With so many people still working from home, home offices are still getting a lot of action. But what many don’t realize is that knowing how to hide wires can turn an ordinary home office into the workspace of your dreams. Yes, by organising the wires in your home office, you can kiss goodbye to declutter and experience the productivity boost of a lifetime.
From charging cables to wifi routers, it would be impossible to work without these electronics nearby. But before too long, you’re looking at an ugly, tangled mess of wires that take up way too much space on your desk. And while we know they’re an essential part of working from home, that doesn’t mean that these wires need to be on show.
So, we’re putting our foot down. Enough is enough, and we’re here to tell you that wires are OUT, and beautiful home office ideas are IN. All you need to do now is choose which one (or more) of these 16 wire organisation ideas you want to bring to life in your office.
How to hide wires
'We’re more connected to our devices than ever before,' says Simon Glanville, managing director at home storage retailer A Place for Everything. 'Hybrid working means that working from home is now increasingly commonplace. Most homes now have tech and the inevitable "cable spaghetti" that ensues in every room.'
You don't have to be a feng shui expert to know lots of visible wires aren’t conducive to a calm and productive workspace. Here are 16 solutions to stop things from getting out of control.
1. Hide them under a rug
If your desk is far away from your nearest plug socket, hiding your wires under a rug is a practical solution that will also add another decorative dimension to your home office.
This way, you can run the wires to your desk without tripping on them or having them on show. All you need to do is find a decorative rug that compliments the rest of your room and run the wires underneath. Choose a size that works with the size of the room and a colour scheme that promotes productivity, and you can create a zen space that is free from clutter.
Of course, if you do this, you might want to tape the wires to the back of the rug to keep them in place. It’s also a good idea to regularly lift up the rug and check on the wires to ensure they’re not damaged.
2. Build a fake wall behind the desk
If you don’t mind getting your hands dirty with a little DIY, you could also hide wires in your home office with a fake wall built behind the desk. What this wall looks like is up to you, but personally, we love the look of a pegboard - especially as this will give you more space to personalise your workspace with photographs, clocks, and shelves.
This doesn't need to be a full-size wall, though. You almost want to create a headboard for your desk, and something as small as 30cm tall would work wonders. When you have this fake wall, you can stash all of your wires behind it and shield them from view.
3. Attach wires to desk legs
Use small, transparent Command Strip hooks to attach wires to the legs of your table. Stick-on hooks will mean wires aren’t just floating around creating a tripping hazard.
4. Tuck them behind potted plants
There are so many amazing houseplants that can boost productivity, so why not use them to stay organised, too? One of the best ways for how to hide wires in your home office is to tuck them behind potted plants. Plus, they’ll look great on your desk.
Larger plants - both in height and width - work best when you’re trying to hide wires. And while trailing plants can also work for larger desks, the tendrils can often make a smaller desk seem more chaotic if you’re not careful. So, opt for something like a spider plant or a snake plant.
If you're a little heavy-handed when it comes to your plant watering schedule, though, you might want to opt for faux plants instead. We all know that water and electricity don’t mix, after all.
5. (Carefully) staple gun wires to the bottom of your desk
Proceed with caution here. For how to hide wires that are always in the same place, such as the wire on your desktop monitor, try stapling or taping them to the underside of your desk to make them less visible.
This heavy-duty staple gun will set you up for success as you manage the cables at your desk. Although it's incredibly easy to use, this staple gun also comes with a remover just in case you go awry. Plus, there are so many ways to use a staple gun both inside and outside the home. You'll definitely find a use for it.
6. Hide them behind art
If you don’t want to spend any money on tactics for how to hide wires, you’ll be happy to know that you can do so for free - while also adding an extra pop of personality and adding colour to your home office.
Adding art to any room allows you to showcase your style and complete your design aesthetic, but it turns out that you can also use this art to hide your wires, too. By placing frames against your desk and leaning them against the wall, you can place the wires behind them and shield them from view.
This is free to do if you already have the frames and the art handy.
7. Invest in a cable management tray
Sure, it won’t be the most exciting online order you make this year, but it WILL be one of the most practical and it should only cost around £20.
Consider buying a handy metal wire tray that you can screw to the bottom of your desk to keep wires off the floor. Position the tray towards the back of your desk so it doesn't get in the way of your knees.
Resting an extension cable inside your under-desk tray is a good solution if you have lots of devices that need plugging in. Tuck the excess of cables into the tray and bring the wires up towards you to keep things nice and neat. Browse desk cable management trays at Amazon.
This cable management tray is the perfect way to keep your messy cables in check. With handy clamps, you can attach this tray to your desk without having to drill or screw it into your furniture. It also includes 6 cable clips and 10 cable ties to ensure that your cables won't go astray.
8. Use cable organisers
You could also attach some cable organisers to your desk to hold them in place. Stick one on edge of your desk, or on your laptop stand, as shown above.
While they won’t exactly hide your wires, stick-on organisers, like these Surface Snaps, at Amazon, will secure them in place and stop them from falling on the floor the moment you unplug them.
