Why Everyone’s Obsessed With USM Haller (and 12 Modular Pieces That Capture the Same Magic)
The Swiss shelving system in every design editor’s apartment is a modern classic for a reason. Here’s what makes it so good, and a dozen more ways to get the modular, build-it-your-way look you love.
You’ve seen it: a crisp grid of chrome tubes and glossy, candy-colored steel panels, holding books and records like it was born to. That’s USM Haller, the 1960s Swiss system that’s quietly become one of the most coveted pieces of furniture you can buy.
It’s in MoMA’s permanent collection, gets handed down between generations, and sells out when streetwear brands collaborate on it.
If you’re here, you probably already love it, and want to know what else scratches the same itch. Below we cover why USM earns its cult status, then twelve modular pieces that deliver the same build-it-your-way magic. Many, including USM itself, are available through Design Within Reach, with budget-friendly options at Wayfair.
Why people love it so much
The whole system comes down to one part: a chrome-plated ball with six threaded holes. Steel tubes screw in from any direction and powder-coated panels close it off, so from ball, tube, and panel you can build a credenza, bookshelf, media console, or desk, then rebuild it later. Why it inspires such devotion:
It changes shape with your life. Every component attaches and detaches, so your shelf becomes a sideboard, then a wall unit. You decide the height, width, and number of compartments.
The color. Fourteen powder-coated finishes, from golden yellow to gentian blue to that signature pure white, turn storage into the most joyful object in the room.
It’s built to outlive you. Swiss-made chromed steel engineered for decades. It's genuinely pass-it-down furniture.
The design never dates. Bauhaus-rooted and form-follows-function; it looks as current now as it did sixty years ago.
It holds its value. Well-kept USM resells for a large share of its original price, more design asset than depreciating purchase.
It’s a quiet status symbol. In design circles, USM is shorthand for taste, an if-you-know-you-know object.
USM is configured to order, so prices vary, but a small module tends to start in the low four figures and full wall systems climb past $5,000. For many people that’s the right investment, and you can shop it directly at DWR. If you want to explore the full range of the modular world, though, here are twelve pieces we’d point you toward.
12 modular alternatives worth knowing
1. HAY Pier Collection
Best for: a modern metal grid without USM pricing.
Price: Mid-range to premium, $945.00 - $5,000
Where to shop: Design Within Reach the Pier shelving system.
Ronan & Erwan Bouroullec’s Pier system pairs aluminum and powder-coated steel in a clean, lightweight grid. Shelves and optional cabinets that mix, match, and move as your needs change. A modern modular look that sits between USM’s graphic metal and String’s airy lightness, at a friendlier price.
2. Ferm Living Kona Bookcase
Best for: the USM lover who wants modular, scalable storage in warm wood rather than steel.
Price: Mid-range, about $1,685–$3,969
Where to shop: Design Within Reach the Kona Bookcase
A warmer, quieter take on the USM idea. Ferm Living’s Kona Bookcase comes in oak veneer across a range of sizes, with clean lines and open shelves you can scale up or down, the same modular, build-to-your-space logic, softened by Japandi calm and natural wood.
3. String System
Best for: expandable storage at a low entry point and a softer Scandi look.
Price: Accessible to mid-range, shelves from ~$300; Pira from ~$1,980
Where to shop: Design Within Reach String and Pira wall shelving.
The other great modular icon. Designed in 1949, String’s wire side panels plus simple shelves were the original expandable flat-pack shelf, lighter and warmer than USM, and you can start with a single shelf.
4. Montana System
Best for: total color customization in warm lacquered wood.
Price: Premium, about $800–$4,200+ depending on configuration
Where to shop: Design Within Reach Montana Furniture Dining Cabinet or bookcase. If color is your favorite thing about USM, this is the match: a Danish lacquered cube system in dozens of shades, mounted on the wall, legs, or castors.
5. Muuto Stacked
Best for: colorful, reconfigurable storage that starts small.
Price: Accessible to mid-range, about $139–$319 per module, $3,399 for a whole unit
Where to shop: Design Within Reach the Muuto Stacked storage system.
The playful Scandinavian take: mix open and closed cubes, add color, and build anything from a bookshelf to a room divider, starting with just a few modules.
6. Kartell Componibili
Best for: an iconic, affordable modular piece with personality.
Price: Accessible, about $130–$280
Where to shop: Wayfair Kartell Componibili storage units.
Anna Castelli Ferrieri’s 1967 stackable, glossy round storage column has been in production, and in MoMA, for decades, in a rainbow of finishes.
7. Vitsœ 606
Best for: the minimalist who wants Rams-level restraint and an heirloom wall system.
