Stores Like IKEA: 10 Alternatives for Modern Furniture

Like most enthusiasts of design, we’re big fans of IKEA for their playful designs, affordability, and diverse selection. If you’re new to shopping for home furnishing, they’re probably the first brand you’ll encounter. In this blog post, we’ll go over 10 other stores that you can check out for furniture and decor pieces that share similar characteristics with IKEA. To provide you with the newest information, this article has been recently updated in March 24, 2023.

Because of IKEA is a Swedish company, much of their furniture and decor have a undeniably Scandinavian design style to them. Therefore, most stores like IKEA are also stores that sell Scandinavian furniture. But what makes IKEA really unique is their combination of a massive catalogue and low prices. Thus, our list will focus on stores like IKEA with a similar style, catalogue size, and price.

1. FROY

Froy is an online store with a focus on Scandinavian furniture and decor. The store’s Scandinavian furniture collection features some of the pieces that are similar to IKEA’s designs. Moreover, the store features a diverse array of furniture and decor from other interior design styles that complement the typical Swedish aesthetic. That means that in addition to the typical minimalist furniture that you find at IKEA, Froy offers many complementary pieces that are more rustic and ornamental that pairs well with Scandinavian decor. The pricing is quite affordable -a bit higher than IKEA, but less than what you’d pay at CB2 or West Elm. There is free shipping on orders over $75.

2. Scandinavian Designs

As its name suggests, Scandinavian Designs specializes on furniture and decor that are similar to IKEA. Frankly, some of the pieces are too generically modern or industrial to be considered Scandinavian in aesthetic, so the name of the brand is a bid of a misnomer. However, this isn’t necessarily a negative, since that means you can find a wider variety of styles when shopping their store. Pricing is higher than IKEA but is still very much affordable, and the quality looks great. Main issue is that there is often a pretty hefty shipping fee.

3. Target

Being a massive retailer that practically sells everything, you shouldn’t be surprised that Target’s furniture department sells some pieces that resemble the style of pieces at IKEA. Target has its own in-house furniture brands that lean more towards the modern and minimalist side. The pricing is also quite competitive, though typically higher than at IKEA. Free shipping over order $35 above at Target, so I would recommend you to purchase online to avoid having to carry a heavy box from a brick-and-mortar store.

4. HomeGoods

HomeGoods offers a variety of interior design styles when it comes to their furniture and home furnishing products. You’ll be able to find plenty of Scandinavian-inspired pieces, though you may have to do some searching given the mix of rustic, ultra-modern, and furniture of other styles. As part of the TJ Maxx and Marshalls family of companies, HomeGoods offer very strong value with aesthetics that are similar (but still distinct) to IKEA.

5. World Market

The products on World Market are less modern, leaning towards a rustic and world-inspired look. That isn’t to say there are no minimalist furniture pieces that are similar to IKEA – it’s just that you may have to do a bit more digging. However, what is very similar to IKEA is that World Market is very affordable with a diverse catalogue of many pieces. I personally think, just like other stores on this list, that the quality is superior to IKEA and looks better as well.

6. H&M Home

H&M is a Swedish company, so their home furnishing department is undeniably Scandinavian in style akin to IKEA. Being a fashion-first company, H&M Home often feature creative collabs with artists when designing their decorative accessories. Note that, for whatever reason, they do not sell any furniture such as sofas, bed frames, or dining chairs. From that standpoint, they are not that similar to IKEA. Instead, they focus exclusively on decor such as rugs, pillows, bedding, and other accent items. The styles and pricing are similar to IKEA.

7. West Elm

West Elm is typically acknowledged as a furniture store for mid-century modern and contemporary style designs. Many of the greatest mid-century modern furniture designers were Scandinavian, including Hans Wegner, Arne Jacobson, and Finn Juhl. Given the overlap between MCM and Scandinavian styles, it shouldn’t surprise you that West Elm’s furniture share similarities with the aesthetics of IKEA’s furniture. With that said, I believe West Elm has great quality (personally, much longer lasting build than pieces from IKEA) and more artistic designs at the expense of higher pricing. West Elm also doesn’t offer free shipping.

8. Crate & Barrel

Crate & Barrel offers some truly beautiful furniture, most of which span the mid-century modern and Scandinavian styles of design. In terms of aesthetics, Crate & Barrel is a similar store to IKEA, but the difference is in quality and pricing. Out of all the stores on this list, they are the most expensive, so consider them an upgrade to IKEA when your budget increases. One negative is that, despite their pricing, Crate & Barrel does not offer universal free shipping, which is particularly notable on oversized pieces such as sofas and bed frames where delivery costs can be very high.

9. AllModern

Part of a chain of online retailers including Wayfair, AllModern focuses exclusively on furniture with more minimalist, contemporary styles. In terms of the look of their furniture, you’ll find that many are similar to IKEA. However, their pricing is all over the place, with some furniture and decor that are competitive to IKEA, with others that are more expensive than even Crate & Barrel. Although it may take some time to browse through their massive catalog, there are good deals here.

10. Hayneedle

Hayneedle is very similar to AllModern above – an online retailer that sells practically anything related to home furnishing. The difference is that their furniture span wider than the modern aesthetic that is common to IKEA. Otherwise, they offer pieces across a multitude of prices, quality, and brands. Therefore, you’ll have to do a lot of digging to find pieces that look similar to those of IKEA at a competitive price. The benefit of Hayneedle is that they offer free shipping, with steep discounts during holidays.

That wraps it up for today. Let us know if you have other suggestions. IKEA is quite remarkable in their sheer dominance in selling beautiful, modern, simple designs at such affordable price ranges. However, these 10 stores along with our own should more than satisfy your shopping needs. Hope our list is able to help you out!