The Best Wood for Outdoor Tables (and Why We Stock Iroko)

Here's the uncomfortable truth a wood shop owes you: most of the beautiful species on our materials page have no business living outside. Walnut on a patio delaminates its finish, greys unevenly, and checks within a couple of seasons. Weather is a different opponent than a busy kitchen — and only a few woods are built for the fight.

What outdoor survival actually requires

• Natural oils and extractives that repel water from inside the board, not just from a coating that will eventually fail.
• Dimensional calm through brutal wet-dry cycles — a board that swells hard will tear itself apart at the joints.
• Decay and insect resistance in the wood itself, because outside, the finish is a raincoat, not a bunker.

The benchmark: teak. The working answer: Iroko.

Teak is the standard — ship decks, estate furniture — and priced like the standard. Iroko, the West African hardwood often called African teak, delivers most of the same performance for a fraction of the board cost: dense (1,260 lbf Janka), loaded with natural oils, and proven for decades in boatbuilding and exterior joinery. That's exactly why it's the outdoor board we stock. (The full head-to-head is in Teak vs. Iroko — and true teak remains available by custom order when a spec demands it.)

Silver, or golden — your call

Left untreated outdoors, Iroko weathers to an even silver-grey patina — the weathered-teak look, earned honestly, and many owners' favorite version of the board. Prefer the original golden-brown? An exterior oil once or twice a season keeps it. The choice is cosmetic and reversible: silvered Iroko sands back to gold.

How outdoor builds differ

Outdoor spans move more, so we build for exposure: properly acclimated lumber, steel C-channel on wide tops, and fastening that lets the board breathe through the seasons. Tell us covered porch versus full exposure when you order and the build matches the site. Restaurant terraces get the same grain-matched treatment as our indoor hospitality runs, with trade pricing.

Ready to spec one? Price an Iroko table at your exact size, or read the full outdoor wood guide.