Line up the heat outputs and something clicks. A 28-inch table here puts out 50,000 BTU. A 45-inch table puts out 50,000 BTU. The 42-inch models reach 60,000. So the extra size is not buying you a bigger fire, it is buying you somewhere to put the drinks. Once you see that, the whole category reorders itself around what you actually want from it.
All of these run on a standard propane tank, burn without smoke or ash, and take a lid so the fire pit becomes an ordinary table when it is out. That last part is the point: this is patio furniture that happens to contain a flame, not a fire pit that happens to have a rim.
At a glance
| Fire table | Standout feature | Price tier | Link |
|---|---|---|---|
| Electactic 28-Inch | Cheapest here; stainless burner | Budget | |
| Ciays 28-Inch | Best seller here, and CSA certified | Budget | |
| OutVue 32-Inch | Variable flame control and drink holders | Budget | |
| Aoxun 41-Inch | CSA certified at the cheapest large size | Mid-range | |
| Ciays 42-Inch | 60,000 BTU; the most heat here | Mid-range | |
| Meilocar 45-Inch | Publishes its weight and dimensions | Premium | |
| Ciays 43-Inch | Wind guard, glass stones, wide table edge | Premium | |
How to choose a gas fire pit table
CSA certification is the only safety line that matters
This is a gas appliance that lives outside your house and that people sit around. CSA certification means an independent body tested the gas train and the burner rather than the brand telling you it did. Ciays states CSA on its 28-inch tables and Aoxun states it on the 41-inch. Several others here describe heavy-duty steel, stainless burners and safety testing in their own words, which is not the same claim. If two tables are close on everything else, this is the tiebreaker, and it is not close.
Size buys table, not heat
Once you notice that a 28-inch Ciays and a 45-inch Meilocar both quote 50,000 BTU, the decision gets simpler. You are choosing how many people can put a glass down, not how warm they will be. Ciays does step up to 60,000 on its 42 and 43-inch models, which is the only real heat increase on this page. Everything else is surface. Measure your patio and count your chairs; that is the specification.
Check both listings before you buy a Ciays
Ciays is the dominant brand here and it sells the same tables more than once. The 28-inch 50,000 BTU table appears at two prices at the same sales rank, and the 42-inch 60,000 BTU with steel lid and lava rock appears at two prices as well, separated by a meaningful margin. Nothing in the descriptions explains the gap. Before ordering, put the Ciays listings side by side and buy the cheaper one that matches what you want, because assuming the dearer listing is the better product will cost you here.
Wind is the thing that spoils the evening
A propane flame is a flame in the open, and a breeze pushes it sideways or puts it out. Two tables here answer it directly with a glass wind guard: the Ciays 43-inch and the Meilocar. That glass also keeps the flame looking like a flame rather than a flicker, which is most of why you bought the thing. If your patio is exposed, this matters more than another 10,000 BTU.
Weight is not a detail on something that lives outdoors
Meilocar is the only brand here that says what its table weighs, 88 lbs, along with dimensions of 44.9 by 22.8 by 24.4 inches. That number cuts both ways and both are useful: 88 lbs will not blow over or wander, and 88 lbs is not something you reposition on a whim or carry down steps alone. Everyone else stays quiet. On garden furniture that will sit through weather, an actual figure is worth having.
Ignition and flame control separate the cheap from the careless
Both OutVue tables have push-button electronic ignition with variable flame control, and Aoxun has one-touch ignition. Variable control is the one worth wanting: it lets you turn a roaring flame down to something you can sit beside for an hour, which also makes a tank last considerably longer. A table that only knows on and off burns fuel at one rate whether you need it or not.
Electactic 28-Inch
The cheapest fire table here and a straightforward one. Twenty-eight inches and 50,000 BTU is exactly what the popular Ciays offers, on heavy-duty steel with a stainless steel burner and a stable four-leg base, and it runs on the standard 20 lb propane tank you can swap at any hardware shop. Electactic calls it three-in-one: a fire pit, a bonfire table, or with the fire out, a table for drinks and snacks. Clean and smokeless with no ashes to sweep. What it does not claim, at this price, is any independent certification.
