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21 Cheap And Easy Ways To Make A Home Office Look Better!

You can ABSOLUTELY make your Home Office look GREAT on a budget! Here’s 21 CHEAP & EASY Ways to Make a Home Office Look Better!

21 Ways To Make Your Home Office Look Better

Do you have a home office that makes you cringe every time you see it? Are you afraid to let anyone see your messy workspace on Zoom?

Is your home office a dark and depressing space? Or, does it just feel boring and empty?

Image of a nicely decorated home office. In a post with 21 best ways to make a home office look better on a budget.
I just finished giving our home office a makeover. Now that our office is looking good, I thought I’d share 21 budget-friendly ways to make a home office look better.

Well, I have some great low cost and a few FREE ways to turn your home office into an inviting workspace that you’ll look forward to using.

And, you’ll be proud to show your updated office off on all those endless Zoom calls. Here’s 21 FANTASTIC ways to make a home office look better without spending much money.

Image of a beautiful home office with text that says "21 Easy & Cheap Ways To Make Your Home Office Look Better". For a post about home office decorating ideas.

21 Ways to Make a Home Office Look Better On A Budget

1. Rearrange Your Office Furniture

Just rearranging the furniture can completely improve the flow and feel of a home office. First, think about how you want your home office to function as a workspace.

Think about what view you want from your desk, the best wall for books and shelves, and where you’ll place anything you need to easily grab or use while you work (like a printer or files).

Once you have everything set up to be a great workspace, you can add in extra comfy seating or tables, if it makes sense.

DIY home office makeover with a large area rug and library style shelves and built-ins.
That blue velvet wingback chair was originally in my Living Room. But, I decided the office needed it more. So, I switched things in a few rooms up to give them all a fresh, new look.

2. Swap Furniture & Décor Between Rooms

To save money, you can always swap furniture and décor between rooms in your home. That’ll give your home office an updated feel without spending much money.

Just be sure to not pull any items from a room that you already LOVE. You don’t want to ruin the look of one room to improve another.

Before photo of an office chair before a makeover with new upholstery, paint, and roller wheels.
Check out this office chair makeover to get inspiration to change up your office chair.

3. Redo Your Office Furniture

You can also redo your office furniture, to add style and color. Paint your bookcases, shelves, furniture, and desk. Or, reupholster your office chair for a fresh new look.

Check out How to Paint Furniture for beginner tips to get a professional look. And, this post with 25 Easy Furniture Painting Tutorials For Beginners to get style and color ideas.

I also have a tutorial for a Beautiful DIY Office Chair Makeover. And this post on the 50 Best Fabric By The Yard Online On Amazon & Etsy to help you find great fabrics.

Home office with green built-in bookshelves and a brown faux leather office chair.
This brown, faux leather office chair adds so much style to this home office. If this chair was a boring, no-style, black office chair the whole room wouldn’t look quite as nice.

4. Buy A Comfy Office Chair That Looks Great

Another great way to make a office look better is to get a better looking desk chair. So many office chairs are black or gray and NOT AT ALL stylish.

But you can find great office chairs that are comfy AND look good! You can get the pretty, faux leather office chair we have for around $200.

Check out this list of 25 Comfortable and Attractive Home Office Chairs on a Budget for more options.

5. Declutter & Organize

I don’t know about you, but I honestly CANNOT work in a messy room. AND, a messy or cluttered office never looks good. Spend an afternoon going through all of your books, files, and piles.

Get rid of anything you don’t need anymore. And, pack away anything you don’t need to see often. Then hide those boxes and hardly used items out of sight.

Large, organized home office with green storage cabinets and shelves with white walls and trim. And, organized office shelves with nice decorations.
Removing some of the books and adding in some of our favorite décor was a big help in making this home office look good, finally. See those decorative boxes scattered on the shelves? They’re great for holding pictures and papers.

