IKEA TV and Entertainment Center Hacks

fireplace wall with tv ideas

Right here, we'll explore some of the best IKEA entertainment center hacks that will help you design a beautiful and practical space for all your Netflix-and-chill needs. 

We have some ingenious IKEA hacks like this built-in TV wall, a sprawling bookshelf TV console that's a main focal point of the room to a small TV stand that takes up hardly any space.

Whether you prefer large entertainment centers with plenty of storage, to a simple minimal TV stand, we have DIY projects to inspire you to create the best entertainment center for your space.      

IKEA BESTÅ entertainment centers

The IKEA BESTÅ cabinets are a popular choice for entertainment centers as the modular system allows for customization options to create the entertainment center to best meet your needs.

You can combine frames, shelves, legs, and doors in various ways to achieve a unique look. A fabulous combination for a BESTÅ TV unit is to use a BESTÅ TV bench, with NANNARP legs, and three doors to create a sleek entertainment center for under $300.

But, on IKEA Hackers, there is more than one way to make a media console. See our selection of BESTÅ entertainment center hacks for more ideas.

IKEA BESTA built-in media cabinet

We made a Built-In Media Cabinet from stock BESTÅ units

We recently hacked two BESTÅ cabinets to make a beautiful built-in media cabinet. We decided to hack the BESTÅ because it has good “bulk” to it and makes for a nice built-in look. The…

BESTÅ entertainment unit

IKEA BESTÅ entertainment unit designed for an 82″ TV

We wanted an 80+ inch TV and looked at many commercial entertainment units and there were not many that would accept a TV this large. We wanted a ‘built-in’ look…

speaker fabric doors

PS5 ready: Solid to Speaker fabric HANVIKEN doors

There’s a room in the house called the Marty Cave. It’s like a Man Cave, but for Marty. And that’s me (phew) so that’s all good. And in the Marty…

This clever white TV stand hides a heap. So practical!

This clever white TV stand hides a heap. So practical!

I decided to update my TV stand, I asked myself: … shall we buy a ready and durable combination or … shall we try a cheap but functional DIY version?…

IKEA HEMNES series

The IKEA HEMNES is one of the more expensive ranges at IKEA as it features a solid wood construction. This series offers a TV unit already, so you're off to a good start in customising the HEMNES. A popular combination is to flank the TV unit with the HEMNES bookcases for a media center with plenty of storage.

But that can be a tad bland, so scroll on for more ideas on making your HEMNES entertainment center a lot more interesting.

Stripped down these IKEA items and the results are fab

Stripped down these IKEA items and the results are fab

I started with two HEMNES pieces — a bedroom end table and the wooden TV stand in black. I picked the TV Console for the size and storage. It also…

Custom Built-in Entertainment Center hacked from HEMNES units

Custom Built-in Entertainment Center hacked from HEMNES units

We wanted a built-in entertainment center / wall unit in our basement that we were finishing. Custom cabinetry was considered but it was way out of our budget. Then, we…

HEMNES console table restyled to TV unit

HEMNES console table restyled to TV unit

IKEA item used: HEMNES console table We have awkwardly placed plugs in the lounge in our new build house, they’re a little higher than normal and so are on show,…

Subwoofer in a Drawer

Subwoofer in a Drawer

Materials: Hemnes Three-Drawer TV Unit and Onkyo SubwooferDescription: I have an Onkyo soundsystem hooked up to the TV that sits on my Hemnes TV Unit and the subwoofer is so…

KALLAX as TV consoles

The KALLAX series is known for its minimalist, square design. And one of the most regularly hacked pieces of IKEA furniture. If you're looking for a simple yet functional TV stand design, look no further than the KALLAX. 

IKEA used to carry a KALLAX TV unit (similar to the LAPPLAND) with space at the center of the frame for a TV. That sadly is discontinued, but you can still hack a similar TV stand using the standard KALLAX shelving unit. 

Besides that, there are so many ways to use the KALLAX. Stack two units horizontally or vertically, depending on your room layout, to create a modern and airy entertainment center. Additionally, you can accessorize the KALLAX with doors, drawers, or inserts to increase storage options and add visual interest.

