Olhausen Billiard Table Prices: 7 Questions Venue Buyers Actually Ask

Here is the short version: if you are sourcing Olhausen equipment for a bar, family entertainment center, hotel, or corporate venue, the questions that matter most are not the ones on the product page. They are about lead times, what is actually bundled, and what 'price' includes once delivery and setup are factored in.

I coordinate procurement for a hospitality group that runs bars and FECs. Over the past three years, I have handled 40+ urgent equipment orders, including same-week Olhausen table replacements and event-day accessory scrambles. What follows is how I would answer the questions I actually get asked, not the ones that make a brochure look good.

Jump to what you need:

• What does Olhausen actually sell?
• How much do Olhausen billiard tables cost?
• What is the real total cost?
• Are Olhausen pool balls included?
• Emergency replacement: what is realistic?
• Direct, dealer, or secondhand?
• The question most buyers forget

What does Olhausen actually sell, and what do you need to buy separately?

Olhausen's core business is billiard tables, and that is what most venue buyers come for. But the catalog also includes ping pong table tops (paddles and balls are usually a separate add-on), air hockey tables, foosball tables, and pool cues and accessories. The trap is assuming everything arrives together.

In my first year coordinating venue fit-outs, I made the classic bundled-assumption error: I approved a table order and told our bar manager the balls and rack were in the box. They were not. We ended up driving 40 minutes to a sporting goods store the morning of soft opening. Cost us about $180 in retail markup and two hours of setup time we did not have.

Short version: tables ship as tables. Accessories are a separate line item. Confirm it in writing even if the sales rep says it comes with a set.

How much do Olhausen billiard tables actually cost in 2025?

I can only speak to what we have seen in our own quote files, not to Olhausen's published MSRP, since dealer pricing varies by region and model. Across roughly 25 quotes we collected in 2024 for 7- and 8-foot models (Sheraton, Belmont, and a couple of Eclipse configurations), the table-only range landed between about $2,800 and $6,500. Add delivery, installation, and a basic accessory set, and most landed between $3,600 and $8,000 all-in.

That is a wide range, and honestly I am not sure why the same model quoted 30% higher from one dealer to another. My best guess is freight distance and whether installation is subcontracted. If someone has a cleaner explanation, I would genuinely like to hear it.

One warning: be skeptical of any ad leading with a single low number. Per FTC advertising guidelines, advertised prices must be truthful and not misleading, but 'starting at' prices often exclude delivery, setup, and mandatory accessories. That deal evaporates at checkout.

What is the real total cost once delivery, setup, and accessories are added?

This is where venue buyers get burned. The sticker price is maybe 60% of what you will actually spend. The rest hides in four places: freight and inside delivery (a curbside drop-off is cheap; getting a 700-pound table through a service corridor is not), installation and leveling (slate tables need a real installer), accessories (balls, cues, rack, cover, chalk), and downtime (if the table arrives damaged and the replacement takes three weeks, that is revenue you do not get back).

We learned the downtime lesson the hard way. In 2023, we chose a vendor quoting $400 less on a table for a new lounge, but their delivery window was '3 to 5 weeks, subject to freight.' It arrived in week six, damaged. We opened with a borrowed table from another property. The $400 we saved cost us a month of a feature amenity.

I now build a simple spreadsheet before comparing any two quotes: base price, plus freight, install, accessories, and estimated downtime cost. The cheapest quote is rarely the cheapest total. That said, it is not always the most expensive one either, so run the math before you decide.

Are Olhausen pool balls included with the table?

Usually not, or at least not the set you would want for commercial play. Some dealer bundles throw in a basic ball set to sweeten the deal, but those sets are typically recreational grade: fine for a home basement, not for a bar table that gets 40 games a night.

If you are outfitting a venue, budget for a separate commercial-grade set and treat it as a consumable. We replace ours roughly every 14 to 18 months depending on traffic. Cheaper balls scuff and go out-of-round faster, which affects roll and, more importantly, makes the table feel bad to play on. Players notice. I should add that we now keep two spare sets on hand; that was a lesson from a Saturday night when a full set mysteriously walked out the door.

If something breaks the day before an event, what is the fastest realistic fix?

Depends on what broke. A torn cloth or a broken cue can often be solved same-day with a local installer or a spare from another property. A cracked slate or a failed frame cannot. No amount of urgency compresses a slate replacement into 24 hours.

In March 2024, a client called at 2 p.m. on a Thursday needing a functional 8-foot table for a corporate event Saturday morning. Normal lead time on the model they wanted was 10 days. We could not get that model, but we found a dealer two states over with a floor model in a similar finish, paid roughly $650 extra in freight to have it trucked overnight, and had our installer level it Friday afternoon. The client's alternative was renting a table for $1,200 and eating the deposit on the one they had ordered.

Point is: in an emergency, you are not buying the table you want. You are buying the table that exists within driving or overnight-freight distance. Call dealers, not the manufacturer, and ask specifically what is on the floor.

Buy direct, through a dealer, or secondhand: what actually works for a venue?

Direct from Olhausen is not really a consumer option for most buyers; they work through authorized dealers. So the real choice is dealer versus secondhand.

Dealers give you warranty coverage and installation, which for a commercial venue matters more than the discount. Secondhand tables can be a great deal. We bought two used tables for a satellite location and they have held up fine. But you need to inspect the slate for cracks, check that the rails are not dead, and confirm the frame is square. And no warranty. For a flagship space, I would not do it. For a secondary room, I would, and have.

I have mixed feelings about the secondhand market, honestly. On one hand, the savings are real, often 40 to 50% off new. On the other, the risk sits entirely on you, and one bad slate turns a deal into a disposal problem.

What is the one question most buyers forget to ask?

Whether the warranty covers commercial use.

This is the one that quietly bites venues. Many table warranties are written for residential use; put the table in a bar or FEC and the coverage can be void or shortened. Ask the dealer directly, in writing: does this warranty apply to commercial use, and what is the term? If they hesitate, that is your answer.

Look, I am not saying every dealer hides this. Most will tell you if you ask. But it is rarely volunteered, and it is the difference between a $4,000 table that is covered for five years and one that is effectively naked the day it is installed.