Vintage vs. Antique vs. Retro: What’s the Difference?

We see the terms all the time while secondhand shopping: vintage, antique, and retro. Often the trio is used interchangeably, but the three are not at all the same. Once you know that difference, vintage, antique, and retro will summon distinctly different images to mind.

Here's the difference between vintage, antique, and retro, as well as how to combine the three for your own unique design style.

What Are Vintage, Antique, and Retro Style Pieces? 

Vintage, antique, and retro each have their own style characteristics and encompass different items and time periods.

• Antique: An antique is an item that was made at least 100 years ago according to customs of the time. In 2025, an item would need to be made in 1925 or earlier to be considered an antique. Antiques could be as large as a car or a desk or as small as a hairbrush or button. Saying something is an antique doesn't inherently mean it is valuable.
• Vintage: The definition of vintage is less concrete than antique, though it's generally agreed that items that can be called vintage must feel like they are from a bygone era. Items that are between 20 and 99 years old fall into this category. Vintage items often evoke a feeling of nostalgia and may be collectible.
• Retro: Retro has nothing to do with when an item was made; it just means that an item feels or looks old. You can buy retro furniture that was manufactured within the last couple weeks. These are items that are designed to look vintage or antique.
  

Vintage vs. Antique

Vintage differs from antique because of its age. Vintage items are 20 to 99 years old, whereas antiques are at least 100 years old. For example, a record player from the 1960s would be vintage, but a gramophone from the 1910s would be an antique.

Midcentury modern (1930s to 1970s) is a popular style of design that falls into the category of vintage. The Victorian era (1837 to 1901) resulted in lots of beautiful furniture and some of the best made silver products in the world—that's antique.

Vintage and antique style can be mixed easily and worked into other design styles. Both have history, a story, and potential as a conversational starter. For example, an antique side table would look great next to a vintage Eames chair.

Vintage vs. Retro

Vintage items are actually old—20 to 99 years old—whereas retro items only seem old. Vintage items are sometimes collectibles (think Pez dispensers, baseball cards, and WWII military memorabilia); retro items are brand new and tend to not be collectible.

Vintage often evokes a sense of nostalgia, either a time you remember or that makes you think of your parents or grandparents. Retro evokes that sense of nostalgia as well, but without actually coming from a bygone era.

Retro items are usually more affordable than vintage items, so they're a great choice for someone who wants a vintage look on a budget. (An exception would be technology: a retro item might have smart or modern-day tech features incorporated that make the retro item equal in cost to the vintage item.)

Retro and vintage items are the easiest to blend because they're both meant to look vintage even if only one of them is. A great example of this is a midcentury formica table and chair set in your kitchen right next to a Smeg toaster (Smeg makes appliances that are meant to look like they're from the 1950s).

Antique vs. Retro 

Antiques are at least 100 years old, whereas retro items simply look old. Antiques could be books, paintings, furniture, or equipment from 1925 or earlier (100 years ago). Retro items are anything recently made (in the last 15 years or so) that mimic a style of the past.

Modern-day Polaroid cameras are a great example of a retro item—they are made to look like the Polaroid cameras of the 1980s.

Although antique and retro come from two very different time periods, the two can look good together the same way vintage and antique items can look good together. Antique ceramics and apothecary jars will look right at home alongside retro glassware. A retro ornate, Victorian-esque picture frame pairs perfectly with an antique painting.