Declutter and organize the home with these easy decluttering ideas. This article includes a free printable list of 100+ things to get rid of today!
Things to Get Rid of Today
Are you looking for things to get rid of today so you can clear out some space in your home?
Ready to declutter?
A lot of the clutter in our lives is stuff we've just gotten used to.
It's become so much a part of our environment, that we don't even notice it anymore.
A lot of the clutter we've been hanging onto is stuff we can throw away.
Or recycle, give, donate to Goodwill, or repurpose (within reason – it's not a good idea to hoard recyclables).
Not sure how to dispose of your decluttered items? Here's a guide to figuring out what to do with the stuff you get rid of.
Why It's Important to Get Rid of the Easy-to-Declutter Items First
Watch this video that explains why it's better to start with easy decluttering decisions:
Declutter List
If you're looking for ideas for things to declutter today, here's a growing list of suggestions and inspiration:
- Receipts you no longer need.
- Old magazines and newspapers.
- Earrings without mates.
- Socks without mates.
- Socks with holes.
- Socks that are “quitters.”
- Dead or nearly dead plants.
- Toiletries you don't like.
- Random scraps of paper.
- Dry cleaner hangers.
- Plastic hangers that come with clothes from the store.
- Cords for cell phones you no longer own.
- Old computers.
- Old printers.
- Old electronics.
- Glasses you no longer use.
- Sunglasses you no longer use.
- Change (collect it in a jar and take it to a bank or Coinstar machine to exchange for bills or gift cards).
- Broken toys.
- Junky toys.
- Doubles of photo prints.
- Scarves you don't wear.
- Old rugs that are rolled up and taking up space in your basement or garage.
- Old candy.
- Expired food. (Check those expiration dates!)
- Worn out bras and undergarments.
- Expired coupons.
- Costume jewelry you don't wear.
- Cosby Show sweaters.
- CDs you don't listen to.
- DVDs you don't watch.
- Cleaning products you don't use.
- Extra rags you don't use.
- Mops and brooms you don't use.
- Plastic shopping bags (stores will sometimes take these back).
- Broken vacuums and sweepers.
- Old margarine and yogurt tubs.
- Old sneakers (sometimes athletic shops will take these).
- Dusty candles you're not going to use.
- Hideous vases and bowls.
- Vases you got for free with a flower delivery.
- Crusty, dried-up Dryel packets.
- Dried-up hand warmers, foot warmers, etc.
- Old makeup.
- Dried-up nail polish.
- Calendars from past years.
- Phone books.
- Broken or torn luggage that's beyond repair.
- Small hand sanitizer bottles with just a little of product left inside that's impossible to get out.
- Bumper stickers you don't plan on using.
- Bumper stickers you are using that need to be taken off your car.
- Greeting cards with no sentimental value.
- Hotel or sample-sized toiletries – great for donating to shelters!
- Snacks that continually get passed over.
- Old cookware – especially the stuff that could be hazardous.
- Pens that don't work.
- Mechanical pencils that are stuck or always get stuck.
- Old, nasty pillows.
- Old invitations.
- Lame mugs.
- Stadium cups.
- Old shirts with armpit stains.
- Labels and address stamps for your previous address.
- Broken or unused holiday decorations.
- Hand soap that smells revolting.
- Crinkled up or torn wrapping paper, tissue paper, gift bags.
- That grocery list you forgot to take to the store.
- Cell phone covers for phones you no longer own.
- Forgotten cords from electronics of the past.
- Preferred shopping cards from stores you never shop at. If your store lets you input your phone number instead of showing your card, you can also get rid of your plastic one.
- Keychains from the past that you don't use. Especially the ones you got for free.
- Keys from old apartments, houses, storage lockers, etc.
- Textbooks that are never referenced. Yes, they would make great doorstops, but it's time to let them go.
- Extra buttons (usually packaged in their own little plastic baggie!) for new clothes you bought.
- Expired medications – take to a medicine take-back event.
- Super-old or nasty cough drops.
- Boxes of tissue with only 3 or 4 tissues left. Consolidate the leftovers into one box and get rid of the extra tissue boxes.
- Syringes and cups that come with children's medicines. Keep what you need in case of a family sickness, and get rid of the rest.
- Bandages in packages that look like they might start decomposing right before your eyes.
