How To Declutter Your Home Fast: 35 Quick Tips That Actually Work

Clutter not only takes up valuable space in our homes, but it can also lead to increased stress levels and a feeling of being overwhelmed. In today’s busy world, it’s more important than ever to learn how to declutter your home quickly and efficiently. These 35 tips will help you get the job done fast!

Do you find yourself surrounded by unnecessary clutter that is taking up valuable space and time in your effort to keep it under control? Not to worry – I have been there too and here are my tips to declutter your home that will actually work.

These creative ways to declutter your home will give you easy-to-action tasks that you can do in one day, or when you have a spare 5 to 10 minutes.

35 Ways To Declutter Your Home Fast & Easily

When it comes to having a clutter-free home, the decluttering process itself is often the biggest obstacle. It can be hard to know where to start decluttering, and it’s easy to get overwhelmed and give up before you even make a dent.

The key to successfully decluttering your home is to break the task down into smaller, more manageable steps. Tackle one area at a time, and don’t move on to the next until the first is completely finished.

Here are 35 ways to declutter your home fast, so you can finally enjoy the peace and relaxation of home that is clutter-free!

1. Write a list of areas that need decluttering.

Before you start decluttering your home, it’s important to have a plan of attack. Make a decluttering checklist of all the areas in your home that need to be decluttered, and then tackle them one by one. This will help you stay focused and avoid getting overwhelmed.

If you need help putting together a list of areas to declutter, try a 30-day declutter challenge and grab my free decluttering calendar to get you started.

2. Set a timer for each task.

One of the best ways to declutter your home quickly is to set a timer for each task. This will help you stay focused and avoid getting sidetracked. I like to set a timer for 15 minutes and see how much I can get done in that time frame.

This cleaning game can be a great motivation to keep you focused on the task at hand and avoid getting distracted. Plus there is a lot you can achieve in 10 to 15 minutes.

3. Work on one area at a time

Trying to declutter your entire home at once is overwhelming and will only lead to frustration. Instead, focus on one area at a time and declutter that completely before moving on to the next.

This could be a room, like a kitchen or living room, or it could be a smaller area, like a desk or closet.

4. Put on some upbeat music while you declutter

Listening to music while you declutter can help pass the time and make the task more enjoyable. Make a playlist of your favourite songs, or listen to a podcast or audiobook while you work.

Upbeat music often gets us moving faster and getting through our tasks quicker. It’s a great way to power through a decluttering session.

5. Get the whole family involved

If you have kids, involve them in the decluttering process, especially when decluttering toys! Not only will this teach them about decluttering and organising, but it will also help you get the job done faster. These cleaning games can help motivate reluctant helpers.

And if you have a spouse or partner, ask for their help too.

Two people can usually declutter a space much faster than one person can. Plus all the clutter you’ve accumulated is unlikely to just belong to one family member, so it makes sense to work together.

Set chores for each family member. Even toddlers can start to learn the benefits of simple tasks such as picking up toys each day.

6. Throw out anything out of date

Maintain a regular schedule to declutter the consumable products in your home. This should be done every 2-3 months to ensure that you are not keeping anything past its use-by date.

This includes things like food in the pantry, makeup and skincare, and medications. Check the expiration dates on everything and get rid of anything that is out of date.

Check out this list of things to throw away or donate to speed up the process of clearing the rest of the excess stuff from your home too.

7. Seek out creative storage options.

There are so many ways you can organise your belongings to help your home stay organised and clutter-free. Having set places for everything to go also helps limit the amount of stuff you keep too.

Check out ways to use the Ikea Kallax cube shelving to store and hideaway items or try these craft storage ideas for your hobbies spaces. There are even great options for storing toys indoor and outdoor toys as well.

8. Clean out your closet regularly

A great way to keep your closet decluttered is to regularly go through and get rid of anything you no longer wear. You can do a full declutter every season or every 6 months, but even doing a quick sweep every month will help prevent too much clutter from building up

To make this task easier, try this easy hack to downsize your clothing throughout the year by switching the direction of your clothes hangers.

9. Throw away broken items.

Chances are you won’t get around to fixing it so it’s easier to just get rid of it (unless you’re really handy or it’s worth fixing).

There are items we all want to keep but if they are no longer serving our lives or you can no longer use them due to damage, they are simply collecting dust around your home.

Get rid of these items quickly and only replace them if you truly did use them and miss having them around.

