Home and Work Office Cleaning Tips for a Spring Spruce-up

Spring is just around the corner – and so is the sense of rejuvenation, growth and potential it often inspires in us. After a long, bitter winter, there is nothing quite so optimistic as spring – and no one quite so optimistic as spring cleaners.

For many of us – and especially those who work from home at least part of the time – spring is the natural season to clear the chaos, streamline the storage, and donate, recycle or trash whatever we can get our hands on.

Let’s face it, though. Cleaning your home can be hard enough. Add a home office to that and you’ve got even more trouble at hand. After all, offices are natural clutter collectors. Compounding the challenge is that while most of us know how to clean various parts of the house from experience, how to clean a home office correctly is a little trickier.

Below, we’ve gathered our favorite office cleaning tips for a spring spruce-up, which can be applied to home offices or any workstation. If you are working from home, either full-time or hybrid, you’ll also be interested in the home office organization ideas we’ve included to help you achieve the most comfortable and usable environment possible. 

Office Cleaning Tips

Whether you’ve got a big office, a small office, or a simple workstation in your home, at your employer’s, or both, it’s critically important to keep any space you work from clutter-free, clean, and disinfected.

Study after study shows the benefits of cleaning and organizing, including the positive effects they have on stress levels and physical health. Regularly cleaning and maintaining your home, office and/or home office can also help you think more clearly about the task at hand, feel more in control, and improve your mood. What could be better?

Office Cleaning Step by Step

1. Clear all the loose papers, records, and files off your desk.

Scan, take pictures, or transcribe anything you don’t want to lose track of into digital files. If you regularly need to hold on to physical items, consider investing in filing cabinets. Otherwise, use folders and some sort of basic wall or desk filing apparatus to keep items in order.

2. Empty out, clean, and organize desk drawers and office supplies.

Even if you’re lucky enough to have a home or office cleaning service, chances are they’re not sorting your office supplies and cleaning out your drawers. Take the time to go through your collection of pens, Post-its, and the like and get rid of what you don’t need or can’t use. Once the work is through, it might be a good idea to buy a drawer organizer to keep everything neat and tidy moving forward.

3. Clean and disinfect computer equipment and office desk.

Wipe down your desk and chair with paper towels or a soft cloth and spray cleaner. (Test your cleaner on a small, inconspicuous area before using it, especially if you’re cleaning anything fabric, antique, or easily damaged.) Use a microfiber cloth to wipe down your monitor, mouse, and mouse pad and compressed air to clean out any crumbs or other debris from your keyboard. You can also use disinfecting wipes made specifically for electronics.   

4. Reassess your wall space.

Is it visually cluttered? Consider streamlining the post-its, snapshots, and stickers for a cleaner and less distracting look. If you are someone who loves to write down notes or ideas, consider purchasing a small, wall-hanging white board to use when inspiration hits.  

5. Clean up your digital files while you’re at it.

No list of cleaning tips for the office would be complete without a reminder to clean up inside your computer as well. That means filing and responding to important emails, making sure your documents are properly classified and stored, and updating your passwords. Consider it basic workplace hygiene.

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Home Office Organization

Though reports indicate that employers are asking employees to come into the office more frequently, it appears that working from home at least part of the time will be the norm for millions of American office workers from here on out. If you’re one of them, working from the same place you rest, relax, and eat can create a stumbling block to maintaining a clean, organized home – not to mention a clean, organized home office.

Surprise, surprise: that’s where home office organization comes in! Without a clear, usable and consistent organizational system in place, papers, pens, supplies, and even laptops and cords will soon overtake any area of your home they can. After all, when you work from home, the work never stops. And neither does the clutter.

While many of the office cleaning tips above are also relevant to a home office environment, you do have a bit more leeway at home to turn your workspace into exactly what you need to be at your most proficient and capable. For better or for worse, there are probably no cubicles in your apartment or house.

Keep scrolling for our top home office organization ideas. Hopefully they’ll either fit the bill completely or spur some of your own!

Don’t be limited by a traditional set-up.

While most office workers are very used to the normal flatpack desk + upholstered chair set-up, you can write your own rules when it comes to your home office. Consider a desk made of natural materials, floating shelves, a balance ball chair, or even a “walking desk” suspended above a treadmill. The key to home office organization and function is finding whatever works best for you and your style. 

Choose an organizational system that fits into your home.

Just because you’re working from home doesn’t mean you have to choose an organizational system that’s made of plastic or wire. Opt instead for softer, more interesting materials. Maybe a jute basket for loose papers, an antique tin for pencils and pens, or a bamboo caddy for your laptop. Buy items to help organize your home office that speak to you on a personal level because no matter what you’re using it for, it is still your personal space. No corporate design necessary.

Add elements of nature.

An air-filtering houseplant or two can do wonders for your mental and physical well-being. Similarly, sitting in front of a window can bring a renewed sense of energy and clarity that is hard to find in the fluorescent glow of most office environments. If you’ve got pets, it might be worthwhile to add a new cat or dog bed to the space to encourage your critters to hang out with you during the day. For more ideas on how to incorporate flora, fauna, and other aspects of nature into your WFH oasis, check out our recent blog on how to create an eco-friendly workspace.  

If you’re looking for more home and office cleaning inspo for this spring and well beyond, check out these links:

5 Tips for Cleaning Your Home Office – Merry Maids

How to Spring Clean Your Home Office: Dust, Sanitize, and Declutter – Insider.com

Top 10 Office Cleaning Tips from the Professionals – Spic and Span Florida

18 Insanely Awesome Home Office Organization Ideas – One Crazy House

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