Inside Weather: Ultimate Brand Review And Rating

Inside Weather has a lovely website and a mission statement that emphasizes sustainability. But is their limited couch offering worth your time? In this total brand breakdown, I take a look at Inside Weather and reveal their PotatoMeter rating.

Overall Potatometer Rating:

0 %

Inside Weather has a gorgeous website and an incredible emphasis on sustainability. They only offer two couches, but they’re both beautiful and extremely customizable (thanks in no small part to the hundreds of cleanable fabric options).

However, the questionable material quality for the price, the farce of a 365 day trial period, and the lack of customer review transparency undermines an otherwise nice offering.

96%

Online Shopping Experience

93%

Shipping & Lead Time

86%

Customer Focus

86%

Durability & Quality

94%

Vibe Check

Our Own Rating System

The PotatoMeter is Couch.com’s very own rating system that grades furniture retailers on a variety of – what we consider to be – essential criteria. While we aim to be fair and objective in our assessment, subjectivity based on our expertise and personal biases is unavoidable.

96%

Online Shopping Experience

Inside Weather: Online Shopping Experience

Inside Weather’s website is really beautiful, well-organized, and features lots of nice imagery and GIFs. This helps to really show off their products. But the difficulty of finding specific, detailed product information detracts from some of the positive aspects.

Ease of Navigation

Menus are clean, clear, and well-organized. The photos in the menu are all lovely and vibrant. I also like that the menu bar stays at the top of the screen when you scroll down.
There’s a lot of empty white space on product pages, which makes things feel a bit sterile. There’s a missed opportunity here to have a nice carousel of lifestyle images or close-ups under the main product photo.
At the top of the page, I love that they highlight their free swatches, their delivery timeline, white glove delivery availability, that it’s made in California, that there’s a 365 day home trial, and that they’re sustainable.
The “Designer’s Picks” is a nice touch. It shows you images of different variations of your couch to help get your creative juices flowing. Or, if you see one you like, you can just click right on it.
Customizing the couch takes you to a full-screen page that updates the 360 degree couch photo in real time. This customization menu is very sleek and does a great job of guiding you through the process. My only complaint was that it wasn’t entirely clear what certain customizations actually were (For example, “flush” vs “snug” back cushions on the Issa/Nox Sofa).
Category pages don’t have any way to sort or filter. Not a major issue because they have so few offerings, but still would be nice to have.

Information Available “At-A-Glance”

The only information you see on a category page is the couch name and a link that says “Customize Now.” This is a major downside of shopping on Inside Weather.
I believe that listing the price on the category page should be a bare minimum requirement. I’m disappointed it’s not shown here.
There’s also no way to change the fabric color from the category page. You aren’t even shown how many fabrics might be available.

Product Images

The website has lots of nice lifestyle images scattered throughout, but there’s a surprising lack of photos on category pages and product pages.
On category pages, there’s no alternate photo shown when you hover over the product image.
On product pages, you get one 360 degree view of the couch, which updates as you customize it. Otherwise you only get a few lifestyle images, featured close-ups, and GIFs of features if you scroll down. A carousel that focuses just on photos of the product would be nice.
The fabrics actually look very good when you customize your couch. It’s notoriously difficult to properly render fabric color and texture, but they’ve done a great job here.

Quality of Product Information

They list some “quick hits” of their benefits at the top of the page, which is great. But super specific info is harder to come by.
The dimensions and diagrams they display are great and tell you everything you need to know.
The “Modularity,” Shipping,” and “Assembly” tabs are all extremely light on real information. There’s not even a link to the assembly page. It’s just two sentences saying that assembly should be quick and easy.
They list better product information if you scroll down, but it’s all buried in long paragraphs. This info should really be listed out in an easy-to-read format. It took me forever to track down all the necessary product information to write this review. That’s always a bad sign.
There’s a serious lack of negative reviews in the review section. This raises a red flag and makes me wonder if they delete any reviews below 3 stars. It’s practically impossible for an online couch company to have zero 1 star customer reviews.

Extra Bells & Whistles

Can schedule a time to take a tour of a virtual showroom, which is a cool feature.
The Free Swatch page is one of the best I’ve ever come across. Full of great info and images.

93%

Shipping & Lead Time

Inside Weather: Shipping & Lead Times

Inside Weather constructs its couches in their California factory, customized to your heart’s content. Here’s how long the process takes from order to delivery.

