In the spring of 2022, my partner and I had the opportunity to fulfill a shared childhood dream: purchasing an elegant one-bedroom apartment in the vibrant city of Porto, Portugal. As we stepped inside, keys in hand, I was immediately struck by the refreshing emptiness of the apartment, a blank canvas ready to be transformed into our dream apartment. However, the initial feeling of relief was short-lived and quickly replaced by a sense of panic as we realized we had only five days to furnish, decorate, and equip the space.
With a lot of work ahead of us and only a week to complete it, we quickly sprung into action — researching furniture stores, scouring Porto blogs, desperately looking for where we might find the right furniture pieces to compliment our soon-to-be Airbnb apartment. It was a daunting task, but we were determined to create a home that reflected our style and personality.
Luckily Porto is a city full of character, charm, and history with plenty of great furniture stores that offer unique, affordable, and stylish pieces — you just have to know where to find them.
Here are the best Porto stores to shop for furniture, decoration, & homeware in for your new home or bnb:
Also, checkout our Porto Furniture City Guide on Google Maps for all the places mentioned here & more!
1. Area Store — Furniture & Decoration, Moderate Pricing, Wide Variety
Outside of the city center but easily accessible by Uber or car — we spent way too much time here, practically coming back everyday for small decorations & to look for staple furniture pieces that we might have previously overlooked.
Area Store is a modern and stylish Porto furniture store that offers contemporary and minimalist pieces. If you’re looking for a Scandinavian-inspired aesthetic, this is the store for you. From sofas to dining tables to lighting fixtures, you’ll find a wide selection of chic and functional pieces at Area Store. If you are planning in advance, the store also has a wider online catalogue and can order furniture pieces for your arrival.
What we took from here: Though it does have high-price items in stock, there are a lot of reasonable decoration pieces to be found here and they have sale pieces in the back of the store, where we found this solid wood nightstand. We also picked up various colorful ceramics & decorations for the home that were relatively inexpensive.
2. Kinda — Furniture & Decoration, Moderate Pricing, Huge Variety
A bit cheaper than ‘Area Store’ and, also, just across the road from it — Kinda is a furniture store that has wide range of designs and design duplicates (‘doops’) which are generally more cost-reasonable. Though we didn’t take much from here we definitely recommend making this one of your first stops (along with ‘Area store’) to open your mind to a wide range of styles before you narrow your search.
3. Mundano Objectos — Statement Pieces, Higher Pricing, Interior Design Shop/Studio
Located in the heart of Porto, Mundano Objectos is a must visit if you are looking for unique design items. The store itself doesn’t have a huge inventory but its a great place to visit if you want a few statement pieces for your space. For those that have more time in Porto, Mundano Objectos has a much larger online-catalogue for ordering and also provides interior design services for customers who want to outsource the design of their new home or airbnb. Definitely a must-visit if you are keen on finding fun furniture and decoration pieces.
What we took from here: It was here that we found a wonderful retro vintage shelf for our living room made of heat-molded acrylic & a colorful tufted rug to bring warmth to our concrete floors. We were hesitant to invest in these pieces at first, but as soon as they were delivered to our airbnb, we were assured it was well worth it.
4. LOJA — Vintage Furniture, Moderate Pricing, Wooden Antiques and Retro Pieces
LOJA is a small furniture store that specializes in vintage and restored pieces. They offer a wide range of looks for such a small-local shop and its a great place to source for beautiful wooden stools and tables. The few times that I visited I noticed alot vintage Scandinavian designs along with some retro mirrors and statement hanging lights. If you are looking to warm up or age your space with some vintage wooden details LOJA is a great choice.
5. Armazem — Miscellaneous Warehouse, Wide Pricing, Antiques, Old Chests, & Old Movie Posters
Armazem is a miscellaneous warehouse full of antique Portuguese furniture, old movie posters, books, tables, records, and everything you can think of. It’s a great place to source fun antiques and vintage art items to add texture and cultural reference when furnishing your Porto home. It’s also a fantastic afternoon stop for a hot coffee, cold beer, and chess next to the river after a long morning of shopping.
6. Banema Studio — Contemporary Designers & Pieces, Higher Priced, Interior Design Shop/Studio
Banema Studio has branches in Porto and in Lisbon where they keep stock of their high-quality and contemporary pieces. They retail well known designer furniture & home items from designers like HAY, FRAMA, Ferm Living, as well as items from their own label. This is definitely an option on the pricier side but hosts a lot of practical options which makes it a great stop during your search in Porto.
What we took from here: Here, we found these fantastic collapsable storage bins from HAY which we used as under sink storage in our airbnb bathroom.
7. Pedras & Passegos — Local Furniture Designer, Moderately/Higher Priced, Scandinavian & Quality Wood Designs
Pedras & Passegos is a furniture producer that specializes in natural materials, particularly wood. We met Jaime, the store owner / furniture designer, upon our visit there and he helped us to find several options for space, which is only a block away from his Porto shop.
P&P offers a wide range of furniture, from dining tables to bookcases to outdoor furniture, all made from high-quality wood and they also do custom orders if there is a particular piece you like in the store —
What we took from here: It was important for us to have a statement piece in our living room that would provide comfortable seating for quiet days lounging in the bnb. We found just that in Jaime’s store and it perfectly warmed up our space. In addition, we also picked up this vintage Scandinavian side table which fit perfectly in the bedroom for resting a light and providing a place to charge ones phone at night.
