Best Time to Buy Patio Furniture 2023: Seasonal Guide

The best time to buy patio furniture in 2023 for the deepest discounts is late August through mid-September, when retailers slash end-of-season prices by 30 to 70 percent to clear floor space before fall. If you want the widest selection of new collections, aim for March through April instead. And if you can only shop during major sale events, Memorial Day, Amazon Prime Day (July 11–12, 2023), and Labor Day are the three windows worth clearing your schedule for. For a concise guide on when to buy patio furniture, see our detailed timing recommendations.

What 2020 supply chaos changed about patio furniture timing

Before 2020, patio furniture followed a predictable script: new stock arrived in February, peak season ran May through July, and clearance started after Labor Day. The COVID-19 outdoor living boom broke that script. For more detail on how 2020 disrupted timing, see best time to buy patio furniture 2020. Demand surged while container shipping collapsed, and by 2021 and 2022 many retailers were receiving summer merchandise in October or holding skeleton inventory all spring. Shoppers who waited for 'normal' clearance sometimes found empty shelves instead of bargains.

By early 2023, the situation had largely normalized, but supply chains hadn't fully snapped back to the old rhythm. Industry reporting from Furniture Today in January 2023 showed outdoor manufacturers in two camps: some were largely back in stock, while others still cited two-to-eight-week lead times on specific SKUs. The practical lesson for 2023 shoppers is that clearance markdowns are back, but inventory depth varies by retailer and item. If you see something you want during a peak-season sale, don't assume you can wait two weeks and find it cheaper. That said, patient shoppers willing to accept reduced selection can still find strong deals in August and September.

Seasonal sale calendar: new arrivals vs. clearance windows

Patio furniture has two distinct buying seasons layered on top of each other. The first is a selection season (early spring) and the second is a discount season (late summer into fall). Understanding which one you're in at any given moment shapes every buying decision.

New arrivals window: February through April

Most major retailers start stocking new outdoor collections in February, with shelves and websites fully loaded by March and April. This is peak selection time. You'll find the full range of colors, materials, and set configurations before popular items sell out. Prices are at or near full retail during this window, but it's the right time to shop if you have specific style requirements, need a complete matching set, or are buying for a large space where you can't afford to mix discontinued pieces.

Major sale events and what they're actually worth

A note on Prime Day specifically: Amazon ran its 2023 Prime Day on July 11–12 as a 48-hour event, and as in prior years, competing retailers including Walmart, Home Depot, and Wayfair ran parallel home and patio promotions in the days surrounding it. This makes mid-July a surprisingly solid second window for patio deals beyond just Amazon. If you're tracking a specific piece, check all your usual stores during that week, not just Amazon.

Clearance window: mid-August through October

Consumer finance guides and local shopping coverage in 2023 consistently pointed to mid-August onward as the sweet spot for clearance pricing. Retailers need the floor space for Halloween and holiday merchandise, so patio markdowns accelerate around August 15 and hit their deepest point in September. By October, selection is thin but prices on whatever's left can be extraordinary. I've personally walked out of a Big Lots in late September with a four-piece conversation set for nearly 60 percent off original price. The trade-off is real: you get the discount, but you take whatever color or configuration is still on the floor.

Month-by-month buying timeline for 2023

Store-by-store timing: where to shop and when

Warehouse clubs: Costco and Sam's Club

Both Costco and Sam's Club operate a 'treasure hunt' model for outdoor furniture: they rotate a limited number of patio SKUs through their warehouses and websites, typically stocking sets in the spring and running through them until sold out. Costco's own content describes this as a feature, not a bug. When a set is gone, it's gone, and it rarely comes back at the same price. The upside is that both clubs typically offer strong value per piece, and Costco's well-known 100 percent satisfaction guarantee (with some exceptions for certain freight items) makes large purchases less risky. Sam's Club carries similar member-satisfaction return coverage. For both clubs, the buying advice is simple: if you see a set you love between February and May, buy it. Don't wait for a better deal that may never come. Post-Labor Day, some warehouse club patio items do get marked down, but inventory is thin.

