Most mid century modern furniture sells for about $150-1,200 a piece as of October 2026. An unlabeled 1960s walnut dresser brings roughly $150-500. Labeled lines from Broyhill (Brasilia), Lane (Acclaim), Drexel (Declaration) and Heywood-Wakefield, plus Danish teak, bring about $300-1,500 per piece. Original Herman Miller and Knoll designs are a separate market: chairs from about $100 each, and a 1960s Eames lounge chair around $4,000-6,000.
The label decides most of it. Two dressers can look nearly the same, but the one with a Broyhill Premier stamp in the drawer, or a "Made in Denmark" mark, can bring several times the unmarked one. Condition comes next, then local demand. Mid-century sells best in cities and to buyers furnishing in the style, which is why it now outsells the older "brown furniture" in most markets.
Quick answer
- Unlabeled 1950s to 1970s walnut or teak case pieces: about $150-500.
- Labeled American lines (Broyhill Brasilia, Lane Acclaim, Drexel Declaration, Heywood-Wakefield): about $300-1,500 a piece, more for complete sets.
- Danish teak sideboards, dining sets and chairs marked Made in Denmark: about $300-1,500, more for named designers.
- Original Herman Miller and Knoll: $100-800 for side chairs, thousands for icons like the Eames lounge chair.
- Look inside the top drawer, on the back and underneath for the stamp or label first.
Where do I find the maker's mark on mid century furniture?
Look inside the top drawer first, then on the back panel, the underside of tables and chair seats, and inside cabinet doors. American makers of the 1950s and 1960s marked furniture with an ink stamp, a branded mark, a paper label or a metal tag, often with a style number and a serial number. Danish exports usually carry a "Made in Denmark" stamp or label, and sometimes the round label of the Danish Furniture Makers' Control. Herman Miller and Knoll used paper and foil labels under seats and inside drawers.
How to identify and value mid century furniture, step by step
- Find every mark. Pull out each drawer and check its sides and bottom, then the back panel and the underside. Photograph each stamp or label. A Broyhill Premier stamp, a Lane serial number, a Drexel label or a "Made in Denmark" stamp changes the search completely.
- Name the line. American makers sold furniture in named lines, and the line name is what buyers search for. Broyhill Premier made Brasilia, introduced in the early 1960s with arched details borrowed from the architecture of the new Brazilian capital, plus Sculptra, Saga and Emphasis. Lane made Acclaim, with small inlaid dovetail "butterfly" keys of contrasting wood on the tops, as well as Perception, Rhythm and others. Drexel made Declaration and Profile. Match the drawer pulls, leg shape and details to the line.
- Read the wood. Most American pieces are walnut veneer, sometimes with oak, pecan or birch. Danish pieces are mostly teak veneer, with some rosewood and oak. Heywood-Wakefield is solid birch, usually in the pale "wheat" or "champagne" finishes. A dark, heavy brown finish with carved details is usually not mid-century modern.
- Check the construction. Real mid-century case pieces have dovetailed drawers, solid wood drawer sides and veneer over solid wood or plywood. Particleboard cases, stapled drawers and printed wood-grain paper point to cheaper lines from the 1970s onward or to recent "mid-century style" furniture.
- Date a Lane piece. Lane stamped serial numbers on the underside of much of its furniture, and the same rule used for Lane cedar chests applies: read the number backwards as month, day and year.
- Separate originals from reproductions. Herman Miller, Knoll and Danish designs have been copied for decades. A design-name piece with no label, very light weight, cheap hardware or a recent "inspired by" listing is likely a replica. Heywood-Wakefield has a special case: the name was acquired in 1992 by a company that makes new pieces in the vintage styles, which are good furniture but not vintage.
- Grade the condition. Veneer chips at the edges, water rings, sun-fading and missing pulls are the common faults. Original pulls matter a lot on Brasilia and Acclaim, where the hardware is part of the design.
- Check sold prices for the line and the piece type. A Brasilia nine-drawer dresser and a Brasilia nightstand are very different prices. Search sold listings for the line name plus the piece, and note the region.