Pros:
- Cheapest table on this page
- Same 28 inches and 50,000 BTU as the best seller
- Stainless steel burner on a stable four-leg base
- Standard 20 lb tank; no ash, no smoke
Cons:
- No CSA certification stated
- No weight or dimensions published
- No wind guard or variable flame control mentioned
Best for: the least money for a real fire table, on a sheltered patio.
Ciays 28-Inch
The best-selling fire table here and the cheapest way to get the certification. It is CSA-certified, which means an independent body tested the gas side rather than Ciays vouching for itself, and on an appliance that burns propane beside seated people that is the claim worth paying for. Fifty thousand BTU across a 28-inch top warms a decent radius, the burn is smokeless which suits areas where wood fires are restricted, and the steel frame carries Texteline-style panels. With the lid on it is simply a patio table. Ciays also sells this table at a higher price under another listing.
Pros:
- The best-selling table here
- CSA certified; independently tested gas train
- Smokeless, so it suits wood-fire restricted areas
- Steel frame with Texteline-style panels; 2-in-1 with the lid
Cons:
- Also sold at a higher price under a second Ciays listing
- 28 inches is little table once the fire pit is in the middle
- No wind guard; no weight published
Best for: the certification and the popular choice, at the low price.
OutVue 32-Inch
The one that thought about the evening rather than the specification. Two drink holders are built in, which solves the actual problem with a fire table, namely that the middle is on fire and the rim is narrow. Quick-start electronic ignition and variable flame control mean you can turn it down to a sit-beside-it flame instead of choosing between roaring and off, and that also stretches a tank a long way. The burner is 304 stainless on an iron body with rust-proof paint, and the metal lid protects the burner and turns it into a table.
Pros:
- Two built-in drink holders; the rim problem solved
- Variable flame control, not just on and off
- Quick-start electronic ignition
- 304 stainless burner; rust-proof painted iron
Cons:
- No CSA certification stated
- No weight or dimensions published
- 32 inches with no wind guard
Best for: a long evening at a flame you can actually turn down.
Aoxun 41-Inch
The cheapest large table here that is also certified, which is a narrow and useful combination. Forty-one inches gives real room for plates and glasses around a 50,000 BTU burner, it is CSA certified, and the flames are smoke and spark free on clean propane. The removable lid converts it to a dining table when the fire is out. One-touch push-button ignition means connecting the tank and pressing a button, with no matches involved. Lava rocks fill the center. The tank is not included, which is normal here and worth remembering when you budget.
Pros:
- CSA certified at the lowest price for a large table
- 41 inches; real space for plates and glasses
- Push-button ignition; no matches
- Removable lid makes it a dining table
Cons:
- The least-selling table on this page
- 50,000 BTU, where Ciays gives 60,000 at this size
- No wind guard, weight or dimensions given
Best for: a big certified table without paying for the big brand.
Ciays 42-Inch
The most heat on this page. Sixty thousand BTU is the only genuine step up in output here, where nearly everything else sits at 50,000 regardless of size, and it comes on a 42-inch top with room for a group to eat and drink around it. Lava rocks fill the center so the flame breaks up and dances rather than sitting as a bare ring, and a steel lid turns the whole thing into a table when the evening ends. It is the two-in-one arrangement Ciays sells across its range, at the size where it makes most sense. Check the other Ciays 42-inch listing, which is the same table for more.
Pros:
- 60,000 BTU; the most heat on this page
- 42 inches with steel lid and lava rock
- Flame breaks over the rocks rather than sitting in a ring
- Cheaper than the other Ciays listing for the same table
Cons:
- No CSA claim, unlike the 28-inch models from the same brand
- No wind guard on an exposed 42-inch top
- No weight or dimensions given
Best for: a group, and the only real heat increase here.
Meilocar 45-Inch
The biggest table here and the only brand that tells you what you are receiving: 44.9 by 22.8 by 24.4 inches and 88 lbs, in one box. That weight is the real kind of number, because it means the table will not wander in a gale and it also means you will not be shifting it around the patio on a whim. The top is slate on a steel imitation rattan shell with a stainless burner and zinc fittings, and both a glass wind guard and a rain cover are included. Fifty thousand BTU, which at 45 inches confirms the point: you are buying table.