10. Find a home for everything

If an item doesn’t have a place to go, it will likely become clutter. So before you buy anything new for your home, make sure you have a designated space for it first.

This way you can avoid ending up with more stuff than you know what to do with.

Changing your buying habits will not only save you money, but also avoid your home quickly returning to its former cluttered state.

11. Schedule regular decluttering sessions

The best way to keep your home decluttered is to establish a regular decluttering routine. This could be daily, weekly, or monthly, depending on how much stuff you have and how fast it accumulates.

Set aside 5 minutes each night before bed to do a quick pick-up session. This way you can avoid letting the clutter build up to the point where it’s overwhelming

Or set aside 30 minutes each week to declutter quickly in a specific area of your home. You could start with one room and work your way through the entire house or focus on decluttering surfaces like countertops and coffee tables, the living room or a bedroom.

The key each week is to focus on one small area so you don’t become overwhelmed and give up altogether.

12. Limit the number of sentimental items you keep

We all have those special items that we want to keep because they hold sentimental value. But holding onto too many of these things can lead to clutter. It can be hard to declutter sentimental items.

A great way to deal with this is to take photos of the item and then get rid of it. This way you can keep the memories without hanging onto the physical item.

You could also create a memory box where you store all of your sentimental items in one place. This will help you keep them organised and prevent them from taking over your home.

13. Don’t be afraid to ask for help

If you’re struggling to declutter your home, don’t be afraid to ask for help. There are professional organisers who can help you get your home in order.

Or you could ask a friend or family member to come over and help you declutter fast. Having someone else there to help will make the task much easier and more fun.

14. Be mindful of what you bring into your home

One of the best ways to avoid clutter is to be mindful of what you bring into your home in the first place. If you’re constantly bringing in new things, it will be difficult to keep your home decluttered.

Try to only buy things that you really need and use. And if you do buy something new, take the time to get rid of something you no longer need. This way you can avoid the build-up of clutter in your home.

Think carefully before taking items that are offered to you by friends or family too.

Don’t feel obligated to take them if they aren’t going to serve a purpose in your life. It can be hard to say no, especially if someone guilts you into taking their unwanted items so they can free up space in their own home. This happens often so be aware of these situations.

15. Downsize your seasonal items

Sort through your Christmas decorations and any seasonal items and get rid of anything you don’t use. Invest in a Christmas decoration organiser to help keep these items organised.

If you’re not sure whether to keep something, ask yourself if you would buy it again if you saw it in a store. If the answer is no, then get rid of it.

16. Dispose of anything you have replaced or upgraded

No more duplicate items. No one needs 3 toasters! If you have replaced an item or upgraded to a newer model, get rid of the old one. Spares are unnecessary for most household items.

17. Be ruthless with your paper

We live in a digital age which means we don’t need to keep hard copies of many things anymore. So get rid of any unnecessary paper clutter by digitising what you can and recycling the rest.

For the important documents, you do need to keep, use these tips to organise paperwork in your home.

18. Downsize or eliminate your junk drawer

Having a junk drawer or a junk room is too much of a temptation that enables us not to find proper homes for items. So get rid of the junk drawer or room and find a home for everything instead.

This can help avoid clutter hotspots in your home too.

LEARN HOW TAKING A MINIMALIST APPROACH TO TOYS CAN HELP REDUCE CLUTTER IN YOUR HOME 

19. Declutter kid’s toys and clothes often

Toys and clothing are outgrown fast when it comes to kids so regularly decluttering toys and kids clothing is essential for keeping things under control.

These items are great for donating if they are in good condition. Charities will appreciate them.

And for the items you do keep, here are some great toy storage solutions.

20. Use the one in, one out method

For every new towel, bedding item or kitchen appliance your purchase, get rid of an old one. This means even when you are upgrading and buying new items, you are not increasing the amount of stuff in your home.

This is especially effective when it comes to buying new clothing and accessories.

21. Make use of boxes before you throw them out

One of the quickest ways to declutter or clean surface rubbish from your home is by using a spare cardboard box. I love using the ONE BOX declutter method.

Each time you get a delivery box in your home, don’t just throw it out. Fill it with items you can donate and drop it to the nearest charity or fill it with broken items, junk mail and other unwanted things and throw the whole thing straight in the trash.

22. Set up organisation solutions around your home

Not all organisation systems work for all people. Explore what methods work for you and use them to keep your clutter under control.

Figure out only what you need and find a box, container, hanger etc to suit.