What mid century modern furniture is worth
These are realistic sold prices for pieces in good original condition as of October 2026. Dealer asking prices for the same pieces, especially on design marketplaces, often run two to three times higher: Broyhill Brasilia dressers, for example, are commonly listed at $2,000 or more on 1stdibs and similar sites, while local sales of comparable pieces are usually far lower.
| Piece | Typical value |
|---|---|
| Unlabeled 1950s to 1970s walnut dresser or chest | $150-500 |
| Labeled but lesser line (Bassett, Dixie, Kent Coffey, American of Martinsville) | $150-600 |
| Broyhill Brasilia or Sculptra dresser, original pulls | $400-1,200 |
| Broyhill Brasilia nightstand or end table | $150-400 |
| Lane Acclaim coffee or end table | $200-600 |
| Lane Acclaim case piece | $400-1,200 |
| Drexel Declaration dresser or credenza | $400-1,500 |
| Heywood-Wakefield modern, wheat or champagne birch, per piece | $200-1,200 |
| Danish teak sideboard or credenza, Made in Denmark | $500-1,500 |
| Danish teak dining chairs, set of four | $400-1,500 |
| Herman Miller or Knoll side chair, original | $100-800 |
| Eames lounge chair and ottoman, 1960s rosewood | $4,000-6,000 |
| New "mid-century style" furniture or replica designs | $50-400 |
Matched bedroom sets sell for less than the sum of the pieces, and the dresser is usually the easiest to sell on its own. Named Danish designers such as Hans Wegner, Finn Juhl and Arne Vodder, and named American designers working for Herman Miller and Knoll, sit above this table, often in the thousands; those are worth the specialist route described below.
The figures above are hedged on purpose. Mid-century prices vary more by region than almost any furniture: the same Brasilia dresser sells quickly at the top of its range in a large city and can sit unsold in a rural auction.
What changes the price?
| Factor | Effect on value |
|---|---|
| Maker's stamp or label present | The single biggest lift; it lets buyers search for the line |
| Original pulls and hardware | Expected on named lines; missing pulls cut value sharply |
| Veneer intact, no chips or lifting | Expected for top prices |
| Original finish, lightly worn | Preferred; a careful professional refinish is accepted |
| Painted over | Large deduction; a painted Brasilia is a project piece |
| Water rings, sun-fading | Moderate deduction; often repairable |
| Matching set | Helps sell, but sets bring less than separate pieces combined |
| Size: smaller pieces | Easier to sell and ship; nightstands and end tables move quickly |
| Location | City markets can pay double rural ones |
A worked example
Say you clear out a house and find a long, low walnut dresser with nine drawers and a separate mirror. The drawer pulls are dark wood with a curved arch shape, and the legs are angular. Inside the top drawer is an ink stamp reading Broyhill Premier with a style number, and a faded paper sticker reading Brasilia. The veneer is good apart from a few rings on the top, and all nine pulls are present.
That is a Broyhill Brasilia nine-drawer dresser with mirror, one of the most searched mid-century lines. In good original condition, a realistic local sale is about $600-1,200, toward the top end in a city with an active mid-century scene, toward the bottom in a slow rural market. A dealer may list it at $2,000 or more, but that is what a retail buyer pays after the dealer has carried, cleaned and stored it. Cleaning the rings with a gentle method and selling it with clear photos of the stamp is the best route.
How to sell mid century modern furniture
Sell locally, piece by piece. Case furniture is heavy and expensive to ship, and the buyers who pay the top of the range live in cities with an active mid-century scene, so a local listing with pickup is the normal route for a dresser, credenza or dining set. Sets bring less than the pieces sold separately, and the dresser is the easiest piece to sell on its own; nightstands, end tables and coffee tables are small enough to ship and move quickly.
