How to Declutter Your Home

Clutter is anything you’re keeping that doesn’t add value to your life. It takes on many forms, from unused lawn equipment crowding your garage to children’s toys you’ve held onto for years. Whatever clutter looks like to you, it’s important to get rid of it when you start to feel it’s boxing you in or cramping your living space.

Clutter is an energy zapper. How much time have you wasted looking for things you can't find? In our survey, 48.5% of respondents agreed that unwanted clutter in the house made them feel stressed. Another 42.5% of respondents said clutter makes them feel embarrassed. In extreme cases, depression can result when a life of consumption extends beyond “stuff.” In serious hoarding situations, mental and physical health complications are possible, for instance if mold and dust are present. A house full of clutter could even cause fire hazards.

Whether you’re expecting a new baby or moving your kid off to college, decluttering helps you make the next step. By getting rid of excess stuff, you can easily turn your spare room into a children’s bedroom or a make-shift gym. Moving into a smaller home? You have to declutter first, then you can downsize. Cleaning out clutter ensures your home — and your mind — are ready for the next stage of life.

Organizing and decluttering relieve stress for many people by providing a sense of control and accomplishment. In our survey, 61.7% of respondents said decluttering reduced their overall stress level. When you feel less stressed, you’re more inclined to be productive in other areas of your life.

Clutter takes up more space than you probably realize. Items you don’t use or that don’t bring value to your life shouldn’t crowd your home. By purging clutter from your house, you’ll make more room for your family members and things you actually use. Plus, since decluttering relieves stress, you’ll have a clearer head space as well.

Without piles of junk lying around, your home will feel clean and orderly. It’s easier to find a place for your belongings if you don’t have as many of them.

Before tackling your decluttering project, set a tentative timeline and specific goals for yourself. Decide which room you’ll clean out first, which one you’ll tackle last and what you plan to accomplish in each room.

As the saying goes — a place for everything and everything in its place. All your belongings should have a designated spot to keep rooms and surfaces tidy. If you can’t find a place for something, it’s probably best to get rid of it or create space for it by getting rid of something else.

You shouldn’t rush to declutter your house in one fell swoop. Take breaks while you declutter so you don’t burn yourself out or get discouraged. Cleaning out clutter isn’t a race, and reaching your end goal of having an organized home is much more important than how long it takes you to get there.

Try setting a timer for 15 minutes then take a break, or clean out one drawer each day. Looking at the big picture can feel overwhelming, but completing small decluttering projects one at a time gives you the boost to keep going.

It’s not uncommon to feel guilty when you declutter. This is especially true if you’re getting rid of sentimental items or gifts. It’s okay to acknowledge those feelings as you complete your decluttering project, but remember that hanging onto clutter will cause a different kind of guilt.

If you’re feeling bad about getting rid of something you don’t use, but that has meaning to you, consider selling or donating it. This way, you know that the next person who owns that item is truly enjoying it. If you do sell a gift or sentimental item, putting the money to something else meaningful to you can help you preserve the good memories, while letting go of the guilt.

Decluttering isn’t just a one-time thing. To keep that minimalistic vibe you're after, declutter for 10 minutes each day. If that’s not feasible for you, try to clean out and organize your home every two weeks or once a month. This keeps clutter manageable and keeps you from feeling overwhelmed.

Generally speaking, 80% of the time, you only wear 20% of the clothing you own. This rule tends to be true for other things as well, such as video games, computers, electronics, books, DVDs, toys and more. Your mission is to get rid of the things you don’t use 80% of the time.

In economics, money you’ve already spent that can’t be recovered is considered a “sunk cost.” Since you can’t get your money back on the items you bought, you should only think about the value they can add to your life. For instance, some people are reluctant to sell expensive kitchen appliances even though they never use them. Take a Kitchenaid, for example. It may have cost a pretty penny upfront, but if you’re not using it, getting it off the counter will give you more space to cook, improving your quality of life now.