KALLAX tv and vinyl record storage unit

TV unit and vinyl record storage in one KALLAX

I searched high and low for a TV unit as I wanted to put vinyl records and other stuff together in one media unit. After some research on the Internet and…

blue kallax tv stand

Flat screen TV stand hack from IKEA KALLAX shelving

IKEA’s popular shelving unit modded into flat screen TV stand. Our house was built in 1957, when TVs were pieces of furniture. We wanted to be able to watch TV…

KALLAX transformed into Media Console

KALLAX transformed into Media Console

We wanted a big media console for our 50″ TV, but we didn’t want a standard IKEA stand or a $1000 console from West Elm. So we decided to make…

KALLAX TV bench that’s as eclectic as can be

KALLAX TV bench that’s as eclectic as can be

A delightful smorgasbord of colours transforms this mobile KALLAX TV bench The KALLAX unit was a bit boring for my taste, so I went ahead and painted it with acrylic…

IKEA kitchen cabinets for media storage

Not expecting to see the IKEA kitchen series on this list?

The SEKTION or METOD range is so versatile, you can actually use them as living room storage, and they won't look out of place. The key is to pick the right kitchen cabinet frames to fit its purpose as a TV stand.

To make a TV stand, the frame of choice is the fridge top cabinet, which carries a slimmer profile than most kitchen cabinets. Flip the door around so it opens downward and wrap the frame in wood for an excellent wall-mounted media console.  

fireplace wall with tv ideas

See how this Fireplace TV wall hack transformed the space

This is how I realised my idea for a TV wall with fireplace from IKEA kitchen cabinets. We originally had a wall mounted flat-screen TV with an electric fireplace beneath,…

home office in living room ikea hack

Clever hack for a Home Office in the Living Room

I moved recently and needed a new furniture set for the living room. High on the list was an out-of-sight home office workstation that flowed with the living room layout.…

tv cabinet wood top

Hack an IKEA TV cabinet with real wood top

I wanted a large cabinet for my TV (it’s 55″) that wouldn’t look too IKEA-ish, and I wanted it to have a real wood top. First, I looked at BESTÅ…

wall mounted tv cabinet

I cooked up a perfect wall mounted TV cabinet

I’ve been looking so long for the perfect wall mounted TV cabinet. It has to meet quite a few requirements: hanging for a spatial effect, lots of storage options (for…

BILLY Bookcase Entertainment Centers

The IKEA BILLY bookcase can also be an excellent choice for a media center. With its flexible shelving system, the BILLY bookshelf offers ample storage for your media and electronic devices.

It's not too expensive which means you can add as many bookcases as needed. And from there easily make a built-in entertainment center for a large TV, at a fraction of the cost of a custom built-in media unit.

ikea billy bookcase TV stand

Make a Bookcase TV Stand for 85-inch TV

So we had a 10 year old TV in the family area that eventually decided its time was up and went to sleep. We had a bulky low lying tv…

Billy CD Case Re-Engineered

Billy CD Case Re-Engineered

Materials: Billy Bookcase (80x202cm), 6 x Billy CD inserts, 24mm birch faced ply I kept my CD collection in a Billy bookcase for which I’d purchased the CD inserts (I think…

Billy library to entertainment center

Billy library to entertainment center

Materials: Billy bookcases, Besta TV stand, Framsta panelsDescription: We converted our guest bedroom into a TV viewing area and needed a wall unit that would hold a 42 inch TV…

Speakers built into book shelf

Speakers built into book shelf

Materials: Book shelf, drill, measuring tape, pencil.Description: My old, black speakers and stereo was taking up a lot of room on a window sill and all the cords were in…

LACK shelves for simple TV stands

Not to be overlooked is the modest IKEA LACK series. The tall IKEA LACK TV unit is the cheapest TV stand you can find on IKEA, while its sleeker brother, is so hackable and readily morphs into a handsome piece of furniture.

View all our LACK TV stand hacks

LACK TV Stand at twice the length

LACK TV Stand at twice the length

IKEA items used: 3 LACK TV Stands (3rd one for extra parts only) 2 Maximera Drawer frames – one 80 width x 60 depth, and one 60 width x 60…

Old IKEA LACK TV hacked into vintage style furniture

Old IKEA LACK TV hacked into vintage style furniture

Materials: Old model of LACK TV furniture and metal guides of IKEA panel curtains Adding elements to an old IKEA furniture I created a piece of furniture inspired by Scandinavian vintage…

Ikea Lack TV Stand Makeover

Ikea Lack TV Stand Makeover

The standard Lack TV stand we’ve had for many years was still going strong. Too strong, because even though it was the perfect size for our living room, I had…

adding a spacer to the lack tv bench

adding a spacer to the lack tv bench

what do you do if your ikea tv bench are a tad too low? frank serritelli hacked 2 lack tv benches so that the tv sits higher and their tv…

What style of IKEA entertainment center?

