77 Easy Things to Declutter From Your Home
Inside: Need a boost to get started with decluttering? Begin with these 77 easy things to declutter from your home.
Decluttering can feel overwhelming at times. Sometimes you need a nudge to simply get you started.
If you’re looking for items that are easy to declutter from your home, I’ve got you covered.
Read on for 77 items that you can let go of easily. These items don’t require a lot of thinking and don’t typically have a strong sentimental attachment.
Ease yourself into the process by tackling some of the items on this list. They’re also a great option if you’re decluttering progress stalls and you need a quick win to help motivate you to continue taking action.
77 Easy Things to Declutter From Your Home:
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These things on this list should be easy items to let go of. They shouldn’t require a lot of thought and typically won’t be sentimental items.
If you find yourself getting stuck on any of them, skip it and move on to the next one. The goal here is to make decluttering easier and make progress as quickly as possible.
As a reminder, decluttering doesn’t mean every item should go in the trash. Of course, recycle and donate what you can.
Here are 77 easy-to-declutter items to get you started!
General:
- trash
- empty containers waiting to be recycled
- boxes of donations
- dead batteries
- burned-out light bulbs
- gifts you never liked
- swag that you’ve gotten from events
- as seen on tv products that didn’t live up to the hype
- empty jars or containers you saved for craft projects you haven’t done
- craft supplies you bought for a craft you finished or never started
- inflatable pools, mattresses, or balls that have irreparable holes
- pet supplies for a pet you no longer have
- furniture that is beyond repair or that you won’t repair
Trash, recycling, & donating
Start by throwing out all the easy obvious trash in your home. This includes anything left out that is clearly trash (kids, why is it so hard to put used tissues in the trash?), and items in trash cans. Next up is taking your recyclables to your local recycling center. Often we collect those for far too long before dropping them off.
Same goes with donations waiting around in your garage or trunk. Take the opportunity to go ahead and get them out of your house or car. For things like batteries and light bulbs, check with your city for proper disposal.
Craft supplies are a common clutter item to have in your home. If you’ve had them for years and never used them, chances are pretty good you aren’t actually going to do that project. Extra supplies are great to offer to local preschools or elementary schools.
Bathrooms:
- extra toothbrushes
- old nail polish
- old make-up
- bath products you don’t like or won’t use
- lotion or perfume that you don’t like the smell of
- expired medicine
- old toothbrushes
- stained towels
Donating, research, & cleaning
With some bathroom items you no longer want, check to see if a local shelter or food bank could use them. Another option is gifting them to someone in your community via your Buy Nothing Group.
Do some Google research for expired medicine. Check reputable sites to see if the medications may still have efficacy.
It’s ok to keep an old toothbrush or two for cleaning around the house. Same goes with stained towels. It’s fine for a few to be rags. Just don’t keep more than you need.
Bedrooms:
- worn-out shoes
- clothes that are stained or ripped beyond repair
- anything with busted elastic
- clothes that don’t fit
- clothes that are fussy or with uncomfortable fabric
- bridesmaid dresses you’ll never wear again
- shoes that hurt your feet
- accessories you no longer like
- socks with holes
- socks missing their mates
- jewelry that is broken or no longer your style
- purses that you don’t use or that are in bad shape
- clothes that you don’t feel good in
- sheets with holes or that are pilled
- maternity clothes if you’re done having babies
Clothes aren’t always easy things to declutter. Sometimes it is painfully obvious what needs to go.
Other times, it can be a bit trickier and less clear. I wrote a post on creating a confidence-inspiring wardrobe. Check it out if you need further guidance on what to keep and what to toss in your closet.
Office:
- used notebooks
- magazines you’ve read
- books you know you will never read or didn’t like
- old documents you no longer need
- excess office supplies
- manuals
- notes and books from classes you went to many years ago
- books with broken bindings
- calenders from years past
- old stationery and cards
- floppy disks; any file storage you can no longer access
- outdated software
- phone books
- old technology you no longer use
If you have duplicates of office supplies you know you won’t ever use, let them go. Don’t keep papers, software, books, or technology from your past that you know you will never ever use again. No need to keep these items as a homage to your past.
