How to Get Rid of Clutter in Your Apartment

If you’re wondering how to get rid of clutter in your apartment, there’s really only one solution: you need to clean your place and organize. Follow this simple process and your apartment will become much more livable and comfortable. Reducing clutter will even make the place look bigger.

Step 1: Take Inventory Room-By-Room

Removing clutter throughout your entire apartment can be an overwhelming task. Break down the process and organize one room at a time. Start in the common areas like the living room, dining area and kitchen. Gather anything that doesn’t have a space where it belongs, such as books piled on the floor or random objects sitting in the corner, and set them aside in a specific spot to sort through. Next, look around and see how much space you have to realistically accommodate your belongings. Do this in your bedroom and in your closets too. What does each room need, or need less of, to look and feel clean and organized?

Step 2: Sort the Clutter

Begin sorting by making three piles: items to keep, items to trash and items to donate or sell. As you’re looking through the items, keep in mind that everything you decide to keep should have a set place in your apartment, such as a spot on a shelf or space in your closet. If it doesn’t, the item will simply become clutter again. In deciding what to keep, you may need to sort through belongings already in your closet or on your shelves to see if any of it can be trashed, donated or sold to make room for other items. The extra step may seem like a lot of work, but will make for a more thorough clutter removal process (and will help to clean your apartment).

Step 3: Find New Storage Tools

You may find that even after you’ve sorted your belongings and tossed out or donated a large portion of the clutter that you still don’t have enough storage space for everything you’ve decided to keep. At this point, you’re going to need to find extra storage compartments. A simple slim basket on your kitchen counter is a great place to put bills, grocery lists and coupons that otherwise clutter your kitchen table or desk. A shallow plastic storage bin can slide under your bed and house any items that would otherwise accumulate in open areas. A nice woven basket next to the sofa is a great place to store magazines and catalogs that are normally piled on your coffee table.

Step 4: Prevent Clutter In the Future

Keep clutter out of your apartment by putting items away directly after you using them. If you know you’re bound to toss your stuff on the floor from time to time, keep a “clutter” box or basket in your closet so everything stays out of sight until you can put it away. Set a schedule to go through the box on a set day every week. You’ll feel better about keeping a more organized apartment. 

Organizing the clutter can be a timely task, but the result is well worth the work.

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Rachael Weiner: I’m a communications professional for a non-profit, which financially necessitates my status as an apartment dweller. Constantly “on-the-go,” I’ve resided in five different apartments across the United States over the past five years. Roommate issues, budgeting, organizing and handling problem neighbors are my specialty.