Since 1995, the IKEA PS line has served as the Swedish brand’s experimental heart. This year marks the 10th collection, and based on my conversation with some of the team behind it on launch morning, it’s clear that this year’s vision isn’t just about internet-breaking furniture.
As Anna Granath, Range Manager for IKEA PS 2026, explained to me: “Right now there is also quite a lot of darkness in the world and we need to have a little spark of joy through everyday life, right?”
The collection’s unique DNA comes from its collaborative process, involving 12 designers working alongside engineers and suppliers.
Designer Mikael Axelsson was one of those collaborators, and for him, the experience was transformative. He describes being out on the factory floor with access to materials as being like a “kid in a candy shop.” Axelsson emphasizes that there is never competition between designers in these workshops, only a process of building ideas off one another.
That said, the crown jewel of this collection is Axelsson’s IKEA PS 2026 Easy Chair, a bold, green inflatable seat that represents a major evolution in air-based furniture. While IKEA experimented with inflatables in the 90s with mixed results, the 2026 version solves previous issues with a textile cover to eliminate squeaking and interior chambers for stable support.
Beyond the conceptual appeal, air enables minimal packaging and reduced raw material use, making it easy to ship flat. Axelsson was excited to show me the actual box, noting that it’s lightweight and compact enough to tote home on the subway. (IKEA is opening a new, smaller-format store in Soho, New York City later this year.)
Defining ‘Democratic Design’
The PS collection centers around ‘democratic design,’ a philosophy of balancing form, function, quality and sustainability at an accessible price.
It’s easy to design something beautiful that’s very expensive, but it’s much trickier to design beautiful things for an affordable price.
Mikael Axelsson, IKEA
Granath describes it as a “recipe” followed from the very start of designing products. They ensure that everything, down to a simple joint, looks beautiful while maintaining quality and affordability.
For Axelsson, the challenge of the price tag fuels creativity: “It’s easy to design something beautiful that’s very expensive, but it’s much trickier to design something beautiful for an affordable price.”
Designing icons for spaces of all sizes
IKEA PS is notorious for creating “cult favorites” that often become more valuable over time. Granath said the team is often “surprised by what catches people’s minds,” admitting the products they least expect to become iconic are sometimes the ones that stay.
“If I knew how to design an icon, I would only design icons,” Axelsson added.
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This collection, to some extent, targets an icon’s functionality and flexibility in smaller spaces. Pieces like Lex Pott’s floor uplighter use 45° angle cuts to create multi-functionality, while Ola Wihlborg’s bedside table hides cable management behind a playful “birdhouse” door. Henrik Preutz’s stackable chair encourages different sitting positions; Alexander Pott’s four-level trolley resembles a tiered cake; and Matilda Lindstam Nilsson’s chair-bed unfolds from lounge seat to guest bed.
You can check out the entirety of the collection here.
A strategic pop of color
The collection’s bold, playful palette is a deliberate choice. While Axelsson acknowledges that people often ask why specific colors like green for the Easy Chair were picked, he explains that these are not short-term trends. In fact, development for the inflatable took 2.5 years, so the team looked at the “bigger picture” of how people move and live.
Granath said that these aesthetic choices are about safety and personality. She notes that in a changing world, people want to feel safe at home and have their personalities reflected through a mix of neutrals and bright, joyful colors.
The PS legacy
This year’s PS collection continues its legacy with expressive, collectible pieces designed for everyday use exploring the idea that simplicity doesn’t have to be boring.
The IKEA PS 2026 will be sold exclusively in IKEA U.S. stores from May 14–27 for limited-time early access with the full collection available online starting May 28.
Whether any of these pieces become future cult classics remains to be seen. But if the goal was to inject a little surprise and joy into everyday spaces, especially small ones, IKEA PS 2026 already feels like it’s doing exactly what it set out to do.
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