Get your printable checklist including the 77 easy things to declutter from your home by filling out the form below:
Kitchen:
- kitchen utensils that aren’t in good condition or that you don’t use
- chipped or broken dishes
- expired pantry food
- food in the fridge that is growing stuff
- gadgets or kitchen appliances you don’t use
- cookbooks that you no longer use
- freezer-burned food
- anything missing its lid
There is so much false advertising when it comes to items that will revolutionize our lives in the kitchen. Some things are great (I’m talking to you, instant pot) and others are just unnecessary (I’m talking to you, banana slicer). Side note: if you have not read the Amazon reviews for this banana slicer, you should. You’re welcome.
It’s time to let go of the food that’s gone bad and the items that we no longer use. Let go of the chipped and broken dishes (next time buy Corelle they won’t chip and stack smaller 🙂 ) Cooking will be much more pleasant when you get the clutter out of your way.
Living room:
- framed decor that didn’t make the cut
- candles you don’t like the scent of
- decor that is no longer your style
- toss pillows that are lumpy and tired looking
- movies that you didn’t like or are scratched
- cd’s that aren’t your taste anymore or that are damaged
Your living room should be relaxing and cozy. Take out the things that you don’t love. Let go of the worn-out and tired things. Don’t let your living room make you sad. It should bring you joy.
Kids things:
- games that are missing pieces
- toys that are broken or outgrown
- books that are damaged or outgrown
- coloring books that have been used up
- broken crayons
- old art projects
- backpacks that are broken or falling apart
- baby items if you’re done having babies
If you don’t have kids at home, you get to skip this section. Yay, you! For the rest of us, go ahead and declutter all the outgrown, damaged, and broken things. I recommend working WITH your kids to do this. For some kids, it comes really easy and others struggle with decluttering. Teach them while they’re young so that you aren’t always having to do it.
Garage:
- extra supplies from already completed projects
- tools you don’t need or use
- dried up paint, glue, spackle, etc.
- anything that is broken and not repairable
- empty boxes & extra packaging
I’m not sure about your house, but at mine, the garage is the dumping zone for things that are broken or that didn’t make it to the trash or recycling bin yet. Take the time go through and toss out the items that can’t be repaired.
Pass along the tools and supplies you no longer need or are using. The garage is the first thing you see when you return home. Let it be one that is decluttered and doesn’t immediately bring you stress.
I hope you’ve found this list of 77 easy things to declutter from your home to be helpful. It’s a way to kick-start your decluttering process. If you want to do more after you’ve completed it, check out my post on methods for decluttering your entire home.
Keep up with The Simplicity Habit and get your printable checklist including the 77 easy things to declutter from your home by filling out the form below:
Hey you have “worn out shoes” on there twice, under bedroom: #1 & #5 – it shattered the mystique a little.
Thank you for the declutter tips!
Thanks for pointing that out. I fixed it :).
that’s because there are Sooo many shoes…😅
My over 65 advice is if you don’t want it, your kids don’t want it, they won’t want it when you are dead! Don’t burden your kids with your your junk.
I agree. We sold a few pieces of furniture this year because we didn’t really need it any longer and know our children don’t need or want it either.
Absolutely agree. Parents never threw anything out. Now retired, we constantly cleaning out the clutter. Don’t want to burden our kids with this. To me, thats the worst thing a parent can do.
Good lists, but I disagree with using Corelle dishes. true, they don’t chip but when they break you have a gazillion chards of the dish, not fun to clean up if you have pets or small children. I’ve decluttered my Corelle!
I’ve heard that, Susan, but we haven’t experienced it and have owned them for well over a decade. We don’t have tile floors, so perhaps that has worked to our advantage.
I agree! I’ve had corelle since it came on the market. I even had a set in my motor home and put it in my restaurant. I’ve seen one bowl break in all those years and that bowl just hit the granite counter right. It’s an excellent product. Not to mention space saving and lightweight.
while I love my Corelle, which most is over 35 years old, it does shatter if drop in my kitchen, and you will find tiny shivers months later.
I have heard that, but have used it for over a decade and haven’t had one break. The type of flooring you have may be a part of the equation. Ours is vinyl.
Yes, I thought the exact same thing! My husband loves Corelle so we keep his several remaining items, but I tell you what, when they break it’s quite the cleanup!
Thanks you so much now I have an idea where to start.
Your articles help a lot.Please provide me with some detailed wardrobe decluttering tips as my wardrobe needs a good cleaning. And I’m really confused about what to keep and what to donate.