Feeling overwhelmed about how to start decluttering? Before you commit to decluttering an entire room, start with a few small projects that will give you a sense of accomplishment when you’re done. This will help build motivation to tackle lengthier jobs and eventually lead to a big change in your clutter level.

Countertops, shelves and other flat surfaces are clutter magnets. If you need to keep a few things out on your counters, that’s OK, but you should make it a goal to free all surfaces of most clutter. Make space in drawers, or add small boxes or bins to your shelves for paper items. You can keep frequently used small appliances on your kitchen countertops, but the rest should be put away or donated if they’re rarely used.

When decluttering your home, it’s important to categorize things as you go through them. Keeping like-things together forces you to organize the house and will make your daily life easier. Store each category of item close to where they’ll be used, so you know where they are when you need them. For example, keep office supplies in a tote in your home office or children’s toys in labeled bins in your basement.

If a certain treasure you found stashed away doesn’t function properly, get rid of it. If you want to fix it (and are confident in your skills to do so), then fix it right away. Otherwise, it will continue to sit unused, collecting dust.

Follow this useful decluttering tip for clothing, books and DVDs. Over the course of a year, when you use or wear an item, put it back facing the opposite direction of the others. This allows you to see what you’ve used and what you haven’t. If you haven’t used or worn something at the end of the year, get rid of it.

If you come across something you haven’t used in the last six months, you should probably get rid of it. If you pulled the item out and said, “I’ve been wondering where this was!” you should probably get rid of it. And if you didn’t even know you still had the item in question, you should definitely get rid of it. You didn’t miss it enough to warrant keeping it in your home.

This tip may seem obvious, but sometimes we keep things we aren’t totally crazy about. Think about a time you spent money on something you didn’t love, but didn’t return to the store. If you don’t love an item, and you haven’t used it for more than six months, add it to the “Get Rid Of” bin.

Bedrooms often become dumping grounds for stuff that doesn’t have a home in any other room. According to our survey, the bedroom is ranked as the #1 most cluttered room in the home. Realistically, you don’t need more than a bed, nightstands, and storage for clothes, shoes, jewelry and makeup.

Depending on the clutter level, it will take you anywhere from an afternoon to a full weekend of work to clear out and organize your bedroom. We’ll address closet decluttering in another section, as this area has its own unique challenges that are separate from the bedroom.

Take everything out of your drawers, and ask the following questions about each item:

1. Does it belong in the bedroom?
2. Have you used or worn it in the last year?

If you answered, “no” to either of those questions, put the item in your “Get Rid Of” bin or move it to the room where it belongs.

Once you’re ready to place the items back inside the drawers, try adding dividers or small containers so you can store like-things together. You can get creative and repurpose small gift boxes, shoe boxes, cereal boxes or plastic containers as drawer storage systems. You can also add shelf paper to make cleaning the drawers easier in the future.

Or, at least keep flat surfaces almost clear. It’s okay to have a few decorations, a lamp or pictures on top of your dresser or night stand. Try to limit each surface in the bedroom to less than five things on top. When you have less things cluttering the flat surfaces in your room, the space will feel more calming and peaceful.

Decluttering your closet is therapeutic. The process of going through clothes, shoes and other forgotten belongings doesn’t only declutter your house. It can also cleanse your mind of any emotional baggage that may be connected to these items. This task can usually be tackled in an afternoon, though overstuffed walk-in closets may take up to a week of decluttering sessions.

Be sure to have your “Keep,” “Get Rid Of,” and “Put In Storage” bins nearby as you follow these steps to declutter your closet.

Most people’s first instinct is to begin from the top with hanging items, but starting the cleanup by clearing out the mess at the bottom of the closet is actually the more efficient way to go. Not only will you free up space to work, but you’ll feel like you’re halfway done with the closet in no time at all.

“Our favorite Horderly tips for organizing bedrooms and closets is to streamline hangers with slim velvet hangers — these allow for more space on hanging rods, and the synchronized look provides a level of tidiness and comfort," says Horderly. We also love to file fold any items in drawers and use drawer dividers to ensure categories stay together and folds don't fall apart."

