IKEA PAX Wardrobe Review: Sizes, the New Wall-Mounted Frame, and How to Plan One

The short verdict

PAX is the most flexible way to build a full closet wall on a budget, provided you plan it to the centimetre. The system rewards measuring: once you know your wall width at every height, your ceiling height, and how much floor the doors need, it is hard to go wrong. It is less forgiving of rooms with sloped ceilings, uneven walls, or walls that cannot take a fixing, since every current PAX frame must be mounted to the wall.

How we reviewed it

This is a source-verified review. In September 2026 we read IKEA US's PAX planning guide, the PAX system page, and product pages for the PAX wall-mounted storage frame and PAX 2 wardrobe frames. We have not assembled a PAX. Where IKEA's pages gave slightly different figures, we use the product pages.

Every PAX size, in inches and cm

The two depths do different jobs. The standard 22 7/8 in depth takes clothes on hangers hanging side to side. At 13 3/4 in, the shallow frame is too shallow for that, since an adult's hanger is typically about 17 in wide, so it suits shelves, shoes, folded clothes, and small hallways and bedrooms where floor space is tight.

The new wall-mounted frame

IKEA's current PAX frames are sold as "PAX wall-mounted storage frames", and they work differently from older PAX frames. According to the product page, the frame has "a foldable construction that you open like a book," so you assemble it in the space where it will stand rather than building it on the floor and lifting it upright. It then hangs on a rail fixed to the wall, which is included; the screws and plugs for your wall are not, because different wall materials need different fasteners. IKEA says two people are needed to assemble it.

• What it improves: no heavy lifting of a finished frame, and no need for extra ceiling height to tilt a frame upright, which was a common problem with tall PAX frames in rooms with standard ceilings.
• What it requires: a wall that can take a fixing along the rail. That is harder in some rentals, and in rooms with plasterboard where you need to find studs or use the right anchors.
• What owners say: in online discussions of the redesign, some owners describe the upright assembly as quite different from the old screw-together frames, and some prefer the old design. We have not assembled either, so we cannot judge sturdiness.

If you are buying secondhand, check whether the frames are the older kind or the new wall-mounted kind, and confirm with IKEA which doors and fittings are compatible before you mix old and new parts; the pages we read did not address it.

Hinged or sliding doors

IKEA's planning guide lists hinged doors in 9 7/8 and 19 1/2 in widths and pairs of soft-closing sliding doors in 59 and 78 3/4 in widths. The sliding widths match two frames exactly: two 29 1/2 in frames make 59 in, and two 39 3/8 in frames make 78 3/4 in.

• Hinged doors give full access to the whole wardrobe at once and fit any frame, but a 19 1/2 in door swings nearly 20 in into the room, so the wardrobe needs about 42 in from the wall before you add room to stand. Allow about 36 in (91 cm) of clear floor in front, as for a dresser in our furniture clearance guide.
• Sliding doors need no swing space, so they suit a wardrobe facing a bed in a narrow room, but you can only open half the width at a time and they need a slightly higher ceiling.

Planning a PAX wall that fits

Most PAX disappointments are measurement problems. A typical example from home decorating forums: a 270 cm closet that seems just too short for two 100 cm frames and a 75 cm frame, because that combination is 275 cm. The fix is to plan from the fixed sizes, not from the wall.

1. Measure the width at the floor, the middle, and the top, and use the smallest. Walls are rarely perfectly straight or square.
2. Measure the ceiling height at several points, including where any light fitting or beam is, and check it against the minimums above.
3. Add up frame widths to the nearest combination below your smallest width, and plan filler strips or an end panel for the gap.
4. Check skirting boards, sockets, and switches behind the frames, and the door swing in front, before you order.
5. Build it in IKEA's PAX planner, then draw it on your room plan with the doors open; our bedroom layout plans show how much floor a wardrobe wall leaves.

These are frame widths only. Doors sit on the front of the frames and some end panels add thickness, so confirm the final width in the planner, and leave a little tolerance for walls that are not straight.

Prices and ratings

Frames alone are only part of the cost: doors, hinges, and interior fittings are sold separately, and a well-fitted interior can cost as much as the frames. PAX carries a 10-year limited warranty. IKEA lists the frames as fiberboard, particleboard, and paper foil, which is standard for flat-pack wardrobes; our solid wood vs engineered wood comparison explains what that means for repairs. IKEA's customer ratings were 4.5 of 5 from 1,175 reviews for the PAX 2 frames and 3.9 of 5 from 75 reviews for one of the single wall-mounted frames.

Who it suits, and who should skip it

• A straight wall or alcove, and a ceiling of 94 1/2 in or more?→Tall frames, with any doors.
• A standard 8 ft (96 in) ceiling with a light fitting or beam?→Measure at the fitting; you may need the short frames.
• Less than about 42 in plus standing room in front?→Sliding doors, or the shallow frames.
• Cannot fix anything to the wall?→Choose a freestanding wardrobe instead.