20 leading web designers' desks for your inspiration

Web designers spent a lot of time at desks in front of computers. That's no secret. That's where the magic happens, and that's also why the right setup of your workstation is extremely important.

We've invited 20 leading web designers from the UK and the US to give us an exclusive look into their offices, show us their desks and explain the setup. The resulting showcase provides a fascinating insight into people's personal work style and the kit they use. As you will see, for example, one screen is rarely enough these days.

My 15" MacBook Pro (high-res display), plugged into an old cinema display with external keyboard, mouse and speakers. Only my iPad has Twitter open as I'm awful at procrastinating. Magic Trackpad which never gets used. Always many a notebook open and at hand. A spare desk, cinema display at the ready. Visual loveliness – I'm addicted to surrounding myself with inspiring things. And of course a cup of milky tea.

I use a 15" MBP as my primary machine. I've been plugging into a larger display less and less these days, preferring to put my feet up and use my lap more. But the larger display is there if I need it. I back up to the two G drives. On top of the drives is a Domo-kun wind-up toy I brought back from Tokyo, and a wooden nut from speaking at the Build Conference in Ireland. Also on the drives is a handmade leather baseball. I like to use a mouse pad to dampen the noise of sliding the mouse around, and the one here is a new Ugmonk leather pad which I'm really digging. Other than that, my keys, a sketchook, a Curtis Jinkins print I've been meaning to frame and a stack of books. Oh, and a decaf coffee on a Dribbble coaster.

For responsive designing I use an iPhone 3G (non-retina) and an iPhone 4S (retina) and an HTC HD7 running Windows Phone 7. I have an iPad on a revolving stand, a Kindle Touch and a Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1. It's the most expensive shaving mirror I've ever bought. I'll be adding a new iPad (retina), a Kindle Fire and a Samsung Galaxy S3 soon. Oh, and the ape? That's General Ursus from Beneath The Planet Of The Apes.

I work away a lot, but this is my office at home and I love it. MacBook Air and Thunderbolt display, plus excellent Creative Gigaworks speakers and the lamp I’ve had for twenty years. The desk is Ikea, with a chunk of an older desk as display riser. Only the books I’ve yet to read get desk space, alongside pots of pencils and Sharpies. I sit on a Herman Miller Aeron. The Itten-inspired print keeps me calm (available from Lane). All that's missing is the cat sitting by the window, a massive cup of tea, and me.

You know what they say: cheap tables and expensive chairs. I took that to heart with my cheap plastic fold-out banquet table and Herman Miller chair. I exclusively use one MacBook Pro, so my exact design and development environment comes with me wherever I go. At home at this desk, I have my Drobo for mega media storage and backup, a 27" Cinema display, and super ergonomic Microsoft keyboard and Kensington trackball. Underneath, in the gross tangle of wires, is an APC power supply which has saved me through countless power outages. Albiet more often back in my Mac Pro days. The speakers are Harmon Kardon Soundsticks which sound and look wonderful. The printer is a WiFi enabled Brother laser printer which is the most recent addition and has convinced me to never go back to slow, expensive, garbage inkjets. The microphone is a rode podcaster set in a mini boom stand.

In my 21st floor downtown Seattle condo, I have this simple setup, based around a 13" MacBook Pro. It sits in the terrific Henge Dock, alongside my 24" Cinema Display. I usually use a 27", but it's on the fritz right now. I have docks for my iPad and iPhone, and I prop my display up a bit with a riser that has a built-in USB hub. For podcasting, I use a Blue Yeti USB microphone. My chair is an older model Herman Miller Aeron. Finally, the nice view of seaplanes landing on Lake Union doesn't hurt.

My set up is a cozy little space that doubles as a personal music studio. A MacBook Air is my main machine, which is connected to an external monitor. Because I'm a mobile web designer, I have a slew of devices: an iPhone 4S, 3GS, iPod touch, Galaxy Nexus, Droid 1, Droid Incredible, a BlackBerry Curve, Bold, Palm Pixi and an iPad. It's all part of the job. And to provide much-needed distractions, I bash away on a much-used electronic drumkit, synth and recently acquired Rickenbacker bass.

