10 Things to Declutter in the New Year
In this post: Do you have a New Year’s resolution to have less clutter in 2025? Here are 10 things you should declutter in the New Year. This is the perfect January decluttering list!
New Year with Less Clutter
The new year is always a popular time to declutter. We are setting goals and New Year’s resolutions to better our lives, and decluttering often is a part of those goals either independently or as a way to meet our other goals.
For example, if your resolution is to improve your mental health, getting rid of clutter can help improve your mental health. Or if you have a goal to start a new hobby. You might need to declutter, so you have the space to pursue that hobby. If your resolution is to simplify your life, decluttering is a big part of that.
Even if decluttering isn’t a New Year’s resolution, it’s also so nice to have a fresh start in your home at the beginning of the year. As much as I love having Christmas decorations out, there is something really nice about putting it all away and having less things on display. To help you get started with your decluttering, below is a list of things you should declutter in January as you start the new year.
Before You Get Started Decluttering
Before you get started, I want to remind you that decluttering isn’t just about getting rid of stuff, it’s about making room for what really matters in your life. Decluttering these things will make space and time for the things you love.
If you are struggling getting started decluttering, read these posts about finding motivation to declutter and where to start decluttering when you’re overwhelmed.
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What to Declutter in January
1. Christmas and Holiday Decor
As you are taking down the holiday decor, declutter as you go. If there are things you didn’t use this year, go ahead and get rid of them now so you don’t have to store them for another year just to not use them again. If there are things you did use this year, but you didn’t really love them or if they are damaged, declutter those as well.
2. Unused or Unwanted Gifts
I know this one can be tough for people, but if you received any gifts that you won’t use, you don’t have to hold onto them. If you have a receipt, exchange it for something you can use. You can also evaluate what you already have, and if you received any gifts that can replace what you have, donate the old and keep the new. You can read more here about why it’s okay to get rid of gifts.
3. Phone Apps
Declutter your phone by going through your apps and uninstalling any that you aren’t using. This will help free up memory on your phone and also make it easier to find the apps you actually use.
4. Digital Photos
If you don’t regularly review your digital photos, the new year is a great time to do a little decluttering and organizing of your photos. Go through the last year’s worth of photos and delete any duplicate/blurry/unwanted photos.
This is also a good time to make sure your photos are properly backed up. You can move all of the photos from the last year to a backup folder in the cloud. I like to use Google photos, along with Dropbox as a backup, and have a folder for each month within the year. You can also back up to a physical hard drive as an extra safeguard.
5. Email inbox
Continuing with digital decluttering, start the new year off with a clean inbox. If you took some time off over the holidays, you might return to find an inbox full of promotions and other emails. I find email clean-up easier to do on my computer as I can “select all” a big chunk of emails and delete them at once.
6. Old Calendars or Planners
As you replace your calendar or planner for the new year, review your old ones for anything you need to keep, and discard the rest. You can also consider going digital for the new year. I love Artful Agenda as a full feature digital planner that has eliminated my need for a paper planner.
7. Your Closet
Take a look in your closet and declutter anything that you haven’t worn in the last year. If you have items you aren’t sure about, you can try the hanger trick. Turn the hangers around backwards, and as you wear something flip the hanger around the correct way. In 6 months, declutter the items with the hangers that are still backwards.
8. Outdoor Winter Gear
We’re several weeks into winter now, so declutter any of your warm winter items you aren’t using. This includes hats, gloves, goats, boots, etc. If you have items like skis or ice skates that you haven’t used in years (with no ski trips planned), now is a good time to get rid of those as well.
9. Expired Food
Go through your refrigerator, pantry, and cabinets and toss any old or expired food. During the holidays, we tend to stock up on extra food when there is company around and the kids are on winter break. So if you have leftovers that are past their prime, now is the time to toss them.
10. Home Office and Desk
Start the new year off with a clean workspace. Declutter your desk by filing any papers that are sitting out, tossing pens that are dried up, and remove any other extra clutter. It’s so nice to start the year off with a desk that is clear of clutter!
More Things to Declutter in the New Year
If you’re looking for more things to declutter in the new year, check out this list of 75 things to throw away today!
And if you need more guidance when you declutter, the 30 Day Declutter can help you with that! Everyday for 30 days you will receive a task to declutter, along with a 15 minute motivational pep talk to listen to as you declutter. It’s like having a decluttering coach right there with you!
