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27 Clever Dorm Room Storage Ideas

dorm room storage ideas

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Dorm rooms are often small and cramped, and storage space can be at a premium. With so many textbooks, clothes, and personal items to store, it can feel like there’s never enough room.

As a college student, you know how challenging it can be to make the most of the limited space in your dorm room. But don’t worry, with a little creativity and smart storage solutions, you can turn your cramped dorm room into a comfortable and functional space.

In this article, we’ll explore some of the best dorm room storage ideas to help you make the most of your space. From under-bed storage solutions to wall-mounted shelves, we’ll show you how to make the most of every square inch of your dorm room.

Outline

Maximize Your Space: 27 Dorm Room Storage Ideas

1. Over the Bed Shelf

Prepac Astrid Twin Headboard, White

When you don’t have enough horizontal space, start making use of the vertical space. The area near the bed is usually left vacant but can come in handy if you install an over-the-bed shelf. It not only increases storage space in dorm rooms but also makes it convenient to reach out for things without getting out of bed.

You can keep your laptops, books, mobile, and many other necessary items on this shelf. These shelves are usually inexpensive but you can make one on your own if you’re on a really tight budget and have ample time to spare.

Buy it on Amazon.

2. Piece Drawer Organizer Set

5 Piece Bamboo Drawer Organizer Set, Luxury Wooden Desk Storage Box Kit, Multi-use Junk Drawer Organizer for Office, Kitchen, Bedroom, Children Room, Craft, Sewing

Books, pens, toys, diaries, chargers, mobiles…the list of important stuff you need to store carefully goes on and on. But with little space to bring in new furniture, you have to make use of whatever you have. The best thing to do is to replace your single utility furniture with multipurpose ones.

This five-piece drawer organizer is one excellent candidate. It can accommodate a lot of things without taking much space. Moreover, you can store your makeup items in one compartment, stationery in another, and so on. You can also share it with roommates conveniently.

Buy it on Amazon.

3. Metallic Food Station

CAXXA 3-Tier Rolling Metal Storage Organizer - Mobile Utility Cart with Caster Wheels, White

How cool is this wheeled three-tier food station? You can use it to serve hot snacks and tea for the evening and keep the coffee maker beside your bed. But that’s not it. This will be a good storage spot for your microwave and toaster too.

One thing you need to make sure of is that you have enough space in your dorm room to fit this. I would recommend replacing a side table or so with this cart, and the portability makes it a must-buy.

Buy it on Amazon.

4. Trunks Under the Bed

Seward Trunk Footlocker Trunk with Nickel Trim, Black, 30-Inch (SWD7130-10)

Trunks might seem like an old idea, but they can quickly bring an aesthetic vibe as well as increase your storage space in the dorm room. Metal trunks look vintage, but their utility is what stands out. You can use the box to store your winter wear like sweaters, sweatshirts, blankets, and more. 

These items are susceptible to mite attacks, but trunks would preserve them through hot weather. You can also keep the box on one side of the bed or take it out from under the bed to use it as a coffee table.

Buy it on Amazon.

5. Ottoman Storage for Comfort and Storage

B FSOBEIIALEO Storage Ottoman Cube, Velvet Tufted Folding Ottomans with Lid, Footstool Rest Padded Seat for Bedroom (Pink, Medium)

Ottomans are highly functional and provide excellent storage options for shoes and other daily-use accessories. They also double up as a stool or a place to rest your feet.

The white furry ottoman here looks adorable too. It’s a cost-effective investment for your dorm room and would fit in the most compact of the places.

Buy it on Amazon.

6. Storage Rack

Tangkula Wall Mount Bathroom Shelf with Towel Bars, Bamboo Storage Towel Shelf, for Bath & Household Items, for Bathroom Home Toilet, 23.5”L X 10”W X 8”H, Natural Bamboo

You can use this storage rack to keep your bathroom accessories or wardrobe accessories over any door. Door hangings are boring and don’t provide enough space to keep it all. Moreover, you can’t place items that can’t be hooked either.

