MIT Furniture Exchange

I just moved to Boston with no furniture or kitchen items to my name, and was SO excited to find this place. I’ve been telling everyone I know about it. We got a ton of kitchen wares for $ 8. We didn’t find any furniture to buy – we arrived about 30 minutes before closing on Saturday, so perhaps stuff in the morning had been picked over. We plan to go this Saturday again, but at 10 am this time to see if we can snag some awesome stuff. There was a lot of ikea furniture but there was also a LOT of really cool old furniture for great prices. Love their philanthropic cause and the shop they run! Can’t wait to come back next week.
FYI here are the upcoming dates and hours from their website:
Always Tuesday & Thursday 10am — 4pm
and
Sat. August 8, 10am — 1pm
Sat. August 22, 10am — 1pm
Sat. August 29, 10am — 1pm
Sat. September 5, 10am — 1pm

ikea, ikea, ikea. more.

Great, great deal on used furniture. Greatest thing about it? Proceeds go towards women’s scholarships at MIT.
The MIT FX only sells to patrons with university affiliation in the greater Boston area. Customers must show a valid university ID in order to make a purchase. I only arrived in the city a few days ago and have not picked up my new ID, but Julie was SUPER nice and helpful, allowing to show her my university email address on my iPhone as proof.
There are a few new items available (all mattresses are NEW — they don’t accept used ones), so I picked up a brand new full-​sized futon frame AND mattress for $ 225. Then, I came away with some good buys on used stuff too: small wooden dining table and four chairs ($ 75), a not too obnoxiously floral sofa ($ 50), a small wooden coffee table ($ 15), and a broad wooden desk ($ 40). I also picked up misc. items like plates, toaster, lamp, plastic drawers, etc. for real cheap as well as couple of things on the house since I was making a huge purchase.
Inventory, of course, changes all the time. You can find stuff for all rooms in your house. The store is open on Tuesdays and Thursdays as well as 1^st Saturdays, and during the peak move-​in month, August, a few more Saturdays. They have a good relationship with Your Move Inc. for deliveries where you’ll pay $ 60/​hour instead of the moving company’s normal $ 100/​hour.
Only complaint is that the FX is NOT a ten minute walk from the Red Line, as the website suggests. Just take the 47 down from the T, and you’ll be better off than walking 15 – 20 minutes down from Central Square.
I will totally return for random stuff here again. Thanks!

Just moved back to the area and went to see what was available. The woman in front of me was able to negotiate the price of her purchase but when I suggested a lower price for my purchase, a sign stating that prices are not negotiable was pointed out to me. I don’t understand the inconsistent treatment of customers and don’t plan on going back.

Good place to find bargains and values. We got a terrific living room chair there for a steal, and it benefits women’s scholarships too. Staff was very friendly and helpful. This past time I was there it seemed cleaner and brighter, and less «musty-​warehouse» than previously.

The bad news: you need a local college ID (faculty, staff, student) to shop here. AND, there is a lot of old, bland furniture, and sometimes too much used Ikea. If you need furniture NOW, you might need to settle for the above. The hours are limited and probably inconvenient.
The good news: the inventory turns over FAST. If you can wait, there will be something for you. Some interesting piece of furniture you can’t find anywhere else. You might have to fix it up, but at these prices, you can’t go wrong. The staff is very helpful and friendly, and they have an arrangement with a local moving company for reliable, inexpensive moving services if you need it.

Wow. This place has lots of reasonably priced treasures in good condition. No matching furniture sets when we were there, but if we had room for a dining room table right now we could have gotten a beautiful one with two extension leaves and four chairs in great condition for $ 300. A double MacClaren Stroller for under $ 100. A good amount of children’s furniture and clothing. Great stuff and great deals — can’t wait to go back.

I plan to go back again during moving season but I had just gone to check out the place anyway and this is what I thought:
Furniture: Very antique-​y… I am not quite sure yet.
Other trinkets: Beautiful and extremely cheap dishes, mugs, glasses etc. I ended up buying a cute set of wine glasses even though I never drink (it was cheap!). I also bought some other showpieces for less than a dollar! Seriously!
The people: All volunteers, extremely nice.
Hours: Slightly inconvenient but oh well…
Location: A little out of the way, but not too hard to find. Great if you have a car.