Where each tier goes:
- Unlabeled walnut and teak pieces, and the lesser labeled lines: a local listing at about $150-500
- Broyhill Brasilia, Lane Acclaim, Drexel Declaration, Heywood-Wakefield and Danish teak marked Made in Denmark: a local listing with the line name in the title, which is what buyers search for, or a specialist mid-century dealer who will carry it but pay well below the retail ask
- Pieces that may be by Wegner, Juhl, Vodder or an early Herman Miller or Knoll production: an auction house with design sales, such as Wright or Rago
Lead the listing with the stamp or label: a close photo of the Broyhill Premier stamp, the Lane serial number or the Denmark mark inside the top drawer, on the back or underneath. Add the whole piece from the front and side in daylight, the pulls and legs, a drawer pulled out to show the dovetails, and the top at an angle so rings, fading and veneer chips show. State which pulls are original and whether the piece has been refinished.
Do not paint it, and do not refinish it before selling; clean it and leave the rest to the buyer. Do not price from design-marketplace asks, which run two to three times what the same piece sells for locally.
Common mistakes
- Calling everything with tapered legs "mid-century modern." Many 1970s to 1990s pieces and new furniture copy the look.
- Painting a labeled piece. Painted Brasilia, Acclaim and Danish teak lose most of their value.
- Pricing from design-marketplace asking prices. Those are retail asks, not sold prices.
- Throwing away the mirror, the pulls or a broken drawer. Each missing part costs more than it would to keep.
- Assuming a Herman Miller or Knoll design is original. Replicas are common, and the label is the first check.
- Missing the stamp. A quick look inside every drawer and underneath takes two minutes and can change the value several times over.
- Ignoring Heywood-Wakefield reproductions. Newer pieces made under the name since 1992 are good furniture but sell as used, not vintage.
How WorthPic reads mid century furniture photos
WorthPic runs on the newest and most capable AI model available, tuned for exactly this kind of identification. From clear photos of the whole piece, the hardware, the legs and any stamp or label, it reads the maker and line, the wood and veneer, the period from the form and details, and the condition of the finish and veneer, and it compares the design against the well-known lines and the common replicas. It then gives an honest value range with a most likely figure based on what similar pieces sell for, not on asking prices, and it says plainly when a piece is unlabeled and common. What it cannot know from photos is whether drawers run smoothly, whether the veneer is loose under the surface, hidden repairs, or how your local market behaves. It identifies and estimates. It does not authenticate, grade or appraise, and if a stamp would settle the maker it will ask for a close photo of the inside of the top drawer.
What to photograph
- The whole piece from the front in daylight, then from the side.
- Every stamp, label, tag and serial number, close and sharp.
- The hardware close up, and the legs.
- A drawer pulled out, showing the joints and drawer bottom.
- The top, at an angle in daylight, to show rings, fading and veneer chips.
- The back panel and the underside.
When to get it looked at in person
A labeled Broyhill, Lane or Drexel piece does not usually need an appraiser; sold listings for the line give a reliable number. Get a specialist involved when the piece may be by a named designer, such as Danish chairs that could be Wegner or Juhl, or a Herman Miller or Knoll design that could be an early production. Auction houses with dedicated design sales, such as Wright in Chicago and Rago in New Jersey, along with specialist mid-century dealers, are the people who confirm those and know what they bring. Our guide to antique furniture identification explains the construction clues that separate eras, how to find the value of antiques covers sold comparables and appraisal types, and the Eames chair value guide covers the labels and copies of the most famous mid-century design. For the wider market in art and antiques, including how auction estimates and dealer offers differ, see our category page.
Sources
- Wikipedia: Heywood-Wakefield Company: Gardner, Massachusetts, the 1930s and 1940s designers, and the 1992 acquisition of the name by a company making new pieces in the vintage style.
- Wikipedia: Furniture Brands International: Broyhill became part of Interco in 1980 and Lane in 1987.
- Wikipedia: Lane Furniture: Lane's 1912 start in Altavista, Virginia, and its expansion into tables and bedroom furniture at mid-century.
- EBTH: Broyhill Brasilia dresser: dresser with brass pulls, tapered legs and the original Brasilia sticker inside a drawer.
- Wikipedia: Eames Fiberglass Armchair: Herman Miller sale from 1950 and the 1948 Museum of Modern Art competition behind the design.