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Welcome to the world of design!

Discover the world's largest exhibition of contemporary design.

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Opening of the ‘World's Best Communication Design’ exhibition

The exhibition ‘World's Best Communication Design 2024 and Highlights from NRW’ will open at 7 p.m. on Thursday, 20 February 2025. If you would like to attend the opening, please register via our online guest list by 15 February 2025. » More

Unique: The Red Dot Design Museum in Essen

More than 1,500 products

Touch and try!

Design trail

Current product design in a historical setting

The Red Dot Design Museum is designed in such a way that visitors have the opportunity to familiarise themselves with some general principles of good design at the beginning of their visit – the "Design Fundamentals".

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Our Tours

Visitor testimonials

Outstanding design against a historic industrial backdrop

The fascinating atmosphere of the Red Dot Design Museum Essen is created by the contrast between old and new, industrial architecture and product culture. The museum is housed in the boiler house of the Zollverein Coal Mine Industrial Complex and is therefore located in the centre of one of the most important industrial monuments of the 20th century, which was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2001.

Today, the building, which was remodelled by British star architect Lord Norman Foster, houses robots, coffee machines and furniture as well as bicycles, computers and a gyrocopter suspended from the ceiling.

Hands-on Museum

At the Design Museum in Essen, everything is a little different from "normal" museums.  For example, many of the products on display can be touched and tried out.