I Found a Walmart Dresser That’s an Exact Urban Outfitters Dupe (It’s $150 Cheaper!)

Although storage space in general is pretty hard to come by here in New York City, my biggest struggle has always been the severe lack of wardrobe space. Most closets in city apartments are measly (to put it mildly) — so much so that my suitcases usually house about one-fourth of my clothes year-round. But when I moved into a new apartment a couple of months ago, I was happy to find that my bedroom actually had a decent-sized closet. Still, its hanging rod and two top shelves weren’t enough to store all of my clothes — in fact, I could only house about half of them. Fed up with digging through bags of garments that wouldn’t fit inside the closet, I knew the time had come to spring for a dresser. 

When I came across the Sauder River Ranch 6-drawer dresser on Walmart’s website, I quickly knew I’d found the one. Not only did it seem to offer substantial storage yet still be small enough for my tiny bedroom, but it also looked like a more expensive dresser I’d recently spotted at a trendy retailer. Now that I finally have a dresser to supplement my insufficient closet, I couldn’t be happier with my clothing storage situation and the setup of my bedroom.

At $308, this dresser is pretty affordable for its category. Although I liked how it looked in photos, I was worried that it might not be the best quality. Its material is listed as “wood composite” on the website, so although I wasn’t expecting authentic lumber, I was happy to find that the dresser felt perfectly sturdy once assembled. It’s also a six-drawer piece; I initially wanted to get a five-drawer dresser that would take up less floor space, but this one measures just 50” wide, which isn’t that large. I have the dresser up against one of my shorter bedroom walls and there’s still about a foot-and-a-half of floor space on either side of it. The drawers themselves have metal runners and glide smoothly, which has also been a pleasant surprise.

As for assembly, I can’t lie: I hired someone to do it for me. Two days before my dresser arrived, I spent four hours assembling a headboard with built-in shelves that had been listed as an easy, one-person job (that required only a screwdriver). When I pulled out the instruction manual for the dresser and saw that it called for a power drill, I figured I’d need a professional. Simply put, I knew the project would take me at least a day, if not longer, and I preferred to just pay someone else to deal with it instead. My tasker assembled the dresser in about two hours. When the job was done, I was thrilled with my new storage piece.

If you’ve browsed Urban Outfitters’ website recently, you may have seen a dresser that looks almost identical to mine. Their Harlow 6-drawer dresser has pretty much the same measurements, not to mention the same sleek yet homey wooden silhouette and gold-toned drawer knobs. It’s also $150 more expensive than my Walmart dresser, so that’s something to keep in mind if you’re shopping on a budget.

The only downside is that the Walmart dresser is currently sold out in the mango finish that’s closest in color to the Harlow dresser, but I can attest that the walnut finish is still beautiful if you’re into dark-toned furniture.

Of course, my favorite thing about having this dresser is that I no longer have to keep half of my clothes in bags, boxes, or suitcases. Everything has a home, and I’ve since stopped wearing the same outfit over and over like a cartoon character. My second favorite thing is how pretty the dresser looks. My bedroom walls and doors are a stark white, and my floors are a cool grayish-beige, so the dark brown walnut finish worked wonders to warm up the space and help the dresser serve as somewhat of an anchor piece. Also, a lot of dressers come with drab or downright ugly drawer pulls, but I’m obsessed with the gold-colored square pulls on mine. Ultimately, I’m happy with my decision to opt for a six-drawer dresser instead of a five-drawer version, because its wide top surface also serves as storage for my perfumes, jewelry, vanity mirror, and more. I love waking up each morning and seeing all of my stuff so nicely arranged!

One thing I will say is that the drawers themselves aren’t exceptionally spacious, but they serve my needs well. I could only fit about four thick sweaters in one, so I just put my thicker garments on my closet shelves and used my dresser for lighter clothes like shirts, sleepwear, socks, and intimates. In short, if you’ve also been looking for a chic and small-space-friendly dresser that’ll still be able to accommodate a good amount of clothing, look no further. This $300 find is where it’s at!

Buy: Sauder River Ranch 6-Drawer Dresser, $308.16