8. Origin Made — Designed Furniture, Moderate-High Priced, Local Designs
Origin Made is a furniture store that offers handmade pieces from local artisans. They have a wide range of styles, from rustic to modern, and their furniture is known for its high quality and attention to detail. Origin Made’s pieces are perfect for anyone looking for a unique and personalized touch for their space.
9. Pollux — Homeware Kitchen & Bedding, Moderately Priced, IKEA Kitchenware Alternative
Pollux is less a place for furniture and more for home decor, bedding, kitchen, and any of the other small things you might need for equipping your home or airbnb. They provide many cheap affordable options to the all-to-familiar IKEA cutlery / table sets, as well as kitchen-specific equipment items, and bathroom hooks, handles, and towels. It’s important to have a place to quickly grab all of those ‘afterthought items’ once you’ve gotten the big items on your list.
What we took from here: From kitchen pots, a knife set, mops and wall hooks, we found everything we needed for the apartment in a fly. The store is particular in the way they provide service as they treat each of their 4 floors as a separate department where you pay for items on the floor you found it. It makes for a lot of receipts but you get everything you need and the staff is incredibly knowledgeable & helpful for finding the items or solutions you need.
10. ZARA Home — Home Decoration & Furniture, Moderately Priced, Warm Reliable Designs
When initially planning the house we had thought to take the bulk of our furniture from ZARA Home (e.g. bed frames, stools, tables, chests). ZARA Home produces warm and inviting options that are affordable and can easily go together in creating a unified look for a home/apartment. Upon arriving to Porto we quickly realized that the stock there was not what we’d expected and we’d have to look elsewhere for many of our items.
Despite initially skipping this option for a majority of our furniture the first week there, we ended up returning to their smaller location across from the Casa da Musica and finding a lot of quality wooden furniture on sale.
What we took from here: After much deliberation about a coffee table (I have a love/hate relationship with coffee tables) we ended up finding one here of the perfect size. We also found a pair of wooden barstools, a kitchen rug, and a ladder for hanging clothes and towels that all complemented the space so well.
11. IKEA — (Duh.)
Of course we wouldn’t have been able to complete our week of house shopping if it wasn’t for IKEA. If you have a lot of shopping ahead, IKEA is a lifesaver when it comes to price, quality, and availability. We took many items from here, including smaller knick-knacks that I will spare detail on. IKEA is a fantastic option for sourcing basic home items and we will be writing a future post about our favorite items from their collections and what items are/aren’t worth investing in for your airbnb.
What we took from here: Originally looking for a pull-out couch we scoured the city and didn't find many good options. While IKEA didn't have many nicely designed pull-out couches, we found this one which provides great storage space under the cushions. Another great feature about this couch is that it is modular (as is the upholstery) allowing you to play with different upholstery options and couch layouts. We also got our mattress, bed, & basic home items (like jars, cutlery, etc.) from IKEA.
12. Worten — Electronics, Wide Pricing, Electronics
Worten is the local go-to electronic store in Portugal. It can often be hard to get service as all the floor-personnel are often helping others or searching stock, so we recommend doing a bit of research, yourself, before going to pick out a heater, television, speakers, etc. This being said, it really is an all-in-one place to pick up all your electronic needs.
What we took from here: We visited Worten many times while trying to decide between buying a TV or projector. Eventually a TV made the most sense for an airbnb as it provides easier user-function for guests. As a couple we love our projector and the fact that it doesn't stand as a center-piece on our living room wall. To get around this, we did eventually end up purchasing a tripod off of Amazon to mount the TV. This was a better option for us as it frees up the wall space in our bnb.
13. Xiaomi — Electronics, Moderately Priced, Gadgets
In the heart of Porto, the Xiaomi store is a great place to stop for specific household electronics. Whether you want to smarten up your airbnb/home with some automated/controllable gadgets or need electronic essentials, this is a great option.
What we took from here: We love our Dyson at home and wanted something similar for our airbnb. The Xiaomi vacuum was the perfect compromise between small-storable and affordable. We also picked up a Xiaomi hairdryer as a decent option for guests and visitors who forget to pack their own.
Conclusion
To conclude, there are tons of options around the city for furnishing your new Porto Airbnb or apartment. Keep in mind, its not just the big things but there are tons of small items and accessories necessary to fully equip your apartment for yourself or guests, like cooking and cleaning-ware. A good rule of thumb is to get what you can from big retailers like IKEA and then plan out where you want to invest in more unique items. An approach like this will save you time and keep you on budget.
FAQ
What should my budget be when furnishing my new apartment here in Porto or Portugal?
That all depends on the size and what you are looking for. For a T1/ one-bedroom apartment setup for Airbnb its typically acceptable to invest between $3,000 to $6,000 in getting it setup and equipped. This will vary based on apartment size, budget, and taste but don’t be alarmed if your Airbnb setup falls between this range before any renovation or utility work.
What’s the most important furniture piece to invest in for Aibnb?
How long does it take to furnish an Airbnb?
How do you transport furniture in Porto?