5-Minute Decluttering Tasks That Will Rescue Your Home From Chaos — Even If You Have (Almost) No Time

As I get older, it becomes increasingly apparent how much of a gift free time really is. Between work, rest, balancing relationships, and everything else, it can be hard to find time and energy to devote to decluttering.

Understanding the basics of how to declutter a home will set you up for success in the future. After all, you would not want to deal with an overflow of unwanted mail in your entryway or stacked magazines and papers in your drawers. But it does happen, and when it does... it's important to know how to take care of it in the easiest way.

Decluttering doesn't have to be done all at once, though: it can, in fact, start really small for only five minutes in your home, and it'll achieve so much more than you think. Here are seven decluttering tasks professional organizers say you can perform in your home in only five minutes. Set a timer, play a song or two, and watch your space transform little by little.

1. Tackle One Drawer

Who said decluttering has to start with an entire room or area? It can in fact start with just one singular drawer if you wish to declutter when you have a busy schedule. Lynda Reider, chief clutter cutter at Cut The Clutter RVA, says, "A tidy drawer that is easier to navigate, allowing you to find what you need without digging through clutter, is a great result from a small decluttering session. By focusing on one drawer, you make progress without overwhelming yourself. Completing this task gives you a sense of accomplishment, motivating you to tackle more decluttering tasks later on down the line."

To undertake this task, start by choosing a drawer. Decluttering your junk drawer is a good place to start, but it can be located anywhere in the home. If you're feeling super stressed, I recommend opting for a small drawer that isn't as full as others in your home. Next, empty everything out of your drawer either onto the floor or onto a large surface like your dining table. Then, it's time to sift through what was in there. "Quickly sort like items together and then categorize items: keep, toss, or donate," says Lynda. "And finally, return only the essential items back into the drawer neatly."

"Essential" here means what you wish to keep in that space. Other items you wish to keep that could have a better home elsewhere. You can place where you feel they best belong. For any items you feel undecided about, I recommend putting them aside in a bag, box, or magic basket to address them at a later time — this is a smart way to declutter without regret. These Wire Kids' Storage Floor Bin Pillowfort™ from Target is a great choice, even though its intended use is for toy storage. It has handles, can keep your maybes in one place but not "out of sight, out of mind', and doubles as a tabletop.

2. Clear Off a Small Shelf

Clearing off a single small shelf is a great way to declutter in five minutes. "Small shelves usually contain only a few items, making it easier to evaluate what’s there than other areas of the home," says Lynda. This makes a small shelf a great starting point for decluttering. "A neatly decluttered and organized shelf not only looks better and feels so good, but also functions more efficiently."

To declutter your shelf, start by taking everything off and dusting over the space with an antibacterial surface wipe or all-purpose cleaning spray like the Lysol® All-Purpose Cleaner, Sanitizing and Disinfecting Spray from Walmart.

Then, go through the shelf's contents, making piles of your keeps, maybes, discards, and donates. Finally, after five minutes have passed, place what you wish to return to the shelf back onto the clean space, re-home any items you wish to keep that didn't belong on the shelf, and set aside your no's and maybes to tackle later.

3. Go Through a Purse or Wallet

Lately, I've been shocked by how many receipts and bus tickets have accumulated in my purse, along with goodness knows what else. Using a five-minute burst to go through your most used purse or wallet is one of the most useful places to begin decluttering, even if you declutter when you feel overwhelmed. Your future self will immediately notice the positive difference decluttering made the next time you reach into it, and there is likely little in there that you'll struggle to make a yes-no decision on keeping.

Kimberly Corey, certified professional organizer®, certified virtual organizing professional, and owner of Finely Sorted Organizing, LLC, says, "A quick five-minute declutter of your purse or wallet may seem like a small victory but the simple act of starting to declutter, even if for only five minutes is a game changer for making task initiation manageable. In the industry, we call this 'chunking,' breaking down a larger task into smaller ones, like beginning with just your purse."

To undertake a five-minute decluttering burst on your purse or wallet, start by taking everything out of each compartment so you know what's been in there, to begin with. Then, sift through the items, starting off by making a pile of things in the bin, like old tissues, food debris, and unneeded receipts. Then, ask yourself as you look at what remains, "What do I actually use and need when I go out?". In this mindset, put what you believe is needed and enjoyed back into your purse or wallet, and re-home or donate the rest.

