Best stores for DIY, decorating and furniture revealed

Thinking of sprucing up your home but don't want streaky paint or a saggy sofa?

Look no further. We’ve quizzed thousands of shoppers to find the best stores to buy DIY and decorating products from, as well as homeware and furniture.

They told us about everything from delivery drivers who went out of their way to assemble furniture and sales assistants offering expert advice, to wobbly furniture and delivery failures.

So what takes the best retailers to the top of the table and leaves others languishing at the bottom?

Which are the best DIY and furniture shops?

Decorating specialist Brewers is the top retailer for DIY and decorating this year, while department store John Lewis tops the table for furniture and homeware.

Meanwhile, B&M is bottom of the table for DIY and decorating while B&Q is worst for furniture and homeware.

This table shows the highest-scoring retailers from our survey - use the dropdown to flip between our DIY/decorating and furniture/homeware results. Links take you to retailers' websites.

• Find out more: best and worst shops based on what you're buying

Brewers tops the DIY and decorating table

Brewers impresses shoppers with the quality of its products as well as its range and availability. It also gets top marks for customer service. It could do better on value for money though, where it picks up a fairly mediocre three stars. 

One happy customer said, ‘Brewers' staff know their stuff, they are specialists, not jack of all trades. Decorating can be expensive if you buy the wrong product for the job - Brewers will always tell you how it should be done so you get it right first time.’

Many customers singled out Brewers' paint mixing and matching service for particular praise. 

Dulux Decorator Centre and Screwfix come joint second in our DIY and decorating table, with Toolstation close behind. 

Brewers and Toolstation performed so well in our analysis that we’ve made them Which? Recommended Providers. This recognition is reserved for those who do superbly in our survey but also pass a range of behind-the-scenes checks on their returns policies. 

Dulux Decorator Centre and Screwfix didn’t qualify because of concerns we have over their returns policies – we’ve written to them asking them to make changes.

• Find out more: best and worst DIY and decorating shops

John Lewis is best bet for furniture and homeware

For furniture and homeware, department store John Lewis stands out from the crowd. 

Shoppers love the quality of what it sells, and give its customer service top marks. They also rate its delivery and website/app highly as well as awarding it an impressive five stars for value.  

One customer said, ‘Good balance of price against quality, without compromise on quality. Reliable. Easy click and collect from nearby Waitrose saves on delivery cost. All else being equal, my preferred retailer.’ 

Another added, ‘Love their goods. Adds a bit of luxury to furnishings. Staff very helpful. Nice place to shop.’

In joint second place come Bensons for Beds, Costco, Dreams, Lakeland and ProCook. 

We’ve made John Lewis, Bensons for Beds, Lakeland and ProCook Which? Recommended Providers. 

Costco and Dreams didn’t make the grade because we have concerns over their returns policies. We’ve written to them asking them to make changes.

• Find out more: best and worst furniture and homeware shops

Which stores came bottom? 

The table below reveals the retailers that received the lowest customer scores in our survey. Again, you can flip between results for DIY and decorating vs furniture and homeware retailers using the dropdown.

For DIY and decorating, B&M comes bottom of the table. It scored poorly for the range, availability and quality of the DIY and decorating products it sells, but despite this it did well for value. 

One customer said, 'Reasonable range but can't compete with dedicated DIY stores due to size of stores. What they do sell is generally good value.’

Homebase and The Range both came in second-to-last place. Both failed to impress on the quality of their products and the customer service they offer. 

One frustrated Homebase customer said, ‘Both products I purchased were old and unusable. Homebase refused to replace until I made a fuss.’ 

When it comes to furniture and homeware, B&Q comes bottom. It scored a miserable two stars for the quality, range and availability of its furniture and homeware products, as well as its customer service.

One disappointed customer said, ‘Some products were damaged due to poor packaging and mishandling by delivery drivers. Getting customer services to replace items was a very difficult as B&Q seem to be unable to answer simple questions and contacting by phone is a total waste of time.’ 

Argos and B&M came joint second last for furniture and homeware.

• Find out more: best sofa brands