Quick Answer: For nearly every table sold today, “pool table” and “billiard table” mean the exact same product — a six-pocket table built for 8-ball and 9-ball, with 15 numbered balls plus a cue ball. “Billiards” is technically the broader umbrella term that also includes snooker and pocketless carom billiards (played with just 3 balls on a table with no pockets at all), but carom tables are rare in US retail. If a listing says “billiard table” and it’s for sale at a furniture store, sporting goods retailer, or Amazon, it has pockets and plays exactly like what most people call a pool table.
If you’ve seen the same table listed as a “pool table” on one site and a “billiard table” on another and wondered whether you’re comparing two different products, you’re not — but the terminology confusion is real enough to be worth untangling once.
By the numbers
- Pool tables use 16 balls (15 numbered object balls plus a cue ball) and six pockets — four corners and two side pockets — which is the setup for 8-ball, 9-ball, and every other pocket-billiards game sold under either name.
- Carom billiards uses just 3 balls (two cue balls and one red object ball) on a table with zero pockets, scoring by caroming the cue ball off both other balls in succession — a fundamentally different game and table than anything marketed as a pool or billiard table in the US.
- The name “pool” traces back to 19th-century poolrooms — horse-race betting parlors where a “pool” meant the combined pot of wagers — which commonly had billiards tables for patrons waiting on race results; the pocket-billiards game played there eventually inherited the poolroom’s name.
Pool table vs. billiard table at a glance
| Factor | "Pool table" | "Billiard table" |
|---|---|---|
| What it usually means in retail | Six-pocket table for 8-ball/9-ball | Same six-pocket table — marketing synonym |
| Balls | 15 object balls + cue ball (16 total) | Same, when pocketed |
| Pockets | 6 (four corner, two side) | 6, unless it's a true carom table (0) |
| Technical scope | One specific cue-sport family | Umbrella term: pool + snooker + carom |
| Rare exception | N/A | Carom/straight-billiards table — no pockets, 3 balls |
Why the terms overlap so much
“Billiards” is the parent category for an entire family of cue sports — pool (pocket billiards), snooker, and carom billiards — the same way “football” covers several genuinely different sports depending on which country you’re in. Manufacturers and retailers lean on “billiard table” because it sounds slightly more upscale or traditional, but the physical product they’re describing — six pockets, 2 1/4” balls, a felt-covered bed — is what everyone else just calls a pool table. You can see this on this site’s own product roundups: EastPoint’s own catalog name for one of its most popular models is the Brighton 87-inch Billiard Table, and it’s a standard pocketed pool table in every dimension that matters.
The one real exception: carom billiards
Where the terms genuinely diverge is carom billiards (also called straight billiards or French billiards), played on a table with no pockets at all. The game uses only three balls — two cue balls and a single red object ball — and players score by caroming their cue ball off both other balls in a single shot, without ever needing a pocket to drop a ball into. It’s a common format across parts of Europe and Asia, and true carom tables are a specialty purchase, not something you’ll find mixed into a mainstream pool-table lineup at Costco, Dick’s Sporting Goods, or on Amazon’s general listings. If every table you’re comparing has pockets — which almost every table sold as a “pool table” or “billiard table” in the US does — you’re not actually choosing between two different products, just two names for the same one.
Snooker: a related but separate mix-up
Snooker tables do have pockets, which makes the “billiard table” umbrella term a little more confusing — but a snooker table is a completely different purchase from either a pool or billiard table: nearly double the footprint, smaller balls, and much tighter pockets. If that’s the comparison you actually meant to make, see our full pool table vs. snooker table breakdown for the size and cost differences.
Shop pocketed pool/billiard tables
- Whether the listing says "pool table" or "billiard table," check for six pockets and a 2 1/4" ball set — that's the standard nearly every US retailer sells.
- See our full best pool table rankings for picks by budget and room size.
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Not sure slate or MDF is right for you?
- Once you've confirmed you want a standard pocketed table, the bigger decision is the playing surface — see our slate vs. MDF comparison for weight, cost, and durability.
The bottom line
Unless a listing specifically says “carom” or “pocketless,” a “billiard table” and a “pool table” are the same product — shop by price, size, and slate vs. MDF, not by which of the two names a retailer happens to use. For genuinely different tables, the real fork in the road is slate vs. MDF or, if you’re actually considering a bigger cue-sports table, pool vs. snooker.