The Ultimate Decluttering Checklist (Plus a Simple 4-Box Method)

Do you ever look around and feel like the clutter has completely taken over? If you just don’t know where to start, believe me, I’ve been right there with you. That feeling of being totally overwhelmed is exactly why I created my simple, decluttering checklist.

This isn’t about chasing a picture-perfect home overnight. Oh no. It’s about making real, noticeable progress you can feel good about. We’re going to shift our mindset together, moving from guilt about the mess to grace in the process.

Having a clear plan with defined categories makes the initial sorting process so much less stressful.

The Game-Changing 4-Box Method

Before you even touch a single thing, let’s set yourself up for success. I swear by my 4-Box Method because it makes decisions quick and easy, which is key to preventing you from getting sidetracked. Just grab four boxes or laundry baskets and get ready to label them.

This simple system is the secret to making quick, confident decisions without getting pulled in a million different directions. Here’s how it works:

My Go-To 4-Box Decluttering Method

Box Label	What Goes Inside
Keep	Items you truly love, use regularly, and that already have a proper home.
Donate/Sell	Good-condition items you no longer need that someone else could enjoy.
Relocate	Things that have wandered and belong in another room. (We’ll deal with this box last!)
Toss/Recycle	Anything broken, expired, or just plain unusable. Give yourself permission to let it go.

This little setup helps you avoid the dreaded “clutter shuffle,” where you just move piles from one spot to another. It creates clear destinations for everything, which is especially helpful in those common household spots that tend to collect random things. You can learn more about how to control clutter with dump zones in another one of my posts.

The goal is to turn a mountain of a task into manageable little hills. Think of this as a refreshing new start, not just another chore on your to-do list.

When you’re gearing up for a really comprehensive clear-out, an extensive resource like an ultimate estate cleanout checklist can provide even more detailed guidance for those bigger projects. With the right tools and a positive mindset, you can absolutely do this!

Reclaim Your Kitchen and Living Room

Alright, let’s roll up our sleeves and tackle the heart of the home, shall we? The kitchen and living room are where life happens, which is probably why clutter seems to multiply overnight in these spots. Clearing them out first makes the biggest and most immediate difference in how your entire home feels.

Grab your decluttering checklist and those four boxes we talked about. We’re starting in the kitchen to face down those countertops, overflowing cabinets, and yes, even that junk drawer we all pretend doesn’t exist.

A Fresh Start for Your Kitchen

Countertops are total clutter magnets, aren’t they? They just seem to collect mail, keys, and appliances we hardly ever touch. My rule here is simple: if it doesn’t serve a daily purpose, it needs to find a new home.

That one little guideline can free up an incredible amount of valuable space. For more ideas on clearing those surfaces, check out my post on the top things that contribute to kitchen clutter. It’s amazing how much calmer a kitchen feels with clear counters.

Next up, the cabinets and pantry. It’s time to be brutally honest with yourself about all those gadgets!

• Ask yourself: “Have I used this in the last year?” If the answer is no, it’s probably safe to donate that specialty apple corer or panini press.
• Check expiration dates: Sift through your spices, canned goods, and baking supplies. You’d be surprised how quickly things expire!
• Group like items: Put all your baking things together, all your pasta and grains in one spot, and so on. This makes finding anything a total breeze.

Letting go of kitchen items you spent money on can be tough, I get it. But remember the goal here. You are trading a dusty, unused gadget for precious space and peace of mind. That’s a pretty good deal!

More Ideas You'll Love

This Brilliant Hack Makes Cleaning Your Shower Less Painful

Scrubbing shower walls can be hard work, but this brilliant cleaning hack makes it painless (in the literal and figurative sense!) Continue Reading

It’s completely normal to feel overwhelmed by all your stuff. I hear from so many people who feel this way! Our homes are filled with things, and a lot of those things have memories attached, making it hard to part with them. My checklist is designed to help guide you through those tough decisions.

Creating a Relaxing Living Room

Once the kitchen feels more manageable, let’s carry that wonderful momentum right into the living room. This space is meant for relaxing and spending time with family, not for navigating around piles of stuff.

Start with the flat surfaces—the coffee table, end tables, and any shelves. These are often the biggest culprits for collecting clutter like magazines, old mail, and stray items that just don’t have a home. Using your “Relocate” box here will be a lifesaver!

Next, let’s streamline your media and entertainment area.

• Sort through DVDs, CDs, and video games. If you’ve switched to streaming, you might be holding onto media you’ll never, ever use again.
• Tackle the cable clutter. Use a few zip ties or cord organizers to wrangle that nest of wires behind your TV. What a difference!
• Assess your decor. Do you truly love every single knick-knack on your shelves? Keep only the items that genuinely bring you joy and let the rest go.

The goal here is to create a space that feels both functional and genuinely relaxing. By clearing the clutter, you’re not just cleaning up; you’re making room for more peace and enjoyment in your everyday life. You’ve got this!

