I've bought a Taobao sofa before and got it shipped and all. In terms of size, it was fine — it fit the space, looked alright once it was in. It also has a motorized stretch-out so it can work like a sofa bed, which was part of why I picked it. The only problem was the feeling.
When the sofa arrived, it felt a little too hard to sit on. Not comfortable. The comfort level just wasn't there. You can live with a hard dining chair for a meal; a sofa you sink into every evening is a different story — motor or no motor.
All-in — sofa plus shipping — mine landed somewhere around S$1,000 to S$1,200.
Trying sofas in person in JB (instead of another Taobao sofa)
The original plan for heading to JB (Johor Bahru) that weekend was really just to wind down and relax. Going the furniture store was mainly to window shop. When we are having breakfast with a friend and ask for suggestion to see furniture since we are in the midst of doing renovation and have some items not decided / purchased yet, he suggested we visit Homiest Living. We went to their Mount Austin branch at No. 16, Jalan Kencana Emas 2/2, Taman Mount Austin, 81100 Johor Bahru. Details and other outlets are on homiestliving.my.
Mostly just to kill some time and walk around. Turns out, both the sofas and dining tables there were a surprise. The sofas let you push the back further, opening up more sitting space (it doesn’t show up well in my photos — maybe when I finally buy one, I’ll post an update). The real highlight for me was their extendable dining table: it could be expanded in seconds, extremely simple, and genuinely clever in its design. I didn’t think I’d want to buy anything, but being able to test out how the table opens and closes easily made a big difference — it actually changed my mind.
For rough pricing: the sofa I liked was around RM 3,900 (about S$1,220), and the extendable dining table was around RM 1,550 (about S$485). Those quotes already include delivery and installation all the way to Singapore — not just the piece on the showroom floor. SGD figures are indicative only — mid-market FX moves, and what you pay at the counter or via remittance can differ a bit.
Put next to my Taobao sofa (S$1,000–1,200 including shipping), the JB sofa is actually in a similar ballpark — and with Homiest Living you're also getting Singapore delivery and install in that number. One fair caveat on the comparison: my Taobao piece is motorized and stretches out into a sofa bed; the one I liked in JB does not have that. I didn't spot a sofa-bed version while we were there — maybe they have one, we just didn't see it — so the Taobao all-in landing a little higher (or about the same) partly makes sense once you factor in the motor.
That said, the main point I want to bring across is still the comfort of the cushion. Motor or no motor, you're going to sit or lie on it for a long time. You might as well get a better one. Ordering from home is easier and you don't have to travel — fair trade-off on paper — but I personally think it's worth the hassle to go try it out.
If you can't play the video, open it directly.
Sit on a sofa before you buy
I personally feel that when buying a sofa, you need to feel the comfort — preferably in person. Photos, dimensions, and even a motorized sofa-bed feature for Taobao furniture will tell you a lot about what you're getting. They will not tell you how your back feels after twenty minutes. When the all-in price is already in the same ballpark as trying one in JB, that unknown sits even heavier.
Alternatively, if you want to do it slightly cheaper across the border, go to Malaysia / Johor Bahru. You can go to the same shop I've been to — Homiest Living's Mount Austin branch at No. 16, Jalan Kencana Emas 2/2, Taman Mount Austin, 81100 Johor Bahru — or do your own research and try a different one. Ordering from home is easier — but for a piece you live on every day, the point is the same: sit on it first.
Would I buy a Taobao sofa again?
I highly recommend not buying a Taobao sofa unless you are really, really okay with — or rather, pretty non-fussy about — the comfort level. If you truly don't mind a firmer sit, or you're buying for a guest space you barely use, then fine — go ahead.
For the main living-room sofa you actually live on? I'd sit first.
What Taobao furniture I still recommend
That doesn't mean Taobao furniture is off the table. A Taobao sofa is where I'd be careful; plenty of other pieces are still worth ordering. Things I personally still recommend shopping for there:
- Your dining table
- Your dining chairs (there's still a comfort element, but you don't sit on them as long as a sofa)
- Your bed frame
- Your mirror
- Lightings
- Toilet accessories
In short: buy hard goods as Taobao furniture if the specs check out. For anything you sit in for hours — including a sofa — try before you buy — Singapore showroom or a JB trip — whichever fits your budget.