15 Best Ikea Products, According to CR Staffers

Here are 15 of our favorite Ikea furniture and decor pieces, organized by room, and everything you need to know about top-notch services the store offers.

This piece is customizable, with an open concept and adjustable shelves and clothing rails. It’s especially ideal for creating clothing storage solutions in smaller rooms or apartments. CR’s Fareeza Baranowski says she loves anything from Ikea’s Elvarli collection. “I’ve moved it, rearranged it, and made it work for every phase of my life for 15 years, and somehow it’s still in amazing shape,” Baranowski says.

$655 at Ikea
Dimensions: 85x64.87x21.62 inches (height by width by depth)

A high-quality mirror (especially a full-length one) can be challenging to find, and when you do, you’ll likely have to shell out a lot of money for it. That’s one reason we love the reasonably priced Hovet Mirror. Another reason is that it comes in an aluminum, black, or gold frame, and stands at more than 6 feet tall.

“I’ve long raved about the Ikea Hovet Mirror,” CR’s Justin Krajeski says. “It’s an incredible purchase for the cost, when many other mirrors sold with a similar design cost hundreds of dollars more. The Hovet receives constant compliments and questions when spotted by friends and neighbors at my house, so if you’re looking for a low-cost, high-reward addition that helps you check for fashion faux pas (like flyaway hairs or your unzipped pants) before you leave the home, it’s at the top of my list of Ikea recommendations.”

$170 at Ikea
Dimensions: 30.75 inches wide, 77.12 inches high

The Malm Bed Frame comes in twin, full, queen, and king sizes and three colors (dark brown, oak, and white), and is made from wood veneer. It’s a favorite for CR’s Joe Novotny. “I’ve owned it in both oak veneer and dark brown veneer,” Novotny says. “It’s a great all-around product: sleek, well-designed, and cost-efficient. It’s held up to everyday use with little visible wear.” The full, queen, and king sizes have optional storage, which increases the price.

$229 to $399 (varies by size, excludes mattress) at Ikea

Aside from how casual-cool this shelving unit looks, and how much storage space it provides, another thing we love about it is that the underframe makes it easy to vacuum underneath. 

“I am a die-hard Kallax fan,” CR’s Elizabeth Lucy says. “I’ve owned and used various versions of this series for the past 20-plus years. It’s perfect for all sorts of storage, and I love the options for adding hinged doors, baskets, file organizers, etc. My favorite part is that they are backless, so light passes through them—with this, especially in New York City, I like using it as a wonderfully functional room divider.”

Lucy adds that her most recent Kallax purchase turns her classic kitchen/living room/dining room into more defined spaces, separating the kitchen from the dining space.

$160 at Ikea
Dimensions: 50.75x57.87x15.37 inches (HxWxD)
Maximum load/shelf: 29 pounds

This attractive cabinet has adjustable shelves and a pull-out drawer, with chic hardware. It comes in two shades: a unique blue-green and light beige. “A decent portion of my house is furnished with Ikea treasures I’ve collected over decades of shopping there,” CR’s Marci Whalen says. “And if there’s one piece that really illustrates how far the store has come, it’s the blue-green Lommarp cabinet with gold hardware—also my absolute favorite. When people visit, they often don’t believe where I got it. Ikea? Really? It’s gorgeous.”

$449 at Ikea
Dimensions: 39.75x40.12x19.62 inches (HxWxD)
Maximum load/shelf: 51 pounds
Maximum load/drawer: 55 pounds

A stylish bamboo basket like this one is so versatile—you can use it to store magazines, blankets, pet toys, kids’ toys, and so much more. This one was even handwoven, according to the company. “I love this basket for storing blankets,” says CR’s Kerri O’Connell, who recommends several other products in this article. “It looks great, seems more expensive than the price point, and does the trick for storing while looking stylish.”

$35 at Ikea
Dimensions: 15.25 inches high, 21.25 inches deep

The Billy Bookcase is an Ikea classic: It features four adjustable shelves (and you can purchase additional shelves) and comes in five colors. “My husband swears by the Billy bookcases,” says CR’s Ginger Cowles. “He’s had the exact same set for at least 20 years. They have survived multiple moves across the country—Seattle to Brooklyn to Edgewater, N.J.—and are still holding up nicely!”

$89 at Ikea
Dimensions: 79.5x31.5x11 inches (HxWxD)
Maximum load/shelf: 66 pounds

This minimalist desk is made from bamboo and features three A4-size drawers for storing paper and office items. “I’ve had this desk since the great WFH exodus of 2020,” O’Connell says. “I swapped out the drawer pulls for something a little more my style, but the desk itself is subtle enough to blend in with different iterations of my office-styling throughout moves and updates. It’s small enough that [it] has fit well in three apartments, but large enough for me to have a laptop stand, a separate keyboard and mouse, and a 27-inch monitor (on an angle), plus some room for other things. The drawers are very slim, so not super useful, but I can still store chargers, fidget toys, [sticky notes], etc. without issue.”

