Small Bedroom Organization Ideas

What you need to know first

In a small bedroom, the floor is the most valuable space you have, and it is usually the first to fill with clothes, bags and boxes. The plan below moves everything off the floor and into four places: under the bed, inside the wardrobe, behind the door and in one piece of furniture at the foot of the bed.

Step 1: Declutter clothes first

Clothes are most of what a bedroom stores. Take everything out of the wardrobe and drawers and sort into keep, store (out of season) and go. Be honest about things you have not worn in a year. A quick trick: hang everything facing one way, and turn each hanger after you wear the item. After a season, the unturned ones are your candidates to go.

Step 2: Use the space under the bed

Under the bed is usually the largest empty space in the room. Measure the clearance, then choose rolling boxes with lids for clothes and bedding. If the gap is too low, bed risers add height.

If you are replacing the bed anyway, a storage bed holds far more; best storage beds compares ottoman and drawer beds.

Step 3: Use the wardrobe's full height

Most wardrobes waste space below short clothes and above the rail. A rod doubler adds a second rail for shirts and jackets. Slim hangers fit more on the rail. Hanging shelves hold folded jumpers where there was only a rail.

Best closet organizers goes into more detail on wardrobes.

Step 4: Put the door to work

Over-the-door hooks take bags, dressing gowns and tomorrow's clothes. An over-the-door organizer holds scarves, belts and accessories.

Step 5: One piece at the foot of the bed

A storage ottoman or bench at the foot of the bed holds spare bedding and gives you somewhere to sit to put on shoes.

Step 6: Clear the bedside

Keep the bedside to a lamp, a book, a glass of water and a small tray for jewellery and glasses. Use a bedside table with a drawer if you can. Charge your phone away from the bed if it keeps you awake.

Common mistakes

• Buying storage before decluttering. You will buy the wrong sizes.
• Open shelves for everything. They look busy in a bedroom; use closed boxes.
• Overfilling under-bed boxes. Heavy boxes are hard to pull out, so you stop using them.
• Blocking a radiator or window with tall storage.

Keep it going

Put laundry away the day it is dry. Swap out-of-season clothes twice a year. Do a five-minute floor check each evening: anything on the floor goes back to its home.

If you have no wardrobe

Many small bedrooms, especially in older flats, have no built-in wardrobe. A freestanding clothes rail with a shelf underneath holds hanging clothes and shoes; cover it with a curtain if you prefer it hidden. Pair it with a chest of drawers for folded clothes, and the space under the bed for out-of-season clothes and bedding. Together they replace a wardrobe in less floor space.

If you share the room

Divide storage clearly: one side of the rail each, separate drawers, and a bedside each with its own small tray. Shared things, such as spare bedding, go under the bed in labelled boxes. Clear boundaries make it easier for both people to keep their half tidy.

Make it restful

Keep the colours of boxes and baskets calm and matching, and hide as much as possible behind doors or lids. A bedroom with little on view is easier to relax in.

The bottom line

Declutter, then store under the bed, up the wardrobe, on the door and in one piece at the foot of the bed. For buying advice, see best bedroom storage; for the whole home, the ultimate small apartment organization guide.