Pros:
- The only table publishing weight and full dimensions
- Glass wind guard and rain cover both included
- Slate top; stainless burner with zinc fittings
- 45 inches, the largest surface here
Cons:
- 50,000 BTU across the biggest top on the page
- 88 lbs is not moving without help
- No CSA certification stated
Best for: a big exposed patio, from the brand that states the facts.
Ciays 43-Inch
Ciays at the top of its range, and the upgrades are the right ones. A wind guard shields the flame, which on a 43-inch rectangular table in the open is the difference between a fire and a flicker, and the traditional lava rocks are replaced by reflective glass stones that throw the light around. The tabletop gains an extra 3-inch edge, which sounds trivial and is the whole complaint about fire tables answered: somewhere to actually put a glass. Sixty thousand BTU behind it, and a cover that turns it into a plain table. It is the most expensive thing here.
Pros:
- Wind guard; the flame survives a breeze
- Reflective glass stones instead of lava rock
- Extra 3-inch table edge for drinks and plates
- 60,000 BTU with a cover for table use
Cons:
- The most expensive table on this page
- No CSA claim, unlike Ciays’ own 28-inch models
- No weight or dimensions published
Best for: the full-size version, with the wind and the drinks both handled.
The verdict
Before anything else: Ciays sells its 28-inch and its 42-inch tables under two listings each, at two prices, with nothing in the descriptions to explain the gap. Compare the listings before you order.
Best overall: Ciays 28-Inch. The best seller here and the cheapest CSA-certified table on the page, which is the point. This is a propane appliance people sit around, and certification means an independent body tested the gas side rather than the brand assuring you it is fine. Fifty thousand BTU, smokeless so it works where wood fires are restricted, and a lid that makes it a patio table. Buy it from the cheaper of the two Ciays listings.
Best value: Electactic 28-Inch. The same 28 inches and the same 50,000 BTU as the best seller, on heavy-duty steel with a stainless burner and a four-leg base, for less money. It runs the standard 20 lb tank and makes no smoke or ash. What you give up is the CSA certification, which is a real thing to give up, and only you can price that.
Best premium: Meilocar 45-Inch. The only table here whose maker will tell you what arrives: 44.9 by 22.8 by 24.4 inches and 88 lbs. Both the glass wind guard and the rain cover are in the box, which are the two things an exposed patio actually needs, and the slate top sits on a stainless burner with zinc fittings. At 45 inches it is the most table here, and at 50,000 BTU it proves the rule about size and heat.
FAQ
Does a bigger table mean a bigger fire?
Mostly no. A 28-inch Ciays and a 45-inch Meilocar both quote 50,000 BTU. Only the Ciays 42 and 43-inch models step up, to 60,000. Size buys you somewhere to put drinks and plates, which is a good reason to buy it, just not the reason the listings imply.
What does CSA certified mean and do I need it?
It means an independent body tested the gas train and burner, rather than the brand testing itself. On a propane appliance that people sit around, it is the one claim worth paying for. Ciays states it on its 28-inch tables and Aoxun on the 41-inch. Others describe their own safety testing, which is a different thing.
Why does the same Ciays table have two prices?
Nothing in the listings explains it. The 28-inch 50,000 BTU model appears twice at the same sales rank, and the 42-inch 60,000 BTU with lid and lava rock appears twice as well, with a real gap between them. Put them side by side and buy the cheaper match.
Will wind blow the flame out?
It can, and it will certainly push it sideways. The Ciays 43-inch and the Meilocar both include a glass wind guard, which keeps the flame upright and looking like a flame. On an exposed patio that beats another 10,000 BTU.
Is the propane tank included?
No. These take a standard 20 lb tank, which Aoxun states plainly is not supplied, and Electactic names as the size. Budget for it. Variable flame control, which the OutVue tables have, makes a tank last considerably longer than a burner with only on and off.
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