The Ultimate Room-by-Room Home Organization Guide

A well-organized home tends to be a home that functions well. True, organizing the house isn’t everyone’s cup of tea, and it tends to require ongoing maintenance if the house is to remain well organized. However, there are numerous benefits of a home where everything has a place. Not only will your home feel company-ready at all times, but you’ll also be able to access what you need when you need it without rummaging to find it. Organizing doesn’t cost much; there are budget-friendly techniques and items you can use to tackle this tall task, and our guide can help.

Use the following tips to organize your home—and keep it organized! You’ll love the results as your home functions better for you and the household in general.

Declutter

There’s no sense organizing items in your home that you don’t need, so the first step to getting organized is to declutter your house. But perhaps we spoke too fast. You will need to do some simple organizing of the stuff you don’t want. Gather some large bins, bags, or other containers that will help you sort and cart away your unwanted stuff. While you should throw damaged items away, you may want to sort items to make donating easier (for example):

Outgrown kids’ clothing to the neighbors’ kids

• Household items to second-hand or thrift stores
• Furniture to resale shops or recycling centers
• Clothing to charity shops

The more items you can get rid of, the easier time you’ll have organizing. Keep in mind that decluttering isn’t a one-time job. You may want to tackle it seasonally or even monthly if needed. 

Organization tools of the trade

The key to proper organization is having the right tools for the job. In this case, you’ll need adequate storage units and supplies. It’s not always possible to widen your closets and pantry to accommodate all the items that need storing, so consider purchasing the following items to help you organize each room of your home:

• Clear totes or rubber bins (clear so you can easily see what’s inside them)
• Wire shelving units (perfect for holding your storage bins in a spare room or basement)
• Bookcases (they can hold more than books)
• Large baskets and decorative bins
• Rollout Organizers
• Closet organizers
• Shoe racks
• Underbed organizers
• Drawer organizers
• Hooks and shelves
• Pegboards (to hang tools)

Many of these items can be purchased second-hand or inexpensively at home improvement centers. The better their quality, the more likely they’ll be reliably durable for long-time use.

Kitchen and pantry

A messy kitchen where supplies are in disarray makes for a kitchen that doesn’t function as well as possible. You can streamline your kitchen with thoughtful organization. The items you need routinely must be safely stowed but also easily accessible. Here are some ideas to keep in mind when it comes to kitchen cabinets and pantry storage.

Reorganize

Kitchens become disorganized because items have a way of winding up where they’re not supposed to be. So, the first step to organizing your kitchen is to reorganize the items you have. Return the good china bowls to the china cabinet if they wound up with your everyday dishes. Return all spices to your spice rack or pantry. Place canned goods together and reorganize the rest of your food staples to store similar items beside one another. The fridge, you open it every day so it’s important to have an organized fridge that will make your every day easier. 

Your countertops are some of the most visible areas in your kitchen, it’s important to keep this areas clean of clutter and mess. There are some great kitchen countertop organization ideas to always make your kitchen look pristine. Having storage hacks or organizers can go a long way.

Storage ideas

Proper storage in the kitchen is crucial for keeping it organized. There is a wide range of kitchen organization items you can purchase to help you tackle kitchen organization. For instance, consider the following:

• Hanging pan rack
• Clear canisters (for storing flour, coffee, sugar, etc.)
• Countertop container for oversize utensils (i.e., whisk, potato masher, pasta fork, etc.)
• Drawer utensil tray
• Spice rack
• Expandable cabinet shelves (also useful for pantry shelves)
• Airtight food containers
• Hanging wire basket for fruit

Many storage items will help you make more effective use of your current kitchen space.

Bathroom

Like the kitchen, the bathroom will function better when all useful items are stored conveniently. As with the kitchen, you’ll want to reorganize your current bathroom supplies as needed. Take stock to determine if you need additional storage features to accommodate these items. 

Storage and organization ideas

If you don’t have a linen closet inside of your bathroom for towels and toiletries, consider some of the following organization features and storage items:

• Built-in cabinetry 
• Overhead shelving with baskets or jars
• Shelving unit (ideal for stowing bins as well as folded towels)
• Hooks
• Medicine cabinet

If your bathroom is on the small side, you may want to transform a nearby closet into your bathroom storage center so that you can prevent the bathroom from appearing cluttered.

Home office

Keeping your home office clutter-free and organized will help you create a more conducive environment to work. Professional office furnishings can be expensive, but you don’t have to pay top-dollar for a new desk, file cabinets, and other typical office features. You can organize your office with more economical organizational ideas.

