Is ikea furniture worth it, or does it just break and end up costing you?

nah its awesome, i love ikea

i think it depends on your luck. Personally i have bought a bed, side table, a bathroom mirror-cabinet from ikea and they have been in perfect condition for the past three years .

On the other hand, one of legs of a chair (that my aunt bought from ikea in less than 6 months) broke

If you plan to move frequently (in a college dorm or apartment) and are looking for something cheap, IKEA furniture is a fine choice. If you’re looking for something a little more permanent, you should probably look elsewhere.

It’s definitely cheap, but it’s not too terribly fragile. I’ve had an ikea desk that works OK, and a dresser that’s pretty good. I find their couches and chairs uncomfortable, but the chairs seem to last a long time.

I generally agree. I’ve had quite a bit of experience with IKEA furniture, and most of it has been positive. It can be very tedious (yet satisfying) to build the stuff, so that’s a factor for some people. My IKEA bed frame has been the most disappointing, as it took forever to build has needed lots of annoying repairs and never feels that solid. But I’ve had numerous desks and shelves that have been spot on. So I suppose the answer is: it depends.

Also, I recently learned IKEA has good forestry practices, which is nice if you care about that stuff. But—at the end of they day—I still generally prefer nice used furniture to IKEA.

May I just add that Ikea is wonderful for KITCHEN cabinets; and for stuff to keep your closet viable, bathmats, plasticware, hyper cheap wall clocks, amusing cable rigs for hanging curtains, terrific cheap curtains that are really long (hard to find elsewhere), and lighting: hyper excellent. And little pieces of furniture like outdoor chairs. For major furniture I entirely agree with Ben, go to the best Goodwill you can find, and go repeatedly till you find serious, all-real-wood refinishable or paintable furniture from before they invented pressboard.

I love Ikea for it’s kitchen stuff – cheap champagne flutes, serving bowls, napkins, etc. As for its furniture… if it’s all you can afford, then go for it. but don’t expect it to last longer than a few years. Also, if you plan ot be moving 1 or 2x a year (i.e. you’re in college), the wear and tear of moving will shorten the life of your Ikea purchases.

Sometimes, it’s not that it is an Ikea product, but the materials used itself. For instance, I have always found that the “compressed wood” products are unattractive, too heavy, easily water damaged, and flimsy. On the other hand, a well-made product using solid cheap wood with a good wood veneer is an excellent alternative when you can’t afford good wood.

It very much worth it, I love their store as an indpendent college student its great…