Big designer ideas for teeny, tiny spaces.
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Return-to-office mandates may be on the rise, but hybrid or fully remote jobs have become a welcome new reality for many of us. However, since the lockdowns of 2020, our at-home workspaces have rarely gotten an upgrade. Whether you have a designated home office or prefer to camp out at your dining room table, the way we work at home can majorly impact our productivity. Even in an apartment, a small office can be beneficial and promote a better work-life balance.
Whether you replace one of your nightstands with a desk or repurpose an unused closet into an office alcove, the best small office ideas are functional, organized, and chock-full of personality. Clutter-free shelves, comfortable seating, and plenty of natural light can go a long way when it’s 3 p.m. and you’re trying to avoid that mid-afternoon slump.
To prove you can make your work-from-home setup as great as your regular workspace, we’ve gathered 40 designer-approved small office ideas to spark your inspiration. A chic, organized work area boosts your productivity and makes you feel positive about getting things done. From setting up a desk in the slot next to your fridge to upcycling an antique secretary, you won’t regret a revamp inspired by one of these clever ideas.
Additional copy by Hadley Mendelsohn and Medgina Saint-Elien.
This upholstered chair is great for answering emails and writing letters at the antique secretary desk. But when the work day is done, the chic piece can be flipped around and used for extra seating in this Illinois living room by designer Sarah Vaile.
An alcove office in an unused closet is a great way to create a designated productivity zone without using up valuable square footage elsewhere. Designer Liz Carroll created a cheerful space that can be hidden away behind a sliding door.
In House Beautiful’s 2024 Whole Home in Asheville, North Carolina, the game room doubles as a chic library. The table folds in to create a workspace, but the second the workday finishes, play can resume the minute you flip down the corner.
California-based designer Amy Oppedisano reimagined a small, "oddly placed" closet between the kitchen and living room of her family’s 1,500-square-foot Laguna Beach cottage as a workstation. She removed the doors, widened the opening, and built a desk out of cabinets just like the ones in the kitchen to get the job done in a stylish and cohesive way.
The side of your bed is an untapped area of secret square footage. Rather than a second nightstand, place a desk in the space for a functional, small workspace as Baltimore-based firm Winsome Interior Design did here. There’s still plenty of space for your nighttime essentials.
Symmetry in interior design is known to calm the senses and make busy patterns and prints less overwhelming. We could use a little less stress at work, so take this philosophy into your small home office. In this boy’s room, Fort Design Studio created a mirror image on each side of the desk.
This bite-size work zone by Jeremiah Brent is directly off the kitchen in a California home. Upper cabinet-like storage was included over the desk to bridge the two rooms.
Mirrors are known for making small spaces feel larger thanks to their ability to reflect light. If your desk faces a wall, a mirror can also help you feel less cramped.
They say a tidy desk equals a tidy mind, but in a small office that piece of furniture is often your only source of storage. Vertical shelving is a great way to give yourself more without adding furniture. Take inspiration from this alcove by Marie Flanigan, which sits in the primary bedroom.
In this home office by Suzane Kasler, the arched built-in desk is painted a soothing off-white (Shaded White by Farrow & Ball). The striped pin board was custom made to fit the cutout.
According to Feng Shui principles, facing the wall while working isn’t ideal. To offset the energy, place your desk as close to a natural light source, like a window, as possible. In Serena Dugan’s Shelter Island, New York, home, woven blinds help diffuse the bright morning sun.
In interior designer Hannah Ozburn’s Charlotte, North Carolina, home, a corner of the living room suffices as a writing nook. “The paper maché flower is one of my favorite accessories,” she says. “I don’t have a green thumb, so this is perfect for me!” Its color is a burst of energy that works beautifully with the Christopher Spitzmiller lamp and leopard print Mrs. Howard & Max & Co. chair; it also picks up the green from the den walls.
Your lunch break can feel so far away at times—but not if you prop yourself up in your kitchen! With everything you need in sight from a mug to a folder, this converted kitchen closet proves you can make just about any space work-friendly with the right organizational tools and a comfortable chair.
Designer Wesley Moon managed to pack a lot into this small home office area thanks to an eclectic mix of furnishings, storage, pretty decor, and a relaxing color palette. He updated an antique secretary with a white leather writing surface and decorated it with bell jars on top to play up the dreamy, whimsical vibe. This calming tableau is the break your eyes need from screen time.
Whether it's in your childhood bedroom, a vacation home, or up in the attic, a window framed by an art gallery is the perfect spot for your desk. The sun streaming in through the woven wood shade in this small home office designed by Heather Chadduck makes answering emails a million times more pleasant. Window trim painted Green Blue by Farrow & Ball connects the space to the outdoors.
NYC-based design firm Studio DB is seasoned in maximizing small spaces. Here, the designers used a few of our favorite small home office ideas: They covered one wall of the corner in corkboard and mounted floating shelves. An L-shaped desk with two roomy built-in drawers offers plenty of surface space to spread out and storage for supplies.
Skip installing a bench in your kitchen nook and set up your own at-home conference room like this one by Ariene Bethea. Grab a snack in the hallway, then take a call in this luxurious room with a view, which was part of a three-room suite in House Beautiful's 2022 Whole Home.
By installing a shelving unit on the wall in an unused corner of his apartment, Tariq Dixon, cofounder of furniture brand TRNK, turned a tiny space into a writer's retreat.
Corey Damen Jenkins put this foyer loft to work by turning it into a useable alcove instead of wasted space. The shelves are lined with plenty of books for a small-scale library feel, and the low-hanging pendant adds task lighting for a small study area.
Take over a walk-in closet or head upstairs to an attic to find a quiet place to get creative. Lay out an area rug to anchor the space and warm it up, dedicate your walls to mood boarding and brainstorming, and hang a whimsical light that sparks the imagination.
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