New global IKEA study: Nearly 4 in 10 are staging a "silent protest" over household mess

MALMÖ, Sweden, Aug. 24, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- In 38% of homes, someone is quietly leaving things out and hoping someone else will deal with it. (They won't.) Welcome to the silent protest. It's one of many findings from the IKEA Store & Organise Report 2026: Finding Meaning in the Mess.

Life at home is getting busier and space tighter — so this year, IKEA is focusing on helping people find calm, not just storage.

The report surveyed 31,488 people across 31 markets — and found that clutter creates real tension at home. Nowhere more so than the kitchen countertop, the hardest space to keep clutter-free (24%) and the most likely to cause an argument (37%).

One in ten of us even use the oven for storage, rising to 21% in South Korea. Somewhere, someone's about to get a very unpleasant surprise.

Living spaces are getting smaller. But there's a clear shift towards "meaningful mess": owning with intention, keeping what holds value. With 59% preferring a lived-in home over a minimalist one, perhaps the goal was never a perfect home.

"People aren't chasing a perfect home anymore. They want a home that feels like them — one that holds their stories, their memories, the things that matter. What we keep says a lot about who we are. It was never just stuff. At IKEA, we believe everyone deserves a home that works for them. That's what smart, affordable solutions are for," says Licca Li, Home Furnishing & Retail Design Manager, Ingka Group (IKEA).

82% keep things purely for sentimental reasons, even if rarely used or out of sight. Then there's the 26% hiding mementos from past relationships — men more so than women.

68% of households have a drawer of doom, and inside? Cables, mostly. 54% of Boomer men still keep them for gadgets they no longer own.

When guests are coming, one in 10 admit to cancelling plans with friends because the house is too messy, and 34% shuffle clutter before they arrive.

Even so, 15% globally see mess as a form of creativity — rising to 31% in China but just 4% in Japan. Maybe the goal was never a perfect home; just a happy one.

For more information visit IKEA Store & Organise Report 2026 and Ingka newsroom.