Made to Order Products:

It takes 5-6 weeks to construct your built-to-order couch. This is certainly faster than many competitors, but still a little slow considering that they only make 2 types of couches, one of which is modular.

In Stock Items:

They do not have “in stock” or “ready-to-ship” couch offerings, but they do have a clearance section that may or may not have couches available. These would ship out in 5-7 days.

Shipping Time:

Inside Weather uses 3rd party freight delivery partners. Products ship from California so the delivery time could be as short as a few days if you’re on the west coast to a few weeks if you’re on the east coast. It’s likely a 2-3 week average.

86%

Customer Focus

Inside Weather: Customer Focus

Our goal at Couch.com is to provide customers with the information they need to find the best couch for their home. We take customer satisfaction very seriously. So how does Inside Weather stack up to the competition when it comes to customer friendly resources and offerings?

Warranty:

Inside Weather offers a 1 year warranty on craftsmanship and workmanship. This is the bare minimum of what I’d expect for a couch in this price tier.

Return Options:

Inside Weather advertises a 365 day trial, but the truth is that it’s more like a 14 day trial. And even then, it’s expensive to actually go through with a return. Here’s how it breaks down:
- If returned within 14 days, the customer must pay a 15% “environment fee,” though return shipping is free. NOTE: The 15% fee is calculated based on the PRE-discounted price of the product. This is a tough pill to swallow when you consider the pre-discounted price for an Issa Sofa is $4,083 compared to $2,149 after discount. The 15% return fee ends up being $612 instead of $322. And that’s the cheapest couch they offer!
- Returns made between 14 and 365 days incurs a 25% “environment fee,” which is also based on the pre-discount price. That’s $1,025 to return the Issa Sofa, which is nearly half the $2,149 discounted cost of the couch. PLUS you’ll be charged for return shipping, which is likely several hundred more dollars on top of that. Would you pay $1,300+ to return a sofa you paid $2,149 for?

Delivery Options & Costs:

Any order over $1,500 receives FREE shipping, which means any of their couch offerings will ship free. For anything less than $1,500, shipping charges are calculated on a price-per-order basis with a max of $120.
White glove delivery is available in most metro areas for $175. This includes assembly, which is a big plus.

Financing Options:

Inside Weather has partnered with Shop Pay to offer installment plans starting at 0% APR.

Is Assembly Required?

Yes, their couches require extensive assembly. In some cases they even provide you with a small power drill in order to accomplish the assembly process. White glove delivery is available for most locations if needed.

Customization Options:

They have hundreds of fabrics and colors for you to choose from for your couch. Their couches are super customizable.
For the Bondi Modular, you can choose 3 wooden base colors, dozens of configurations, different cushioning options, and whether or not you want an ottoman.
The Issa/Nox Sofa has 7 customizations: two different arm heights, many fabric options, a choice of the number of back cushions and seat cushions, whether the cushions are “flush” or “snug,” the button tufting style on the cushions, 15 leg styles (in metal or wooden options), and cushion comfort choice (standard or memory foam).
Additionally, the Issa/Nox has an ottoman option and the option to add side pillows, lumbar pillows, or triangle pillows. You can also order these pillows in any fabric, which opens up even more customization possibilities.

Does Inside Weather Offer Free Fabric Swatches?

Yes, up to 10 free swatches for free. However, they have over 400 fabrics to choose from, so your best bet is to know the exact color you want and then order 10 swatches in that color-way. The Free Swatch page is one of the best I’ve ever seen. Check it out!

86%

Durability & Quality

Inside Weather: Durability & Quality

Durability is a major factor when it comes to purchasing a couch, especially when you’re ordering online. So do Inside Weather couches hold up over time? The fabrics and frames are nice, but the cushions and the support systems should be better for the price point.

Quality of Materials:

Inside Weather has hundreds of fabrics to choose from. Many are 100,000 double rub count, which is great. But some are as low as 20,000, which is very low. Make sure to pick one with 100,000 double rubs if you have kids or pets.
They use medium and low-density foams with a layer of “cosmetic down” for their default cushions on the Bondi Sofa. Their plush option has an additional layer of memory foam.
The Issa/Nox Sofa has high-density foam cushions and alternative down. I’d love to know the exact density of the foam to more accurately judge its quality.
They create their down using up to 200 recycled water bottles, which is great for sustainability, but isn’t necessarily a high quality option for comfort.

