A clean and tidy home has numerous benefits. It not just elevates our mood, but also helps us stay calm and makes our lives easy and productive. But I can understand how cleaning and tidying a space can be time consuming and sometimes even overwhelming.
If you’ve struggled with keeping your space tidy or have spent hours cleaning up a room and ended up exhausted from the whole process, then you have come to the right place.
I will share 15 very easy habits that takes 5 minutes or less and will help you keep your home tidy effortlessly. They are not a replacement for the deep cleaning sessions that you will obviously need from time to time. But these habits will ease the burden of that deep cleaning session and keep you home looking neat and tidy all day every day, not just the day after the deep clean.
1. Making the Bed
This has got to be on the top of the list. Make the bed in the morning everyday after airing it out. It will not take more than 2-3 minutes to do so. Avoid keeping unnecessary decorative pillows serving no purpose. Keep the bed simple so that it is easy to pull back together everyday.
This will easily transform the look of your bedroom. Also having a made bed instantly uplifts the mood. At the end of a tiring day you will always have a clean space to turn to. Making the bed first thing in the morning is such an easy achievable goal that serves as a momentum to achieve all other goals throughout the day.
2. EOD Tidy Session
At the end of each day, set a timer for 5 minutes and go around your living space and put things back in its place. I prefer doing this right before heading to bed. This is not a cleaning or decluttering session, just tidy. Put back cushions and throws in its place. Arrange the remote. Throw out garbage and just touch up the space.
This instantly spruces up an area and the added benefit is that you will always get to wake up to a well arranged space.
3. Empty Handbag Policy
We all walk out of our doors with handbags or bag packs. Once back home we tend to leave the things inside our bags and often forget about them. Other times we end up frantically looking for them or hassling with the things when we are trying to switch bags before heading out again.
One easy solution is to make sure to empty out the bags each time when we enter our homes. Create a designated basket or container in the entryway which will catch all the bag stuff. Every time you enter through the door, empty out the content of the bag into the basket. This will ensure your things are always in one place. Take this opportunity to scan the content and throw out any trash like receipts, napkins etc. Remember to always stow away your bag empty.
Next time you are heading out the door you will no longer struggle with swapping things from one bag to other and your bags and space will remain clutter free.
4. Everyday Declutter
Our homes are limited in space. It does not matter how big or small house one lives in. The space inside it is finite. And we as consumers are bound to bring things inside our home for our necessities and wants. While the inflow of stuff continues, we also need to concentrate on the outflow.
Decluttering is hence very important to maintain the house and keep it looking balanced. I have written a blog post on 25 Items to Declutter in 2025 for a Simplified Home. But decluttering in itself can be a very overwhelming project. One easy way to go about this is to declutter just 5 minutes everyday.
Set a timer for 5 minutes and go about a space and try to get rid of anything that does not serve you. You will be able to get rid of so many things and free some space without even trying. You don’t need elaborate declutter sessions to make your home feel lighter. Just 5 minutes a day and you will leave a space lighter and more airy. Always remember, don’t keep organising what you can declutter.
5. Cleanup after each mealtime
You must have noticed that the biggest mess in a home would be in an around the kitchen and dining space. This area easily sees the maximum traffic. Hence to ease out the burden of cleaning this space, it is advisable to do a 10 minutes clean up at the end of each meal time.
This will make sure the kitchen is always tidy for the next meal prep.
6. Cleanup work area at the logout time
Like the kitchen another area that gets the most use during the day is probably the area you sit and work. If you are a remote employee, it could be your work table. If you go to a office setting, it could be your cubicle. Make sure to tidy and out back everything in its place once you logout.
This will ensure a fresh start the next day.
7. Empty out surface clutter
This one is easier said than done. There are certain hotspot in the house which becomes clutter catch all. It could be your entryway table or your dining table. Its okay for the area to be a catch all. But all you have to make sure is that it gets cleared up as soon as the work is done. Else one clutter pile will attract more clutter.
For me it is the dining room table. I usually order groceries online and pile them up in the dining space. I try to clean and put them in the refrigerator as soon as I can.
8. Put away garbage to be collected
At the end of each day, collect all the wet and dry waste separately and put them out in the collection spot to be picked up the next day. This is a crucial practice because it ensures that trash leaves our home each day. Usually in apartments in India, trash collection happens in the morning, and if for any reason there is a delay putting out the trash, then they are left out to rot until next days collection.
So the best practice is to ensure that the trash is prepped and kept in the designated place each night.
9. Tidy up skincare and makeup products after each use
One of the most used sections in the personal items category has to be the skincare or makeup section. The rule of thumb is to have less items in this section in the first place and to have a dedicated space in the vanity for each item. Once you use an item, put it back in its rightful place each time. This way the surface clutter will always be in check and the space will remain tidy.
10. Refill cleaning supplies and throw out empties
If you are a avid homemaker, you must have tried experimenting with various cleaning supplies. The key is to stick to one or two products that suit your needs. But if you have more, make sure to do a weekly check to see what has run out and what needs a refill. Try not to hoard empty containers or half used products. The cleaning supplies cabinet will feel instantly lighter with less stuff.
11. Weekly refrigerator cleaning before restocking
The best time to clean a refrigerator is when its empty. So, when you run out of groceries, do a quick scan of the refrigerator and wipe along the surface. This will have dual benefits, one you’ll be able to make a grocery list of what items are required and will avoid duplicate purchases. Second, your refrigerator will always remain clean, and you’ll not need to do a massive deep clean at all times.
12. Cleaning all gadgets weekly
We live in the age of technology, and I can bet if you are reading this you own a minimum of 2-3 gadgets. Think about how often you clean them. Take some time out each week and wipe down all gadgets with a gadget cleaning solution and an appropriate microfiber cloth. These will keep them all clean and hygienic for your own good use.
13. Deleting old photos and documents from phone
One problem that we face with our phones is its storage capacity. Take some time out each day while you are waiting in line, commuting etc. to delete old photos and free up some memory from your phone. This will enable your phone to perform better, and you’ll not need to upgrade the device that often.
14. Junk drawer cleaning
I am sure we are all familiar with the space in our homes that store junk items. This space can get overwhelming really quickly if we do not keep a tab on it. So, it is very important to keep cleaning out the space from time to time. Doing it often leads to less chaos and more efficient space management. Dedicating 5 minutes at the end of the month works well for me to manage this space.
15. Appliance wipe down after use
Kitchen appliances are probably the most hardworking items in the kitchen. I am guilty of not keeping up with them often and this leads to an overwhelming cleaning session when the time comes. If we get into the habit of wiping down each appliance after use, it will make the job of deep cleaning easier and will always keep the kitchen fresh and clean.