If you’re on the hunt for the best IKEA bookshelves for board games storage, you’re in good company. With collections that range from a handful of classic family games to entire walls of titles, board gamers everywhere are searching for selves that not only look good, but work hard. We, like you, are constantly on the search for the best storage solution for our games. We’ve tried multiple types throughout the years, including building our own storage solution. We’ve also owned and tested multiple IKEA bookcases in our home, filled to the brim with games of all sizes, and we’re sharing the pros and cons of each to help you find the perfect match for your collection! 

So let’s get to it and give our thoughts on the four most popular bookshelf options IKEA has: The Kallax, the Billy, the Tonstad, and the Hemnes.

The Kallax

It’s probably likely that if you’re reading this, you’ve seen the chokehold these square bookshelves have on board gamers. 

Priced low, seemingly unbreakable, and coming in a wide variety of size options, these bookshelves have been the go-to for many homes. However, it is with serious love in my heart for you and your overall happiness that I recommend you avoid this shelf option for board games.

This is our least preferred option for games for a number of reasons, but I’ll give you the top three reasons to AVOID the Kallax.

First and most importantly, the square shape of each shelf is too limiting.

They rob you of a massive amount of shelf space that a traditional bookshelf provides. When shelving a standard board game box, you can typically fit, at most, 4-5 games in a single square. We’ve had our Kallax’s for years (back from when they were known as Expedit) and there’s no delicate way to put this: They simply do not hold that many games.

(It takes three cubes of the Kallax to hold what one shelf on the Hemnes can!)

Secondly: the shelves are not adjustable.

Often this leaves you with a bit of air space above your games and on the sides, so you’ll attempt to fill this in with a random assortment of small games perfectly Tetris’ed into their places. Turning the act of putting the games away into a solo puzzle that only you can solve and will frequently need to reconfigure. 

Adjustable shelves are huge when trying to fit as many games in a bookcase as possible — the kallax is locked into its square shape indefinitely. You can spend as much extra money as you’d like on the new shelves or drawers that IKEA and other third party providers have created in an attempt to make the square shape more functional, but that’s just more money to fix a bookcase that isn’t working. 

Thirdly: The shelves are too deep.

At a whopping 15 3/8” deep, each square of the Kallax becomes a deep cave. Add in the likely bump your shelf will get from the floor trim and they’re even deeper since there is no backing board to stop your games from going all the way to the wall or falling between the shelf and the wall. 

This depth is only good for a select few games. For average games, you’re left with a bunch of unused space either in the front or, likely, in the back as you try to keep your games flush with the front so you can see them. For small games they’re unusable, requiring you to stack games two rows deep leaving the back games forgotten. Baskets will be your next solution, but then you’ll be left with 8 inches of dead air above them.

In short: we do not recommend using a Kallax shelf for board games. 

The Billy

Easily IKEA’s most famous bookshelf for book-lovers, and the star of many stunning DIY built-in projects. But does the Billy work well for board games? 

Yes….and no. 

What we like about the Billy Bookshelf

The Billy bookshelf is an excellent budget option. You can snag a large Billy for $70 and each shelf can hold a ton of games. 

We currently have four Billy bookshelves in our home, one large bookshelf, and three half bookshelves. Each were extremely easy to put together and feel very sturdy for the price. They’re a no-nonsense shelf with a classic look to them that won’t go out of style. 

What we LOVE about the Billy bookshelf

The shelf heights are highly adjustable and IKEA sells extra shelves so you can get even more storage out of your bookshelf! This allows you to create larger sections for taller games and shorter sections for your small to medium size games without having a bunch of leftover space. 

If adjustability is your goal, you won’t find a better option in IKEA than the Billy. However…

What we don’t like about the Billy bookshelf

The biggest set back for the Billy bookshelf is that it is simply not deep enough for the standard size large games like your Ticket to Ride and other similar games that come in the standard 12×12 square box. 

The Billy shelf depth is 10 1/4” deep which sees these games overhanging by a significant amount. Even if you were to use these shelves to create a built in look in your home, adding trim to the front of each shelf likely wouldn’t make up the difference needed for large games to sit flush on the shelf. 

Since the Billy is intended to be one of IKEAs more budget friendly options, the shelves are also of a slightly lower quality compared to other shelving options. They’re meant to hold books, not heavy board games. I have seen many images of bowing Billy shelves that give me pause about extended storage of heavy or large games on the shelves. This is something I would recommend strongly considering before using these shelves for any type of more permanent built in project.

Even with the drawback of the shelf depth, the Billy is an excellent, cost effective choice for board games. Particularly if you have a collection composed of primarily smaller to medium sized games or are just looking for a storage solution for those games in your collection!

The Tonstad

The newest bookcase in IKEA is the Tonstad. These are a larger, heavier bookcase designed much like the Billy with a classic yet more high quality look.

I snagged one of these shelves to use in my office and honestly love how it looks. If I didn’t know it was IKEA and saw it in someone’s home, I would absolutely have thought it was a solid wood bookshelf. I am currently using this shelf to hold board games and there are a lot of things I love, but also a few things that I do not.

What we like about the Tonstad

This might seem like a small thing, but I quite like how the Tonstad comes with adjustable feet hidden underneath the trim board. The Billy and Kallax are at the mercy of your floor being level, but the Tonstad has four adjustable feel so you can get it perfectly level wherever you choose to set it up. 

