Buying furniture in Nairobi | The Best Furniture Stores, Cheap Beds, and nice Curtains

Finding good furniture in Nairobi can seem incredibly difficult. There’s no Ikea, and furniture stores are spread out all over the city. Finding a cheap bed, sofa set, or home office setup can take forever if you don’t know where to look.

And if you don’t know better, you could end up spending a fortune on overpriced, bad quality furniture.

To make your life easier, I’ll show you the best places to good quality, cheap furniture in Nairobi. From the legendary Ngong Road furniture workshops to secondhand Facebook groups, and much more. It’s all below.

Happy shopping!

3 Places to Find Cheap Furniture in Nairobi

  1. Look for second-hand furniture on the Facebook groups Nairobi Expat Marketplace and Nairobi Expat Moving Sale.
  2. Buy beautiful and affordable handcrafted furniture online at Lynk.
  3. Find almost everything you need at the furniture workshops on Ngong Road and prepare to haggle!
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Affordable Furniture Stores in Nairobi

Like any major city without an Ikea, Nairobi has plenty of big name, chain brand, showroom style, flat pack furniture stores.

Units are imported, often low quality, and incur extremely high duty fees from the Kenyan government. As a result, they generally target high end clientele – with prices to match. The most well-known brands are Victoria Court, Ashley Furniture, Elegance, Furniture Palace, and Jabali Furniture.

Only use these highend, expensive furniture stores as a last resort – you have plenty of cheaper options listed below.

If you still want the the convenience of ordering your furniture from one store, here are some affordable brands that offer high quality and good value for money.

Odds and Ends

Locations: Westlands and Mombasa Rd.

A great selection of sofas, beds, dining room furniture and various us lights, soft furnishings and the odd painting or homage to African wildlife.

It really is an ‘odds and ends’ store and you’ll need to be relatively quick when wanting to buy things as they don’t keep a large amount of stock. We got all sorts of things here including our corner sofa, cushions, and throw covers and they often have seasonal sales as well.

TACC

Locations: Garden City Mall, Thika Rd. and Lavington.

Its the closest thing you’ll get to Ikea and some items are well priced, especially ex-display and staff are very helpful and friendly. They stock everything from beds, dining tables, couches and books stands. TACC also have a tile centre in Lavington if you need items for building.

Lynk Online Furniture Store

Lynk online furniture store in Nairobi

Lynk started as a platform connecting Nairobi residents with skilled workers in the city.

They now offer a really nice range of well-made and affordable furniture.

Lynk’s furniture is all handmade on-demand, by local craftspeople in Nairobi, and they don’t have a physical store (yet). This helps them to keep costs down and deliver great quality, sturdy furniture directly to your home.

If you want to see examples of their work up close, they’ve also built beautiful custom furniture for Bao Box, Mama Rocks Kilimani, and Spring Valley Coffee.

Second Hand Furniture

Don’t worry if you don’t want to spend a lot of money furnishing your home. Finding really nice, cheap second hand furniture in Nairobi is easy.

Facebook Groups

The turnover of expats in Nairobi is huge. So there’s always someone leaving and selling all their stuff.

Join Nairobi Expat Marketplace and also Nairobi Expat Moving Sale to keep up with the latest sales, or post in the groups with specific requests.

Paying a deposit on Mpesa is standard to protect yourself and seller, and you’ll usually be expected to collect any purchases from the sellers apartment.

Toi Market – Ngong Road

I LOVE this market but it is not for everyone so bare in mind it’s hot and dusty and as a foreigner, you’ll need to haggle… hard.

So bearing this in mind, if you head into the main market, after passing the Uchumi and various clothes and shoe stalls, and enter in on the main road, on your right and left hand side before the fruit and veggie market start are a couple of excellent kitchen equipment stands.

They have products from Italy including weighing scales, flat-based pots, and brightly coloured pots and pans that really liven up your kitchen and make it look different to all your friends (who likely went to the large scale supermarkets). Make sure you haggle the price!

