Use the 12-12-12 Method to Finally Declutter Your Home

In my home growing up, “spring cleaning” was kind of a misnomer. We didn’t clean so much as we decluttered—my hometown even had a day every spring where people were invited to put all their junk on the curb and the city would remove it by the next day (of course, the true self-starters used this as an excuse to go around in big trucks at night scooping up anything of value).

Maybe it’s my upbringing talking, but I think spring decluttering is better than spring cleaning, because it sets you up to have a neater home all year. And decluttering isn’t even that hard if you have a good system to follow. The 12-12-12 method is a good system.

What is the 12-12-12 decluttering method? 

This idea comes from Joshua Becker of Becoming Minimalist. He has rounded up 14 achievable methods you can use to declutter, and 12-12-12 tops the list. It’s simple: Every day, you find 12 things to throw away, 12 things to donate, and 12 things to be put away where they actually go. 

Twelve is a good number to work with. It’s small enough to feel achievable, but big enough to present a bit of a challenge. The first five or so things you throw away will be easy: Find some trash and some broken stuff and toss it. But then keep going, being a little more judicious (or ambitious) so you can hit 12. 

Pre-determining how many items you want to get rid of helps you stay on task and gives you a more concrete goal, which is key if you tend to back off a cleaning project when you start feeling overwhelmed. If you surpass 12 in any category, good for you! But keeping that as the benchmark can give you a little push when you’re struggling.

How to use the 12-12-12 method at home

Here’s the thing: Becker’s explanation of this method is just three sentences and one of those sentences is simply, “That’s it.” There’s a lot of wiggle room for you to adapt it to your specific needs. 

I suggest going room by room, tackling a different room every day. I live in a studio apartment, so I don’t have “rooms” to take on, but I have “areas.” In my spring decluttering this year, I’ve chosen one a day, from my sitting area, to my eating area, to my kitchen, my bathroom, my bed loft, and, most dauntingly, my closets. Don’t overwhelm yourself by trying to do two rooms in a day—for bigger rooms (say, the garage) you can even break it down so you’re attacking the same one for two or three days or more. (In the spirit of transparency, I have been battling my closets for a week and a half.) It’s a good idea to take it slow rather than rush through, as that’s a surefire way to get rid of things you might regret later, or get fatigued and start holding onto things you should really part with.

Choosing what to throw or donate can present a challenge, so I recommend starting with two categories: One will be the 12 things you need to put back in their proper place, and the other will be the 24 things you want to get rid of in some way—whether by throwing them away or donating them. If you’re having a hard time parting with things early on, call in reinforcements: An objective person, like a friend, is more likely to harshly (but lovingly) talk you out of holding onto something useless.

I’ve used this method in various ways for a few weeks now, setting goals for how many items I want to get rid of every day. I’ve also added in a bonus category: Items to sell. If you want something gone immediately, throw out or donate it. But if you could stand to hold onto it a while and it has a little value, list it or designate it to a pile bound for the consignment shop. I sell a lot of bags and shoes on Poshmark, for instance, but only list things I know I’ll keep wearing in the time it takes for someone else to find and buy them. If I truly don’t see myself wearing it again (and the resale value is low), into the donation box it goes. 

If you aren’t sure if something is worth selling, google it with “used” or “resale” to see how much others are selling it for, and decide if that amount is worth keeping around until it sells. A lot of resale sites, like Poshmark and Vestiaire Collective, will even show you how long someone’s item has been listed, so you can get a sense of the demand for it. If someone else has had that item listed for six months and you don’t want to keep yours around for six months, it’s donation time.

Make the whole process easier by picking up a set of storage bins so you can do a sweep through each room or area, tentatively putting items into the “toss,” “donate,” “organize,” or “sell” box instead of dealing with everything one by one. Even two boxes—”get rid” and “keep”—will streamline things. As a bonus, you can use those bins for seasonal storage once you’re done with your big decluttering.