I go through my closet and literally try on every item. If I don’t like how it fits, if it’s worn out or stained, or if it’s just not my style or doesn’t work for my phase of life, I get rid of it! So, go piece by piece to pare down your clothes, because looking at everything all at once can be super overwhelming.
Best of luck!
This is what I did also. I had knee replacement surgery one year ago and gained 20 pounds. I find I like different clothes now that are more suitable for my lifestyle. Alot went to the thrift shop. Only a couple of things got tossed as I talk care of my clothes and repair when needed.
Love your articles. After my chalk painting experiences, I automatically got rid of the paint. Great ideas here. In general, if the item is not used, donate or toss. Especially if you’re over 60.
i really appreciate your
decluttering tips. Thanks a lot.
Would love tips on decluttering jewelry. Not costume jewelry but semi precious. Younger generation not interested
Lori, in my opinion, all old jewelry: costume, semi precious, and of course gold is sellable, you just have to post in the right place. I live in Virginia and there are lots of Antique & Thift Shops buying and selling these things.
As always! On the Mark! As the years have kept me moving forward (ha), I started working on many of the things listed here! And… still doing it! What I am experiencing is “freedom” “satisfaction” “release of stress” and so much more! Secret question: there was a time when some of this “clutter” fit…now…not so much…or not at all! Love Simplicity Habit….much thanks for your wisdom and help!
I’ve been doing this since I retired in 2019. Oh what a great feeling. Much easier to clean,also 2 bouts of ovarian cancer in 2022-2023. Simple is a must!! Thank you!
I was amused at your link to the Instant Pot on Amazon, which led to a fancy pressure cooker. I should sell mine (a Fagor Duo old-school type) because at my age I’m not likely to use it again. I let go my lovely hardly used water bath canning pot that came all the way from America because the only one I could find here was too expensive. But I threw out so much—all my books except expensive non-fiction, including copies of my own books) and I got nothing for them, even my solid tawa hutch dresser—that it hurts. We also had to let go a Rancilio Silvia that was a present from a SIL. The list is endless. What hurts most is losing my lovely 9 year old waterbed that looked nearly new. The movers said they “don’t do waterbeds” and instead of finding out how to move one they damaged the baffles. My brain was too numb to realise I should have claimed on our insurance. I was nothing but a zombie and the supposed friend who helped us move took full advantage of that fact. So take heed of the good advice given here and declutter in time for downsizing before somebody forces you to. I hate to think of ANYONE having to go through what we went through.
The only things on this list remaining are books and two pair of black pumps. I’m never going into the office again so can donate the pumps. They’ve never been worn. But the books? Definitely won’t purge those beyond the more than 200 I’ve already donated to The Little Free Library. I am a writer. Books are important for both pleasure and reference.
Update. I threw the pumps down the trash chute and this week decluttered more than 100 books as I took on the massive job of scrubbing twelve bookcases. If I ever need Yeats, Auden, or Borges, I’ll find them in my local library, probably dusty because who reads Yeats, Auden, and Borges?
I love your articles and always make it a point to share them on my social media accounts. We recently moved apartments. Moving is always a GREAT way to declutter, sort through stuff and really just be more intentional of what we want to bring to our new place. Half of what we kept in our old tiny apartment where we lived in for 10 years were either sold or given away for free on FB Marketplace, or tossed. Our new apartment is now a relaxing space free of clutter – now I can freely say “there’s no place like home”! We are still sorting through what is left of our clothes and shoes. We are preparing to sell those that we no longer want at a flea market this coming October. I can’t wait!
Yours is my favorite FB page with excellent ideas for living a more simple, less stressful life! Thank you–more great ideas! I’m slowly decluttering, downsizing and often feel I’ve not made progress! I donate many items and keep a list for tax purposes. It always encourages me when I feel I’ve not made progress to look at the donation list and discover I have indeed made progress! Helps me from getting discouraged, because it IS a difficult process!
You’re welcome, Sally. And great work!
Thanks for that list.
I think you may have left out The Attic! EEK! At 76 years old I am overwhelmed by my clutter, so much of which I have deposited in the attic over the years. And now I can’t get up there anymore. Grandchildren don’t help by finding things up there that I didn’t even know I had and bringing them down to clutter up the downstairs! Sigh! My poor son and daughter in-law when I die! Double sigh! But I will definitely have a go at the other 77. Thank you, Julianna.