6. Hide Away Some Of Those Books

This may shock some of you book lovers. But, generally bookshelves look best when they are a mix of about half books, half décor and plants.

So, pack away your least attractive, least used, and least favorite books. I always find that less books always looks better than an overstuffed bookcase.

7. Mix Great Décor In With Your Books

And, after you remove some of those books, that’ll free up some space for colorful or interesting objects, collectibles, clocks, vases, pretty bookends, or plants.

I LOVE pretty faux plants for bookshelves. Then you don’t have to worry about watering them or cats trying to eat them. Velener faux plants on Amazon always look great.

Grey Blue Built In Entertainment Center in a Family Room.
I mixed décor, puzzles, and games with the books during last years family room makeover. You can see my Easy DIY Steps to Paint Built In Bookshelves And Cabinets in a previous posts.

8. Add Natural Light or Brighter Lighting

Sometimes the biggest design problem in a room is poor lighting. If a room feels dark and dreary, it can affect your mood. AND, bad lighting affects your overall impression of the room, in a bad way.

Brighter, natural light gives you more energy. That’ll help you get all of that work done. And, brighter lighting makes you feel happier and more positive, overall.

So, keep the blinds and curtains open during the day. Give those windows a good cleaning, inside and out, to let more light in.

Then add enough lighting to really brighten and energize your home office. I prefer daylight light bulbs, lately. Check out the 35 Best Milk Glass & Schoolhouse Lights for some of my favorite light fixtures.

Image of 3 examples on a list of 37 best Milk Glass Light Fixtures and Schoolhouse Lights.
Make sure your office has a nice daylight feel. It helps you get more work done. And, it’ll improve the whole look of the room.

9. Paint Your Office Walls

Of course, this is on the list. Painting the walls is always a cheap and easy update for any room in the house! A fresh coat of paint can absolutely make a home office look better.

I went with all white walls for our home office makeover. I think white or light walls make a room feel lighter, brighter, and more open.

BUT, go with whatever color you LOVE. You want your home office to be a space you look forward to working in.

DIY home office makeover with a large area rug and library style shelves and built-ins.

10. Add Some Color

Even though I like light or white walls, that doesn’t mean I don’t LOVE color. And, it’s easy to add pops of color with furniture or décor in light rooms.

I went with a beautiful color on the built-in bookshelves for our home office makeover. Then added more great color with the large area rug, curtains, plants, and shelf décor.

11. Paint Your Office Trim and Doors

If you really want to make your home office look good, don’t forget to paint the doors and trim too.

Doors and trim get dinged up, scuffed, and dented over time. So, give them a fresh coat of paint too. I promise, freshly painted trim always makes a room look better!

Home office with lots of natural daylight, big windows, and white walls.
That beautiful green color on the office storage and shelves really pops against that freshly painted ceiling, trim, and walls. And, check out that pretty wainscoting. DIY wainscoting is a great low-budget home office upgrade.

12. Add Some Classy Molding or Wainscoting

I am a HUGE FAN of classic crown molding, wainscoting, and trim in a home. You can install traditional chair rail and picture frame wainscoting in a room WITHOUT spending much money.

You can easily give your home office a beautiful new look, in a weekend, if you’re comfortable with a Miter Saw and brad Nailer.

RECOMMENDED: 10 Best Ways To Make Cabinets Look Like Built In Furniture

13. Go For A Great Feature Wall or Wallpaper

You can add great wallpaper, murals, or even painted feature walls in a home office without spending much money too.

Give yourself a beautiful mural background for Zoom calls. Or just a bit of style that makes your office space more inviting and enjoyable.

Check out the Tempaper Store or the Spoonflower Store on Amazon for tons of beautiful, affordable, removable wallpaper styles.

Low budget blue and white linen curtains in a home office remodel.
I LOVE the curtains and the pretty gold rod I found for this home office redo. They’re both absolutely beautiful. And, those curtains were just $50 per 108″ long panel. That’s such a GOOD deal.

