Are your charging cables and cords a tangled mess? Steal these easy ideas for organizing your cord clutter!
I feel like every family could benefit from some cord organization these days. With all of the earbuds, phone chargers, lightning cables, and miscellaneous USB chargers floating around the house, I bet you have a bunch of cords just waiting to be organized.
Heck, I’m sure there are plenty of cords cluttering up your kitchen counter, nightstand drawer, desk, backpack, etc. that you don’t even know what they’re for anymore!
I recently tried out several simple solutions for corralling cord clutter and have some easy ideas to share with you today!
I started by rounding up all of the random cables from my desk drawers and figured out which electronic device they belonged to. And when I started looking at them all as a group, I quickly noticed I had several duplicates I didn’t need along with some old cables from devices I don’t even own anymore!
So do a quick lap around the house or your home office and round up all of the charging cables you can find. Then identify what each is for, toss any that are no longer needed, and use my ideas below to organize them!
Note: Today we’re just going to stick with organization ideas for all of those smaller USB cables and chargers for small electronics. I’ll share tips for minimizing and disguising other cord clutter like power cords from your TV, appliances, etc. another day!
Looking for more organizing ideas? Take a look at these blog posts:
- DIY Leather Cord Organizers
- The Pro’s Secret For Keeping Drawer Organizers From Sliding Around
- Organizing A Modern Home Office Nook
- 12 Ways To Label Clear Storage Bins
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Charging Cord Organization Ideas
Idea #1: Label Cords So You Know What Each Is For
The very first thing I did was identify each cord and add a label. I designed the labels using a template in the app for my label maker and printed out a label for each cord. Then I wrapped the label tightly around the cord so everything is now easy to identify. No more mystery cords taking up space!
This is the perfect opportunity to dust off your label maker if you own one (this is the one I have and love).
But if you don’t own a label maker, no worries! There are tons of inexpensive cable labels you can purchase and write on with a marker or Sharpie. Most of the sets come with different colors of labels which is an easy way to differentiate cords. Washi tape is another great way to label them.
Side note: Once you create a simple system for labeling your charging cords, the key is maintaining it! This means proactively adding labels to new cords in the future so they don’t become yet another mystery cord in your desk drawer.
Idea #2: Use Cable Ties To Keep Cords Tidy
Once you’ve identified and labeled each cord, the next step is to keep them wrapped up with some sort of cord organizer.
There are tons of cord organizers out there but one of my favorites is simple cable ties. With these, you simply wrap your cord up neatly and use a cable tie to hold it together. Most cable ties have magnetic or velcro ends to keep them secure. I really like these small magnetic cable organizers.
Here are a few options I recommend:
And if you’re on a budget, no worries! Here are some options that will cost you next to nothing:
- A Rubber Band
- A Binder Clip
- Twist Ties
Idea #3: Organize Cord Clutter With Cord Wraps
A cable wrap is essentially the same thing as a cable tie, just a bit of a different design usually. Cord wraps range in styles and sizes.
I find the larger ones can be very helpful for organizing bulky computer cords. I also made some smaller DIY leather cord wraps that I use to keep my ear buds from getting tangled up in my work bag.
Here are a few options you can look into for cord wraps:
And if you’re looking for a free option, try using toilet paper rolls!
Idea #4: Contain Longer Chargers With Retractable Cable Organizers
When I was looking for different cable management ideas, I came across these inexpensive rotating cable organizers. They’re a pretty cool solution for longer electronic cords like the long lightning cables I tend to have around the house for our phones and tablets. The great thing about these is that you can neatly contain a long charging cable inside the cord holder and when you need to use the charger, you simply pull out the length of cord you need.
When I ordered these, I honestly expected them to be junk because of how cheap they looked (and they were pretty cheap!). While they are just cheap plastic, they get the job done and I think they’re a great solution for my longer chargers.
Idea #5: Use Cable Clips To Keep Your Nightstand Chargers Neat
If your bedside table has a cord problem, cable clips are the best way to keep your cords tidy. You’ll plug your phone charger (and any other chargers you have) into a power strip or surge protector just like usual.
But instead of the cord being a jumbled mess on your nightstand or, more likely, constantly falling on the floor when you’re not using it a cable clip will keep things organized. These give you easy access to your chargers while still keeping things tidy.
Here are a few great options to consider:
Idea #6: Store lesser-used Cords In A Cord Storage Box
If you have a bunch of cords and cables for electronic devices that you use less frequently, a cord storage box might be the perfect solution for you.
I recently found this clear plastic cable box and it helped me corral the mess of wires I have for various devices. Cable boxes have dividers so you can keep lots of cables organized in one spot without them getting all tangled up.
I filled my cable storage box with some of the miscellaneous cords and computer cables I reach for less often. I don’t need these often, but when I do I’ll now know where to look for them.
And since they’re all nicely labeled now, it will be super easy to grab the one I need!
Some cable storage boxes and organizers:
Idea #7: Set Up A Charging Station
Another great idea for getting your cord situation under control is to set up a charging station or docking station. These can take on a variety of forms depending on what cords you want to organize. I had several types of cables cluttering my nightstand and was able to replace all of that cable clutter with one nice docking station (similar to this one)
There are so many of these out there so you’ll want to shop for one that has the charging ports you need, but mine can charge my iPhone, Apple Watch, and AirPods all in one place! And instead of needing a specific cord for each of those devices, I now have a single cord that powers the entire docking station. This was such a win for me!
You might also want to consider setting up a charging station in your office or kitchen so you have a convenient spot to charge lots of electronics.
Especially with kids, it can be nice to have a central place for all of the tablets and phones to live. Keeping all of them contained to one spot will help keep the cord clutter to a minimum and eliminate the need to go searching all over the house for a charge each time a tablet is low on battery.
There are many different ways you can create a charging station, but here are a few ideas to get your wheels turning:
- 3 In 1 Docking Station For Apple Devices
- Bamboo Multi-Device Charging Station
- Multi-Device USB Charging Station
- DIY Charging Station Inside A Nightstand Drawer
- DIY Easy Charging Station Basket
- DIY Wooden Charging Station
Idea #8: Conceal Messy Cords With A Cord Cover
My last tip is to contain messy cords with a cord cover, sometimes called cable sleeves. These come in a variety of sizes and types, but the main idea is that they can be used to cover up extension cords and power cords that run from an outlet to the back of your desk, entertainment center, tv stand, side table, etc.
I like this inexpensive cord cover kit because you can easily cut it to the length you need, shove your cords inside the hollow channel, and then it has adhesive on the back to stick to the wall. Then paint it the same color as the wall and say goodbye to that eyesore of cords!
With all of the electronics in our homes these days, it’s no wonder we all have cable clutter everywhere! I hope these tips gave you a few simple ideas to conquer some of the cord chaos in your house. Even just implementing one new cord organizer idea with a few specific cords can make a big difference. Happy organizing!
Looking for more organizing ideas? Take a look at these blog posts:
- DIY Leather Cord Organizers
- The Pro’s Secret For Keeping Drawer Organizers From Sliding Around
- Organizing A Modern Home Office Nook
- 12 Ways To Label Clear Storage Bins
Have a fantastic day!