$200 at Ikea
Dimensions: 29.125x19.25x40.12 inches (HxWxD)
Maximum load: 110 pounds

This wooden step stool is a must in kitchens and is perfect for reaching items and helping children become more independent, too. It comes in two colors, rubberwood and white, and is a favorite of CR’s Jessica Waller. “It’s hard to choose my favorite Ikea product, because I love so many, but I’ll settle for the Ikea Bekvam step stool, which my family uses daily,” Waller says. “It’s earned a permanent spot in my kitchen as an easy way for my kids to reach their snack bowls (and favorite snacks). In a pinch, it also doubles as a handy seat for a guest to perch on while I cook. It’s made of solid rubberwood and has a convenient grip at the top that makes it easy to move. When my kids are tall enough to reach the cupboards on their own, I’m already thinking about repurposing it as a plant stool on our porch.”

$30 at Ikea
Dimensions: 19.62x16.87x15.37 inches (HxWxD)
Maximum load: 220 pounds

I’m not a fan of most kitchen gadgets if I can do the trick with a knife, and vegetable peelers are no exception. But let’s face it: Peeling carrots and parsnips is a chore. This inexpensive vegetable peeler is actually the best I’ve tried for root veggies. It works fast, efficiently, and I love its happy, bright-green color and the built-in hanging hole on its handle.

$2 at Ikea

What does your kitchen cabinet look like right this minute? If you answered: a royal mess, join the club—and consider this pot lid organizer with its customizable length to help you get all your pot and pan lids in order. “This pot top organizer is super useful for saving space in the kitchen,” O’Connell says. “ I’ve had it for many years; moved it from Brooklyn to Los Angeles, and it’s still going strong! Not sure exactly how I would handle pot lids without it.”

$8 at Ikea
Dimensions: 3.25-19.75 inches long, 5.75 inches wide, 4 inches high

Ikea is a one-stop shop for bathrooms and kitchens, and you can consult their specialists to help you design your space and pick out furniture and appliances. They even offer installation and furniture removal services. We’ll touch more on those services in a bit, but first, this bathroom vanity is perfection for minimalists who want a clean, classic aesthetic and enough storage for towels and toiletries. “The drawers make organization super easy, and they are roomy, unlike most other models that end up with very limited space inside,” CR’s Ewelina Mrowiec says. “We moved a few months ago, and I cannot wait to upgrade the current bathroom sink vanity we have for one of these.”

This vanity comes in four sizes and three colors: brown oak, oak, and high gloss white.

Starting at $459 at Ikea

This basket is helpful to keep in any room, but we’re envisioning using it to organize toiletries and towels for a neat and organized bathroom. It’s made of plastic and features plenty of cutouts to keep air circulating. 

“I’m not entirely sure why I love this basket so much, but I do,” Whalen says. “It perfectly fits all the must-haves for my “mobile” office—hand lotion, water, snacks, and more. On nice days, I carry it out to my satellite office (aka the deck). When school lets out, and I have a meeting or a virtual shoot, I take it with me to the basement or my bedroom. It’s never let me down. And it’s so inexpensive. I’ll definitely be buying more the next time I need an Ikea fix.”

$4 at Ikea
Dimensions: 10.75 inches long, 7 inches wide, 6.75 inches high

Your entryway and mud room can make or break the appearance of your home, as we all know when we enter to find everyone’s shoes all over the place. We love the versatility and space-saving design of the Trones Shoe/Storage Cabinet, which is the perfect place to store shoes, gloves, scarves, keys, dog leashes, and more. “We have a bunch of them in our entryway—we put our keys on top, along with dog treats,” Mrowiec says. “Each family member has one for their shoes, we also have one for cold weather gear and one for leashes, doggie trash bags, etc. They’re small but mighty!”

$40 (2-pack) at Ikea
Dimensions: 15.37x20.5x7.12 inches (HxWxD)

Years ago, I fell in love with the Frakta Storage Bag while using it to transport laundry to and from the laundromat. I have since repurposed it as an overnight bag for trips, storage for my kids’ toys, and more. This bag is seriously massive, has sturdy straps, and can even be worn as a backpack.

But it’s not the only Ikea bag that stole our hearts. Not one, but two CR staffers shared their love for IKEA’s iconic multipurpose tote bag, which is durable and a cinch to fold flat and store. “They’ve survived multiple moves, carrying hundreds of loads of laundry, and years in storage,” CR’s Keith Barry says. “I often swap into and out of different cars that we’re testing at the Auto Test Center, and that means taking all my stuff with me between vehicles. I always carry a Frakta to make it easier.”

CR’s Jamison Hermann calls it the “classic” Ikea bag and adds, “I have a few of these I’ve used for laundry, moving houses, packing stuff for trips, and generally just as a way to hold a lot of something. The bags I have must be five, 10, or 15 years old at this point, and they are still holding up. For less than a dollar each, it’s the best value I’ve ever gotten on a purchase.”

$5 at Ikea
Dimensions: 11.75x28.75x13.75 inches (HxWxD)
Maximum load: 55 pounds (20 gallons)