Price: Premium, a starter configuration runs roughly $1,000–$2,000+, sold direct
Where to shop: Direct from Vitsœ 606
Dieter Rams’s 1960 wall-mounted aluminum E-track lets shelves hang and rearrange without tools, airier and more restrained than USM, on a “buy less, add later” philosophy. Sold direct only.
8. Powder-coated steel cube systems
Best for: the steel-and-color, reconfigurable look on a budget.
Price: Budget, roughly $60–$250
Where to shop: Wayfair's modular powder-coated steel cube shelving.
A whole category of modular metal cube shelving delivers USM’s powder-coated, flip-it-vertical-or-horizontal flexibility for a fraction of the price, in multiple colors and tool-free.
9. Open-grid metal bookcases
Best for: the open metal-grid aesthetic, affordably.
Price: Budget to mid-range, roughly $80 - $4,000
Where to shop: Wayfair's open-grid and industrial modular shelving.
For the grid look without the design-house price, open-grid steel bookcases capture the airy, geometric feel, often expandable and stackable, from black to wood-and-steel combos.
10. Wood modular shelving
Best for: modular flexibility in warm, natural wood.
Price: Accessible to mid-range, $150 - $600
Where to shop: Wayfair modular wood shelving systems.
Prefer warm wood to steel? Modular wood systems bring the grows-with-you idea into ash, oak, and walnut.
11. Modular media & vinyl storage
Best for: the record collector who wants the low-credenza look for less.
Price: Accessible, roughly $100–$450
Where to shop: Wayfair modular media and vinyl storage units.
One of USM’s most beloved uses is the low credenza for records. Modular low-profile units sized for vinyl and AV gear capture that, many doubling as room dividers.
12. Royal System
Best for: the purist who wants a mid-century modular wall system with genuine pedigree.
Price: Mid-range to premium, from ~$1,395 (1-bay) to $10,000+ for large configurations
Where to shop: Design Within Reach the Royal System shelving collection.
One of the original modular wall systems, designed by Poul Cadovius in 1948, a decade before USM. Wood shelves and cabinets hang from slim wall-mounted rails on elegant metal brackets, sold in parts and configurable in countless ways, in walnut or oak. The proof that the build-it-your-way idea is a true design classic.
So, which one’s for you?
Want the dream itself? Buy USM with confidence at Design Within Reach. Want the metal-grid look for less? HAY Pier. Prefer warm wood to steel? Ferm Living’s Kona. Obsessed with color? Montana. Shopping smart? Wayfair’s cube and open-grid systems. Pure minimalism? Vitsœ. Whatever you choose, the thing that makes USM so beloved, furniture that adapts to you, is available at almost any price point.
Disclosure: This article may contain affiliate links. If you purchase through some of the links above, we may earn a commission at no additional cost to you.
Frequently Asked Questions
- What is USM Haller, and who designed it?
USM began as a metalworking shop in Münsingen, Switzerland, in 1885. The furniture arrived in the 1960s, when company head Paul Schärer commissioned architect Fritz Haller to design a new headquarters and the two ended up designing matching modular steel furniture to fill it. The system entered series production in 1969 and joined MoMA’s permanent collection in 2001.
- Why is USM Haller so expensive?
It’s made to order in Switzerland from chromed steel and powder-coated panels, engineered to last for decades, and built around a patented connector system that lets it be reconfigured indefinitely. You’re paying for build quality, endless customization, and a design that hasn’t needed to change since the 1960s, parts made today still fit units from fifty years ago.
- Does USM Haller hold its value?
Unusually well. Well-maintained pieces commonly resell for a large share of their original price, which is part of why owners treat it more like a design asset than a disposable purchase. The cross-compatibility of old and new parts helps secondhand demand stay strong.
- What’s the most affordable way to get the USM look?
Modular powder-coated steel cube systems and open-grid metal bookcases capture the steel-and-color, reconfigurable feel for a fraction of the price, you can browse those at Wayfair. For an iconic-but-affordable option, the Kartell Componibili is a fun place to start.
- Is a made-to-measure system like the original reconfigurable later?
It depends on the system. USM, HAY Pier, String, Montana, and Muuto Stacked are all designed to be added to and rearranged over time. Some made-to-order configurator brands build to your exact dimensions but aren’t freely reconfigurable afterward, so if future flexibility matters, confirm that before you buy.
- Where can I buy these brands in the US?
Design Within Reach is an authorized US dealer for USM, HAY, Ferm Living, String, Montana, and Muuto, so most of the design-tier picks are available in one place. For budget alternatives, cube systems, open-grid bookcases, wood shelving, and media units, Wayfair has the widest range. Vitsœ is the exception: it sells directly through its own studio.