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It doesn’t require much space and looks sleek. You can put some houseplants to make the place look aesthetically pleasing too.

Buy it on Amazon.

7. Fabric Bedside Storage

Zafit 6 Pockets Bedside Storage Organizer, Table cabinet Storage Organizer Bedside Organizer Caddy for Remotes Phone Glasses (Grey)

You might be surprised about how much this little addition to your bed can hold. From your favorite novels and magazines to snacks, AC remote, mobile phones, and more- this bedside storage can keep anything and everything. It’s an excellent solution to the issue of losing the AC and TV remotes all the time.

Moreover, it makes it easy to place your phones and tablets on charge in a safe place while you are falling asleep. All in all, it’ll be an excellent sleeping partner apart from giving you valuable storage space.

Buy it on Amazon.

8. Bedside Shelf Accessories Storage

Easy Eco Life Bedside Shelf Accessories Organizer- Wall Mount Self Stick On,Ideal for Glasses,Remote,Earphone, Cell Phone Charger,Manicure Kit

If the idea of fabric storage doesn’t seem appealing, consider adding this shelf to your bedside. It provides you ample space to store mobile phones, remotes, and also acts as a charging station.

It’s an adequate storage space for small valuable items like pen drives, earphones, chargers, cables, and more.

Buy it on Amazon.

9. Over the Fridge Rack

Suprima Extra Height Mini Shelf Supreme - White

You don’t need to sacrifice essential appliances due to lack of space if you know how to fit them. While the fridge is necessary, many of us can’t find room to put ovens, toasters, and other utility appliances.

An over-the-fridge rack solves multiple problems at once. For starters, you can get a three-tiered stand with height enough to hold appliances like the microwave along with your fruit baskets, toasters, bread, and more.

Buy it on Amazon.

10. Cloth Hanging Closet

MaidMAX 6 Tiers Cloth Hanging Shelf for Closet Organizer with 2 Widen Straps, Foldable, Beige, 51.5 Inches High

A dorm room is typically just big enough for a bed, almirah, and stand. There’s probably no storage space to store all your clothes. So having a dresser becomes a challenge. Getting this shelf can solve the problem as it offers an abundance of space while you have to turn it on a blank wall.

This way, you’ll be able to create a dresser around your hangers and keep the space on the floor free to accommodate shoes and stuff. You can also keep boxes of footwear and other accessories under this hanging closet. It also gets you a perfect space to keep your luggage.

Buy it on Amazon.

11. Plastic Storage Organizer Bath Caddy

mDesign Plastic Portable Storage Organizer Caddy Tote - Divided Basket Bin with Handle for Bathroom, Dorm Room - Holds Hand Soap, Body Wash, Shampoo, Conditioner, Lotion - Large - Light Pink/Blush

A bath caddy is a must-have essential to buy before leaving for college. You need to maintain hygiene in a small and typically shared space. Having a bath caddy of your own helps keep your shampoo, brushes, soaps, and more separate.

The caddy is also shatter-resistant, so you don’t have to worry about breaking it if you slip it through your hands. You’ll get six compartments in this one, enabling you to keep all your bath essentials separately.

Buy it on Amazon.

12. Leaning Mirror with Hooks

Roomfitters Full Length Mirror with Clothes Hooks and Racks, Entryway Floor Leaning Anywhere Mirror for Vanity Bedroom in Black

Leaning mirrors offer an alternative to heavy dressers. You can quickly apply makeup or comb your hair quickly in front of this slim and tall mirror. It also features various hooks to hang your bags, stoles, scarves, jackets, and more. 

It also has two bars for you to drape your clothes, bath towels, etc. The thin profile also settles in well with your overall decor and gives your dorm room a neat look.

Buy it on Amazon.

