Apt2B offers trendy, customizable furniture with a mid-century modern lean, targeting urban dwellers with more accessible price points. In contrast, Room and Board focuses on timeless, American-made modern designs, prioritizing high-quality materials and sustainable craftsmanship at a higher investment level.
Let's compare everything you need to know to choose the right furniture brand for your home.
Apt2B: The Trendy & Customizable Choice
Apt2B is an online-first furniture brand known for its stylish and highly customizable pieces perfect for city living. It caters to young professionals and design-conscious shoppers who want contemporary and mid-century modern furniture that feels fresh and personalized without a luxury price tag. Their collections often feature bold colors, performance fabrics, and silhouettes designed to maximize style in smaller spaces like apartments.
- Product mix: A full range of home furniture, with a strong focus on sofas, sectionals, sleeper sofas, beds, and dining sets suited for modern lifestyles.
- Style/vibe: Contemporary, eclectic, and heavily influenced by mid-century modern design. Expect clean lines, playful colors, and a youthful, energetic aesthetic.
- Price point: Mid-range and competitive. Sofas typically start around $1,200, while bedroom sets range from $2,000–$4,000.
- Quality: Solid construction with kiln-dried hardwood frames and a wide selection of durable performance fabrics designed to resist stains and wear.
- Customization: This is a major strength. Customers can choose from a large array of fabrics, colors, finishes, and leg styles on many upholstered pieces.
- Delivery & Assembly: Offers white-glove delivery options, which can include in-home setup and packaging removal, crucial for those living in apartments or without assembly experience.
- Sustainability: The brand is growing its commitment to eco-friendly practices with GREENGUARD Gold certified pieces, indicating low chemical emissions, and more sustainable packaging.
Apt2B excels at providing on-trend, customizable furniture that gives shoppers the ability to create a personalized look at an attainable price.
Shop Apt2B: apt2b.com
Room and Board: The Timeless American-Made Quality Brand
Room and Board has built a reputation for high-quality, modern furniture that emphasizes timeless design and sustainable, American craftsmanship. The brand appeals to customers who see furniture as a long-term investment and prioritize durability, natural materials, and ethical production. Their style is refined and versatile, designed to fit into a variety of home aesthetics from minimalist to transitional without ever feeling dated.
- Product mix: Comprehensive home furnishings, including sofas, beds, extensive storage solutions, dining tables, outdoor furniture, and home decor.
- Style/vibe: Clean, modern, and timeless. The aesthetic leans on understated elegance, natural wood tones, and versatile neutral palettes that highlight the quality of the materials.
- Price point: Mid-to-high range. Sofas generally start around $1,500, with bedroom furniture sets often ranging from $3,000–$6,000.
- Quality: Exceptional. The brand partners with American artisans and uses premium materials like FSC-certified wood and durable fabrics, focusing on construction that is built to last for decades.
- Customization: Extensive customization options are available, allowing customers to select fabrics, wood finishes, hardware, and specific dimensions for many pieces.
- Shopping Experience: Offers a seamless online experience and a network of beautiful showrooms across the U.S. where customers can see and feel the quality. They are known for stellar customer service and free design consultations.
- Sustainability: A core value for the brand. Over 90% of their products are made in the U.S., they use responsibly sourced materials, and they hold certifications like FSC and GREENGUARD Gold.
- Return policy: Known for a very generous and flexible return policy, which provides peace of mind for significant purchases.
Room and Board is the go-to for shoppers investing in durable, beautifully crafted furniture with timeless style and a strong commitment to ethical, sustainable production.
Shop Room and Board: roomandboard.com
Apt2B vs. Room and Board Comparison
Price Comparison
Price is one of the most significant differentiators between these two brands. Apt2B is firmly positioned in the mid-range market, making it a more accessible choice. With sofas beginning around $1,200, it provides excellent value for highly customizable and stylish furniture.
Room and Board occupies a mid-to-high-end pricing tier. Their sofas start closer to $1,500 and can go much higher, reflecting the premium American-made craftsmanship and high-quality, sustainable materials. While you'll pay more upfront, the furniture is built for exceptional longevity, making it a worthy long-term investment.
Style & Aesthetic
Apt2B's style is vibrant, contemporary, and often a little playful. It embraces mid-century modern lines, bold color options, and an eclectic feel that perfectly suits a youthful, urban apartment. If you want your furniture to be a statement piece that reflects current trends, Apt2B is an excellent fit.
Room and Board champions a more timeless and refined modern aesthetic. Their designs are clean, understated, and versatile, intended to harmonize with your home for years to come. The focus is on natural materials and classic silhouettes, creating a look that is sophisticated and enduring rather than trend-driven.
