How to Build a DIY TV Stand

Sharing is caring!

My daughter recently moved into her very first college apartment and she needed some new furniture built. One of those pieces was a TV stand. Today I am going to share with you how I built this DIY TV stand.

I built this TV stand with 3/4 inch plywood. While the cost of plywood has gone up in the last couple of years because of the pandemic I was still able to build this cheaper than if I was to buy something.

And anything I would have bought would have been cheap fake wood that would not have stood up to the wear and tear of college students.

This TV stand measures 48 inches wide and 18 inches deep. The legs are 6 inches tall from Depot.

There are a few different styles of legs available. My daughter chose this style. So the legs are 6 inches and the height of the tv stand is 24 inches, making it a total of 30 inches tall.

*This post contains affiliate links. For more details see my full disclosure.

Materials:

• 2 4X8 sheets of 3/4 inch plywood
• 1 2X4 sheet of underlayment
• 4 – 6 inch legs
• 4 brackets to attach legs – they come with screws to be attached
• Kreg Jig Screws
• Staples
• 3/4 inch veneer edge banding
• Stain
• Polyurethane
• Sandpaper

Tools:

• Table Saw – Or have your wood cut at the hardware store
• Kreg Jig
• Drill
• Staple Gun
• Iron
• Foam Brushes
• Measuring tape
• Level
• Triangle Square

How To Build a DIY TV Stand

The best thing to do, and easiest, is to have all your wood cut at the hardware store. Here are the cuts you need.

• 2 pieces of 3/4 inch plywood at 48″ by 18″
• 2 pieces of 3/4 inch plywood at 22 7/8″ by 18″
• 3 pieces of 3/4 inch plywood at 22 1/2″ by 18″
• 1 piece of underlayment at 24″ by 48″

The 2 longer pieces will be the top and bottom of your tv stand. The 2 pieces at 22 7/8 will be the middle horizontal shelf. The three pieces at 22 1/2 will be the vertical pieces and the underlayment is the back.

Step 1 – Build your box

This is the hardest part of the project. Make sure you are using a tape measure, level, and square to make sure the box is perfect.

Take your three vertical pieces and drill your pilot holes with your Kreg Jig. Then attach with screws creating a square box.

For the middle shelf drill your pilot holes with your Kreg Jig and screw them into the vertical pieces. It’s up to you if you want the shelf to be exactly in the middle or have slightly different height shelves. I chose to have the top shelf an inch smaller than the bottom.

Step 2 – Attach the Legs

Determine which side will be the bottom and attach the leg brackets to the four corners of the box.

Then screw in your legs! It’s really as easy as that.

Step 3 – Attach the Back

Using a staple gun secure the back to the box. The easiest way to do this is to lay it face down on the floor so you are stapling straight down.

**Optional** Most TV stands have a hole in the back for cords. That way you can have a DVD player or gaming system on the shelf and not have cords coming out the front of the stand. I used a 2 inch drill bit and screwed a hole in the back of the top shelf.

Step 4 – Attach Veneer Edge Banding

I have a full video explaining how to do this.

What you are going to do is iron the veneer banding onto the ugly edges of the plywood. All the details on how to accomplish this are in the video.

Step 4 – Sand, Stain, and Poly the TV Stand

Work in a well-ventilated area, outside is best. Using 220 grit sandpaper give the whole thing a light sanding to make sure it’s completely smooth.

Apply stain using rags or a foam brush. You can stain it any color you want, or even paint it. I used this stain which is one of my favorites!

Once the stain is completely dry apply a coat of polyurethane using a new foam brush. Once it’s dry give it another light sanding and remove any dust.

Apply another coat of poly, repeat the sanding then apply a third coat. Make sure you let it completely dry in between coats.

I had some trouble with this. It was 100% humidity in August and I needed this thing to dry. So I brought it into the house, which stunk up my entryway but it finally dried.

The Finished DIY TV Stand

Here is the finished product. It’s very simple but perfect for displaying games, devices, and some decor, Go Bobcats!

As you can see building a TV stand is not much harder than building a box. If I can do it you can too. As for my daughter, she loves it and her friends think it could have come from a high-end store! I just love that!

Other DIY Furniture Projects You Might Like:

• How to Make a Table from a Tree Slice
• The Best Wood Stains for Pine
• How to Build Industrial Shelves
• A DIY Vintage Desk Makeover Using Fusion Mineral Paint
• DIY Table Top: Fixing a Broken Patio Table on a Budget
• A DIY Blanket Ladder for under $30
• DIY Herringbone Headboard (and New Bedding)
• DIY Built-Ins Using Big Box Store Cabinets
• How to Fix a Missing Chunk of Wood with Bondo