My desk is currently a basic IKEA job, but I’m looking into buying a standing desk to replace it! I use a 13” Macbook Air plugged into a 24” LED Cinema Display, with wired keyboard and magic mouse. The screen is propped up with a copy of ‘The Art of Looking Sideways’ and to the left of that is the Mobee induction charger for the mouse. Apart from that, there’s a cup of tea (always), paperwork pile, a few wee books and a stylophone for musical interludes.

Matt Hamm has the desk behind mine!

Everything you see here is set up on a Galant desk from Ikea. I work on a 27" iMac with an external Dell monitor, and a LaCie D2 Quadra Hard Disk holds all my work. Superman and Batman remind me to be SuperFriendly. Apple's Magic Trackpad, iPhone, iPad, and a Wacom Intuos tablet help me make things. I use a Blue Yeti to make sound and Harman Kardon SoundSticks to hear it. Belkin and battleship USB hubs give me all the accessory support I need. A LEDU drafting lamp provides ample lighting for sketching and glancing at my favorite wedding picture, reminding me why I do all of this.

My workspace sits in the corner of my 800sq foot “Mancave” and comes complete with a bathroom, extra bedroom for quick power naps, TV, couch, gaming consoles and guitar for quick creative breaks from the computer. My desk is actually two desks side by side allowing me the room to keep my laptop within reach but spread out my second 3D/video workstation. I can easily slide my chair back and forth between the three computers and I have an open view of the TV. This configuration also allows my wife or kids to surf next to me while I work.

We have a a big desk and large windows with a view over a big meadow across our street, which creates a lot of light in the office. It gives you this light and spacy feeling. Things can get all over the place on my desk when I’m in the middle of my process, but after that I clean things up, as I like to keep my desk as organised as possible. To the left I have this big mic I use for Skype and for recording a screencast. Next to it a battery kit for my iPhone 4S is recharging.

As you can see, my home office is not that glorious. In the not so distant past, when I was freelancing, I had an entire room that acted as an office with a wonderfully large desk and a ton of designy stuff on it ... but then I had a baby and the office became a nursery. Since then I also joined Twitter which rendered my home office a tad obsolete. It now serves as our laundry bin in the corner. True story.

I sit at the smallest of three co-working desks I designed for Mild Bunch HQ in the new space we recently opened up. My machine is a 15" Macbook Pro with a matt hi-res screen, and with it I use a Midori Travellers’ Notebook, Whitelines paper, Faber-Castell pencils and Muji Pens. Inevitably, an iPhone is around somewhere. A Fuji X100 (which I love) is usually on the desk, but I’m using it to take the photo. I have a Polaroid Pogo printer for quick photo-sticker printing which go into the notebook. Coffee is essential, fruit helps, and sunshine is a much-appreciated bonus!

I work out of a home office in the Texas Hill Country. It’s got a nice view, and the only point of access is an external door, which helps keep my work environment separate from the rest of the house. My setup is pretty straightforward – my main machine is a 27” iMac. I’ve got a 13” MacBook Air I use around the house and when traveling. That’s supplemented with an ever-evolving collection of devices (tablets, phones, etc) for testing.

Many people assume designers love to work in the dark but I prefer to be surrounded by tons of natural light. My current workspace makes me feel like I am in a treehouse. I need just the right balance of clean desk and cluttered knick knacks to be productive. Everything around me has a warm memory attached to it. The little drawers are from my grandfather's work shed from when he was a painter and the wind-up toy was a gift from my mother. The bobbly headed dashboard dog is named Tito and a relic from my old VW Beetle. Oh, and I love plants.

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20 leading web designers' desks for your inspiration

01. Naomi Atkinson

02. Dan Cederholm

03. Andy Clarke

04. Simon Collison

05. Chris Coyier

06. Jeff Croft

07. David DeSandro

08. Brad Frost

09. Jon Hicks

10. Elliot Jay Stocks

11. Cindy Li

12. Dan Mall

13. Shane Mielke

14. Sarah Parmenter

15. Veerle Pieters

16. Yaron Schoen

17. Kyle Steed

18. Jon Tan

19. Trent Walton

20. Samantha Warren