The Stax Museum of American Soul Music is a 17,000-square-foot museum built on the original site of Stax Records. It’s located at 926 E. McLemore Avenue in the Soulsville neighbourhood of Memphis, Tennessee. This guide covers opening hours, ticket prices, parking, transport, accessibility, and practical visitor tips to help you plan your visit.
Updated May 2026. Adult admission is now $20. Many third-party booking sites and older guides still display the previous price of $12. The museum is also closed on Mondays — a detail that catches many visitors out.
Quick facts: Stax Museum of American Soul Music
| Detail | Information |
|---|---|
| Address | 926 E. McLemore Ave, Memphis, TN 38106 |
| Phone | (901) 261-6338 / toll-free (888) 942-7685 |
| [email protected] | |
| Opening hours | Tuesday–Sunday, 10:00am–5:00pm |
| Closed | Monday (every week) |
| Last admission | 4:00pm |
| Also closed | Easter Sunday, Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, New Year’s Eve |
| Adult admission | $20 |
| Concession (ages 7–12; ages 62+; Veteran; Military; AAA) | $16 |
| Children aged 6 and under | Free |
| Parking | Free, on site |
| Typical visit duration | 1.5–2.5 hours |
Stax Museum opening hours
The museum is open Tuesday through Sunday from 10:00am to 5:00pm. It is closed every Monday without exception.
Last admission is at 4:00pm. The museum closes at 5:00pm; visitors arriving after 4:00pm will not be admitted.
Additional closure dates:
- Easter Sunday
- Thanksgiving Day
- Christmas Eve
- Christmas Day
- New Year’s Eve
The museum is open on New Year’s Day. Call (901) 261-6338 before visiting on public holidays to confirm.
Stax Museum ticket prices
Tickets can be purchased online in advance or at the admissions desk on arrival.
| Visitor type | Price |
|---|---|
| Adults | $20 |
| Ages 7–12; Ages 62+; Veterans; Active Military; AAA members | $16 |
| Children aged 6 and under | Free |
Shelby County Tuesdays: Shelby County residents enter free every Tuesday with valid proof of residency. Children aged 16 and under must be accompanied by an adult. This offer does not apply to groups of five or more, or during holidays and special events.
Opening hours and ticket prices were checked on the official website and last updated in May 2026.
Five great things to do in Memphis
- 🎸 Enjoy a private luxury tour of Memphis – with Graceland tickets included.
- 🍖 Get a taste of Tennessee – on a Downtown Memphis food tour.
- 🛥️ Take a Memphis discovery tour – with Mississippi cruise and Sun Studio add-on options.
- 🏙️ Discover Memphis beyond Beale Street – on a historic walking tour.
- 🚗 Hop on a day tour to Tupelo – and see Elvis’ childhood home.
How to get to the Stax Museum
The Stax Museum is located in the Soulsville USA neighbourhood, approximately three miles south of downtown Memphis and Beale Street.
By car: From downtown Memphis, head south on Danny Thomas Boulevard and turn right onto McLemore Avenue. The museum is at 926 E. McLemore Avenue. GPS navigation to this postcode is reliable.
By rideshare: Uber and Lyft are the most practical options for most visitors arriving without a car. The museum is in a predominantly residential neighbourhood south of downtown; public bus services exist but are not straightforward for visitors unfamiliar with the city. Staff and regular visitors recommend arranging return rideshare transport at the same time as your outward journey.
By bus: MATA bus routes serve the area. Check matatransit.com for current routes before travelling. Many Memphis-focused music tours include the Stax Museum as a scheduled stop — these are worth considering if you plan to visit multiple sites in one day.
Parking at the Stax Museum
Free parking is available on site at the museum. The car park is at the rear and side of the building and is ample for most visiting groups. Security is present on the premises during opening hours.
