This couch-in-a-box is the best decision I've ever made

Buying a couch is never easy. There are so many factors at play. Besides comfort, it needs to fit in your space, go with your aesthetic (your future aesthetic too), and make it through years/decades of use and grubby little fingers.

We've come around to buying our mattresses in boxes and settling for the at-home trial instead of heading in-store to exhaustively search for a mattress within budget. So why not do the same for a couch?

I did.

I love shopping, but shopping for a couch is something I'd rather skip. They all look great in the sleek, perfectly styled showrooms, but a quick 20-second sit on a chaise isn't enough (in my opinion) to decide if a couch will be the perfect fit for your household long term. But is buying a lounge online a better option?

It is. Allow me to plead my case.

I got to test Eva's version of the 'couch-in-a-box'. For the uninitiated, Eva is a certified B Corporation based in Melbourne that launched in 2017 with an award-winning mattress-in-a-box. Since then they've branched out into lounges, sofa beds, pillows, bed frames, dining sets and linen.

Right now you can save $210 on the Eva Everyday Sofa in this early Black Friday deal.

Everyday Sofa 4-Seater + Chaise

The whole process from choosing the couch to assembly (which is easy, btw) took less than a month, and as someone who has once waited seven months for a couch to arrive this was a great outcome. It really was the easiest way to replace a couch without leaving the house.

I selected the Everyday Sofa 4-Seater with Chaise in Classic Weave and the colour Olive. I've got a lot of people in my life with grubby, but cute, little hands and I knew a white or light-coloured couch wouldn't work no matter how much I wanted to live that life. I love to sit all over my couch so the low-profile armrests were a must for extra space to perch.

It arrived in boxes (of course, it's a couch-in-box after all), which meant I had to assemble it. This sounds like a bigger job than it actually is. Everything clicked into place and little old me managed to do it alone. No tools required, just a helpful QR code.

It feels nice and firm which can only mean the high-traffic spots on the sofa will take years to sag and soften as the foam relaxes. It features a deep seat with a roomy chaise to seat an army. If, like my household, the lounge is for lounging, you can comfortably sleep on it using the low armrests as a decent headrest.

Then there's the chaise – the comfiest thing to happen to couches. Want the chaise on the left? Move it. Think it looks better on the right? Slide it on over. The flexible chaise gives options to make the couch work in different spaces.

To put it to the ultimate test, earlier than I hoped, someone (not naming names) swiped some chocolate in the seat part of the chaise. Thankfully the covers are machine-washable! A godsend for anyone who wants their couch to remain brand new. Following the care instructions, the cover washed easily and dried nicely over a few hours. I didn't risk placing this in the dryer, and in future when it comes time to wash the rest I'll save the job for a warm sunny day, but to avoid fading I'd keep them out of direct sunlight to dry.

Sure, it's a test to get the covers back on but it's no different to the struggle that comes with putting a fitted sheet or protector on your mattress – you'll be fine!

Overall, the whole 'couch-in-a-box' experience was a great one. Would I recommend? Yes. Would I do it again? Absolutely. If you're unsure, like I was in the beginning, the 60-day returns policy gives peace of mind.

But let's take a closer look at the couch's features.

Colour range

You can choose between eight colours (Olive, Smoke Grey, Atlantic, Cream, Moss Green, Oatmeal, Terracotta, Graphite) and two textures, Classic Weave or Boucle. If choosing a colour for your space feels overwhelming – I get it, the colours on a screen can be very different in real life – you can request fabric swatches to be sent to your door. Eva really have thought of everything.

More on the washable covers…

This feature was a major selling point for me and it took the pressure off when choosing a colour. If I decide in a year that Olive isn't it, I can buy new covers and instantly change the colour. For this couch in particular a full set of covers will cost $725.

When washing the covers it is important to use a mild detergent. According to the care instructions you'll want to keep the covers out of direct sunlight to avoid discolouration, if you can help it. 

What else do you get?

If a comfy couch isn't enough, you get three scatter cushions. The bigger the couch the more cushions you get. Plus a five-year warranty on the frame and a two-year fabric warranty.

Oh, and great customer service. Four months on, I still receive emails from Eva's friendly 'go-to experts' asking how it's all going (Great, thanks!). Sure, these are auto-generated messages but you get a prompt response from the team (not a bot) if you reply with any concerns or questions.

But wait, there's add-ons!

If you want to change your configuration, you can, we've been through that above with the movable chaise, but you can take it one step further by adding more pieces to your sofa. You can make it bigger by adding an armless module for more seating, or chuck in a corner piece to completely change the shape. Want another chaise? You can add that too! Ottomans are also available for $450 in the same colour as your lounge.

Price

The Everyday Sofa 4-Seater with Chaise is $2960, but right now for Black Friday it's $2750, and when you compare that to family-friendly couches from traditional furniture retailers Eva is competitively priced. If you live in metro areas you'll score free weekday delivery. Regional areas and weekend deliveries will have shipping costs.

Full disclosure: The writer was gifted the sofa for the purpose of this review.

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