If you're on a budget, this is so worth the price!!! My expectations were sort of low after reading the reviews and because of the price, but I'm thrilled about it and was so happy to show all my friends and family.Basically you're paying for the assembly time (mainly all the hand screwing) and the fact that it's faux/engineered wood instead of real, solid wood—and the final product looks fantastic! I read a lot of reviews saying it wasn't sturdy and it was bad/cheap quality, but I honestly don't think so at all.It took me about 2 hours to assemble, but it could've been done in probably 1.5 hrs if I hadn't made a mistake in step 1. Just make sure to:1. Check all the pieces are there (I had everything + extras)2. Follow the instructions (look closely at the pictures to make sure you're putting the screws in the correct holes of the big wood pieces in step 1)The only difficult thing was screwing by hand. It just takes time and physical effort because they're pretty tight, but that's a good thing because the whole thing feels really secure. Also some of the silver screw fasteners (idk what they're called, but the round, silver things in the top right of the pile in my first picture) weren't tight when I screwed them in, but I think I just didn't do them right and then I couldn't take them out. After doing all of them though, everything still feels really secure.I was also worried about the color being darker than pictured and darker than what I was looking for for my apartment, but I'm pleased with the color and how it looks! Glad I purchased despite my hesitations.