Even if you’re someone who loves tidying up, the garage is not likely to be your first stop when you have the inspiration to organize. It’s natural to prioritize more compact, high-traffic areas when decluttering, which is why tackling everything from pantry organization, to closet organization and laundry room organization will seem more approachable. While it’s true that a thorough cleaning and sorting of your garage is no small feat, it’s a lot more manageable than you might initially think with the help of the best garage organization ideas from experienced professionals.
Before diving into this type of project, it can help to think about how you’re currently utilizing your garage and the improvements that would best suit your home. If you’ve got an active household with young children, perhaps you focus on toys, sports equipment, and bicycles and use the space gained as a play area for the kids. On the other hand, if you have a smaller, more senior household, a better strategy might be getting tools or bulky furniture out of sight so you can repurpose your garage into a more functional workspace, art studio, or exercise area. Not only is going in with a game plan less daunting, but putting in the elbow grease will be much easier when you have a clearer sense of the reward.
How to start cleaning your garage
If your garage is already in decent shape, sometimes it really is as simple as taking a weekend to clean the space and put clutter in its proper place (or toss or donate it). However, if you don’t have an entire weekend to dedicate to such an endeavor, or if you’re catching up on years’ worth of organizing, that’s OK too.
While it can be tempting to look at a messy garage and want to tear the whole thing apart immediately, it’s best to be realistic. If you don’t consider how much work there is and how much you can reasonably take on yourself, you run the risk of completing the project halfway or giving up altogether. Instead, sit down and plan out, step by step, exactly what you want to achieve and by when. Then, follow these expert tips for organizing your garage:
How to make the most of garage storage space
“The bottom line when it comes to garage organization? It’s all about the floor space,” Stacey Schweiger of Sunshine Organizing tells Woman’s Day. If you do one single thing when organizing your garage, it should be to get everything off the floor by whatever means possible. Not only does this look neater and make things easier to access when you need them, but it also protects items should there be leaks or minor flooding.
“Utilize all existing closets, cabinetry, and shelving to conceal garage items and elevate most everything else from the floor. Use wall hooks, plastic bins on wall shelves, and an overhead storage system if needed to optimize clear floor space in the garage,” Schweiger says.
If you need guidance on what dimensions to look for when it comes to shelving, California Closets Design Consultant Patt Sendejas says there are dimensions you should keep in mind: “It is best to use a minimum of 1″ thick shelves and cabinets no wider than 32″ to avoid sagging of shelves due to heavy items often stored in garages. Keep cabinets 18″ away from front opening garage doors to avoid cabinetry getting soaked in heavy rain.”
Finally, there’s no shame in hiring help if you need it. Be willing to call in the professionals if you hit a roadblock or need a hand to get started, especially if you don’t have the time, energy, or skills to create the space you want. If it’s in your budget, it can be a worthy investment to pay for professionals to create a system tailored to your lifestyle needs and to finally get your garage organized once and for all.
Store common items in bulk with a system organizer.
$199 at AmazonCredit: King’s Rack
Group similar items together in easily accessible bins. Categorize using this boltless steel storage system organizer, which has 12 plastic bins and 4 tiers. The sturdy steel frame holding the bins will allow for you to store even heavier items, making it one of the best garage organization systems you can buy.
Mount heavy-duty hooks with a track system to free up floor space.
Now 29% Off
$50 at AmazonCredit: Wallmaster
These wall-mounted garage storage organization racks can hold six sections of items weighing up to 265 pounds. Made of heavy-duty steel, the rack’s hooks can also be easily repositioned by sliding along its tracks. Use for chairs, skis and snowboards, strollers, shovels, rakes, even power tools and gardening tools that have something to hook on.
RELATED: Best Gardening Clothes Worth Buying, According to Experts
Add storage cabinets.
Now 32% Off
$189 at AmazonCredit: Keter
Sometimes the organization situation within a garage can seem overwhelming, simply because there isn’t any designated space for storing smaller items out of sight. This is why utilizing garage storage cabinets with doors and shelves in the space can be a great solution and one that feels familiar and easy to use.
Pro tip: Start with one or two storage cabinets and scale up to three, four, or more if need be. This way you won’t overwhelm yourself and you can organize gradually.
Advertisement – Continue Reading Below
Install overhead storage racks.
Now 40% Off
$138 at AmazonCredit: FLEXIMOUNTS
The best garage storage systems make the most of all the available space without creating additional clutter. If you’re not utilizing ceiling space, you’re missing out. Consider setting up overhead garage storage racks to hold luggage, pet carriers, seasonal sports equipment, and any other items you want out of the way most of the year so you can actually park your car in the garage.