4. Clear Off Your Nightstand or Bedside Table

A nightstand or small bedside table can quickly become home to all sorts of clutter. It's a convenient space to put things when we don't want to get back out of bed and put them away properly. This definitely happens to my little bedside table, so I made a conscious effort at the start of each day to take a few moments to clear the space.

"A clear nightstand contributes to a more peaceful environment, enhancing your nighttime routine," says Lynda. "You can build on this small success when you feel ready to tackle bigger projects and make the rest of your bedroom match this energy."

To declutter your nightstand or bedside table free from items that may make your home feel more cluttered and chaotic, remove everything from the area so you're left with a blank canvas. Then, while looking at the objects that were there, ask yourself how and why each of them got to live in that space to begin with: were they always there like your essential bedside lamp, or did they find their way across the room somehow?

Pare your 'keeps' on your nightstand or bedside table down to your essentials and much-loved items, and put the rest away elsewhere. If you have a lot of items on your surface that you need nearby, perhaps consider investing in a nightstand or bedside table with a drawer like the Arlene 3-Drawer End Table from Wayfair to have fewer objects on display, reducing visual clutter in your bedroom.

This piece of furniture is perfect for anyone who loves reading in bed. It comes in many stunning colors, from walnut to whitewash and espresso. But if you're looking for something simpler and a little more affordable, the WLIVE Night Stand, Small 2-Drawer Dresser on Amazon is an ideal choice.

5. Sift Through Your Spice Rack

A five-minute decluttering job that your future self will really appreciate next time you cook is culling your spice rack of old herbs and spices. If you never reach for something, don't know how long it's been there, or can see that a product is past its expiration date, it's time to toss it.

Grace Hall, owner and founder of Grace to Organize, says, "I'm a firm believer in the power of quick projects, and decluttering your spice rack is an easy yet effective place to start."

Take all of your herb and spice containers out of their homes and place them on the table. Next, sort them into duplicates so you have a better idea of what you have. Then, finally, decide what to keep and what to toss.

6. Recycle Old Catalogs and Magazines

Most households have a stack of random catalogs from the mail in them for one reason or another. Mine accumulate because I keep any with lovely pictures, intending to recycle them for arts and crafts that don't happen more often than they do happen.

Recycling these old catalogs and magazines is a rapid way to create surface space in your home while decluttering something you likely have little attachment to. "Even when the goal is to declutter and organize the whole house, doing something small like recycling old magazines makes a difference," says Grace. "Overtime, all of your five-minute distraction-proof decluttering projects compound into many hours of work, and it won't create something strenuous to execute or maintain focus on in your day-to-day living."

Wander through your home or a selected room, picking up any and all magazines and catalogs as you go. Place these on a clean surface like a table, the floor, or your sofa to sift through and organize into keep, recycle, and donate.

7. Clear Your Fridge of Expired Food

Grace personally experienced doing a micro-declutter of her fridge recently, and noticed the difference that a mere few minutes of work can make on a space.

"The other day, I noticed one of the shelves in my refrigerator really needed to be cleaned, so I took the opportunity to pull everything out, throw away a few condiments I knew I wouldn't eat, wipe everything down, and put back the keeps," says Grace. "I didn't have time to do the whole fridge, but it was so helpful and satisfying to tackle that one spot. This is how I encourage my clients to see their projects."

So if you have a few minutes to spare and a fridge needing attention — whether that's a single shelf or the whole fridge — pull out your food items and condiments, sort them into keep, toss, and donate, then enjoy an organized fridge. You can quickly double your cool storage and reduce food waste going forward by now being able to see everything you have clearly.

Ben Soreff

Ben Soreff is a professional organizer and partner of House to Home Organizing. He is originally from Portland, Maine and used to work in film & TV Production. Ben graduated from Skidmore College and has experience with Level 5 Hoarders.

FAQs

Is the 5 minute decluttering task/challenge really worth it?

Ben Soreff, professional organizer and partner of House to Home Organizing, says, "Tackling organizing and decluttering projects in 5-minute blocks is perfect for most people. When you factor in work, kids, pets, spouses, and time spent on hobbies, most people are spread thin during the week, and most don't want to spend their weekend decluttering."

Five-minute blocks of decluttering, in the opinion of our experts, is a great place to start making progress and motivating yourself to continue decluttering in the future.

If you've tried to declutter before and found the task difficult to stick with, this is a great method as it targets the more approachable parts of the larger task of decluttering.

If you're still finding it hard to start, trying out another method may prove more helpful. I recommend the mins game, as it turns the process of decluttering into a rewarding challenge. The incentive might be what your brain needs to crack on with clutter-culling.