14. Don’t Forget The Curtains & Pillows

If you want to make your home office look good, I highly recommend finding a way to add some fabric. Go for pretty curtains, pillows, and upholstery to give the room a cozy, styled feel.

Here’s the store that sells the beautiful curtains I used in our office. They use amazing fabric and they sell their curtains for a great price. And, here’s the gorgeous gold curtain rod we used.

15. Find A Great Second-Hand Desk

Search those local real-life or online resellers for a decent used desk. Give it a clean and a new coat of paint for a fresh new look that you’ll LOVE.

Home office with a large, traditional area rug on a faux wood tile floor, in front of built-ins.
You can see more of this beautiful tile flooring in Are Large Tiles Harder To Install that gorgeous rug is on my list of the 17 best area rugs on a budget. Rugs are a great way to add color and texture in a home office reno.

16. A Beautiful Rug Can Work Wonders

I LOVE area rugs, but I don’t love spending much money on them. Luckily, you can find large, beautiful area rugs on Amazon for around $150. That’s an amazing deal!

Check out this post with my picks for the 17 Best Area Rugs on a Budget. There are so many great options on that list.

17. Add Affordable Bookshelves or Shelves

Of course, any home office makeover wouldn’t be complete without bookshelves or at least some nice shelves to store some books and décor.

You can always head to Ikea to find budget-friendly bookshelves.

Or, check out this great, low price Set of 3 wall shelves for books. I think I’d group 6 or 9 of these together to turn one wall in my office into a book display wall.

Wall to Wall cabinets and bookshelves in a home office with tons of storage and great home office decorating ideas.
Our wall to wall, floor to ceiling built-ins are basically base cabinets for hidden storage with tons of shelving above. You can make an affordable version with plywood or IKEA cabinets.

Check out my steps to cover toe kick with baseboard in a previous post.

18. Clean or Restore the Flooring in your Home Office

If your office floor is looking grungy and old, you can give it a good cleaning without spending much money. Fresh, clean flooring always makes a room look better.

Rent or borrow a carpet cleaner, steam clean those tile floors, or give those wood floors a deep clean and polish.

Check out my steps to clean area rugs at home or this tutorial to make grout look new, if you need it.

19. Add Beautiful Wall Art or Photos

Don’t forget to hang some great wall art, mirrors, or pictures too. A few great pieces can really make a home office look better on a budget.

Print and hang your favorite vacation or family photos, pick up a beautiful mirror, or check Home Goods, Target, and Etsy for some fantastic, budget-friendly wall art.

If you need some design ideas, check out my picks for 55 Absolutely Beautiful Vintage Style Art Posters or this post on 7 Helpful Tips for Decorating a Large Wall.

Set of 3 vintage travel posters framed over a couch.
You can find affordable and pretty wall art like this on my list of 55 Absolutely Beautiful Vintage Style Art Posters for Your Walls.

20. Add Plants or Faux Plants

I already mentioned that I LOVE to add plants or faux plants onto bookcases and shelves. But, they look great on an office desk or in large pots on the floor too.

A little greenery can be a huge improvement when you’re trying to make a home office look good! Check out this great 6 foot fake Ficus, if you need faux plants around pets, like me.

21. Replace Dingy or Outdated Outlets and Light Switches

Here’s a small change that usually needs to be made in older homes, it’s changing the dingy or yellowing outlets and light switches. This small change can make a home office look better.

But, of course, it’s only a cheap fix if you are comfortable with basic DIY electrical work.

Before and after image of a home office makeover with 21cheap ideas to redo a home office.
Years ago this desk was out in the middle of the room, facing away from the window. Switching the layout gave us a great view of the bookshelves and out the window. And, we had tons of extra space for a little extra seating next to the window.

OK, guys, that’s it for my cheap home office makeover ideas. Good look with your office remodel!

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Feeling inspired? That’s it for 21 ways to make your home office look better on a budget! Let me know if you have questions.

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