Use a wall-mounted organizer for cleaning tools.
Now 41% Off
$17 at AmazonCredit: IMILLET
Are all of your long-handled cleaning tools (think: brooms, mops, snow shovels) leaning together in a corner of your garage? It’s time to change that. One of the simplest, but most helpful changes you can make to your space is putting up a rack that will separate and store all of the tools off the ground. Plus, you can also use the space to hang rubber gloves, gardening tools, and anything else you could think of. Invest in a few of these and you’d have an entire garage storage system on a budget.
Take advantage of magnets to organize metal tools.
$22 at AmazonCredit: Vanitek
Installing a magnetic tool holder strip in your garage is a great way to keep track of the items that all of us tend to misplace — heavy-duty scissors, screwdrivers, and hammers. It’s easy to install and is an item that helps spaces stay organized longer — what’s not to love with this garage tool organization hack?
Advertisement – Continue Reading Below
Store your bikes up off the ground.
$105 at Amazon$109 at WayfairCredit: Monkey Bars
Bikes should never be taking up precious floor space in your garage. Buy a garage bike storage rack for the wall or ceiling to make extra space and ensure your bikes never fall and scratch the side of your car again.
Use a storage cart made specifically for rolling sports balls.
Now 13% Off
$54 at AmazonCredit: Mythinglogic
In the garage, sports equipment that tends to roll (skateboards, basketballs, soccer balls, and so on) can at best be easily lost, and in some scenarios can be a safety hazard. Creating a catch-all area for things that roll is a great way to make sure no one gets hurt and you don’t lose track of favorite items.
If you have more sports equipment than just balls (think: tennis rackets, baseball bats, golf bags), this sports equipment storage rack ($200) is a lifesaver.
Great For Basic Organization
Invest in durable, stackable storage containers.
$128 at AmazonCredit: Rubbermaid
“I tell my clients to invest in plastic tubs,” Natalie Carneal, owner and operator of Neat with Nat, tells Woman’s Day. “These are an easy way to organize your stuff and are easily stackable, creating more room in your garage.”
She also advises labeling and dating everything. “This way, if one year passes and you haven’t opened a particular tub, you know it’s time to let it go, and maybe one day you can finally fit your car in the garage,” Carneal says.
Advertisement – Continue Reading Below
Install a rack for easier access to heavy storage bins.
$130 at WayfairCredit: Rebrilliant
Love the idea of using large, stackable storage tubs — but not so into having to unstack and re-stack every time you need to access something? This compact rack, which is made to store 18- to 22-gallon bins, safely holds up to 600 lbs. Bins and totes slide in and out with ease.
RELATED: Gift Ideas to Help You Organize Your Life
Set up tower shelving storage racks for big families.
Now 10% Off
$105 at Amazon$190 at WalmartCredit: CAPHAUS
For active households, Shannon Krause of Tidy Nest highly recommends investing in tower shelving with bins “to corral all outdoor toys, sporting equipment, and seasonal supplies.” The exposed drawers offer a great deal of ease by ensuring “contents are visible, making categories easy to decipher.”
Create more vertical space with tiered storage shelves.
$149 at Amazon$149 at Walmart$540 at JCPenneyCredit: Honey-Can-Do
“In general, the number one problem we find with existing garages is the lack of used vertical space. An affordable and easy solution is plastic or wire shelving,” Krause says. “They are easy to assemble, height adjustable, and can quickly quadruple your garage by making use of the unused vertical space.” This standing shelf unit can support up to 800 lbs per shelf making it a great all-purpose option.
Advertisement – Continue Reading Below
Use under-the-counter storage.
Now 21% Off
$130 at AmazonCredit: DEVAISE
If you have a workbench or any other type of elevated shelving unit in your garage, using under-the-counter cabinets is a great way to add additional storage without taking up much more space. You can store tools, files, beach toys, and anything else you need to hide away. This mobile filing cabinet is on wheels so you can move it around easily as needed.
Keep leftover paint in mason jars.
There’s nothing less aesthetically pleasing than dozens of messy half-used buckets of paint. By storing leftover paint from home projects in glass mason jars, you can keep paint organized and easily glance at the colors — less waste all around! Just remember to keep the paint in a dark place to avoid the color changing too much.
Label absolutely everything.