Salesboards in Sarit Centre/Yaya

Check saleboards in large malls across the city for sales of items, from cars to homes to baby items etc.

Always check the items and owners before handing over all the money.

Ngong Road Furniture Workshops

In a few neighbourhoods around Nairobi, you’ll find huge, informal roadside furniture workshops.

Think of them like giant flea markets made up of independent sellers operating side-by-side. Except at these markets, you can buy almost every kind of handmade furniture imaginable: beds, table sets, wardrobes, garden furniture, and much more.

Even barbeques and fire pits.

Furniture styles range from super modern to traditional Swahili designs. And if you can’t find what you’re looking for, they’ll often built custom made furniture just for you.

The most popular workshops are on Ngong Road.

You’ll find everything you could possibly imagine here and the strip makes for excellent window shopping.

Aside from furniture, Ngong road’s sellers boast impressive selections of plants, turf, water features, lifesize bronze giraffes (yes, please!), and children’s garden play equipment.

Quick Tips for Buying Furniture on Ngong Rd.

  1. Try before you buy: When you ‘re picking out potential purchases, don’t be afraid to try them out. Swing on the swing. Sit in the chair. Lean on the table. Wobble the bed. The sellers reaction to this will give you a good sense of their confidence in their own products.
  2. Be prepared to haggle: But don’t forget to have fun doing it.
  3. Never pay upfront: Pay a small deposit and settle the balance once your furniture is safely in your apartment. Take the stall owners’ phone number and, if you’re feeling extra cautious, take a photo of their ID.
  4. Have you items delivered: Many of the stalls will have trucks and can deliver your items for an extra price (you’ll need to negotiate). When they transport items, make sure they are being gentle with your new bed/wardrobe as it might get banged around in the back of a truck. Ask for them to lay a groundsheet and to be careful when loading/unloading.
  5. Only buy from guys with furniture on display: To avoid issues with quality and scams.

Dennis Pritt Roundabout Workshops

At the corner of Dennis Pritt Road and Likoni Road in Kilimani, there are a few furniture workshops in between the plant and fruits/veggie sellers. They also have a weirdly impressive collection of porcelain toilets for sale.

It’s a good spot to buy from if you’re in the Kilimani/Yaya area. We bought 8 bamboo plants and had 3 long pots made to measure for 4000kes.

Red Hill Road Workshops

Apparently, the quality of furniture at the workshops on the way to Karura Forest in Gigiri tends to be slightly better – perhaps due to high society and diplomatic residents living nearby.

This means you’ll also need to haggle a lot harder with these guys, as they’re used to Embassy and UN employees with big budgets. Also factor in longer transport costs if you are getting back to Westlands/Kilimani/Junction area.

Small Furniture and Utensils

House of Leather

Locations: Kilimani, Westlands, The CBD

Despite the name, House of Leather sells very little actual leather. None, really.

Instead, House of Leather is popular discount store that follows the philosophy “pile it high and sell it cheap”. It’s excellent if you’re furniture shopping on a budget, stocking everything you need for your kitchen and small home decorating touches.

It truly is amazing the things you’ll find at House of Leather, so prepare to leave with more than you planned.

Come by around Christmas for great value trees and decorations.

Amani ya Juu

Location: Riverside Drive

Amani ya Juu is a delightful garden cafe and shop run by a small women’s charity, providing work and income across East Africa.

You can find women quilts, children and adult clothes, wall hangings, kitchenware and utensils, laptop cases, jewellery, a wonderful range of kitenge Christmas decorations, and so much more.

The garden restaurant is large and shady, with a jungle gym area for kids, and a great menu.

Miniso

Locations: All big shopping malls in Nairobi

I have a love/hate relationship with Miniso. I love the store, but I hate that I can’t control myself when I’m in there.

