NPR's series Cost of Living: The Price We Pay is examining what's driving price increases and how people are coping after years of stubborn inflation. How are higher prices changing the way you live? Fill out this form to share your story with NPR.
What's the item?
Furniture
How has the price changed since before the pandemic?
The price of bedroom furniture rose 11% since February 2020, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The price of living room, kitchen and dining room furniture rose 25%.
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Why has the price gone up?
Like all industries, furniture makers and sellers are dealing with higher expenses: utilities, insurance, wages. Big cost spikes came during the pandemic, when shoppers raced to buy desks for home offices and patio sets, and shipping costs soared.
But if you ask furniture industry insiders, the first thing they'll reply is that the price of furniture has actually grown slower than overall inflation, which has risen nearly 26% since February 2020.
Then, the experts will note that prices are down from their peak in 2022. And then — like David Koehler did — they'll deliver the popular adage:
"You could buy a $399 sofa in 1984, and you could still buy a $399 sofa today," says Koehler, who runs the Delaware chain Johnny Janosik Furniture.
Of course, not everyone wants a $399 sofa, but the fact that it still exists makes furniture different from other big-ticket items, like cars or appliances.
Overseas competition has kept prices lower
Setting aside high-end woodwork and heirloom craftsmanship, sellers of mass market furniture feel intense pressure to keep prices down.
"The barriers to entry are very, very low, and the furniture business is incredibly fragmented," says Bill McLoughlin, editor in chief of Furniture Today, a trade publication.
Besides, furniture sellers compete not just with second-hand goods, but with any expensive plans you may have, say, for a trip or home repairs.
And the race for cheapest prices has moved a lot of the industry abroad.
"Manufacturing follows low-cost labor. That has been true for 60 years," says McLoughlin. "Because labor is such a large component of the cost of a product."
American wages tend to be a lot higher than those overseas, on top of the bigger costs of U.S. environmental standards. So even at domestic furniture-making hubs in Mississippi or North Carolina, many components — fabrics, handles and electronics, like the power button for your recliner — still ship from abroad, mainly China.
Enter: tariffs
During his first term, President Trump's tariffs made it pricier to ship furniture from China, so a lot of manufacturing moved out — though not to America, but to Vietnam.
This year, Trump raised tariffs on imports from almost all countries. And he's set new double-digit tariffs specifically for kitchen cabinets, vanities and upholstered furniture.
The furniture giant Ashley Furniture in June raised the price of the majority of its products as a result of tariffs. The Home Furnishings Association, an industry trade group, has warned of cumulative cost increases for both retailers and shoppers.
What are people doing about it?
As importing furniture becomes pricier, American-made furniture may start looking more attractive in comparison. But seller Koehler worries about how shoppers will react.
"The consumer, when we get feedback, they say, 'We would love to buy American,'" he says. "But when they vote with their dollars and see, this item is $500 and that item is $1,200, they say, 'I think I can only afford the $500.' So they end up buying an imported item anyway, just because there is such a difference in price."
Many shoppers find themselves in the same spot as Erin Cummins in Connecticut: watching their spending rise on other, more critical costs, such as health insurance, or car insurance, or groceries.
"Every time we're having company over, I look at that furniture and I'm going, 'I really need to replace that,'" says Cummins, whose threadbare couches have been well-loved by three dogs and three children. "I have priced it out a bit, but every time I do, I get sticker shock and walk away."
Cummins says at this point, the cost of new furniture displeases her more than the state of what she already owns, and her couches — still standing, even if covered by a blanket — feel more stable than her budget.
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