Short answer
Level with the sofa seat, or 0.8 to 2 in below it.
Measure from the floor to the top of the seat cushion with nobody sitting on it. That number is your target table height. A table 0.8 to 2 in lower still works, because you reach slightly down to a cup; a table more than about 2 in above the seat forces your elbow up.
Most European and American sofas sit between 16 and 18 in. That is why the useful coffee-table range is roughly 16 to 18.9 in, and why a 21.5 in table next to a 16.5 in sofa feels like a desk.
Anton runs 16.3, 17.1 and 18.7 in. Leo runs 16.7, 18.7 and 20.7 in. Each size has its own height so a nest can stack.
Heights come from the dimension drawings, measured to the top of the stone or oak.
| Model | Top | Height |
|---|---|---|
| Anton Small | 65 x 21.5 in rectangle | 16.3 in |
| Anton Medium | 70 x 23.5 in rectangle | 17.1 in |
| Anton Large | 100 x 29.5 in rectangle | 18.7 in |
| Leo Small | 27.5 in round | 16.7 in |
| Leo Medium | 31.5 in round | 18.7 in |
| Leo Large | 37.4 in round | 20.7 in |
For a sofa seat of 16 to 18 in, choose Anton Small or Medium (16.3 or 17.1 in) or Leo Small (16.7 in).
Those three sit in the same band as the seat, so a cup on the table is where your hand already is. Anton Large at 18.7 in still works beside an 18 in sofa (1 in above the seat, inside the 2 in band). It is a stretch beside a 16 in sofa.
Leo Large at 20.7 in is the odd one out. It is closer to a low lounge table than to a classic coffee table. Use it as the outer, taller piece in a nest, or beside a high-backed, high-seat sofa. Do not put it alone next to a low lounge sofa and expect the rule of thumb to hold.
A nest gives you more than one height on purpose.
Anton nests fully: the smaller rectangle slides under the larger, so the set stores on one footprint and you live with the taller top until you pull the smaller one out. Leo is round and the tops overlap by about 40 percent rather than disappearing, because each size stands at a different height.
If the sofa is low, make the table you leave out the small or medium. Keep the large for guests. If you want one surface most days, buy the size that matches the sofa and skip the set. The nest page covers footprint; this page is only height.
Slightly lower is comfortable. Much lower is a stretch. Higher than the seat is the usual failure.
0.8 to 2 in below the seat still lets you set a mug down without leaning. More than about 3.1 in below and you are reaching into a hole, which is tiring in a long evening. Above the seat, the table starts to block the sofa visually and your forearm sits at an awkward angle.
Cushions compress when you sit, so measure the empty seat, then remember you will sit 0.8 to 1.2 in lower. A table that looked 0.4 in high on paper can feel right once you are in the sofa.
They are not interchangeable.
A dining table here is 30 in. A coffee table is 16.3 to 20.7 in. Using a dining height in front of a sofa puts the top at chest height. Using a coffee table at a dining chair leaves the plate in your lap.
If the room has to work as both, you need two pieces, not one compromise height. Our dining table height belongs with the dining chairs, not with this guide.
