10 Desk Organization Ideas for a Clean Workspace

Acquiring the necessary office furniture is one thing, but if you don't take care of supporting processes, you're going to find it hard to maintain the level of productivity you want. That's why this whole slew of desk organization ideas was put together. 

It may not seem very important at a first glance. You have your office standing desk, your PC, your ergonomic chair, and potentially some other office accessories. Surely, you can arrange them in any way you see fit and still manage to work at your most efficient level, right? 

You may think that, but after making a couple of the changes below, the difference is night and day. Have you ever gone into a room that is in disarray and found yourself feeling defeated, confused, and not even sure where to start processing what you are looking at? 

Imagine that you did manage to pull off cleaning that room, ensuring that everything in it is organized. After doing that, the next time you walk in, you feel right at home, and the mental hurdle from the previous state of disorganization is nowhere to be found. 

The principle doesn't only apply on a large scale. Small desk organization can result in the same kind of benefit. You could be looking over something in your office for a couple of days without making any headway. 

Then, you tidy up your workspace, organize your papers better, and suddenly, you're finding the mental clarity to get through whatever challenges you had. 

Hopefully, you can bring this feeling to life in your own office space after reading and implementing the office organization ideas highlighted below.

10 Desk Organization Ideas for Your Workstation

1. Autonomous Filing Cabinet

Traditionally, filing cabinets were used by people who had many files that they needed to organize. This is still the case in some businesses today, but with increased digitization, the practice is not as common as it once was. 

Nevertheless, you never know what other storage needs these units may come in handy for in today's workspace. 

The idea here is to introduce you to the Autonomous filing cabinet. First, slotting it into your office’s aesthetic should be a breeze. That's because it's available in cool gray for those who want a neutral color. Alternatively, red apple, evergreen, and baby blue are available for those who may have a more specific color scheme that they're going for.

Filing Cabinet

Fits perfectly under your SmartDesk and into your workflow. Roomy drawers for all your gadgets, files and paperwork, with a lock to keep everything safe.

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Autonomous ensured that the unit is incredibly solid and durably built. That's because of the cold-rolled steel plate composition, and treatment with an anti-rust finish. Since the whole thing sits on incredibly sturdy and lockable wheels, you can move it easily when you need to and keep it in place otherwise. 

The unit features three drawers with customizable dividers allowing you to control your storage placement. With a maximum weight capacity of 275 pounds, storage is going to be no inconvenience at all. 

2. The Office Oasis Magnetic Desk Organizer

Controlling clutter is a big part of keeping your desk aesthetic and your productivity in check. This magnetic desk organizer from The Office Oasis is one of the best starts you can get. 

These kinds of accessories are by no means outdated, and this one has a modern design to prove that point. It’s available in three different colors and uses high-quality materials that are going to continue to serve you well and look great for a long time to come. 

There is a patented magnetic attachment in the mix that allows for tremendous customization, which explains the name. Six different compartments are present for you to take advantage of, allowing you to easily rearrange your organizer.

Magnetic Desk Organizer

This modern and unique office desk organizer is built from long-lasting materials that will keep your common office items organized for years to come.

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Note that it's not just a tabletop thing. While its intended use case is to help you keep your desk looking neat, it can fit the nightstand or bathroom vanity context just as well. Anywhere you think you can use an organizer, this one is ready to serve you. 

If you need the motivation to help you understand why organized desk ideas are important, you should know that statistically, those with organized workspaces remain focused 167% longer than those who work in a messy setting. How do you argue with that? 

3. Mindspace Gold Triangle File Holder

This is one of the necessary desk storage ideas. Mindspace is big on neatness, which is why its products form the basis for some of the best desk organization ideas. It helps even more when the mechanisms that you use to declutter look great themselves. 

The last thing you want to do is add something bulky to your office space that's going to make a bad situation into another terrible one. Therefore, seeing this rose gold triangle file holder from Mindspace is a relief, considering it can serve its function well and it looks great too. 

This unit can serve a host of different purposes. It's branded as a file organizer, but it can be a book holder, folder holder, mail sorter, etc. Once you have items that you use often that fit into its dimensions, then adding it to your workspace is recommended.

Gold Triangle File Holder

The Desktop File Organizer with 9 Vertical Compartments is designed to give you easy access to all your files and folders. Constructed with durable steel wire. 5-year warranty.

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It has a width of 7.375 inches, a length of 11.25 inches, and a height of 7.125 inches. You get nine slots measuring 1.2 inches each to help you organize whatever you wish on your desk.  

Don't worry about it not being able to stand the test of time, as the electroplated shimmer finish and durable steel wire are more than able to rise to the occasion.  

4. Mindspace Multi Step File Organizer

Here is yet another file organizer from Mindspace. It has a larger footprint than the triangular design and is intended for people who have a little bit more to store. 

Don't let the additional space requirement intimidate you, as it is still very much able to maintain a neat appearance on your desk. 

As far as the dimensions go, you are now working with 8 inches of width, 10 1/2 inches of length, and 12 1/4 inches of height.

Multi Step File Organizer

The 8 sections in this Multi Step File Organizer are designed to give you easy access to all your files and folders.