Create a Peaceful Bedroom and Bathroom

Now that we’ve tackled the busy common areas, let’s move into our most personal spaces. Your bedroom should be your personal sanctuary, a place to rest and recharge—not a storage locker for things that don’t have a home! It’s time to create a space that feels truly peaceful and restful.

With our decluttering checklist in hand, we’ll start with the closet, which is often the biggest challenge. A calm space can really change your whole day, and it all starts here.

Clearing Out Your Closet

My simple process for closets is all about letting go of clothes that no longer make you feel absolutely fabulous. When you open your closet doors, you should see options that make you feel confident, not guilty about things that don’t fit or aren’t your style anymore.

We’ll also tackle the nightstands and the infamous “clothes chair”—you know the one I’m talking about! It’s so easy for these spots to become mini-clutter magnets, but clearing them off takes just a few minutes and makes a huge difference. For more inspiration, I have a whole list of bedroom items to get rid of that can help you find even more things to clear out.

When decluttering clothes, don’t just ask, “Will I wear this again someday?” Instead, ask, “Would I buy this today if I saw it in a store?” This little shift in thinking makes the decision so much easier!

More Ideas You'll Love

24 Old Wives’ Tales (And The Surprising Truths Behind Them)

Discover which of these common old wives' tales are backed up by facts and which are little more than fiction. Continue Reading

This approach helps you focus on your current self, not who you were five years ago or who you think you might be in the future.

Streamlining Your Bathroom Space

Next, we’ll head to the bathroom. Oh my, it is amazing how quickly expired lotions, half-empty bottles, and old makeup can pile up in drawers and cabinets! These small items don’t take up much space individually, but together they create a real sense of chaos.

Let’s sort through the medicine cabinet and the space under the sink to create a streamlined area that makes your morning and evening routines feel easy and calm. A tidy personal space really can set the tone for your entire day.

Here’s a quick plan of attack for the bathroom:

• Medicine Cabinet: Pull everything out. Wipe down the shelves and immediately toss any expired medications or products. Only put back the items you use on a daily or weekly basis.
• Under the Sink: This area often becomes a graveyard for cleaning supplies and extra toiletries. Consolidate half-empty bottles of the same product and get rid of any cleaners you tried once and didn’t like.
• Shower and Tub: Are there empty shampoo bottles lingering in the corner? Get them out of there! Keep only what you’re currently using in the shower to create a more spa-like feel.

A decluttered bathroom not only looks better, but it also makes getting ready so much faster when you can see and access everything you need without digging through old products. It’s a small change that brings a big sense of relief.

Tackle Closets, Offices, and Storage Spaces

Alright, time to take a deep breath. We’re about to venture into those spots we all tend to put off—the home office, the linen closet, and the big storage zones like the garage or basement. These areas can feel totally overwhelming, I get it. But breaking them down with our decluttering checklist is the secret to making it manageable.

These are the “out of sight, out of mind” places where things go to be forgotten. Getting them back in order feels like such a huge win! The trick is to not try to conquer it all in one day. Instead, think in short, focused bursts of activity.

Conquering the Home Office

In most home offices, the real monster is the paper mountain. It just seems to multiply overnight, doesn’t it? Let’s face those paper piles head-on with a simple sorting strategy that organizes your paperwork for good.

Get three trays or even just simple folders and label them: To Do, To File, and To Shred/Recycle. As you pick up each piece of paper, make an immediate decision and pop it into one of those categories. This simple act keeps you from just shuffling papers into new piles you’ll have to deal with later.

• To Do: This is for anything that needs action, like bills that need paying or forms that need signing. Keep this pile small and in plain sight so you remember to tackle it.
• To File: This is for important documents you absolutely must keep—think tax records, medical receipts, or contracts. We’ll file these all at once after the sorting is done.
• To Shred/Recycle: This will probably be your biggest pile! Get rid of junk mail, old flyers, expired coupons, and anything you could easily find online if you needed it.

Feeling good in an organized home is becoming a bigger priority for so many of us. People are really starting to focus on comfort and convenience, and they’ve found that decluttering truly helps lower stress and just makes life better. It’s no wonder getting organized is such a popular goal!

When you’re digging through old boxes in offices or storage spaces, you’ll inevitably run into sentimental things like photos. Learning how to organize family photos with a few simple tricks can make that process feel a lot less overwhelming.

Creating Order in Closets and Storage

Whether it’s the linen closet or the coat closet by the door, our goal is to create systems so you can actually find what you need when you need it. It’s so frustrating to hunt for something you know is in there somewhere!

For the linen closet, start by pulling everything out. Take a minute to refold towels and sheets so they stack neatly. My favorite trick is to store each sheet set inside one of its matching pillowcases—it’s a total game-changer! For other closets, it’s a great time to really look at what you’re holding onto. I’ve got some helpful tips in my post about closet items to get rid of right now.