Appearance wise, we think the Tonstad looks the most high end of all the bookshelf options IKEA has. It looks like a solid wood bookshelf and doesn’t immediately scream “IKEA” when you see it in a room. The classic look likely will never go out of style in your home and would look incredible with multiple side by side to form a wall unit..

What we LOVE about the Tonstad 

Not only is the Tonstad shelf gorgeous, but it is built like a tank. Out of all the IKEA bookshelves that we have, the Tonstad is by far the most solid.

The shelves are thick and heavy! I have no worries about the shelves bowing and would use it to hold our heavier games in a heartbeat. 

The shelves themselves are deep but not caves. At 13 3/4” they’re about as perfect as you can get for medium, large, and extra large board games. We’re able to fit our largest and tallest games on the shelves with no overhang or issues. 

That said, if you are looking for an all around shelf, you might want to note that smaller games stored on the Tonstad will benefit from a bin to help keep them organized to make the best use of the shelf depth.

What we don’t like about the Tonstad

I was ready to declare this the best shelf option for board games right up until I realized that the shelves, while advertised as adjustable, are only slightly adjustable. 

In an effort to make the bookshelf look sleek without all the peg holes you can see like with the Billy, the Tonstad has only three height options for its adjustable shelves. At most, you can adjust a shelf up or down about 2 inches. While this may be helpful for a few of the taller games in your collection, it’s hardly enough space to truly customize the shelf heights to fit smaller games.

If your goal is to pack the Tonstad as full as possible, you may find yourself disappointed with the five shelves that feel seemingly locked in place. 

All that said, we still think the Tonstad is an excellent choice particularly for larger and heavier games. 

The Hemnes

If you’ve been following us on Instagram, you’ve likely seen that since we moved, we picked up no less than FIVE of these shelves (for a score on Facebook Marketplace!) to hold a good portion of our game collection in our new home. While these shelves are a somewhat temporary solution until I finalize my plans for a larger built-in unit, they’ve proven to be a great option for us! 

What we like about the Hemnes bookcase: 

The bookcase sits on feet rather than flush on the floor making it feel a bit more elegant and timeless. 

Much of the bookcase’s construction is completely hidden. The adjustable shelf settings are set inside the trim so when viewed you do not even see them, making it look like it’s one solid piece. 

What we LOVE about the Hemnes bookcase:

These bookcases are made to provide some serious storage space! There are six shelves you can store games on and four of them are adjustable. (The center shelf and bottom/floor of the bookcase are stationary for sturdiness.) 

We adjusted our Hemnes to have a smaller section at the top for small games and larger sections on the bottom for the bigger games. It works very well. While it’s hard to give a rough estimate of how many games you can expect to store, one of our Hemnes has over 90 games stored on the shelves! They are serious workhorses! 

The shelves are 11 1/2” deep, making them a bit more useful than the Billy, and not too deep like the Kallax. The great news, is that the bottom shelf of the Hemnes has a trim panel on the front, this gives it an extra 3/4 of an inch which makes it the *exact* depth needed to hold a larger game box like Ticket to Ride! While I wish it had a smidge more wiggle room, the games sit perfectly flush with the front with no overhang, so I’m absolutely happy! 

What we don’t like about the Hemnes bookcase: 

The biggest issue I have with the Hemnes is that it doesn’t feel nearly as sturdy as the Tonestad and has a few elements that leave me wanting more. 

Now I want to say that we got our Hemnes bookcases second-hand so they had a bit of wear from previous use and the move to our home; but some of these concerns I also checked with the floor models in IKEA on our trip and feel comfortable saying that this is something to be aware of for new bookshelves. 

The back of the bookshelf is easily the most disappointing part of the Hemnes. It’s very flimsy and if you are shoving items roughly into it when putting them away, you could damage it and have bend and pull from the sides.

The bookshelf is made from pine, but they feel less sturdy than the Tonstad, especially when empty and the shelves aren’t quite as thick. That said, we’ve had our shelves packed with game and there has been no bending or bowing of the shelves, so I don’t think it’s cause for concern.

So… which IKEA bookcase should you use for your board games? 

Choosing the right bookcase for your board games depends a lot on your collection size, typical box dimensions, and how much you care about aesthetics vs functionality. After years of rotating, rearranging, and road-testing these IKEA shelves in our own home, we’ve found clear strengths (and definite drawbacks) with each option. 

Whether you’re looking for the best bookcase for small games, large games, or just a solid solution that won’t break the bank, here are our top picks. 

The Best All Around Bookcase: The Hemnes 

The larger depth of the shelves along with their adjustability make the Hemnes our top choice for the best all around bookcase for holding the most board games of various sizes.

The Best Quality Bookcase: The Tonstad

This bookshelf is extremely sturdy and feels the most high quality of all our IKEA shelves. While not adjustable, the shelves are the perfect depth for board games and can hold a lot without fear of bowing. 

The Best Budget Friendly Bookcase: The Billy

These shelves are an IKEA icon for a reason. They’re affordable yet quality and are a great size for your small to medium games. The half bookshelf unit is the perfect choice for a kids’ game shelf. 

The Perfect Combination? 

If it makes sense for the look your going for in your home, I think using a combination of Billy bookshelves for small games and Tonstad’s for larger games may be the best way to go. They have similar wood tone options so you can match them relatively closely. You could get the more budget friendly Billy’s for your small and medium size games and a Tonstad or two for larger games. Then they’re easy to add to down the road as your board game collection expands!

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