Going back to our general decluttering tips from earlier in the post, it’s essential to follow the 80/20 rule when clearing out your closet. Since we typically wear 20% of our clothes, 80% of the time, there should be a significant amount of clothing you can purge.

Having trouble deciding what to toss out? Ask yourself these questions about each item:

1. Does it fit?
2. Is it damaged, stained, torn or faded?
3. Has it been worn in the past year?

If you answered, “no,” to any of these questions (or if you answered, "yes," to question #2), the item should go in your “Get Rid Of” bin. Seasonal clothing and infrequently worn items with sentimental value should be put in a storage bin to free up space in your closet. The same goes for shoes and jewelry.

Even after performing this exercise, you’ll probably end up hanging onto items that you probably should’ve tossed. Once you’ve finished your initial decluttering, try the “backwards hanger” trick to weed out any other items that can free up space in your closet. Start the year with all the hangers’ tips facing the front of the closet (backwards). After you wear something, put it away with the hanger facing the back of the closet. At the end of the year, you can easily identify the clothes that aren’t worth hanging onto any longer.

The main purpose for any family room or living room is to relax. If the area is cluttered with toys, books, wires, blankets, old magazines and more, it can be difficult to truly unwind. After bedrooms, the living room ranks as the second most cluttered space in the home.

Like many homes, your living room is probably in need of a refresh. Follow these decluttering tips to take back your relaxing family space over the span of a weekend.

It’s possible you simply have too many things in your living room, which is making it feel cluttered and overcrowded. Hanging pictures and adding floating shelves to the walls will remove collectibles that are crowding your tabletops. Streamline the number of throw pillows and blankets you have down to a few statement pieces.

A lot of things find their way into this frequently used space over time. Start by removing any items that have lost their way and belong in another room. Look for toys that belong in kids’ rooms, mail or magazines that belong in the office and glasses or dishware that may not have made it back to the kitchen.

It’s also likely that you have a surplus of books, CDs, DVDs and other entertainment items you haven’t looked at in ages taking up space in the living room. Sort through these items, and donate or sell anything that’s no longer a staple in your collection. If you can, convert your music and movies to a digital format. This will free up a lot of valuable real estate in the room without having to part with something you’d otherwise keep. Get rid of any broken or unused toys, remote controls, or anything else that has lost its usefulness.

As you work on decluttering the living room, you may find yourself with an overabundance of items that DO belong in this space. Here are a few simple storage solutions to provide a new home for any clutter in the room:

• Add baskets to hold frequently-used toys and blankets.
• Install shelving for video games, DVDs and other media that is prone to sitting out in the open.
• Look for storage furniture, such as ottomans and trunks, to stow away anything you don’t want out in the open. There are even models of couches and loungers that serve a dual function as storage.
• Get other furniture that can double as storage space. Consider an entertainment center with shelves and cupboards or a behind-the-couch chest.

To avoid a potentially bigger mess, we recommend decluttering one section of your kitchen at a time. Assigning zones can also help you improve your kitchen organization once you put things away.

• Designate the space near the stove for cooking utensils, pots and pans. These items should be conveniently located near where you cook.
• Unless you bake every day, store your baking supplies away in a cabinet or on a shelf. If you have a mixer on the countertop, try to corral your baking supplies near it.
• Storage bags, cling wrap, aluminum foil and similar items should get their own zone, as well as cleaning supplies.

Decluttering the bathroom is pretty straightforward. You’ll need to purge and organize the items taking up space on your countertops, shelves and inside drawers. You may be surprised by what you have and how much you have of it as you sort through everything. And you can get this space in order with one afternoon of work.

Start by clearing off your bathroom counters, emptying drawers and completely cleaning out linen closets in or near your bathrooms. Some experts recommend decluttering multiple bathrooms at once to really get an idea how much excess you have. You may have enough soap to last you for two years and not even know it!