When it comes to the big zones like the garage or basement, the secret is to go small. Tackle one little corner at a time. Pick one shelf or one section of a wall and see it through to the end before you even think about moving on. Steady progress is what will get you to a functional, chaos-free space.

This method keeps you from feeling like you’ve just made an even bigger mess than when you started. Remember to celebrate each small victory, whether it’s clearing a single shelf or filling up a donation box. You’re making progress, and that’s what matters.

Simple Habits to Keep Clutter Away for Good

You’ve done all the hard work, and your home feels so much lighter and more amazing, doesn’t it? The big question now is, how do you keep it this way? It really just comes down to a few simple habits that stop clutter from ever taking root again.

The secret is to make tidying a small, effortless part of your daily routine instead of some huge weekend project. These little changes are what lead to lasting, clutter-free living, and I promise they are so much easier to stick with than you might think!

Adopt Clutter-Preventing Routines

One of my absolute favorite tricks is the ‘One-In, One-Out’ rule. It’s just so simple: every time you bring something new into your home, whether it’s a new pair of shoes or another book, one old item in that same category has to go. This single habit stops accumulation right in its tracks!

Another total game-changer is my ‘Five-Minute Tidy-Up’ that I do every single evening without fail. Before I settle down for the night, I take five minutes to put things back where they belong—fluffing the couch pillows, putting stray mugs in the dishwasher, and clearing off the coffee table. It’s amazing what a difference it makes walking out to a clean space in the morning.

Keeping a tidy home isn’t about one massive cleaning spree. It’s about the small, consistent actions you take every single day that prevent the mess from ever getting out of hand.

Create Simple Systems for Success

Setting up easy-to-use systems is a huge part of staying organized for the long haul. For example, place a designated basket for mail right by the door. Instead of letting it pile up on the kitchen counter, you have one spot to sort it immediately—tossing junk and filing whatever’s important.

This desire for organized homes is something I’m seeing everywhere. The growing popularity of products like pretty shelves and storage baskets shows people are really embracing smarter storage. There’s a big shift toward wanting homes that are both beautiful and functional.

Getting the whole family on board turns organization from a chore into a real team effort. Even little ones can help put their toys away before bed! Making these tasks part of the family routine is so much easier with my handy daily and weekly chore tracker. It’s a great way to make sure everyone pitches in and helps maintain the wonderful, peaceful home you’ve all worked so hard to create.

Decluttering Checklist

Copy this list and paste it into the app of your choice. I like to use my Notes app because I can easily make changes and check things off. You can even print it out and put it on a clipboard if you like.

Getting Ready:

Grab four boxes or laundry baskets and label them Keep; Donate/Sell; Relocate; and Toss/Recycle.

Kitchen

• Clear the countertops and sort into the four boxes
• Clear the cabinets and do the same – you can do one cabinet at a time if you’re not ready to tackle the whole kitchen at once!
• Clear the pantry. My post on organizing pantry shelves can help.

Living Room

• Clear off coffee tables, end tables, and shelves.
• Sort DVD’s, CD’s, and games.
• Tackle cable clutter.
• Assess your decor and only keep what you truly love.

Bedroom

• Clear off any piles of clothes and put them away or throw them in your toss or donate box.
• Clear off flat surfaces like bedside tables and shelves. Assess each item. Try using small trays to organize the things you leave on the nightstand.
• Tackle the closet. Ask yourself if you’d buy this today if you saw it in a store.

Bathroom

• Empty the medicine cabinet wipe it down, discard expired items. Only put back what you use regularly.
• Empty the space under the sink. This post on organizing your bathroom will help you tidy this up!
• Clear empty or unattractive bottles out of the shower and/or tub. If you must leave bottles in the shower, get a shelf. You might want to decant your supplies into pretty, matching bottles too.

Home Office

• Get three boxes or files and label them To Do, To File, and To Shred/Recycle.
• Clear off your desk and use your four boxes to sort the items.
• Clear out your desk drawers and do the same.
• Put photos aside for scanning or organizing later.

Closets and Storage

• Linen closet: pull everything out and sort into your four boxes. Neatly fold the items worth keeping and put them away tidily.
• Big zones like basements or garages: Your best chance at organizing these big areas is to divide and conquer. Start with one area, one shelf, or even one drawer. Every little space you declutter is another step on the road to victory! Try making your own declutter list for these big zones.

After each session, be sure to put the items in the relocate box back where they belong, and bag up the other two for trash or donating. (Your “keep” items should already have been put away neatly.)

Your Decluttering Questions Answered

I get so many questions about the whole decluttering process, and I absolutely love hearing from you! I thought it would be helpful to tackle a few of the most common ones right here. Hopefully, these little tidbits of advice can help you on your own journey to a more peaceful home!

What will you declutter today?