Practical Guide Summary
The furniture leg tip: a discreet but essential accessory to preserve your furniture and floors:
- Floor protection: prevents scratches, marks, and unpleasant noises.
- Furniture stability: improves grip and limits unwanted movement.
- Durability: protects the leg from wear, impact, and moisture.
- Adaptability: available as internal inserts (for hollow legs/tubes) or external ferrules (for solid legs/tubes), in several shapes (round, square, or rectangular) and materials.
- Aesthetics: available in white, grey, or black to blend discreetly with your furniture.
In this practical guide, we explain how to choose and buy the right furniture leg tips.
How to choose a furniture leg tip?
Here are several questions to ask yourself before choosing the right tip for the furniture legs you wish to protect:
- Is the leg hollow or solid?
- What is the size of the furniture leg?
- Is the furniture intended for outdoor or indoor use?
- Are you looking for a decorative tip?
Internal Insert or External Ferrule?
Depending on chairs and other furniture, legs can be hollow (tubes) or solid.
Internal inserts (End plugs) for furniture legs
If the furniture leg is hollow, you will need an internal insert. This fits inside the leg to ensure stability. The insert is "friction-fitted," preferably using a mallet. It is indeed very frustrating to have tips fall off when you lift a chair…
They are also known as:
- Tube plugs,
- Ribbed inserts, featuring flexible ribs around the part that enters the tube,
- Multi-ribbed inserts, which follow the same principle but with more numerous and longer ribs for better hold.
External ferrules (Tips) for furniture legs
As the name suggests, these "wrap around" the tube or chair leg. If the leg is solid, you should opt for an external ferrule.
Several models are available for this type:
Based on furniture leg size
To select the correct size, you need to know the diameter of the leg.
For an external ferrule, the dimension indicated on our site is always the outside diameter of the tube or leg it is mounted on. You can measure this using a tape measure or ruler.
For an internal insert, you must consider the outside diameter and the compression allowed by the ribs inside the tube. Therefore, it is necessary to know the wall thickness of the tube/leg.
On our site:
- The indicated dimension always corresponds to the external dimensions of the tube.
- The tube wall thickness is also indicated: it corresponds to the compression range allowed by the ribs.
Comparison table of furniture leg tips
| Criterion | External Ferrule (External) | Internal Insert (Internal) |
| Position | Fits around the leg (covers the outside) | Slides inside the leg tube |
| Compatible leg type | Solid leg or thick-walled tube | Hollow leg |
| Hold | Grip by external friction | Grip by internal fit (ribs/fins) |
| Main advantage | Visually protects the leg and absorbs shocks better | Discreet, blends into the leg shape, stabilizes furniture |
| Outdoor use | Good durability + protects the leg from moisture | Can trap water inside the tube → less recommended |
FAQ – Frequently Asked Questions
1. How to measure the leg diameter?
For an external ferrule, measure the outside diameter of the leg. For an internal insert, measure the outside diameter as well, but also check the wall thickness.
2. Which tip for fragile floors (parquet)?
Polyethylene, felt, or rubber tips are designed not to scratch. The main risk comes from worn-out tips; replace them as soon as they are damaged.
3. Is a domed base better than a flat one?
Yes, a domed base makes it easier to slide and tilt the furniture, which is ideal for chairs on tiled floors.
Discover our selection of furniture leg tips and find the model you need!