$18 at Amazon$20 at WalmartCredit: Melinda Podor
The biggest mistake you can make when organizing any space (but especially one as large and storage-focused as a garage) is to forget to label things. It’s incredibly easy to organize an entire space and find yourself months or years later having no idea where anything is, despite having spent so much time storing it away.
This is why labeling everything from outdoor Christmas decorations to old books to donations is key. Buying a label maker can make this process easy, but don’t be afraid to use duct tape and a Sharpie as well.
Advertisement – Continue Reading Below
Refinish the floor for an easy clean-up.
Now 33% Off
$249 at Amazon$255 at Walmart$469 at hdsupplysolutions.comCredit: Rust-Oleum
It’s amazing how much easier sweeping and vacuuming can be when the floor is finished and smooth. By refinishing the garage floor with an epoxy, not only will everything in the space look a bit cleaner, but it will make the area that much more pleasant to spend time in — and less likely to get dirty again in a few days.
Install LED garage ceiling lights.
$35 at Amazon$39 at lightsinall.comCredit: TANBABY
Who hasn’t avoided the garage because of creepy, barely there lighting or a misplaced flashlight? Like basements, the more dark and musty the garage is, the less you’ll want to be there — whether you’re going to retrieve a seasonal decoration or spending an afternoon organizing. Installing easy lighting will make the space feel safer and brighter. Plus, it’ll be much harder to avoid dirt, dust, and hidden pockets of clutter.
Use a highly visible outdoor extension cord for safety.
Now 22% Off
$91 at AmazonCredit: Southwire
Ensure safety when plugging in tools or other electronics in the garage with this 100-foot neon extension cord, which is made specifically for outdoor use, water-resistant, and comes in neon pink, blue, or green.
Advertisement – Continue Reading Below
Place plywood sheets across exposed rafters for seasonal storage.
$13 at Lowe’sCredit: Lowe’s
When organizing your garage, it’s important to think seasonally. How often are you using the thing you’re storing away? Frequently? Then consider placing it in an easier-to-reach location. Only use that faux Christmas tree once a year? Then it can be stored further away.
As Kevin Busch, VP of Operations for Mr. Handyman, a Neighborly company, says sometimes you can even use exposed rafters to store seasonal items. “Lay a piece of plywood across the beams of exposed rafters to create a makeshift shelving unit,” Busch tells Woman’s Day. “The extra space can be used to alternate storing your summer items and holiday decorations depending on the season.”
When in doubt, go with durable wall shelving.
Now 19% Off
$52 at Amazon$69 at WalmartCredit: HyLoft
If you find yourself overwhelmed with the sheer amount of options for how, exactly, to organize your garage, narrow your organizational options down to one. For Busch, this means choosing shelves over cabinets.
“For cramped places like the garage, shelves are the more practical choice for any storage needs,” Busch says. “They don’t require any additional space for swinging doors and they give you a full view of the contents.”
Use rubber-coated hooks for hanging bike storage.
Now 25% Off
$15 at AmazonCredit: SMARTOLOGY
“Rubber-coated hooks are the gold standard when it comes to bike storage. To ensure that the hooks are safely secured, make sure to pre-drill a starter hole before installation and secure them into ceiling beams for added support,” Busch says. “No bike to hang? Those rubber hooks can also be used to store ladders, shovels, and brooms.”
Advertisement – Continue Reading Below
Utilize refrigerators for magnetic storage.
$42 at Amazon$42 at Walmart$42 at WayfairCredit: Yamakazi
If you happen to have a refrigerator in your garage, don’t limit storage to the inside of it. This magnetic organizer sticks easily onto the outside and comes with shelving and hooks that can be used to hold small items like tools, cleaning products, and other basic household goods.
Give each family member a locker.
$174 at WayfairCredit: ouyessir
If you have a large family or are looking for an easy, built-in way to organize items, lockers could be an effective solution. You can buy locker cabinets new or find them secondhand, and they add a bit of vintage flair to a traditionally bland space. Plus, you can label each cubby for different uses or members of your family.
Maximize narrow spaces with rolling storage.
$89 at Pottery BarnCredit: Yamakazi
Fill in the awkward gaps between bulky storage pieces with a narrow rack for smaller items. The wheels make it easy to access, and easy to tuck away and hide when not in use.
Advertisement – Continue Reading Below
Marc Dufresne//Getty Images
Give old furniture a purpose.
Are you storing old dressers, armoires, or hutches in your garage until you have the right room or decor for them? Are you waiting for the right time to donate or sell them? In the meantime, you might as well use them.