Check out the ways to utilise a Raskog trolley for ideas in every room of the house.

23. Daily Pick Up Habit

Each night before bed put 5 things away where they are meant to go.

It minimises cleaning time later. Or better still, start a daily 5 minute declutter habit you do every single day.

24. Create routines

Regular routines and habits will help keep your home tidy and organised.

Most people have certain routines they follow but you can create many around home cleaning and tidying, such as putting away laundry the same day it is done or throwing out the recycling once per day.

Check out this guide on how to create a cleaning schedule for daily, weekly, monthly and seasonal tasks.

25. Convert to digital media

Instead of buying new DVDs, books, CDs and other types of media, consider digital subscriptions such as iTunes, Amazon or Spotify for music, Netflix or Amazon Prime for TV and movies, and Audible or Kindle Unlimited for books. This has helped me declutter drastically!

26. Have a pre-holiday declutter

Birthday or Christmas coming up? Knowing there will be new items such as toys, clothes etc, encourage younger family members to fill a box of items they have outgrown to make space for potential gifts they may receive.

You can also switch to clutter-free gifts or experience gifts to avoid new clutter entering your home.

27 . Have a plan for unwanted items

When you declutter always have a plan for what to do with unwanted items so they don’t end up sitting in your home long after you’ve decided to part with them.

The most common options are to sell, donate or throw away but there are other options too such as swapping, passing on to friends or family members or upcycling into something new.

Check out these ideas and tips on how to sell your unwanted items, from online platforms to garage sales and other ways to make money on the stuff you longer need.

28. Switch to photobooks

Photo albums are great but take up a lot of space. Think before you print and consider digital photo books as a space-saving alternative to traditional print and fill photo albums.

29. Keep things of the same type all in one place

Do you often have similar items stored in different places around your home? Time to fix that!

Avoid not being able to find a pen because they don’t have a proper home within your house. This saves you time plus stops you from buying the same items over and over again and is a great way to save money by decluttering!

30. Don’t entertain often?

If you rarely entertain groups of friends or family, you probably don’t need a 40-piece dinner set. Downsize and buy disposable as you need them.

31. Set small goals to achieve by a certain deadline

Goal setting works in many areas of your life, including when it comes time to declutter your home.

A small area = less overwhelming.

These tips will help you avoid feeling overwhelmed when you declutter fast.

32. Avoid keeping things just because

Items such as fabric and paper scraps that you will never use… that camera case that doesn’t fit your current camera but might fit one in the future.

Nah… it’s taking up space and it’s time to go!

33. Store bags inside other bags

Store small suitcases inside larger ones. Or smaller bags inside suitcases and larger bags. This means you need less space to store these items and it’s always a win when you an have a big impact while making small changes.

34. Swap books you have finished reading

If you like to read a lot, consider swapping books with friends once you have finished reading them instead of keeping them on your shelves. This can also work for DVDs and video games.

Or you can eliminate book clutter entirely by switching to audiobooks or electronic books instead, such as Kindle books. This means zero clutter and you still get all the reading material you could hope for!

35. Use what you have

Before you go out and buy new storage solutions, take a look around your home and see what you already have that you can use. Chances are you have plenty of things that would work perfectly well, you just need to get a little creative!

In fact, there’s a good chance you have furniture and storage items in your whole house that you aren’t using and don’t actually need. Those can definitely go if you are aiming for a clutter-free home!

Need extra help? Grab my 30-day declutter challenge workbook:

Decluttering your home can be a daunting task, but by following these tips you can make the decluttering process much less overwhelming, especially if you want to declutter fast. Start with one area at a time and set small goals to achieve by a specific deadline. With a little bit of effort, you can declutter your entire house and create more space for the things you really need and love.

Keep up the momentum with these decluttering & organising tips:

• How to create a cleaning schedule that works
• How to deep clean your entire home
• 10 transformational books about decluttering
• 150 things you can throw away today
• Things you’re forgetting to replace at home
• Things you’re forgetting to clean at home
• Age-appropriate chores for kids
• Cleaning games for kids
• How to start decluttering when overwhelmed
• Ways to make cleaning fun
• How to simplify your life
• Cleaning hacks everyone should know
• 10 minute declutter tasks you can do when short on time
• How to declutter toys
• Create your own DIY Home management binder

What area of your home is the worst clutter hotspot? Leave a comment below. I would love to hear it! Be sure to follow me on Facebook or YouTube for more decluttering tips like these!