Office storage solutions in the home are in more demand than ever thanks to the rise of home working. Alongside a decent space to work, plenty of storage is one of the most important things your home office needs.
Whether you have a dedicated home office or you're working from your living room, kitchen or spare bedroom, the best office storage solutions are vital to help you keep your workspace organised and tidy. This will in turn help you to concentrate and focus, which is especially important when you're working from home and face daily distractions from all around you.
Before you can identify which office storage solution or solutions will work best for you, you need to work out how much 'stuff' you have to store. Within that, it's key to separate those items you need to be readily accessible (ones you can reach easily from your chair – see our best office chairs for back pain), versus those you'd prefer to store out of sight. Open shelves or one of the best desks with storage are likely the best solutions for the things you need easy access to all every day, while filing cabinets are great for documents and we recommend storage boxes for bigger items that you need less frequently.
You also need to consider how much space you have: opting for one large item like a desk or bureau could be the best option if you have a small room and want to store everything in one place. If you've already got a desk, then consider utilising wall space by hanging a peg board, or a cork board to store notes, memos and business cards. To discover the best office storage solution options, read on for our top picks.
The best office storage solutions
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If you don’t want to replace your existing desk but still want more storage, opt for a small filing cabinet that will tuck underneath your desk. This one from Storex will only take up approximately a third of the space underneath an average desk, so there’s still plenty of room for your chair.
Available in both the US and the UK, the Storex mobile filing cabinet offers a convenient and cheap storage solution for the pesky papers currently cluttering your desk. Store them neatly in this lightweight and portable cabinet; be cautious though, the fact it is lightweight and portable is great for you moving it around, but means it's not as secure as a heavy all-metal filing cabinet. That said, it is lockable and comes with two keys.
There's no assembly required which is handy, but do make sure you also add some file folders to your basket.
If it's something bulkier than paper that you want to store, a great alternative to a filing cabinet is to put storage boxes underneath your desk.
Cheap and cheerful, these lidded storage boxes from Wintao offer an easy storage solution that doesn't take up any additional floor space, and thanks to the handles they can easily slide in and out when you need to open them up.
The boxes are available in three sizes (dimensions listed above refer to the medium size) but just the one colour. They are made from cardboard with a fabric cover and while they are sturdy enough to be stackable, when they're not in use they fold flat for easy storage (of themselves).
If you're working from a really tight space, or just don't like to clutter your floor and desk, then utilising your walls for storage is a great option. While we'd definitely recommend hanging some personal, decorative items to look at when you need a screen break, wall racks are useful for storage too.
With these wire wall racks from X-cosrack you can store documents and letters as well as magazines and notebooks. Why not keep a note card from an art gallery or graphic design book with an inspiring cover at the front for a touch of creative inspo?
Each of the three racks comes with a tag slot so you can label what you're using them for. You also don't need to use all three: they are stackable but they're not joined together, so you can use each in a different part of the house if you wish.
A desk is an absolute necessity when you're putting together a home work space, but why not use your desk to also provide a great storage solution? The Meggie desk has three built-in drawers in addition to three open shelves, giving you six flexible compartments to store your office essentials. You can keep everything you need easy access to on a daily basis within arms reach, without ending up with a cluttered and untidy space to work from.
The simple, modern design of the Meggie, and the three colour choices, mean this desk will work in almost any home office. We do wish there was a light oak colour option, but that's us being picky!
The base is solid wood and the table top is high-quality chipboard with a scratch-resistant veneer, ensuring a sturdy build that's durable against daily scuffs. Importantly, the cabinet with the drawers can be put together in such a way that the desk can be used on both the left and the right wall, as well as centrally.
If you don't have the space for a permanent free-standing desk, then a wall-mounted, folding desk is the perfect office storage solution for you. Mount this desk made from a combination of solid wood (the table top) and MDF (the wall board) to any wall in your home and turn any space into a premium work space. You can mount it at any height, so you can choose whether it is a seated or standing desk.
The clever design of the Haotian folding desk means not only do you have a desk, but storage shelves where you can store everything you'll need to use at your desk. There are seven different sized shelving compartments to store stationary and other small office appliances.
The drawbacks are that there naturally isn't anywhere to leave your laptop or monitor once you've finished for the day, and chances are you'll need to relocate a chair from elsewhere in your home.
A simple wall shelf might be all it takes to provide you with the office storage solution you need. We’ve chosen the Imperative Décor floating shelves as they are cheap and come in colours that’ll work for every office space. Your colour options include black, grey, light walnut, dark walnut and the wonderfully rustic 'reclaimed' (shown above).
The floating shelves are easy to mount and the wall brackets aren't visible once they're up. We’d recommend storing bulkier items that you need regular, easy access to on your shelf: paper work can sit in your drawers or filing cabinet, but your hole puncher and pen pot are perfect for a shelf. You can also add a plant, photo frame or trinkets to add a touch of personality.
If your home office doubles up as a spare bedroom or reading room and you don’t want to lose out on that extra functionality, an ottoman or storage stool can be a great way to store your office bits and pieces without the room feeling, well, too much like an office.
The Gillian Storage Ottoman is a classic, wooden-legged ottoman that won’t look out of place in either a spare room or an office. It’s available in six different upholstery colours, so there’s one to suit most colour schemes.
Its storage capacity is 6.5 x 15.5 x 37cm, meaning it's a handy place to keep heavy items like books, magazines and catalogues that would otherwise pile up on your desk. One thing to note is that you'll need to check you have enough room under your desk if you want to tuck this stool away at the end of the day.
Peg boards are a great office storage solution, but let’s be honest, they can be pretty boring and uninspiring to look at. Well, if you’re willing to splash out a little, this Geometric IV Pegboard from East Urban Home provides a colourful, stylish option that is anything but boring.
The peg board is made from printed, lacquered solid pine and comes with three shelves and 14 tubes to hang items from. Unlike a lot of the office storage solutions in this list, it comes fully assembled and ready to hang.
A home office classic, the simple pen pot is one of the easiest solutions for organising your desk quickly and efficiently. While there are bigger desk organisers out there, if you’re specifically looking to keep your desk as clear as possible, then a pen pot could be all you need.
There are tons to choose from, but the main features to look out for are the number and size of the compartments: decide if you’re looking for multiple segments like the OSCO Mesh 5 Tube Pen Pot, or a single segment pen pot, in which case you have more options to get creative. Why not try this cute shark-shaped pen pot, or this pencil-sharpener option?
If you’re reluctant to spend money on a purely functional piece of furniture, then a bureau, or secretary desk, could be the best office storage solution for you.
We love this classic design from August Grove, but there's also the Norden Home Ballinger Secretary Desk or Ikea HEMNES bureau if you’re looking for something more contemporary.
The Kelly Secretary Desk will look fantastic in your main living space and provide surface space to store knick knacks and photos. The bottom half opens up as a cabinet where you can store board games or blankets, and nobody even needs to know that the top half opens up into a writing desk! Above the writing desk you'll find three small drawers and a shelf, so this bureau really is a one stop solution for your office storage needs.
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