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You get eight slots here, with each having a 1-inch gap, meaning you can easily store multiple items. Like its triangular counterpart, durability is the order of the day. Additionally, it gives a very simple yet elegant visual with its smooth black finish.

Again, feel free to take advantage of the design and use it to organize whatever you'd like to on your desk or in whatever space you deem fit. It may be a multi step file organizer, but you can use it to do so much more. 

5. Mindspace Rack Office Desk Organizer

Yet again, Mindspace is not done with this desk organization idea list. This time around you have the file rack office desk organizer, that is suited for the office, the home, and even the classroom. 

It doesn't use the standard wire design that the previous two items had. Instead, there is a lineup of sturdy steel mesh dividers, combining durability, functionality, and a very unique visual. 

This time, you're only getting five slots, but that's no challenge at all considering how large they are. Non Slip protective grips keep your organizer where you want it at all times.

File Rack Office Desk Organizer

This Inclined File Organizer with 5 extra-large slots is designed to give you easy access to all your files and folders. 5-year warranty.

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Now, you have a 7 1/2-inch depth, as well as a height and width of 11 1/4 inches. The smooth ABS coating is a dream both to see and to touch. 

6. Cable Management

This is an important small desk organization idea. Cables are notorious for bringing unnecessary clutter to your desk. It's one of the reasons why so many people opt for wireless peripherals, such as their keyboards and mice.  

Each monitor at your workstation carries two cables. If your peripherals are wired that’s an additional two. 

Added to that, there is a network cable, system unit power cable, and probably even speaker cables if you have any connected to your PC. It's just one of the realities of dealing with a computer-centric workspace. 

Therefore, it's essential to have adequate cable management facilities set up to keep things looking organized. Many desk manufacturers include cable running spaces in their designs to help their clients. These are implemented to varying degrees of success. 

However, one of the best desk organization ideas you can run with if you have a less than stellar cable management setup or none is to get your hands on a desk cord organizer. 

You can pre-purchase these or you can build them yourself. Of course, if you don't have that capability, you can also hire someone you know to have it built and mounted for you. 

Whichever way you decide to go, the result should be your having an area that allows you to run your cables neatly, so your desk does not look overly cluttered.

7. Monitor Arm

Sometimes, the fewer things you have on top of your desk, the better. Especially since having more space means being able to place your desktop elements that much more optimally. 

A monitor arm is a great idea to help you achieve this outcome. Instead of having your screens on the built-in stands atop your desk, you can use a monitor arm to suspend them above the tabletop. 

Some of these mechanisms can even hold multiple monitors. Apart from being able to declutter your desk, you also benefit from high adjustability. That's because many of these units allow you to rotate them and take advantage of horizontal and vertical adjustments.

Monitor Arm

Made from a premium aluminum alloy, this 360 degree monitor arm securely holds and supports your monitor at any angle you prefer for a flexible work setup. Weight capacity of 26 lbs per arm.

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You'd be surprised to see how conveniently you can place your screens. Additionally, you usually find that there are cable management facilities included in these designs, keeping your monitor cables from having your desk looking as if it's in disarray. 

8. Minimalist Layout

This is one of the interesting desk organization ideas. You may also want to consider a minimalist desk setup. If you are unfamiliar with this term, it simply means keeping nothing on your desk apart from the items you need. Having one or two simple accessories is usually acceptable. 

So, how do you classify the elements of your workspace? Well, think about your computer keyboard, for example. You are not going to be able to use your workspace without it, so it needs to stay atop the desk. 

However, if you have speakers and headphones, for example, it's very unlikely that your job requires you to be using both. Your job likely doesn't require you to use any of the two, but allowances can be made to keep either the headphone or the speakers atop the desk. 

Everything else that you may need infrequently can be kept in your filing cabinet drawer nearby. Color schemes that go best with minimalist layouts include black, white, and gray. 

9. Shelf Mounting

You may be amazed with this home desk organization. Having another area to place items means that you don't need to keep all of them on top of your desk, and this is where a shelf can very much come in handy. Some people even have multiple shelves mounted atop their desks. 

Of course, you want to ensure that anything you're putting atop the shelves is placed neatly and makes for easy retrieval. 

Consider the color of the wood or metal that you're using for the shelf and ensure that the size doesn't make it an eyesore. 

10. Desk Drawer Organizer

This is the last desk organization idea in this list. When the matter of organization finds itself in the conversation, you often hear people saying that anything unnecessary should be placed in a drawer. Even earlier as you read, you were told to put accessories in your filing cabinet. 

However, the desktop is not the only thing you can organize. If you have clutter in your drawers, you can have another challenge on your hands. So, how about keeping the insides of the drawer organized too? 

You can implement a desk drawer organizer with dedicated compartments for different items. 

Final Remarks

Do you feel more comfortable with office organization ideas now? If you want to give the best of yourself and deliver the best to the business, you must do so in the most comfortable environment possible. 

The management team has a part to play in keeping the surroundings conducive to high productivity, but you also must get involved where keeping things neat is concerned.

You want to apply this rule whether you work in a traditional office space or you're at home. For the latter, practicing proper home desk organization habits can easily carry over and translate to how you approach your household chores.