- 3-D crafts made of sourdough that are cracking and falling apart, despite their cuteness.
- Your old 90210 posters.
- Games with lots of missing pieces.
- Stuff you've been keeping from your past career. Keep your certifications. The rest is probably outdated anyway.
- Old video games.
- Items in your pantry that you really don't want to eat. Donate it before it expires. Someone out there needs it.
- Organizing gadgets that didn't work for you. Maybe they'll work for someone else?
- Duplicate kitchen items.
- Old kitchen towels.
- Old paint. Call your local waste disposal company and find out how to get rid of it safely.
- Boxes for things you bought – toys, phones, computers, etc.
- Plastic cutlery – bring it to work.
- Plastic food storage containers you don't use.
- Loose screws, nails, nuts, and bolts.
- Pet toys your pets don't use.
- Snacks for your pets that they don't like.
- Unused cookbooks.
- Extra lanyards, name tag holders, etc.
- Gift cards – use them up! I try to load my Amazon gift cards onto my account as soon as I get them.
- Excess packaging supplies – bubble wrap, old mailers, the plastic puff things that come in delivery boxes.
- Dried-up dish sponges.
- Old sunscreen. Apparently, sunscreen loses its potency after a year. I learned this the hard way.
- Plastic bags from the dry cleaner.
- Never opened goodie bags from birthday parties – I wish this goodie bag trend would go away!
- Almost empty bottles for bubbles. Consolidate them into one bottle and get rid of the rest.
- Broken bubble-blowing gadgets. Save the batteries if they're still good.
- Dried out markers.
- Perfume or cologne you don't use or like.
- Broken lawn furniture unsuccessfully mended with duct tape.
- Chewed-up sippy cups.
- Chewed-up baby toys.
- Toys your pets chewed up.
- Old plastic baby bottles that probably have BPA.
- Old water bottles that probably have BPA.
- Stretched-out hairties.
- Souvenir beer steins and shot glasses. Keep if you're still active in your fraternity.
- T-shirts, and sweatshirts from college and high school. If donated, a youngster might appreciate their “vintage” quality.
- Headbands, scrunchies, barrettes, banana clips, and other hair accessories you've grown out of.
- Best friends necklace for friends you no longer keep in contact with. These things only created problems, no?
- Remotes to devices you no longer own.
- Old tape players, 8-track players.
- Things you've been saving for projects that never happened…toilet paper rolls, Altoids tins, wine corks, etc.
Related: How to Make a Decluttering List You'll Actually Use
What to Declutter
Want to keep going after you've worked through the list of things to declutter?
Try our 30-Day Declutter Challenge, and focus on decluttering one area of your home each day.
You can make it as simple or as involved as you like.
Go here to learn more about the 30-Day Declutter.
Need more decluttering guidance? Get Rid of It! A Step-by-Step Decluttering Guide for Beginners has easy-to-manage daily tasks to help you get rid of the stuff that's easiest to declutter.
By working through the guide day by day, you'll build your clutter-busting confidence and be able to take on all of the clutter in your home. Click here to get your copy today!
What to Do With the Stuff You Declutter
If you do a big declutter, you may be overwhelmed by having so much stuff to get rid of.
That's perfectly normal.
And guilt may creep in if you start to think about sending all of it to the landfill.
But if you have a lot of items that aren't usable, it's okay to throw them away.
Non-profits spend a lot of money to dispose of items people donate that aren't useable.
Rather than burden a charitable organization with things they'll eventually have to pay to have hauled away, grab a trash bag and throw away those items yourself.
If you have some items that you think others could use, here are some ideas for getting rid of them:
- Schedule a pickup from a local charity. If you have items they need, they may be able to send a truck to your home to pick things up.
- Sell items on eBay, Craigslist, Poshmark, or Facebook Marketplace.
- Donate old towels, blankets, and linens to animal shelters.
- List items on Freecycle or in a local Buy Nothing group.
- If it's allowed in your neighborhood, put items out on your curb with a big FREE sign. People will take free stuff!
- Have a garage sale, or put your stuff for sale on consignment at thrift stores
Go here for more ideas on how to get rid of stuff!
More Decluttering Tips:
- How to Make a Decluttering List You'll Actually Use
- De-Trashing: An Easy Way to Start Decluttering
- Why You Should Try a Month of Decluttering
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