Big-box chains: Home Depot, Lowe's, and Walmart

Home Depot and Lowe's both carry substantial patio furniture inventories and run predictable sale calendars tied to spring and major holidays. Both stores have price-match policies, but with important caveats. Home Depot's policy includes a match-and-beat-by-10-percent offer for qualifying competitors, but it excludes clearance, seasonal promotions, and one-time sale prices. Lowe's Lowest Price Guarantee similarly carves out seasonal and clearance items. In plain terms: you can sometimes use these policies to your advantage on non-sale days, but don't expect them to work during a clearance event or holiday sale. Walmart's price-match policy, updated June 7, 2023, explicitly excludes third-party marketplace prices and limited-time promotional events, so the same logic applies there. The best strategy at these three retailers is to shop their own sale calendars rather than trying to game the match policies.

Discount sellers: Big Lots

Big Lots is underrated for patio furniture timing. Their inventory is more opportunistic than planful, but they routinely carry mid-range patio sets at prices below comparable big-box items. Their end-of-season markdowns can be aggressive, often 40 to 60 percent, and they frequently stack additional percentage-off coupons on top of already-reduced clearance items. If you're flexible on style and willing to check the store multiple times through July and August, Big Lots is worth making part of your rotation.

Online marketplaces and Amazon

Amazon and Wayfair both carry large patio assortments year-round, which means you can often find clearance and out-of-season pricing even in January or February on prior-year models. On Amazon specifically, Prime Day (July 11–12, 2023) drove genuine discounts on some patio accessories, umbrellas, and smaller accent pieces, though large freight-shipped sectionals and dining sets saw more modest markdowns. The key thing to understand about Amazon pricing is that list prices fluctuate constantly, so a 'sale' badge doesn't mean much without context. Tools like CamelCamelCamel and Keepa let you pull up full price history for any Amazon listing so you can see whether the current price is actually a low or just a temporarily inflated original that makes the discount look bigger than it is.

Specialty patio retailers and local outlets

Specialty outdoor furniture stores (think local or regional chains, not just big-box) often run their deepest sales later in the season than mass retailers, sometimes holding major clearance events in September and October. They also tend to carry higher-quality, longer-warranty merchandise. If you're buying cast aluminum, teak, or commercial-grade wicker, a specialty retailer is often the better source than a big-box chain. Local consignment shops, Facebook Marketplace, and Craigslist are worth checking year-round, but especially in August and September when homeowners upgrading their patios list lightly used sets. I've found barely used sets from premium brands on Marketplace at a third of retail cost.

When new patio lines arrive and how model-year timing affects price

The outdoor furniture industry follows a trade-show-driven model-year calendar. Manufacturers present new concepts in January, finalize collections for spring markets like High Point Market (April 22–26, 2023), and launch mid-year updates at the Casual Market in July. Retailers then place orders based on what they see at those shows, which is why most new consumer-facing collections hit stores in February and March. When a retailer receives its 'new for 2023' stock, its remaining 2022 inventory gets marked down to make room.

For shoppers, this model-year cycle creates a specific opportunity: January through February is when you can sometimes find prior-year sets at 40 to 50 percent off before new stock fully arrives. It's not as deep as September clearance, but selection is better because the store hasn't been picked over. If you're not picky about having the latest colorways, shopping the January-to-February prior-year window is a smart move that most people overlook.

Full patio sets vs. individual pieces: timing and pricing differences

Full sets and individual pieces follow different sale rhythms, and the buying logic for each is genuinely different.

• Full sets get the deepest percentage discounts during end-of-season clearance because retailers need the floor space and can't hold bulky freight over winter easily.
• Individual chairs, side tables, and accent pieces tend to get marked down more consistently throughout the season, not just at clearance.
• Buying a full set gives you a guaranteed color and material match with all pieces. Mixing individual pieces bought at different times or from different stores risks mismatched finishes.
• If you need to replace a single broken chair or add seating to an existing set, buy the individual piece as soon as you find the right match. Discontinued SKUs disappear fast, especially mid-season.
• From a price-per-piece standpoint, full sets usually offer better value than buying the same pieces individually, even before any discount. The per-chair cost in a 6-piece set is almost always lower than buying six chairs separately.
• Cushions and accessories are worth buying on sale separately. They go on clearance in August and September and often work across multiple frame styles.