If there’s a way to use the furniture to store outdoor toys, seasonal decorations, or other no-mess items, then you should take advantage of the extra space. For additional organization, use clear plastic bins to neatly store items within the furniture.
SHOP STACKABLE CLEAR STORAGE BINS
Use canisters for the smallest items.
$14 at keepyourcadence.comCredit: Cadence
Canisters will ensure items like nails, screws, and washers can easily be located without using all the bulky packaging they came in. These ones are extremely durable, are magnetized to stick to each other, and can be customized with labels of your choosing. They start at $14 for the smallest size and go up in price depending on how many pieces you bundle together.
pinstock//Getty Images
Digitize kids’ artwork and projects.
If you’re storing a bunch of your kids’ art or projects in the garage, there are two major problems: The first is that they’re not being stored safely, and the second is that they’re not being enjoyed. The solution to this problem is taking time to digitize what you can.
Services like Artkive allow you to send in the art and have it put in collage frames or picture books. This way, you can both free up space in your garage and preserve important memories for years to come.
Advertisement – Continue Reading Below
Digitize paper documents — and create a filing system for the rest.
Now 41% Off
YouTuber and organizational expert Julie Deru says that digitizing items and going through papers and documents is key to having an organized space. Manuals sitting in your garage can definitely be run through that process. But for those important documents you want to have physical versions of, a letter tray or other filing system will do.
“If you have storage bins or cardboard boxes full of random things, it’s time to dejunk and put them into a digital filing system. It is very important to have all of your paper documents organized because you never know when you’re going to need to grab a birth certificate, your college degree, or your social security card,” Deru tells Woman’s Day.
“Not only do I have paper documents in a box, but I also have a separate backup area online with all of those documents. For items that may have been sitting in a cardboard box for far too long but there’s still sentimental value, consider taking a picture to ensure you have a copy of it and then tossing it out.”
Make a list of garage rules.
Now 16% Off
$16 at AmazonCredit: kedudes
The easiest way to make sure any space in your home doesn’t become cluttered is to create a set of rules for those who use it. By setting a firm list of garage guidelines and rules, you can make sure everyone in your household is on the same page when it comes to what the garage is for, what it isn’t for, and where everything goes. You can write reminders on a small, magnetic dry erase board in the space, so no one in the family forgets.
Eliminate extra plastics with reusable cleaning containers.
Now 20% Off
$37 at BluelandCredit: Blueland
Reduce the excess space taken up by half used cleaning products, and the amount of single-use plastics in your recycling bin, with Blueland’s “Forever Bottles” that you can refill again and again. Their starter set comes with glass and mirror, multi-purpose, and bathroom cleaners, plus a foaming hand soap that can be kept inside the house.
Advertisement – Continue Reading Below
Upcycle shoe organizers for individualized compartments.
$13 at AmazonCredit: YOUDENOVA
If you have an extra over-the-door shoe organizer lying around, you can always repurpose it in your garage. It can be used to separate items like spray paint, brushes, cleaners, tools, and of course shoes if you need more space for those too.
Map off a walking path.
$14 at Amazon$22 at WalmartCredit: ScotchBlue
If you’ve ever walked into a garage and realized you have no idea how to get from point A to point B because of all the clutter, you’re not alone. To avoid this scenario, it might be worth mapping out a “walking path” in your garage with painter’s tape. This way, no matter what else happens, your family knows that clutter can’t land in that walking path — easy!
Great For Chore Charts
Put more organization time on your family calendar.
$27 at Amazon$27 at partyfunny.comCredit: Party Funny
One of the best ways to ensure that your garage stays organized year-round is to actually schedule time to organize it year-round. Use an erasable whiteboard calendar planner for monthly household chores, and map out a few weekends a year that are dedicated to cleaning out the garage from top to bottom. You can even coordinate this with neighborhood garage sales or other relevant events.
Advertisement – Continue Reading Below
Westend61//Getty Images
Frequent online marketplaces to save money.
As you organize on a budget, skip buying brand-new containers. Online buy-and-sell groups like Facebook Marketplace might have all that you’ll need. Search for gently used products like storage bins, chests, cabinets, and boxes so you don’t have to pay full price.
And while you buy, you can also sell (or give away). As you declutter and sort through your garage, use online marketplaces to get rid of anything usable that you no longer need.
.
Give your home a refresh.
Discover brilliant ways to get organized, declutter, and make over any room. These downloadable digital guides make it easier than ever to give your home a refresh. Visit our store to find dozens of ideas from Woman’s Day and our sister brands.