How long to spend at the Stax Museum
Most visitors spend one and a half to two and a half hours. The museum is self-guided, meaning there is no fixed tour schedule — visitors move at their own pace. Those who engage with the documentary film, listening station, and all exhibit areas typically allow two hours. Visitors with a strong interest in the music and its history often stay longer.
Accessibility at the Stax Museum
The Stax Museum is fully accessible for visitors with disabilities. The building has ramps, elevators, and accessible restrooms throughout. Visitors with specific accessibility requirements are encouraged to contact the museum in advance at (901) 261-6338 or [email protected].
Inside the Stax Museum: what to see
The museum covers the full history of Stax Records and its artists from 1957 to the label’s closure in 1975, the aftermath, and the ongoing legacy. All visits are self-guided.
Humble Beginnings opens the museum in an authentic circa-1906 Mississippi Delta church that has been carefully dismantled and reassembled inside the building. The exhibit traces the roots of soul music in Southern gospel, establishing the cultural and musical context before Stax was founded.
Hallowed Ground is the most historically significant section of the museum. Visitors walk through a reconstruction of the original Stax control room and then stand in Studio A — a full-scale, floor-by-floor replica of the converted movie theater where Stax artists cut records. The gently slanted floor of the original is faithfully reproduced; it is widely credited with contributing to the distinctive sound of Stax recordings.
Wall of Sound (Hall of Records) lines the museum walls with floor-to-ceiling cases containing every album and single released by Stax and its subsidiary labels between 1957 and 1975. A listening station allows visitors to hear tracks from across the catalogue.
Express Yourself! is an open dance floor where vintage episodes of Soul Train play on adjacent screens. It is a deliberately participatory space; dancing is encouraged rather than discouraged.
Super Fly displays Isaac Hayes’s custom 1972 Cadillac Eldorado, purchased as part of his renegotiated Stax contract for $26,000. The car features 24-carat gold exterior trim, white fur floorboards, a refrigerated mini-bar, and a built-in television. It remains one of the most photographed artefacts in any music museum in the country.
The museum also houses over 2,000 additional exhibits, artefacts, costumes, instruments, and photographs covering the artists — Otis Redding, Sam & Dave, Booker T. & the M.G.’s, the Staple Singers, Rufus Thomas, Carla Thomas, Albert King, Wilson Pickett, and many others — who recorded at Stax during its peak years.
Practical visitor tips for the Stax Museum
| Tip | Detail |
|---|---|
| The museum is closed on Mondays | Every Monday, without exception. If your Memphis itinerary includes only a Monday and Tuesday, plan the Stax Museum for Tuesday. Many visitors, particularly those on organised tours, have arrived on a Monday to find the museum closed. |
| Last admission is at 4pm, not 5pm | The museum closes at 5:00pm but stops admitting visitors at 4:00pm — a full hour earlier. Arriving at 4:15pm means you will not be admitted. Plan to arrive by 3:30pm at the latest for a meaningful visit. |
| The Stax neighbourhood is residential and south of downtown | The museum is not on Beale Street or the immediate tourist corridor. Rideshare or a car is the most reliable way to get here and back. Arrange your return journey before or on arrival — rideshare availability can be slower in this part of the city. |
| Allow more time than you expect | Virtually all visitor reviews note underestimating how long they spent in the museum. The listening station, documentary film, and density of the exhibits mean 90 minutes is a minimum for a thorough visit. Allow two hours if you have a serious interest in the music. |
| Combine with the Backstage Pass | If you are visiting Graceland, Sun Studio, and the Rock ‘n’ Soul Museum during your Memphis trip, the $108 Backstage Pass purchased at the Stax Museum or Rock ‘n’ Soul Museum front desk saves around $25 against individual prices and is valid for a full year. |
Frequently asked questions about the Stax Museum
| Question | Answer |
|---|---|
