Honestly, the furniture usually isn’t the problem—the ground is. A bench, table, or planter leg puts a lot of weight onto a tiny contact point, and soft soil or artificial turf over a loose base will give way. The fix is either to spread that load over a bigger area or anchor the furniture down to something solid.
For a quick, temporary fix, start with wide foot pads. Rubber, plastic, or metal base plates should be at least three to four times wider than the leg itself. Tiny coasters won’t do much. If you need something even more stable, build a small platform from exterior-grade plywood or interlocking deck tiles and set the furniture on top. That spreads the weight across several legs instead of one sunken point.
Artificial turf is a special case because it’s not a structural surface. If you just place furniture on top, the turf backing and infill can shift, and the legs will punch through or create low spots. The best solution is to cut a neat opening in the turf, excavate about 10–15 cm, compact crushed stone or road base, and set a concrete paver flush with the turf. Then put the furniture leg on the paver. It looks clean, drains well, and won’t sink. If you can’t cut the turf, use very large flat pads and avoid thin legs or heavy concentrated loads.
For soft ground, ground screws or helical piles are my go-to. They screw into the soil like a large auger and give you a solid bracket to attach the furniture leg to. They’re much less messy than concrete and can be removed later. For permanent installations, especially heavy benches or public furniture, pour concrete footings below the frost line and embed a metal anchor. Deck blocks set on compacted gravel can also work for lighter pieces.
Don’t ignore drainage. If the area stays wet, even a good base will soften over time. Add a small French drain, gravel trench, or at least compacted gravel so water moves away. Wet soil is weak soil, and artificial turf can trap moisture underneath if the base wasn’t built correctly.
Finally, think about weight distribution. Heavy furniture with four small legs will always struggle. Add more contact points if possible, use larger bases, and check the furniture after heavy rain. Re-level it, recompact the base, and add stone or pads as needed.
For most urban outdoor setups, I’d go with a compacted gravel base plus a concrete paver or ground screw at each leg. It’s low-profile, affordable, and stops the furniture from turning into a sinking ship.