IKEA Is Bringing Back This Discontinued $1 Bestseller

There are very few shopping bags as iconic as the IKEA FRAKTA. Decked out in the Swedish brand’s signature bright blue and yellow, these durable, oversized totes are pretty hard to miss — and at just $0.99, the price is also hard to beat. According to IKEA, more than 44 million FRAKTA bags are sold each year, making it their best-selling product by far. 

For the last 30 years, these beloved bags have been used and reused by IKEA customers for moving, laundry, and grocery shopping (or sometimes even as subway-friendly pet carriers). Which is why the brand caused quite a stir after announcing the FRAKTA would be discontinued back in April. Don’t worry, though! It’s true: The FRAKTA you know and love is indeed gone — but a better, bigger, bluer version is taking its place. 

The iconic original IKEA bag first hit shelves in 1996. Now, as of two days ago, IKEA stores are stocking all-new (and improved!) FRAKTA shopping bags. Although they look almost exactly the same, they’re now made with a minimum of 90% recycled material. “We wanted to increase the share of recycled material without compromising on what makes FRAKTA unique: Its functionality, simplicity, distinctive design, and low price,” says Julia Rosenberg, product developer for the updated FRAKTA bag, in a press release about the launch. “While the bag may look the same, a great deal has changed beneath the surface.” 

Knowing many of their customers keep and reuse their FRAKTA for years, maintaining the durability of the bag was just as important to the brand as honoring its iconic design (and ultra-low price). The IKEA development team has been working for years — since 2017! — to perfect the new bag manufacturing process. “The FRAKTA bag is one of our most loved and iconic products,” Rosenberg explains. “Updating it came with a clear responsibility.” 

Today, the FRAKTA is manufactured far more responsibly; not only are the new bags made from 90% recycled materials, but the production process has also been automated, keeping costs low, improving efficiency, and reducing material losses in the process. And yes, the bags are still strong enough to carry up to 55 pounds (great news for laundry procrastinators such as myself!).

Today, people want their furniture and home decor to last longer and cost less — and IKEA manages to do both so well. Now you can feel even better about saving that shopping bag after your next IKEA adventure, knowing it was so responsibly made. And again, for just $0.99? You can’t possibly go wrong. Never change, IKEA!