Visit a Colorful Gum Wall in Seattle
Photo by depositphotos.com
If you’re a germophobe, it is best to steer clear of the Gum Wall near Seattle’s Pike Place Market. Each day, countless visitors press pennies into discarded wads of gum and affix them to a historic wall. The wall of gum has created a colorful tableau that adds a welcome splash of color to Seattle’s notoriously overcast days.
The Gum Wall originated in the 1990s when a group of listless theater patrons in line for an improv show decided to stick their gum on the wall to pass the time. At first, the Gum Wall was widely chastised for promoting littering and defacing the exterior of a historic building. Over time, many Seattle residents embraced the Gum Wall as a constantly evolving art project.
Starting in 2015, the Gum Wall has received a handful of abrasive power washes from the Pike Place Preservation Development Authority. The Pike Place PDA said in a statement that they’re worried that the sugar in the discarded gum will eventually degrade the wall. After each power wash, avid Gum Wall enthusiasts line up to create new patterns and affix ticket stubs, business cards, and gum wrappers to one of Seattle’s most colorful walls.
The Gum Wall is a popular spot for photos. Couples often pose for photos in front of the wall, blowing pink gum bubbles in tandem. Travelers who love a photo op with a bright background can’t get enough of the Gum Wall’s rainbow hues.
The Gum Wall is adjacent to Seattle’s iconic Pike Place Market, which is home to a few oddities that admirers of the Gum Wall will surely enjoy, Visitors can stroll Pike Place Market and deposit money in Rachel the giant piggy bank—a ceramic pig who is modeled after a 1977 pig pageant winner. Every coin deposited in Rachel helps local charities provide food, medical care, and childcare to the surrounding community.
Pike Place Market is also home to a Giant Shoe Museum, which showcases the shoes of Robert Wadlow, who is the tallest documented man on Earth. Visitors can deposit a few coins in a coin box and view a series of gargantuan shoes that will make the shoes on your feet seem like doll shoes.
Seattle, Washington is celebrated for its many creative flourishes. If germs don’t give you the willies, a trip to Seattle’s Gum Wall is the ideal place to celebrate the city’s weird and wonderful spirit.
Address:
1428 Post Alley
Seattle, Washington, 98101
United States
Location on Google Maps
UnusualPlaces Field Notes
- Location
- Market Theater Gum Wall, Post Alley, Pike Place Market, Seattle, Washington, USA
- Coordinates
- 47.6084, -122.34038
- Access
- Public outdoor Market attraction in Post Alley at 1428 Post Alley. From the Market’s Public Market Center clock sign, take the ramp down, then turn left into Post Alley; the wall appears on both sides. Follow current pedestrian and vehicle access controls and Market signs.
- Admission
- Pike Place Market has no entrance or admission fee. Purchases at shops, restaurants and food stalls cost extra; this is the Market-wide rule, not a separately ticketed Gum Wall attraction.
- Time needed
- No standard duration is published for the Gum Wall stop. The Market’s directions describe the short ramp-to-Post-Alley route; extra time depends on how long you explore the wider nine-acre Market.
- Best season
- No distinct best season is designated by Pike Place Market. The Market is open year-round except Thanksgiving Day and Christmas Day; Post Alley’s exact hours are not separately posted.
- Opening hours
- Most of Pike Place Market is active daily 10 a.m.–5 p.m.; the Market is open 363 days a year and closes on Thanksgiving and Christmas. Exact Gum Wall/Post Alley hours are not separately posted.
- Location checked
- 2026-09-27
- Facts checked
- 2026-09-30
Location
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