IKEA furniture is so versatile you can literally create any style of TV stands and media consoles that you like. From Farmhouse to Mid-Century-Modern to Minimalist, there's an IKEA hack to help you achieve the style you desire.

1. Built-in Look

A great IKEA hack for an entertainment center is to create a built-in look by using IKEA kitchen cabinets. Assemble the cabinets according to IKEA instructions and then put them in place. Add trim to the sides and tops to achieve a seamless built-in appearance.

View more built-in entertainment center hacks.

2. Rustic Industrial

A popular IKEA item to use to achieve the industrial look is the IKEA VITTSJÖ. You can add wooden crates or distressed wood paneling as your own personal touch to give it a more rustic feel.

View more rustic industrial entertainment center

3. Farmhouse style

Farmhouse-style entertainment centers often require a creative mix of IKEA units and your own DIY touches. Start with the IKEA storage unit of your choice like the BESTÅ unit or HEMNES. Then add wooden beams, shiplap, or barn-style doors as accents. You can also paint the cabinet units in a light color or add a distressed finish to give it that authentic farmhouse aesthetic.

4. Mid-Century Modern

To achieve the look of a Mid-Century Modern TV stand, the easiest DIY is to replace some furniture legs and attach era-appropriate door pulls, like in this IKEA STOCKHOLM hack that made it totally un-IKEA.

5. Floating TV stand

Optimize space while keeping a neat and tidy look by floating your TV or TV stand. Install BESTÅ unit to the wall to create a wall-mounted minimalist TV stand. Or you can even float your TV by mounting it to IKEA posts like the ELVARLI (or the discontinued STOLMEN) to lift your TV off the floor.

6. Hidden TV hack

Hide your TV behind lift-top doors or make it disappear altogether with the use of a projector.

All our TV and Media Furniture Hacks

fireplace wall with tv ideas

See how this Fireplace TV wall hack transformed the space

This is how I realised my idea for a TV wall with fireplace from IKEA kitchen cabinets. We originally had a wall mounted flat-screen TV with an electric fireplace beneath, artwork above on a blue shiplap wall. We wanted more storage cabinets around the TV and also a focal point…

built in billy bookcase with tv

Built-in hack turns BILLY bookcase into a bespoke display cabinet

We wanted to create the perfect playroom/snug for our growing boys, where they could easily find all of their toys and books, but also relax and watch movies together with their friends. But we were quoted over £3,500 for bespoke cabinets. We couldn’t justify the cost, so decided to try an IKEA hack. IKEA items…

home office in living room ikea hack

Clever hack for a Home Office in the Living Room

I moved recently and needed a new furniture set for the living room. High on the list was an out-of-sight home office workstation that flowed with the living room layout. My requirements for the project: – TV unit, sideboard and bar in same look and feel- hidden workspace for teleworking-…

IKEA BESTA built-in media cabinet

We made a Built-In Media Cabinet from stock BESTÅ units

We recently hacked two BESTÅ cabinets to make a beautiful built-in media cabinet. We decided to hack the BESTÅ because it has good “bulk” to it and makes for a nice built-in look. The BILLY was also considered but we thought they were not deep enough and felt it would have required more trim…

ikea billy bookcase TV stand

Make a Bookcase TV Stand for 85-inch TV

So we had a 10 year old TV in the family area that eventually decided its time was up and went to sleep. We had a bulky low lying tv cabinet on the floor, which I thought was time, after looking at it for years, to upgrade. I gave the…

BESTÅ entertainment unit

IKEA BESTÅ entertainment unit designed for an 82″ TV

We wanted an 80+ inch TV and looked at many commercial entertainment units and there were not many that would accept a TV this large. We wanted a ‘built-in’ look and custom cabinets were in the $5-7K range. Here’s a look at our finished BESTÅ entertainment unit. Related: Hack an…