9. Conceal with a wire box
One popular option offering instant gratification is a wire box. These are designed to stow away wires and blend in with the rest of your room.
They can either be placed on your desk or on the floor near a wall to disguise cables. 'Stashing your wires in a stylish box is the quickest and simplest way to neatly clear cable clutter while giving you access to your device peripherals and cables,' says Simon from A Place For Everything.
You could place an extension cable inside a cable box to make things more streamlined or simply use it for how to hide wires coming from your wifi box. We can personally recommend the wire boxes at Flying Tiger, which keep our wires under control, making it easier to hoover around the area.
Add a natural element to your cable management with this set of three cable management boxes. Featuring a white base and bamboo lids, they'll be the perfect addition to any home office. Simply place an extension lead inside the box, and feed the wires out through the side.
10. Cover with discreet trunking
This might sound a lot like DIY, but we assure you this is a peel-and-stick situation. If you want a subtle and effective way for how to hide wires without breaking the bank, Sophie Anthony from ElectricalDirect recommends trying its Micro and Mini Trunking.
She explains that you can install this plastic trunking around architraves to keep wires entirely out of view. ElectricalDirect's range of finishes, including white, wood-effect, and magnolia will ensure that even the trunking blends in flawlessly with your decor. Something to consider if you have trailing wires due to your plugs not being in the ideal position.
11. Seek home office furniture with built-in cable management
IKEA MICKE desk
Anyone with a more involved home office setup can make life easier for themselves by opting for a desk that has cable management incorporated within the design. The IKEA MICKE desk, for instance, has a hole for wires to go through as well as a wire tray at the back. Failing that, choose a desk with plenty of drawers to hide away cables and any other office supplies at the end of the day.
The IKEA MICKE desk is legendary. As well as offering a drawer for extra storage, this desk also comes complete with a cable outlet at the back, which allows you to tidy your messy cables and keep them in one place. Plus, there are 5 colour options to choose from.
12. Stow them away in a basket
Some of the best solutions for how to hide wires are the simplest, and we think a dedicated large wicker basket is a great way to go. It'll make it easier to be disciplined and to put away wires you're not actually using.
Plus, an aesthetically pleasing woven basket, available at La Redoute will bring texture and make your office a space you want to hang out in.
13. Shorten and streamline with cable ties
available at A Place For Everything
If you go for the basket option above, use some cable ties to stop different wires from getting tangled up into one big Christmas tree light-style mess.
'Grouping wires together with cable ties will avoid them becoming messy and tangled,' says Simon from A Place For Everything. 'You can even colour code your cable ties to keep them super organised and easily identifiable.'
Never be without cable ties with this 60 pack from Amazon. With an adjustable hook and loop mechanism, you can ensure that all of the wires in your home office and the rest of your home are organised correctly.
14. Position your desk closer to wall sockets
A simple tweak to the layout of your home office might make wires less visible. For example, try moving your desk so it's as close to your plug sockets as possible so there are no wires trailing across the floor.
You might find that by rearranging the furniture, your desk, filing cabinet or bookshelves help to conceal the wires without the need to buy any wire-concealing gadgets.
15. Reassess your home office storage
It could be that a lack of storage space for all your home office paraphernalia is making it near on impossible to keep things neat, whether it be wires or stationery.
Take a good look at your space, have a clear-out, and consider ways to create more storage space. If your home office is suddenly looking beautifully clutter-free, you'll be far motivated to keep wires tidy too.
16. Use cable sleeves
Cable sleeves will also help with how to hide wires and keep things organised, as you can zip up multiple wires up together. They also offer a level of protection to help the cables last longer.
When talking about how to hide wires, we're also talking about electrical appliances, so make sure you're using wires safely.
'Do be aware though that coiling extension leads and power cables can create a fire hazard as electrical current generates heat that can't disperse if cables are too tightly coiled,' says Simon from A Place For Everything.
Coiling wires too tightly can damage them, so when gently coiling them up just follow the how the wire loops up naturally.
This cable sleeve won't break the bank, but it will change the cable management game. At 10ft long it also has the ability to expand from 1/2 inch to 1 inch, meaning there's room for countless cables in the one sleeve. If you don't need such a lengthy sleeve, though, don't worry. You can just cut it down to size.
How do you hide wires nicely?
There are many organisation options for how to hide wires out there, but many of them aren’t attractive. If you want to hide your wires nicely, it’s best to choose something that completely hides them from view.
To do this, you could hide your wires in decorative baskets or inside your desk itself. Alternatively, use command hooks or cable sleeves to keep all of your wires out of the way.
How do you temporarily hide wires?
Whether you live in rented accommodation or don’t want to start any DIY projects, you can learn how to hide wires temporarily in so many different ways. From hiding the wires in furniture to buying specific wire organisers, it’s important to find an option that works for you and your space.
Of course, if you have a small desk without a drawer, opting for something like an under-desk wire organiser might work in your favour. And if you want to add a pop of personality or colour to your home office, you could hide your wires behind potted plants or leaning wall art.
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