It is very stable, but bear in mind that anything you put on it is subject to some movement due to vibration unless you put some sort of damping under it. My wife kept a glass vase with seashells in it on mine for a while but it did a little dance and pock marked the top a little bit. I put some felt sticky backed pads on the bottom and that fixed the issue. I currently keep a statue of a blue marlin on a piece of Teak rootknot and have had no issues. As far as an end table it would be just fine but some people need to set their drinks down on it and I have always been afraid that liquids could get inside if not collected quickly. The top is very well sealed but why take the chance. I have seen little trays made of Bamboo which have sides on them which would be perfect to set on the top to allow drinks to be set down safely.