KALLAX tv and vinyl record storage unit

TV unit and vinyl record storage in one KALLAX

I searched high and low for a TV unit as I wanted to put vinyl records and other stuff together in one media unit. After some research on the Internet and Pinterest I found some ideas with KALLAX and I wanted to make something with that. Related: 5 easy ways to…

blue kallax tv stand

Flat screen TV stand hack from IKEA KALLAX shelving

IKEA’s popular shelving unit modded into flat screen TV stand. Our house was built in 1957, when TVs were pieces of furniture. We wanted to be able to watch TV while sitting by the fire, but there was absolutely nowhere in the living room to put the flatscreen. (We are…

tv cabinet wood top

Hack an IKEA TV cabinet with real wood top

I wanted a large cabinet for my TV (it’s 55″) that wouldn’t look too IKEA-ish, and I wanted it to have a real wood top. First, I looked at BESTÅ units, but then I realized that I couldn’t fit four 60cm modules along the wall as it is 2cm too…

speaker fabric doors

PS5 ready: Solid to Speaker fabric HANVIKEN doors

There’s a room in the house called the Marty Cave. It’s like a Man Cave, but for Marty. And that’s me (phew) so that’s all good. And in the Marty Cave is my PS4 sitting on a shelf in my BESTÅ unit. One side is a solid glass door, with…

KALLAX transformed into Media Console

KALLAX transformed into Media Console

We wanted a big media console for our 50″ TV, but we didn’t want a standard IKEA stand or a $1000 console from West Elm. So we decided to make our own! Here’s the end result. Related: 5 easy ways to create a KALLAX TV stand We were able to…

hemnes mcm media console before

First timer hacker turns HEMNES into MCM Media Console

I wanted a new MCM media console, but didn’t want to shell out $1400 for one.  This is my first time making anything like this. I came in with no skills, a little will and hours and hours of Youtube videos which helped me complete the project. I’m so happy…

movie night ikea

4 ways to hack IKEA for a movie night at home

Lights off, cinema on. Movie night right at home. See how you can easily set up a projector and screen for the perfect movie night with your favourite persons. Step 1: Set up the movie night projector Big screen — that’s the first thing that differentiates a cinema experience from…

diy audio rack ikea

From boring industrial shelves to a fantastic audio rack

I decided to create this audio rack because my old rack was very short and that made it very difficult for me to push buttons or change a CD. etc. The total cost was around 70£ (local currency equivalent). I worked at this project for 3 days (during the evening after…

wall mounted tv cabinet

I cooked up a perfect wall mounted TV cabinet

I’ve been looking so long for the perfect wall mounted TV cabinet. It has to meet quite a few requirements: hanging for a spatial effect, lots of storage options (for all game devices, our stock of candles, etc.) It had to fit my interior and, of course, look nice! So…

ikea BRIMNES entertainment wall

How to DIY an affordable IKEA entertainment wall

My IKEA BRIMNES entertainment wall was inspired by another hack detailed here. They use the HEMNES, which are objectively nicer units, but also more expensive.  I tried to make up for it with my own trim and finishes.  The previous owner of this house had a large freestanding unit.  This…

KALLAX TV bench that’s as eclectic as can be

KALLAX TV bench that’s as eclectic as can be

A delightful smorgasbord of colours transforms this mobile KALLAX TV bench The KALLAX unit was a bit boring for my taste, so I went ahead and painted it with acrylic paint. IKEA items used: KALLAX shelving unit (1 x 4) Other materials and tools:  Acrylic paintCastor wheel x 4Plywood board…

Tv media console ikea hack

Massive TV Media Console with Speaker Cloth Fronts

I wanted a TV media console with speaker cloth on the doors. And I love the IKEA kitchen bench tops. So a hack was the only option. Our friends love the look of this TV media console. It looks very premium and has some very good functionality. Related: Minimalist floating…

This clever white TV stand hides a heap. So practical!

This clever white TV stand hides a heap. So practical!

I decided to update my TV stand, I asked myself: … shall we buy a ready and durable combination or … shall we try a cheap but functional DIY version? I know our taste and needs can change, so I choose IKEA because it’s easy to customize, cheap and I…

How to hack a store-like vinyl record storage cabinet

How to hack a store-like vinyl record storage cabinet

I collect vinyl records and I use the IKEA KALLAX as a vinyl record storage cabinet. They are inexpensive, look and work great but they have a limitation. I like the way record stores display their records on top, covers facing forward, so you can quickly flip through the records…

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