Search
Changed opening hours in the restaurant  
About

The museum

White building with clean lines and v-shaped pillars, sign on facade says IKEA Museum. White building with clean lines and v-shaped pillars, sign on facade says IKEA Museum.

The world’s only IKEA Museum is for anyone who’s curious about IKEA, life at home and design. Curious about the history and curious about how Ingvar Kamprad from the little village of Agunnaryd in Småland, Sweden, created a global household brand.

IKEA Museum presents the story of IKEA, from its roots in the stony soil of Småland, to the home furnishing brand of today. You will get new perspectives and ideas through hundreds of stories about innovation and insights, great mistakes, and memorable products, decade by decade. Of course, while sharing the story of IKEA, we inevitably include stories of people, places and historical events.

Ingvar Kamprad in tweed jacket stands in front of white building, the first IKEA store, and car park with 1950s cars.
Find out how the young entrepreneur Ingvar Kamprad started IKEA as a small mail-order company in the 1940s, and with support from family, friends and colleagues, decided to challenge the traditional way of doing business.

IKEA Museum can be experienced online as well as in the IKEA hometown of Älmhult, Småland. Here, in the south of Sweden, you can step into our main exhibitions as well as temporary exhibitions about the past, present and future of design, innovation and life at home. Between exhibits, enjoy a meal or a Swedish fika in the restaurant, and pick up a few mementos in the gift shop. IKEA Museum also regularly organises guided tours, workshops and other learning opportunities, as well as activities for families with children.

The Archive & Collection at IKEA Museum is our source to IKEA history, containing everything from products to historical records – photos, drawings, films and letters – relating to the development of the IKEA concept and business.

Online, IKEA Museum is always open for you to access at any time, from anywhere. Explore hundreds of stories, many of them previously untold, browse seven decades of home furnishing inspiration in the IKEA catalogue and check out interactive exhibits.

Two hands measuring the original architectural designs of the world’s first IKEA store with a folding rule.

History of IKEA Museum
IKEA Museum in Älmhult opened in June 2016 and is housed in what was once the very first IKEA store in 1958. The exterior of the building has been restored in line with the original designs by local architect Claes Knutson, while the interior has been adapted to suit the needs and activities of a contemporary museum.