The ultimate home decluttering tips guide – expert advice on how to prep, room-by-room advice and much more

The Ultimate Home Decluttering Guide: Tips from Every Room

Clutter can creep up quietly, turning your home from peaceful to stressful before you even notice. The good news? With a few strategies and smart routines, you can regain control and create calmer, more organized spaces in every room. Here’s a clean decluttering guide following advice from Homes & Gardens—no fluff, just useful steps.

Shift Your Mindset & Get Ready to Declutter

Before you dive in, setting up the right mindset and strategy makes all the difference.

• Schedule small, consistent slots of time (5-30 minutes) rather than trying to do everything at once. A timer helps.
• Prioritize rooms or areas that cause you the most frustration or that you use often.
• Find motivation: play music or a podcast, recruit help from a friend or family member, make rewards.
• Prepare tools: have separate bags/bins for donate, sell, recycle, repair, and trash. Avoid “maybe” piles that linger.

Methods to Help You Let Go & Stay Focused

Different approaches work for different people. These methods help reduce decision fatigue and keep you moving forward.

• One Bag a Day — Fill one bag with items to remove each day.
• 12-12-12 Method — Choose 12 items to throw away, 12 to donate, and 12 to return to their proper places.
• Snowball Method — Once you clear one item or space, let that momentum carry you into similar spaces.
• Boundary Method — Use physical limits (space or storage) to force you to decide what stays and what goes.
• Didn’t Know Method — Find items you forgot you had and ask whether they still serve you. If not, out they go.

Room-by-Room Decluttering Tips

Kitchen

• Remove expired food, organize by expiry so easy-use items are front.
• Purge appliances you rarely use; commit to using or let them go.
• Clear countertops: only leave out items you use daily and put others away.

Dining Room

• Clear surfaces (table, sideboards) so they feel usable again.
• Add dedicated storage for items that tend to clutter here.

Bedroom

• Empty drawers and closets; sort by category to see what you really have.
• Tackle the space under the bed—remove, assess, discard what’s unused.
• Nightstands: keep these minimal so your winding-down routine is easier.

Bathroom

• Go through all toiletries, medicines; discard expired or duplicate items.
• Assess how many towels/sheets you actually need; donate or throw out worn ones.

Entryway

• Get shoes, bags off the floor using racks, benches, or cabinets.
• Keep only items you need when leaving the house; relocate or discard others.

Living Room

• Sort media cables and devices; label what’s kept; hide or remove unused wires.
• Reduce soft furnishings to those you use or love; avoid piles of cushions or throws.

Home Office

• Cull books you won’t read again; organize by theme or usage.
• Clear desk of unused papers, pens; define places for essentials.
• Be careful with documents: keep must-keeps safe, scan or discard what’s obsolete.

Quick Answer: Where to Begin for Most Impact?

If you need one place to start, tackle clutter in spaces you use every day but hate using (like kitchen countertops or entryways). Clearing those improves daily life most.

How to Maintain Clarity & Prevent Re-Clutter

Maintaining a decluttered home takes some ongoing habits:

• Do mini decluttering check-ins (5-10 minutes) regularly so stuff never piles up.
• Teach everyone in the home where things “live” to make tidying normalized.
• Remove things immediately if you decide they’re not needed—donate, discard, or recycle right away.
• Reassess selections when seasons change or during major life shifts.

Final Thoughts: Decluttering as Self-Care

Decluttering isn’t just about clean surfaces—it’s about reclaiming space, peace, and comfort in your home. By being thoughtful, consistent, and compassionate with yourself, you can create a home that looks better and feels better. Over time, those small changes begin to add up to a clearer, calmer life.