Keeping a clean and tidy home sounds like a noble goal, but for many of us, the motivation just isn’t there. While every day starts with good intentions (read: wishful thinking), by the time you get home from work, chores are the last thing on your mind. Luckily, you don’t have to do a weekly deep clean to keep everything spic and span. Here’s your ultimate cheat sheet to keeping your home clean without trying too hard.
Get Rid of Stuff You Don’t Use
Clutter makes everything feel messier than it is, especially if your house is full of a lot of miscellaneous items you don’t know what to do with. Start by walking through your rooms and grabbing anything you haven’t used in months. Donate it, toss it, or give it away.
Fewer things mean less to clean and move around later. It’s the easiest place to start, and it makes a big difference.
Put a Trash Can in Every Room
This might sound obvious, but it’s a game changer. When there’s a bin within reach, you’re way more likely to actually use it. No one wants to walk across the house just to throw away a receipt or a food wrapper. At a minimum, you want one in the kitchen, bedroom, and bathroom each.
Wipe Down as You Go
After brushing your teeth, take ten seconds to wipe the sink. Or while cooking, clean up any pots or knives you’ve finished using as you work. These tiny actions basically hack your brain into cleaning without realizing it. Each task is so minuscule that it’s easily carried out, and when it becomes routine, you don’t even notice yourself doing it.
The One-Minute Rule
If something takes less than a minute, just do it now. For example, tossing laundry in the basket or hanging up your jacket. Most messes aren’t the result of big problems, just a hundred tiny ones left undone. This rule helps you stay ahead of the mess with barely any energy.
Keep Cleaning Supplies Where You Use Them
No one wants to walk all the way to the laundry room just to grab a cloth for the bathroom. Keep a few wipes under the sink and in the kitchen, so everything’s ready to go when you need it. When the tools are nearby, you’re far more likely to take care of something immediately.
Embrace Baskets and Bins
As a simple rule of thumb, a pile of stuff looks messy. Yet by some magic, the second you put it in a cute basket, it looks “organized.” Cables and chargers are a prime candidate for basket-ing, but so are shoes and toiletries, or anything that kind of floats around without a definite place to be.
Declutter Surfaces First
Counters, tables, desks, and nightstands are hotspots for chaos, being the catch-all for whatever random object needs to be placed down. Start your cleaning by clearing off visible surfaces, and you’ll instantly feel like the room is cleaner, even if the floor still needs sweeping.
Make the Bed (Yes, Really)
It’s annoying, especially if your mind is focused on getting that morning coffee in you. But making your bed takes under two minutes and makes your whole room look put together. Even if there’s laundry on the chair or books on the floor, a made bed makes it seem intentional.
Set a 10-Minute Timer
Chronic procrastinators can’t just get things done. Instead, they have to deceive their brain into not realizing it’s doing the thing. One great method for this is using a ten-minute timer. Ten minutes is such a relatively short interval of time that most of us feel we could do any task knowing we’ll only have to do so briefly. The trick is, once you get started, you’re likely to keep going.
Hide the Mess
Sometimes, you just don’t have time or energy. That’s when decorative boxes, storage ottomans, or a catch-all drawer come in handy. They’re not perfect solutions, but they keep things out of sight and make your space look less chaotic.
Do a Load of Laundry Midweek
Waiting until the weekend means laundry piles up and becomes a mountain, making the whole thing feel insurmountable. Tossing in a small load on Wednesday evening is much less painful. It breaks the cycle of laundry dread and keeps your hamper from overflowing.
On the subject of laundry, while folding can be another annoyance, it requires little movement and no brainpower. Grab your freshly dried clothes and put on your favorite show. You’ll be done before you know it.
Use the “Grab and Go” Method
Every time you leave a room, grab one thing that doesn’t belong and take it with you. This is an effective way to stay on top of the little things and a great way to build a tidying habit. Then, when it comes time for a big clean, most things will be more or less ordered already.
Limit the Number of Decorative Items
Sure, candles and knick-knacks are cute, but they also collect dust and make cleaning a hassle. Such little items can quickly get out of hand, making the house feel disorganized even when it’s pristine simply because it’s visually so cluttered. In many ways, less is more.
Clean the Bathroom While You’re In It
After using the shower, take one more minute to rinse it out and throw away any hair in the drain. Or while brushing your teeth, quickly wipe down the counter. Bathrooms only become difficult to clean when the grime has had time to build up. Staying on top of these small things keeps everything that bit cleaner.
Make a “Drop Zone”
Designate a basket or tray by the door for keys, sunglasses, mail, and all the random things that end up scattered across your house. It’s a lazy but strategic way to corral clutter. And if you tend to lose things too, you now have the perfect first place to look for them.
Use Air Fresheners and Open Windows
A room that smells clean feels clean, even if it isn’t spotless. Make sure your rooms are getting enough fresh air and consider a scented candle, too. Both can make your house feel more refreshed, while the right scent can even add a relaxing aroma.
Don’t Let the Dishes Sit
This is the one chore you should never procrastinate. Leaving dishes in the sink creates smells, attracts bugs, and snowballs into a full-on disaster. After dinner, no one wants to think about even approaching them, but it always takes up less time than you think.
Some content in this article was generated with the help of AI and has been carefully edited by our team to meet our editorial standards.