Home Office Organization

To reorganize your home office, consider purchasing items such as:

• Rubber file bins and totes
• Desk drawer organizers
• Metal wire cubes
• Wall shelves
• Bookcases and shelving units
• Repurposed cabinets
• Storage cabinets

Bedroom

You can keep your bedroom neatly organized with dressers and a closet, but for some—those features just aren’t enough for optimum organization. If that’s the case for your home, you’ll need some organizing features that will help you reorganize your belongings while ensuring they remain easy to retrieve:

Bedroom Organization Ideas

Try these options to tame bedroom clutter down to size:

• Underbed organizers (ideal for seasonal clothing or shoes)
• Closet organizers (there are sizes and styles for every closet)
• Hanging jewelry rack (keep your surfaces free for other items)
• Tiered shoe rack or hanging shoe rack
• Wall-mounted blanket rack
• Wall shelving
• Baskets for miscellaneous items
• Vacuum storage bags for seasonal clothing

Living room

A living room can become really ‘lived in’ without attention to storage. Keep your living room neat and in company-ready condition by removing any items that don’t belong in it (like kids’ toys and jackets), and then consider some of these storage solutions:

Living room storage and organization ideas

From decorative storage furnishings to fun product hacks, you can keep your living room clutter-free and well organized with these options:

• Coffee table ottoman with storage (great for books, magazines, throws)
• Coat rack
• Front closet organizer
• Bookcase
• Wall shelving
• Freestanding wood cubicles (ideal for holding baskets for kids’ toys, dog toys, magazines, etc.) Photo boxes and decorative baskets

Mudroom and entryway

Your home’s mudroom and entryway can become overcrowded with stuff no matter the season. This makes for a perfect storm of disorganization. Having the right storage features in place is the key to organizing these areas so that they’re always clutter-free and allow for easy exit and entry to your home. 

Mudroom/entryway storage and organization ideas

These areas of your home require a thoughtful approach because you’ll need to adopt organizational measures conducive to the size of the space. A small entryway may not fit some of the organizational ideas you have in mind. However, you can even expand your entry to include a nearby storage unit or closet space that can accommodate items like footwear and outerwear. Keep these ideas in mind:

• Overhead cabinets (ideal for mudrooms)
• Custom coat rack with bench seating and under-bench storage
• Closet organizer
• Tiered shoe rack
• Baskets for outerwear accessories like hats, gloves, and scarves
• Wall hooks (extra sturdy for winter coats)

A mudroom generally offers more space for storage. It can be a great place to stash excess home storage. Consider installing bench seating along a wall with under-bench cabinetry or open shelves. Install an armoire in your mudroom for stowing large bulky jackets and coats or other seasonal items. 

Laundry room

You can keep your laundry room neat and organized with the right storage features in place. Like your mudroom, your laundry room might offer plenty of extra space to accommodate some extra storage room for seasonal clothing or other household items. 

Laundry room organization ideas

Built-in wall cabinets are ideal for laundry rooms. You can save money by opting for purely functional and not overly decorative cabinets for this space. Other items to help you organize your laundry room include:

• Laundry bin sorter 
• Table to fold, sort, or set down laundry
• Shelving rack for detergent, dryer sheets, stain fighters, etc.
• Floor-to-ceiling cabinets for generous storage (for seasonal clothing, extra towels, etc.)

Kids’ playroom

It won’t be easy, but it is possible to keep the children’s playroom neat and organized! With the right organizational features, you can even encourage your kids to help keep their favorite room in the house neat. 

Kids’ playroom organization and storage ideas

For this room of the home, you’ll want to opt for some child-friendly storage bins and items that are conveniently low-to-the-ground so they can help keep the room organized. Some ideas to consider include:

• Sturdy bookcase (find one that can accommodate the diverse sizes of kids books)
• Toy bins (instead of one large one, purchase several smaller ones to accommodate specific toys such as blocks, dolls, cars, plastic animals, etc.)
• Puzzle rack 
• Game rack
• Baskets (also helpful for sorting particular items)
• Bins for crayons and crafting items
• Wall seating with built-in storage (great to stow games, craft items, larger toys, and more)
• Plastic bins with lids (ideal for toys with small items like Legos)

You can achieve a well-organized home using these helpful tips and storage techniques. You can even make or purchase some storage items with some creativity, so you don’t have to pay full price. Gather all your storage features together, and you’ll be ready to tackle this job.