| Is the Stax Museum suitable for young children? | Yes. The Express Yourself dance floor and the scale of Isaac Hayes’s Cadillac are consistently popular with children. The museum is fully accessible by pushchair. Children aged 6 and under enter free. |
| Do you need to book tickets in advance for the Stax Museum? | Not required. Tickets can be purchased at the admissions desk on arrival. Online booking is available for those who prefer to pre-pay. |
| Is the Stax Museum open on Mondays? | No. The museum is closed every Monday. It opens Tuesday through Sunday, 10:00am–5:00pm, with last admission at 4:00pm. |
| Is the Stax Museum on the same site as the original Stax Records? | Yes. The museum is built on the original footprint of the Stax Records studio and label offices at 926 E. McLemore Avenue. The original building was demolished in 1989, and the museum was purpose-built on the same site, opening in 2003. |
| What is the Soulsville Foundation? | The Stax Museum is operated by the Soulsville Foundation, a non-profit organisation based in Memphis. The Foundation also runs Soulsville Charter School and the Stax Music Academy, both of which operate on and around the Stax museum campus. |
Things to do near the Stax Museum
National Civil Rights Museum at the Lorraine Motel (450 Mulberry Street, ~2.5 miles north-west) is built around the site of Dr Martin Luther King Jr.’s assassination in April 1968 and is one of the South’s most visited history museums. The connection between the civil rights movement and the Stax sound is a recurring theme in both museums.
Graceland — Elvis Presley’s Memphis (3734 Elvis Presley Boulevard, ~3.5 miles south) is the former home of Elvis Presley, open for tours year-round. The Graceland Elvis Experience Tour includes the mansion, Visitor Entertainment Complex, Elvis’ aircraft, and the Presley Motors Automobile Museum.
Sun Studio (706 Union Avenue, ~3 miles north) is the recording studio where Elvis, Cash, and B.B. King recorded their earliest material. Guided tours run hourly from 10:30am. A five-minute drive from the Stax Museum.
Beale Street (~3 miles north) is the historic entertainment district at the centre of the Memphis music scene. Live music venues operate from mid-afternoon into the late evening along the strip.
Soulsville USA neighbourhood (immediately surrounding the museum) is the historic South Memphis community that nurtured the talent behind the Stax sound. The Soulsville Charter School and Stax Music Academy are both visible from the museum campus and form part of the Foundation’s ongoing community mission.
What to visit tomorrow: music museums within two hours of the Stax Museum
Delta Blues Museum (Clarksdale, MS, ~1.5 hours south on Highway 61) is located where the soil and culture of the Mississippi Delta produced the blues that Stax artists built upon. The museum covers the origins of the genre and the lives of its most important figures.
Tina Turner Museum (Brownsville, TN, ~1 hour north-east) is the restored schoolhouse attended by Anna Mae Bullock (Tina Turner) in Nutbush, Tennessee, covering her early life and extraordinary career.
International Rock-A-Billy Hall of Fame and Museum (Jackson, TN, ~1.5 hours north-east) focuses on the cross-genre moment in the early 1950s when blues, country, and gospel came together in the region between Memphis and Nashville.
Elvis Presley Birthplace and Museum (Tupelo, MS, ~1 hour 45 minutes south-east) covers the early years of Elvis Presley before he came to Memphis and recorded at Sun Studio — the beginning of the story that Stax would later extend.
W.C. Handy Home, Museum and Library (Florence, AL, ~2 hours south-east) is the birthplace of the “Father of the Blues,” the musician who first published a blues song and laid the groundwork for everything that followed in Memphis. The small log cabin museum includes Handy’s piano, trumpet, and personal artefacts.
More Tennessee travel
Other Tennessee travel guides on Planet Whitley include:
- Plan your visit to the Musicians Hall of Fame and Museum, Legends of Country Music Museum and Johnny Cash Museum in Nashville.
- First time visitor guides to Belmont Mansion and Andrew Jackson’s Hermitage in Nashville.
- What to know before visiting the Memphis Botanic Garden.
- Get a musical education at the Memphis Rock ‘N’ Soul Museum.
- Visiting Ruby Falls and Rock City Gardens from Chattanooga.
