Everyone's always talking about how shoddy it is and how your cabinets will disintegrate if they go through any kind of stress, but all my cheap-ass furniture with a piece or two missing is still going strong after nearly a decade a use. Maybe I'm just lucky and it really is all crap, but I can't shake the feeling that the reason people shit on Ikea is because it's inexpensive.
It's not so bad, it's just relativity bad. A well maintaind ikea piece will last...20 years, max before moisture etc kills it.
A hardwood furniture piece might cost 5 times the ikea, but will easily last 200 years or more if basic maintenance is done.