The main timing trade-off: if you're buying a full set, the Labor Day window gives you the best price but the least selection. If you need a specific configuration (say, a sectional with a specific chaise arrangement), you're better off buying in spring at full price or Memorial Day at a modest discount rather than gambling on finding the exact layout in September clearance.

Deal-finding tactics that actually move the needle

Price tracking and browser tools

For Amazon purchases, CamelCamelCamel and Keepa are the two tools I use every time. Both are free and show full price history for any Amazon ASIN. Before buying anything on Amazon, especially during Prime Day or holiday sales, I pull up the price history to confirm the current price is actually a genuine low and not just a sale badge on a price that's been that level for months. For non-Amazon retailers, browser extensions like Honey and Capital One Shopping scan for active coupon codes at checkout automatically and can flag if the item is cheaper at a competing retailer.

Coupon stacking and promo stacking

Big Lots is the best retailer for coupon stacking on patio furniture. They regularly issue 20-to-25-percent-off coupons through their email list and app, and those coupons often apply on top of already-reduced clearance prices. Home Depot and Lowe's occasionally issue 10-percent-off coupons (historically tied to movers or app promotions) that can be applied to non-sale patio items. Walmart doesn't typically allow promo stacking on patio categories. The general rule: subscribe to emails from any retailer you intend to shop at before you're ready to buy, so you have coupons in hand when the time comes.

Open-box and floor-model bargains

Floor models at specialty retailers and big-box stores are often discounted 20 to 40 percent simply because they've been on display. The furniture is exactly the same as boxed stock, just assembled. At the end of the season, those floor models get marked down further to avoid storage. Ask any patio department associate in August or September about floor models and open-box items. Most stores have a process for selling them and will negotiate, especially late in the season when they'd rather move inventory than haul it to the back.

Negotiating markdowns

At independent specialty stores and even some big-box locations, asking for a markdown is more effective than people expect. In August and September, a manager at a specialty patio retailer has a strong incentive to sell a floor-model set rather than pack it up. I've had success simply saying: 'I'm ready to buy today. What can you do on the price for this floor model?' The worst they say is no. If you're buying multiple pieces, the leverage is even stronger.

Shipping, returns, and what to check before you buy

Large patio sets are often shipped as freight items, which changes the return math significantly. Costco's return policy is notably strong (100 percent satisfaction guarantee on most merchandise), and Sam's Club carries similar member-satisfaction coverage, making them lower-risk for large patio purchases. Home Depot, Lowe's, and Walmart all have online-return processes for large items, but review the specific item's return window and whether restocking fees apply before you buy. For online marketplace purchases of large sets, confirm whether the return shipping cost falls on you. On a 200-pound sectional set, that can easily be $100 to $200.

1. Check the return window and who pays return shipping before you finalize any large freight order.
2. For in-store purchases, inspect all boxes for damage before the associate processes the sale. Refused deliveries are much easier to resolve than post-delivery returns.
3. Confirm assembly requirements: most boxed sets require 2 to 4 hours of assembly. Factor that into your timeline if you're setting up for an event.
4. Ask about cushion warranty separately from frame warranty. Cushion coverage is often 1 year; frame coverage can be 3 to 5 years on quality pieces.
5. If you're buying in late summer clearance, think about seasonal storage before you buy. Large sectionals need covered storage or weatherproof covers to hold up over winter.

How 2023 compares to other years and what it means for your strategy

If you're researching how 2023 timing compares to other recent years, the core pattern holds across seasons: spring for selection, late summer and fall for price. The 2020-era supply disruptions made clearance less reliable in 2021 and 2022 because inventory was tight and retailers didn't need to discount to move stock. By 2023, supply had largely normalized and the traditional clearance cycle returned for most retailers. That means the advice that applied before 2020 is largely valid again for 2023: wait for August and September if your priority is price, shop March and April if your priority is selection. For a quick guide to timing your purchase, see our tips on the best time to buy a patio set.

One thing that changed and hasn't fully reversed: lead times at some manufacturers are still longer than pre-2019 norms, and certain premium or imported collections can sell out mid-season without restocking. If you're eyeing a specific high-end set, buying it when you see it at a Memorial Day or Fourth of July discount may be smarter than waiting for September clearance that never materializes on that particular item.