Cleanability:

Their couches feature zipper-removable cushion covers, which are advertised as being machine washable (on cold and air dried).
They label most fabrics as either S, W, or W/S. This means you can either spot clean them with water-based cleaners (W), solvent-based cleaners (S), or both (W/S). I’d recommend spot cleaning before machine washing.
The cushions are not flippable, but otherwise they seem to be exceptionally cleanable.

Quality of Construction & Manufacturing Origin:

They manufacture their couches in the USA (California).
Couch frames are made from solid, kiln-dried ash wood. Additional framing on the Issa/Nox Sofa is made from FSC certified plywood. This is a fine choice, though I’d prefer a completely solid wood frame at this price tag.
The support systems are a major downside. The Bondi Sofa’s cushions rest on top of elastic, webbed straps. This is a super low cost, low-durability option. Once the straps stretch out they lose their effectiveness. At this price point I’d expect a more durable option like a sinuous spring system.
The Issa/Nox Sofa simply rests on top of wooden slats, which is what you’d expect from a futon, not a $2,000+ sofa. This is bad for the longevity of the cushions and an outright bad choice for what I consider to be an expensive couch.

94%

Vibe Check

Inside Weather: Brand Vibe Check

Vibing with a brand is important. Brands can also promote certain lifestyles and sustainability goals. That’s why it’s my goal to help you find a company and brand that you vibe with so that you’re as comfortable with your new couch as you are on your new couch. The good news is that Inside Weather absolutely nails it.

Key Differentiators & Unique Facts:

Don’t take my word for it. Here’s the Inside Weather mission statement that says it all: “We’re on a mission to outfit your home with quality, affordable custom furniture that’s thoughtfully designed, responsibly sourced, and sustainably made. We invest in the long game. Our products are designed to last and evolve with you over the course of life with features like modularity and washable cushion covers. As one of the only full scale furniture manufacturers in the U.S., we consider it our responsibility to design, source and operate sustainably from end to end.”

Sustainability:

On the topic of sustainability, Inside Weather’s website says, “We’re on a mission to outfit your home with quality, affordable custom furniture that’s thoughtfully designed, responsibly sourced, and sustainably made. We invest in the long game.” Here’s how some of their sustainability goals shake out.

Inside Weather has a massive emphasis on sustainability. This starts by having all their couches constructed in the USA (California), which cuts down massively on cargo transit, a major contributor to greenhouse emissions.
They use recycled materials to construct their sofas. One couch can have as many as 200 recycled water bottles used in its construction.
They use upcycled cardboard for shipping boxes and biodegradable, sugar-based foam packaging.
Their wood frames are sourced from FSC-certified forests and for every couch order they plant two trees (one for the order, one for the shipping) as part of a partnership with the National Forest Foundation.
Their fabrics have an exhaustive list of eco-friendly certifications. The list is too long to post, but you can trust us when we say it’s MORE than enough to feel comfortable with their fabric offering.

Overall Brand Presentation:

Inside Weather has a very thoughtfully-designed website that manages to always put its best foot forward everywhere you look. It’s bright, cheery, informative, and confidence-building. I love the way they present themselves.

What are Inside Weather's top couches?

Signature Best Seller:

Modular Bondi 3-Seater Sofa ($6,175 but on sale for $3,250 at time of viewing). This is the couch that Inside Weather is known for. It’s iconic.

Couch That Intrigues Me The Most:

Issa Sofa ($4,083 but on sale for $2,149 at time of viewing). Lots of fun customization options to really make it your own (leg style, leg color, leg material, tufting, toss pillows, etc). It’s a real blank canvas for your creative vision.

Hidden Gem:

Mesa Lounge Chair ($2,255 but on sale for $1,074 at time of viewing). OK it’s not a couch, but when there are only two couch options available I’m forced to dig deeper for the hidden gems. This chair has that wonderful Mid-Century Modern look and has access to all the same great upholstery options. Perfect for getting exactly what you want.

How much do Inside Weather couches cost?

Inside Weather’s couches can be somewhat pricey, especially if they’re not on sale. Their sale prices are so massive (nearly 50% off) that it makes it seem likely that their sale price is the real price. Due to this, I’d advise that you never purchase an Inside Weather couch at its full, original listed price.

Average Range:

If you go by the sale price, then it’s about $2,200 – $3,400 for the average 3-seater. But if you go by the “real” price it’s more like $4,000 – $6,000.