If you’re holding onto a product that only has a little bit left, give yourself a month to use it – if you don’t, throw it away. Have more towels than you will use in a month? Consider donating them to a local animal shelter. And if you’re keeping something you never really liked, such as that bath bomb set or fancy soaps, you should pull the trigger and get rid of it.

Once you have all items out, begin grouping like-items, even if they came from different bathrooms. Make piles for things like medicine, towels, toiletries, cleaning supplies and makeup. This will help you take inventory of what you have and what might be cluttering up your space. For multiples of the same thing, combine them and clear out empty bottles or packaging.

Everyone’s laundry room is different, so our advice for decluttering this space is less specific than the other rooms in your home. Some people have their washing machine and dryer in an unfinished basement or a mudroom off the garage. A lucky few have a laundry room on the second story, closer to where clothes generally live, but in a higher traffic space.

These different setups create many more scenarios for laundry room clutter. But no matter what types of clutter plague your laundry room and what other uses the area has, these laundry room decluttering tips will ring true. You can get this space in tip-top shape over the span of a few hours to a weekend.

Anything being stored in the laundry room that you don’t need to do laundry should be moved elsewhere. These out-of-the-way shelves may seem useful for storing craft supplies or miscellaneous junk. But keeping odds and ends in a space designated for laundry is adding to your overall clutter problem.

Clutter can live forever once it’s been banished to a basement or attic. The saying, “out of sight, out of mind” definitely applies to these storage spaces. When addressing basement or attic clutter, you should set aside a good chunk of time – these typically aren’t hour-long projects.

It’s important to work in one area of your attic or basement at a time. Start with a set of shelves, a stack of boxes, seasonal decorations or old kids’ clothes and toys. If you’re tackling shelves, clear the shelves. If you’re working through boxes or bins, empty them. Don’t move onto another zone until you completely finish the current one you’re working on.

As you work on each zone, sort everything into “Keep” or “Get Rid Of” bins. Since you’re working on spaces that are generally used for storage, you can assume that “Keep” and “Put In Storage” are the same for Three-Box Method sorting. You may consider an additional category for these spaces if you find broken items you intend to fix. Give yourself a deadline for fixing them – if you don’t meet it, recycle the items or throw them away.

Before you start putting away the things you’re keeping, move the things you’ve chosen to part with outside of the house. If you’re throwing items away, throw them directly into your dumpster or trash bin. If you’re donating or selling any items, you should put them in the vehicle you’ll use to drop them off, or keep them on a porch or in the garage until they can be picked up.

Keep like-things together as you put items away to greatly improve your ability to find and access them when you need them later. Have more ornaments than you can fit on a tree? Try sorting your ornaments by color, so you don’t have to move as many boxes next year when you start decorating.

From old sporting equipment and storage boxes to long-forgotten tools and rusty car parts, garages allow junk to hang around for much longer than it should. The garage is a space where most of the items you think you might use or need one day end up. While this is a challenging space to declutter, it’s not impossible!

Follow these garage decluttering tips over the span of a weekend or two, and actually use the space for parking your car again.

We recommend planning this decluttering project on a weekend with good weather. It’s important to try pull every single item out of the garage and sort through them. There may be a few extreme cases where this isn’t possible, but you’ll set yourself up for the most success if you start by completely clearing out the garage.

Categorize items as you go through them, and get rid of duplicates you don’t plan on using in the next five years. Either sell these items or give them to a friend who could use them. If you’re holding onto anything that’s worn or damaged, you should probably get rid of that too.

After you’ve decided what you’re going to keep, determine what categories should be stored together before you put them back. Put all of your tools together, sporting equipment together, gardening equipment, hardware, etc. But don’t put them back in the garage until you’ve found an organized place for everything.

NEAT Method’s Ashley Murphy and Marissa Hagmeyer advise, “Create zones in your garage. Store holiday decor together in one area, camping gear in another, ski apparel and equipment in another, etc. Then you can easily know where to go when you need to access a particular category.”