Lego City Modular Space Station review

Lego has gone all-in on space-themed sets in 2024. For the first time ever, it's created a universal "Space" branding that can be seen across its City, Creator, Classic, Friends, Technic and even Duplo ranges. Sure, we've had Lego City space sets for years, but this is the first time branding has been applied across multiple ranges. It goes to show how popular space is amongst Lego fans — and of course, we here at Space.com couldn't be happier. 

The Lego City Modular Space Station is exactly what its name suggests: a space station that can be modularly arranged in a number of ways. Made up of 1,097 pieces, it includes multiple "pods" that can either be arranged around a central loop — looking more like what we'd expect a space station to look like — or they can be detached and instead joined together to form a space train.

Realism isn't a strong factor in the Modular Space Station, but this is designed to be an immersive, hands-on play set for kids aged seven and above. For that, it succeeds with gusto — and manages to be a compelling building experience for just about any age in the process.

In fact, it's a set we love so much that it has earned itself a place in our round-up of the best Lego space sets, where it features alongside our other favorite space sets, including the Creator 3-in-1 Astronaut and the Technic Planet Earth and Moon in Orbit.

Lego City Modular Space Station review: Build

• Great to build in a group
• Easy-to-follow instructions

As an adult building the Lego City Modular Space Station, we found the process to be pleasantly refreshing. It's a nice, straightforward build thanks to its simple instructions, with steps broken down to include just a couple of pieces each time. With an age rating of 7+, it's of course suitable for youngsters too, but unless your kid is already well-versed with Lego they may need a bit of help along the way.

What's particularly neat about building the Modular Space Station is that its instructions are split over six books. Each book handles a different part of the build: either the central ring, the individual pods, the docking pod or the satellite. Because of this, it's the ideal build for a group to build together. We worked as a pair, and it took roughly 90 minutes to complete, but up to six people can tackle this together — perhaps an ideal project for the whole family on a rainy afternoon.

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If you're building it by yourself, however, there's a chance putting together the Lego City Modular Space Station might get a little repetitive: Four of the pods are almost identical in structure, with only their internal design setting them apart. Thankfully, the connecting ring, the satellite, the tiny greenhouse and the docking pod (and accompanying space bike) help keep things varied.

Since this is a set aimed at children, the building techniques are, for the most part, pretty basic. There are some neat touches, though, like the fact that the pods have hinged roofs, allowing you to open them up to easily access their internals. The central ring also has some very basic Technic-style assembly, which could provide kids with a nice introduction to more complicated Lego sets. 

Lego City Modular Space Station review: Design

• So many ways to play
• Can be built as a circular space station or as a "space train"

As we've mentioned, the Modular Space Station isn't exactly the most realistic space-themed Lego set, but it is a wholesome and enriching playset. Each pod can be detached from the central ring, played with by itself, or attached to other pods to make a train. With six minifigures, a space bike and a maintenance robot, there's plenty to play with too — but the highlight for us is the interior decorations of each of the pods. You'll find a control station, a bedroom, a break room and a workstation. 

Given there's not a huge amount of space in each pod, they're fairly basic, but the purpose of each is very clear. The break room, for instance, has a coffee machine and a sandwich laid out on the side, and the bedroom has somewhere for an astronaut to pop their helmet and oxygen tank so they can get a comfortable rest. There's room for each of the six minifigures to exist within the set, each having a meaningful role to play, making this a great set for children to play with together.

Color-wise, Lego has opted for a simple orange-and-white scheme for the Modular Space Station. It's simple, but it works, giving it the feel of a real space station (although, of course, with added imaginative and playful flair).

Should you buy Lego City Modular Space Station?

At $109.99, the Lego City Modular Space Station isn't inexpensive. For a playset, we think it's very much at the top end of what could be considered reasonable. But considering it's made up of 1,097 pieces, comes with six minifigures and can be configured in a number of different ways, it is a substantial set that we imagine children will get a lot of use out of. If you have a child interested in space, then, this is going to make a great gift and we'd highly recommend it. 

And if you're thinking of buying for yourself? We can't deny that the Modular Space Station was a fun, engaging build, and we wouldn't hesitate to do it again. It isn't the most display-friendly set, however, so if you're mainly wanting to buy a set to show proudly on a shelf, there are much better space-themed sets available for the same price.

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Other Lego sets to consider

If you are looking for an adult-friendly display set that doesn't break the bank, our favorites include Tales of the Space Age, a Lego Ideas set made up of four brick-built space-themed postcards. In our review, we called it a "real artistic celebration of space". We also think the Lego Creator 3-in-1 Space Astronaut makes a great display set, not least because this mounted space explorer has movable arms, legs and even fingers, allowing you to pose him in a multitude of ways. 

If you want something a little bigger and have a decent budget, we absolutely love the NASA Space Shuttle Discovery, a scale model based on the actual NASA Discovery — it even comes with a Hubble Telescope.

For kids, there's never been a better time to load up on space-themed Lego sets. It's pricey but the Space Base and Rocket Launchpad offers another hugely versatile playset. If you're looking to spend a bit less, we think the Space Science Lab (which includes a ridiculously cute alien microfigure) provides a fun space-based playset, while the Lego Friends Stargazing Camping Vehicle keeps space exploration a little closer to the ground. We love the starry sky backdrop and the fact it comes with a realistic-looking telescope to encourage kids to take up stargazing for themselves.