Most Expensive Inside Weather Couch:

Modular Bondi 6-Seater Sofa in Mascarpone ($13,965 but on sale for $7,350 at time of writing). This is the largest configuration they show on the category page, but theoretically you could get an even bigger one with even more modular pieces if you wanted.
As far as 3-seater options go, the Bondi Modular 3-Seater Sofa in Peacock (Plush Velvet) + Memory Foam Cushioning is the most expensive option at $6,888 (but on sale for $3,625 at time of writing).

Least Expensive Inside Weather Couch:

Issa Sofa ($4,083 but on sale for $2,149 at time of writing). I can’t imagine them ever charging $4,000 for such a simple sofa, which also leads me to believe that their couches are designed to always be available at the lower sale price. This is the cheapest option I was able to find on the entire site, which isn’t great.

Does Inside Weather have good reviews?

Inside Weather has great customer reviews on their website, but the difficult of finding any reliable outside reviews is concerning.

Overall Brand Reviews:

Inside Weather has overwhelmingly positive reviews on their site, though the lack of negative reviews does raise my eyebrow, especially considering the number of negative customer reviews on Better Business Bureau.
Unaffiliated, 3rd party reviews are surprisingly hard to track down in any meaningful way. This is also a bit concerning.

Top Product Reviews:

Bondi Sofa 5 Star Review: “This couch is the perfect family couch. I love the firmness of the cushions, the beautiful and durable fabric, and the fact that all the upholstery covers unzip for easy washing. I‘ll admit this couch is deeper than I expected it to be, but because of how firm it is (still soft, just supportive) one is able to easily sit at the edge of the couch to keep their feet on the floor if they prefer. I have already napped, read books to my 4 kids, and had pillow fights on this couch and this is one that we hope to have for many years. Aesthetically it’s also fabulous- it’s the perfect blend between modern and functional, between masculine and feminine, and between plush and firm. Plus, IW threw in complementary white glove service so when the delivery guys dropped it off it took them less than 10 minutes to set up and the delivery team was great. All in all, 10/10.” – Rebecca P.
Bondi Sofa 3 Star Review: “I would give this bondi couch a meh, just okay rating. I know if I had sat on one prior to purchasing it wouldn’t make the cut. It’s extremely deep, so you will not be putting your feet on the ground, no matter how tall you are. The back is fairly low, so you won’t be getting any upper back or neck support. The cushions sit on wood platforms, and they move slightly, so your couch kind of has this disheveled look about it. If you sit on one cushion, the cushion next to it will be about 2.5 inches taller, which just looks a bit odd. This is the type of couch you need to have your shoes off, and have your legs all the way up curled on the side of you, or up on a coffee table. For maybe a room where you go to just watch movies and tv it’s fine because you might want to curl up every time. It’s a bit impracticable for guests. I’d consider returning if I didn’t want to pay the money and if I felt like waiting on an entirely new couch.” – Jeffery B.

Customer Service Reviews:

The customer service was a common complaint among reviewers. People found Inside Weather to be less responsive than they’d like and they didn’t appreciate that the recommendation was often to “let the cushions break in,” which could result in customers letting the 14 day return window elapse if they tried this solution.

What kind of style is Inside Weather furniture?

Jessica Sutton, head of merchandising at Inside Weather, states, “Our products, and the options that go along with them, are versatile enough to create something that will fit seamlessly into any design style, whether it’s bohemian, contemporary, art deco, etc. What inspires the line is ultimately left up to the inspiration of our customers.” But at the end of the day, there are really only two choices when it comes to Inside Weather couches. Here’s a look at what you can expect:

Range of Couch Options:

Inside Weather has two couches to choose from. Their Bondi is modular and can be configured in a variety of ways. Their Issa/Nox Sofa is a very traditional couch that’s also available as a sectional. Armchairs in each style are also options.
They do not have sleeper sofas or other styles available.

Range of Couch Styles:

As stated, Inside Weather only has two couches to choose from. One is a California craftsman style with exposed wood. It’s a traditional look with modern sensibilities. There’s also a Mid-Century Modern option in the Issa/Nox that skews slightly more modern than Mid-Century.

Does Inside Weather Have Other Products Besides Couches?

Yes, Inside Weather has furniture for the whole home, but couches are their bread and butter, especially their Bondi Modular.

What are some alternatives to Inside Weather?

If you love Inside Weather’s concept of only offering a limited range of couches in very specific styles, then you might also love these other furniture companies. They also emphasize modularity and simplicity.

Floyd – see our PotatoMeter rating here
Burrow – see our PotatoMeter rating here
Lovesac – see our PotatoMeter rating here