13. Foldable Cloth Storage Box

Simple Houseware Foldable Cloth Storage Box Closet Dresser Drawer Divider Organizer Basket Bins for Underwear Bras, Gray (Set of 6)

Yes, plastic storage boxes are cool and all, but they take up quite a bit of space. You won’t have room for folded clothes and mostly end up keeping them on the bed. Here is an exciting idea that you can fold any time and open up when you want to use it.

You can divide clothes among drawers. This is a six-piece set that can help you separate your socks from undergarments, tanks, and more. It’s easy to fold back and carry wherever you go too.

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Buy it on Amazon.

14. Use Extension Rod to Increase Dorm Storage

Simple Houseware Adjustable Closet Hanging Rod, Chrome

Storing clothes can be quite challenging when you have a small closet or dresser. College days mean you want to wear new clothes every other day. The best way to do it is by adding an extension rod that can transform your regular closet into a two-level one.

You only need to hang it and adjust the length accordingly. Now you have twice the space without adding anything expensive and space-consuming! Moreover, it’s easy to install and dismount too. It is suitable for most closet rods, although you can cross-check the size of your closet rod.

Buy it on Amazon.

15. Mini Fridge Drawer Stand

This modern piece of furniture is compact and multi-utility. It looks elegant and adds a dash of class to your dorm room decor too. But it’s not just about the looks—you can turn your mini-fridge into a snack station with ample space in its drawers. 

The stand comes with wheels, which can turn your fridge into a portable one, ideal for late-night parties too. The two drawers allow you to keep your cutlery, snacks, glasses, jars, and every other stuff you need for your parties. You can additionally keep a microwave, toaster, coffee maker, and things above it.

Buy it on Amazon.

16. Add a Headboard to Your Bed

Benzara Twin Size Hut Style Wooden Bookcase Headboard, Brown

Be it your books, laptop, or tablet; you would be struggling to keep them on the table while your eyes are heavy with sleep after studying on the bed. Having a storage shelf right above your head comes in handy at that time. That’s why we love to have headboards in college dorms.

Moreover, it adds a character to your bed and offers a vast amount of space. You can keep your blankets, quilts, and more in the drawers while it provides ample space to put alarm clocks, combs, mobile phones, books, and more efficiently.

Buy it on Amazon.

17. Desktop Organizer Storage Rack

Jerry & Maggie - Desktop Organizer Office Storage Rack Adjustable Wood Display Shelf - Free Style Double H Display - True Natural Stand Shelf - Black

Having a decluttered space goes a long way in helping you stay focused on your studies. That includes preventing your books and stuff from making a mess. Putting a space saver shelf to your dorm desk helps add additional space to organize books and keep stationery.

It’s easy to move since it’s very lightweight at 5lbs. It takes minutes to assemble this valuable storage space. You can also adjust the area between two edges depending upon the length of your dorm desk and your requirements.

Buy it on Amazon.

18. Use Magic Hangers 

STAR-FLY Magic Hangers, Space Saving Hangers Magical Clothing Hanger with Hook Stainless Steel Wonder Closet Organizer (10-Pack)

Magic hangers can help bring out space from seemingly useless areas like the closet walls, back of the doors, bathroom doors, and even plan walls. You can hang your clothes, towels, jackets, keys, and whatnot in these spaces.

Moreover, having these hangers can save you more than half of the closet storage space, which you and your roommate can share too. These hangers are quite strong and can keep the heaviest of jackets and sweaters here.

Buy it on Amazon.

19. Make a 4-Cube table

Modular furniture is all about elegance, sleekness, as well as utility. This 4-cube table is the best of both worlds. You can shape this one into a coffee table with space to keep your books and other college projects or assignments or in different ways depending upon your need.

You can also add more foldable storage cubes that help hide your belongings. Well, it really helps when you need to hide those beer bottles or cigarette packs as your warden or parents are going to enter in minutes.

20. Raise Bed’s Height to Increase storage Space

DormCo Suprima Ultimate Height Bed Risers - Carbon Steel - White

The space under the bed is like a mine, and you can dig further under it to eke out more margin. Well, not literally. Instead, you can use these risers to increase your bed’s height and, as a result, add valuable storage space to keep trunks, luggage, and even a mini-fridge.