The Chinese brand dollar store can be found in malls across Nairobi selling stylish but cheap electronics, fashion accessories, travel gear, and homewares.

Take a quick in Miniso and you’ll quickly find something you didn’t know you needed for your apartment.

Carrefour – Various locations

Carrefour seven stores across Nairobi also stock home and kitchen items, electronics, the odd outdoor tent, and much more.

Items are high quality but priced fairly.

Mr Price Home

Locations: Sarit Centre, Yaya Centre, Westgate, Two Rivers Mall, Junction, Garden City

Mr. Price, the clothing store, sells surprisingly good quality and stylish clothes at great prices.

It’s younger brother, Mr. Price Home (also known as simply MRP in Kenya), sells surprisingly bad quality furniture and decor at stupidly high prices.

If you feel like spending $120 for a mirror, Mr. Price is the place for you!

Small items like plates and bowls are reasonably priced year round, but for everything else, wait until there’s a sale on before you enter.

Honourable Mentions

Spinners Web (Westlands) – A large warehouse selling a huge collection of paintings, carpets, table lamps, ‘Made in Kenya’ kitenge clothes, fridge magnets, and much more. Many of the products are made by small-scale handicraft charities and women’s projects.

Prices are fixed so no haggling required.

Spinners Web also has a very cute independent café.

Noor Lighting (Sarit Centre) – A huge range and of lighting and lampshade styles at affordable prices. Friendly owners. Both indoor and outdoor lighting available.

Goodie’s African Interiors (Viking House, Westlands) – High quality custom-made chairs, stools, and tables at good prices. They also sell an excellent range of photoframes, large maps of East Africa and Kenya, and handmade cards.

Taste of Turkana (Viking House, Westlands)  – This large store is piled high with shopping bags, laundry baskets, rugs, and handbags made from woven reeds from Turkana. The shop has that wonderful warm reed scent, excellent prices, and potential to haggle if you are buying multiple items.

Game Store (Garden City Mall) – HUGE selection of homeware and GREAT for kids stuff, garden items, and camping equipment. Lots of plastic items and not the highest quality but great for one stop shopping and especially if you need an adult hoolahoop to keep your adult boyfriend busy.

Tusky’s and Chandarana (various locations) Both supermarkets usually have large sections for cheap homewares, electronics, and kitchen items. Take a look when you’re grocery shopping and you might find something you need.

Jumia – Africa’s biggest online marketplace also sells furniture of every kind. It can be very difficult to judge the actual quality of your purchase until arrives, so it’s best for smaller purchases like kitchenware and utensils.

If you don’t feel like shopping in person, Jumia is quick and convenient. You don’t even need to leave home.

Electronics Shops in Nairobi

Hotpoint LG Store (Sarit Centre) – Plenty of high-end, name brand electronics at prices to match.

E Zone (TRM Mall, Thika) – Good prices for TVs and other items. Prepare to haggle.

Text Book Centre (Sarit Centre) – You’ll find laptops, printers, ink cartridges, wifi modems, projectors, and anything else for your home office.

Elite Digital (Sarit Centre) – Kenya’s Apple Store, this stocks all Apple products including iPhones, iPads, Macs, and all Apple accessories. They also do very good repairs but can be expensive. They accept Apple insurance.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is there Ikea in Kenya?

No. Ikea has not made it to East Africa yet. Ikea also doesn’t deliver to Kenya. You could have Ikea furniture delivered through a mail forwarding service, but this would be incredibly expensive.

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15 thoughts on “Buying furniture in Nairobi | The Best Furniture Stores, Cheap Beds, and nice Curtains”

  1. I have lived in Kenya for many years and even I learned a bunch. I can’t wait to check out some of these places next time I’m in Nairobi. Thanks! X

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  6. Super Helpful. I recently bought my furniture from HUDSON FURNISHING at Garden City Mall and I kinda think those guys should be on this blog. They are superb!
    Nice article.

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