane settee by Leanne Ford to a cloudlike couch with down-filled cushions to even a blue leopard love seat.

If we learned one thing on our hunt for the best sofa under $500, it’s that the options—aesthetically speaking—are limited. Even if your shopping situation sticks you in this mainly polyester pool of mid-century modern–style couches, you can still make a budget-friendly breaststroke toward the design-forward deep end. Whether it’s swapping out those garishly gold legs for a black ash wood set, hiding the spotty chenille upholstery beneath a striped slipcover, or cozying up the stiff cushions with a stylish topper, these easy tweaks will help customize your sofa to fit your particular taste.