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You can perhaps stash away anything inside, and it allows you some valuable hiding space without affecting the room’s setup. 

Buy it on Amazon.

21. Fix Your Laundry Storage Issues with 3-pack Dorm Room Organizer

Via Dormco

Clothes organization is a challenging task because of the constricted space in the closet. You can undoubtedly add more storage and increase the area for folded items with the 6 tier vertical storage.

The hanging shoe pockets can help you keep various items like food, socks, shoes, and more behind doors. Lastly, you are also getting a laundry bag that enables you to store your dirty clothes safely until the next laundry.

22. Back Chair Organizer

Struggling to find the right place to keep stationery? What about the site where you sit? Yes, you can store your stationery in this four-pocket desk organizer right behind your chair.

It’s easily accessible, keeps the place clutter-free, and ensures you don’t lose your stuff now and then. It also saves your desk space and is a must-have for college students.

Buy it on Amazon.

23. Compress Out of Season Clothes

Out-of-season clothes can take up too much space, especially the winter ones. If you are struggling to store your winter wear inside the bed, here is a quick fix. You can buy inexpensive luggage compression sheets, which reduce the space your clothes would consume in the drawer.

These sheets will also increase your dorm storage space and allow you to add more summer clothes like tops and shorts. You have to roll these bags with the clothes, and the air escapes. In this way, you can also increase the space in your luggage and suitcases.

Buy it on Amazon.

24. Use Mesh Shelves for bulky items

Via Dormco

It’s always challenging to store bulky items like heavy clothes, blankets, mattresses, shoes, and more on hardtop shelves. Similarly, fragile items are susceptible to drop in these spaces. Instead, you can buy these mesh shelves that can easily store your massive stuff toys, pillows, blankets, jackets, and more.

You will also get a hard top shelf on top that allows you to keep other boxes, showpieces, and more.

25. Add Magnetic Stickers to Stick Utilities

Large Magnetic Squares - 45 Self Adhesive Magnetic Squares (Each 1.2" x 1.2") - Peel & Stick Magnetic Sheets - Flexible Sticky Magnets - Tape is Alternative to Magnetic Stickers, Strip and Roll

If you cannot fit in a caddy for essentials like combs, scissors, and more, add the wall space in this unique way. Just put a set of magnetic stickers on various locations on your wall and stick these items quickly.

The stickers look minimal and make everything look organized, and they can hold up to 120-140 grams. It makes finding utility items more comfortable and quicker. 

Buy it on Amazon.

26. Behind the Door Storage

1Easylife 6-Tier Over the Door Pantry Organizer, Heavy-Duty Metal Pantry Door Organizer with 6 Baskets, Hanging Storage Door Organization Kitchen Spice Rack with Suction Cup & Super Glue (6x4.72"With)

It’s one thing to hang a few items behind your door and another to make a complete storage space there. But that’s what this behind-the-door storage allows you to do. You can place your stash items, cutlery, mugs, glasses, bathroom essentials, and whatnot here.

It just brings out space from nowhere and also allows you to hide stuff too. You can keep the valuable items that you are afraid you might break. These include fragile showpieces and other utility items here.

Buy it on Amazon.

27. Locker Ladder Hanging Organizer

Del Design | Hanging Locker Ladder Organizer For School, Work, Gym Storage 3 Shelves 9x5.5x38 Inches (Black)

The 12-inch shelf compartments can store all your essential project files, books, magazines, a dictionary, and more. It is a sleek organizer, and you can easily hang it vertically on walls to increase the storage space in your compact dorm room.

Moreover, it has side pockets that can carry smaller items like sunglasses, nail cutters, combs, etc. You can either hang it from hooks, shelves, or rods.

Buy it on Amazon.

We hope you like these dorm room storage solutions. By implementing these dorm room storage ideas, you can create a comfortable and functional space that will make your college experience more enjoyable.

Written by bros

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