This is absolutely my favorite new discovery. After a weekend of disappointing and unsuccessful hunting at Cambridge and Somerville used and vintage furniture stores, we went here last Tuesday looking for some kitchen chairs. We got three quirky, solid, perfect, mismatched chairs for less than $ 50 – far, far less than ONE chair would have been at most of the obnoxious resale places we visited. Also purchased: a $ 10 antique radio. Tempted by many other items. This place is full of treasures and I fully intend on going back often, whenever my time off and the ridiculously limited open hours of this place coincide. (The hours are a bummer, but I’m willing to make it work, this place is totally worth it.) Yes, you must be a student from one of a small handful of local schools in order to shop here, so this place is not for everyone, but there are thousands of students at these schools who should know about and take advantage of this wonderful place. Super bonus point for being literally just down the street from me and for donating profits to the MIT Women’s League scholarship fund.

I moved last September and didn’t want to invest in brand new, expensive furniture for my apt that I knew I’d only be in for 1 – 2 years. I also did not want to get lost in the mazes of Ikea, only to emerge hours later with a bag of swedish meatballs and find that the sun had set. This is the perfect place to get some funky, unique pieces for your place without too much money or effort.
There is some really beautiful, high quality furniture here for a steal! I got 2 kitchen chairs for $ 10 each, a nice lamp for 15 $, and tons of framed art for less than $ 20. They have a great selection of tables, dressers, desks, ranging from $ 50-​$ 100 and furniture rotates through often so there are always new things. You can check out their website beforehand, as they sometimes post pictures of their current inventory.
The one negative thing about this place is that their hours are really limited– They are only open one Saturday a month so you really have to plan your trip! And don’t forget your student ID– they do ask for that at check out.

The best thing about this place: no visible Ikea crap.
Just got back from picking up an amazing dining table and dresser (with a gigantic matching mirror and a nightstand). The staff are extremely helpful and friendly — they let us polish the table in the store (with their furniture polish), and helped us fix a couple of the dresser drawers that were missing small pieces.
I’m an incoming grad student, so I don’t have an ID yet, but they let me use my welcome letter instead.

this place is the bomb. ive been there twice so far and i have to say i have a 100 percent success rate. the first time around, i found a kitchen table set that looks like its from a 50s diner– white formica table with yellow pleather chairs that swivel around a white metal base. so cute! today was my second time around, and i found a nice wooden (real wood not plywood or plastic stuff) 5 drawer dresser and a white rococo corner dresser/​shelf unit, $ 50 each. the people who volunteer there are super nice, and they have those carpet wrapped skateboard looking things that you can use to move your large purchases to the zip car. too bad for you if you’re not an mit or harvard student (you need an id to get in).

New to Boston? Going to MIT, Harvard, Suffolk or BU? On a budget?
You are saved — coz the MIT Furniture Exchange is here!!!
This place is like Goodwill — except it does not smell. Stuff is used but clean and in good condition.
What do you get here:
— Virtually all the furniture that you need to set up your room /​apartment /​house.
— Set up your kitchen
— Some more out of place stuff: Pool table (not kidding, go to the website!)
What you don’t get here:
— Clothes
— Crowds: seems very few people know about the place
What to watch out for:
Most of the stuff is donated. Some of it has been repaired but the staff always point it out to you.
Who can go?
MIT /​Harvard /​Suffolk and BU affiliation only. They require an ID at checkout. If you are not, find a friend who goes there, that also works.
Is it worth it?
YES! You can get real good stuff there for an amazing price. All proceeds go to the MIT Women’s League
How will I move the stuff?
The movers they suggest (Your Move) are great and do the work for a real cheap rate (or i got lucky).
And finally:
You can also sell or donate your stuff to them.
Hours:
Tuesdays, Thursday and the first Saturday of each month. Check website.