Get your broom and mop storage situation under control! Whether you have a small space or a proper storage area, these broom closet organization ideas are simple to implement and easy to maintain.
When you come home from a busy day of work and toting kids around, sweeping the kitchen floor probably isn’t on your list of things you’d love to do.
But, it’s definitely on the list of things that must be done.
Doing chores sucks even more if it takes you ten minutes to find the right cleaning product for the job and the broom whacks you on the head when you open your broom closet.
But with some smart home organization, you’ll be able to whip your broom closet into shape so you won’t waste time searching for what you need.
Plus, you’ll have a place that makes you happy (well, less sad about cleaning) whenever you open the door.
During a large home renovation project, I realized we had the opportunity to take a really weird hall closet in the center of our home and transform it into a broom closet.
It’s conveniently located in a hallway near our kitchen and half-bath, with two double doors that offer loads of storage space with easy access to all the cleaning tools we use most.
Despite the closet’s size, it wasn’t organized as well as it could be. So one weekend during Christmas break I spent a few hours decluttering, shopping, and installing to really make the most of this space.
Today you’ll learn all the broom closet organization ideas that I used to make this closet super functional – and fun to look at!
What’s a broom closet, anyway?
That may seem like a silly question, but after asking other moms in one of my Facebook communities where they put brooms, mops, cleaning supplies, and vacuum cleaners, the responses were quite varied.
Based on my informal survey, it seems that there are different terms to describe the same place in our homes:
- Broom closet
- Utility closet or utility room
- Cleaning closet
- Pantry
- Linen Closet
Broom closet won the majority vote, but the common thread among all the terms is that this workhorse of a closet is for far more than just brooms!
But what if I don’t have a dedicated broom closet?
I’m writing this post with the assumption that whatever you may call it, you already have a home for your brooms, mops, Swiffers, cleaning supplies, and other odds and ends. If you don’t already have one, you can still get sensible tips here for leveraging space in your coat closet or laundry room.
If you have a tall kitchen cabinet, you can put a broom or mop holder on the inside of the cabinet door and slide a cleaning caddy or some plastic bins for smaller items on a shelf in the cabinet. It’s really about making the most of the real estate that you have in your home.
How to Organize Your Broom Closet: 5 Smart Ideas to Make the Most of Your Space
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1. Decide What Belongs in Your Broom Closet
There’s a solid chance that your broom closet has turned into the Room of Requirement (shout-out to all my Harry Potter peeps!) and houses random stuff. Until I embarked on the project to organize our broom closet, there was an indoor putting green rolled up in one corner.
I know, right?
A putting green obviously doesn’t belong in a broom closet, but here are things that do:
- Brooms (duh)
- Mops
- Swiffer sweepers
- Handbrooms
- Dustpans
- Vacuum cleaner or electric sweeper
- Cleaning rags and towels
- Household cleaning supplies
- Extra toilet paper, tissues, and paper towels
Make room for all of the above supplies at the very least, but if you have space, consider including:
- Garbage bags
- Plastic grocery bags
- Reusable grocery bags
- Stepstool
- Light bulbs
- Batteries
- Lint roller
- Spray bottles
- Small emergency kit
2. Declutter Like Crazy
Whether you have a large space or a small broom closet, now that you’ve decided what belongs, it’s a good idea to declutter and remove everything thatdoesn’tbelong. You know, things like putting greens.
Take everything out of the closet, and start grouping like items together on the floor or your dining room table. Put anything that’s not on your list in a more sensible spot in your home.
Then, go around your house and start collecting items that are included in your list of stuff that belongs in the broom closet.
Take a look at all your cleaning products and decide if you need all of them or if some can be thrown away.
Note: Whenever possible, I prefer to store kitchen cleaning supplies under the kitchen sink, and bathroom cleaners either in or near the bathroom to avoid extra steps (sorry, FitBit folks).
3. Shop for Broom Closet Organizers
Now that you’ve decluttered the broom closet and grouped like items together, you can now see how much stuff you have and how many groups of items you have.
You should also be able to see how much wall space is available in the closet.
Do you already have adjustable shelving installed? If so, you’re in great shape. If not, a free-standing shelving system like ours that you can secure to the wall is a great option. We just used the shelving and didn’t install the closet rods.
Measure your shelves, and then search your house for free organizers like bins, baskets, and shoeboxes that will fit. Rummage around your junk drawer for extra hooks you could use.
Here are some ways I shopped our home before heading to the store:
- Plastic shoe box for batteries
- Command hooks from our “junk drawer” to hang flyswatters, yardsticks, and aprons
- A small trash can on the floor of the closet for plastic bags we need to recycle
- File box attached to the wall for paper bags
- Cute coat hook leftover from a decorating project to hold the stepstool
- Clear pocket hanging organizer I no longer needed in our guest room
Next, head to the store to buy additional storage items for your broom closet. Here are several items that I bought (or that you see in the closet) that will help keep it organized:
4. Use Every Square Inch to Maximize Storage
Our broom closet has very odd, narrow nooks that made it impossible to put shelves on the lefthand side. So, I stuck a few Command hooks on the walls in that corner to hold my apron, yardstick, pole for retrieving dog toys from under the sofa, grocery bag holder, and fly swatters.
Now, that previously unused and awkward nook has a clear purpose.
In addition to mounting a bin on the wall for paper bags, we installed a pretty coat hook to hold the stepstool that always tipped over every time I opened the closet door.
Then, we added an adhesive-backed broom holder to the side of the shelving unit. The brooms, dustpans, and Swiffer sweepers are out of the way but easy to reach.
5. Make It Super Simple to See What You Have
When organizing your broom closet, focus on making everything visible and accessible. That way you can easily see when you need to replenish your stock of cleaning supplies, and your family can find the right tool to clean up a messy job.
Start with a clear pocket shoe organizer on the door to hold household cleaners, sponges, and more. Any bottles that won’t fit can be grouped together in baskets on the shelves.
Don’t forget labels! I designed our colorful labels and printed some on sticker paper (like the one below) and others on cardstock to insert in metal label holders.
Broom Closet Organization Ideas That Save Time
The ultimate goal of any organizing project is to make your life simpler and save time. You won’t struggle to find the cleaning spray to remove the grape juice stain from your new sofa or scream in pain when a heavy stepstool falls on your toes.
Best of all, your family will have zero excuses for not helping out because they “can’t find” something.
I’m curious – what do you call your spot for brooms and cleaners? Is it a broom closet, utility closet, cleaning closet, or something else? Drop me a note in the comments section below.
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I love shopping at The Container Store and Amazon for storage and organization products. Just click on an image to go right to the product page and purchase it for yourself!
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