Quality & Construction
Apt2B offers solid quality for its price point. With features like kiln-dried hardwood frames and durable performance fabrics, their furniture is designed to stand up to everyday life in a busy home or apartment. It's well-made and reliable for its accessible cost.
Room and Board sets a higher standard for quality and construction. The emphasis on American craftsmanship, premium solid woods, and handcrafted details means their furniture is exceptionally durable. Their pieces feel more substantial and are built with longevity as a primary goal, which justifies the higher price.
Product Selection
Both brands offer comprehensive collections for the entire home, but their focus differs slightly. Apt2B shines in the living room category, especially with its vast array of customizable sofas, sectionals, and apartment-sized pieces. Their designs are often scaled perfectly for urban spaces.
Room and Board provides an extensive selection across all categories, with a particular strength in solid wood furniture like dining tables, beds, and storage solutions. Their pieces cater to a wide range of room sizes, offering both substantial and more modest options, all with the same commitment to quality.
Shopping Experience
Apt2B primarily operates online, with a user-friendly website that makes customization easy and provides free fabric swatches. While they have a few physical showrooms in select cities, their model is geared toward a seamless digital experience.
Room and Board excels at providing a premium, multi-channel shopping experience. Their website is robust, but their national network of large, well-designed showrooms is a major advantage. It allows customers to test comfort, see finishes, and interact with highly knowledgeable design associates. Their customer service is consistently praised as being among the best in the industry.
Sustainability & Ethics
Both brands prioritize ethical and sustainable practices, but Room and Board has made it a central pillar of its identity for decades. Their commitment is highlighted by manufacturing over 90% of their collection in the United States, extensive use of recycled materials, and sourcing FSC-certified wood.
Apt2B is also making strides in this area, offering GREENGUARD Gold certified products and working toward more responsible sourcing and manufacturing. They are a good choice for the eco-conscious shopper, while Room and Board might be considered a leader in the space.
Which One Should You Choose?
The right choice comes down to your personal priorities regarding style, budget, and long-term investment value. Both brands offer excellent furniture, but for different customers.
Choose Apt2B if:
- You're looking for an affordable, stylish sofa that doesn't break the bank.
- You love mid-century modern and trendy, contemporary designs with bold color options.
- You're furnishing an apartment or smaller home and need cleverly scaled furniture.
- Extensive fabric customization is your top priority to get a truly unique piece.
Choose Room and Board if:
- You are investing in "forever furniture" and prioritize longevity and durability above all.
- You prefer a timeless, classic modern aesthetic over fleeting trends.
- Supporting American manufacturing and sustainable sourcing is important to you.
- You want a premium shopping experience with the ability to see and test furniture in a showroom.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Apt2B or Room and Board cheaper?
Apt2B is significantly more affordable. With sofas starting around $1,200 and frequent sales, it caters to a mid-range budget. Room and Board is a mid-to-high-end brand, and its prices reflect its focus on premium materials and American-made craftsmanship.
Which brand has better quality furniture?
Room and Board is generally considered to have better quality furniture. Their commitment to solid wood, handcrafted construction, and domestic manufacturing results in exceptionally durable pieces designed for longevity. Apt2B offers good quality for its price point but is not positioned as an heirloom-quality brand.
Is Apt2B furniture good for apartments?
Yes, Apt2B is excellent for apartments. The brand name itself suggests its focus on apartment living ("Apt 2B"). Many of their sofas and sectionals are available in smaller footprints, and they offer "apartment size" options specifically designed for compact spaces.
Is Room and Board furniture made in the USA?
Yes, over 90% of Room and Board's furniture and decor is made in the United States by American craftspeople. This is a core part of their brand identity and a key reason for their quality and pricing.
Which brand is better for customization?
Both brands offer strong customization. However, Apt2B is particularly known for its extensive and vibrant selection of over 50 fabrics and multiple leg finish options on most upholstery. Room and Board also offers deep customization, but Apt2B leads if a varied and trendy fabric choice is your main goal.
Are these brands sustainable?
Both brands have sustainable practices, but Room and Board has a more established and comprehensive commitment. Its focus on US-based production reduces its carbon footprint, and it leads in using responsibly harvested wood (FSC-certified) and other eco-friendly materials.
Can I see the furniture in person before buying?
Yes, for both, but your options differ. Room and Board has a large network of expansive showrooms across the country. Apt2B has a much smaller physical footprint, with showrooms only in a few major cities, making their business more digitally focused.
What style is Apt2B known for?
Apt2B is known for a blend of contemporary and mid-century modern design. Their style is often described as fun, eclectic, functional, and well-suited for urban living.
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