10 Desk Ideas Perfect for Small Spaces

Whether you moved your work from an office to home or just need a place to web-surf, pay bills, or scan emails, you will be more productive with a well-designed office workspace. But what if you don’t have room for an actual home office? It won’t be a problem if you can find the perfect small desk.

To offer you inspiration, here are some great small space solutions, from floating furniture to standing risers.

Floating Window Desk

This window niche sure is pretty, but its angles created an odd nook that wasted space. Enter Pause Design, who turned this funky spot into a functional work area with a custom-built floating desk shaped to fit the space. Odd angled corners like this are awkward fits for most commercial furniture pieces, and a custom-built hanging desk like this one is the perfect solution. 

Midcentury-Modern Style

Low-slung, midcentury-modern furniture works in small spaces because pieces like these do not carry much visual heft. This vintage 1950s desk in a Paris ​apartment decorated by Marion Alberge is a terrific example. Its beautiful wood finish and compact design made it a chic fit for the small living room. A tall, vintage bookcase used to hold office supplies completes a perfectly functional home office space. 

Tiny Alcove Workstation

Making every inch count in a teensy dwelling can be tricky. In this trailer home, interior designer Megan Georgopoulos rises to the challenge by filling an empty alcove in the bedroom with a tiny built-in desk and a cork-board bulletin board. 

Lucite Desk

In small spaces, large pieces of solid furniture can be oppressive, so why not go invisible?  Consider getting a desk made of crystal clear Lucite. This one in a New York City studio apartment by interior designer Tara Benet seemingly disappears into thin air. A small pink file cabinet serves both as office storage and end table. 

Wrap-Around Counter

Instead of trying to squeeze a traditional desk into this tiny home office, the design team at CDK Architects installed a wrap-around, hanging wood counter. Doing so made more room for bookshelves and other storage solutions that were added later. The open floor space beneath a free-hanging desk or counter allows chairs to move around freely and provides places to tuck file cabinets and storage boxes. 

Floating Drawer

In this blue kitchen renovated by Sarah Barnard Design, a floating desk drawer with a quartz topper counter creates an office nook perfect for referencing online recipes or serving as a home message center. 

DIY Murphy Desk

The Murphy bed is the smart piece of small-space furniture that inspired this DIY folding desk by Apartment Therapy. With legs and work surface all attached to hinges, this wall-mounted desk folds up and fits flat against the wall when not needed. 

DIY Desk Riser

Medical experts agree that a standing desk is darn good for your health. This copper desk riser by Man Made DIY shares how you can turn any table in your home into a standing workstation. To get crafting you will need two essential tools: a copper pipe cutter and screwdriver. The pipes, fittings, and table surface are available at any home center.

Wire Frame Shelving

 A board added to an inexpensive wire frame shelving unit becomes a surprisingly stylish desk in this Swedish apartment seen on Alvhem Makleri. Wire shelving standards, brackets, and shelving can be purchased at any home goods store or home center. Anchor the backs of the shelving standards to the wall, attach some shelves and a desktop, and presto—a home office space. 

Repurposed Vintage Table

We love cheap, vintage pieces loaded with character. Here, an old wood table with a beautiful patina gets put to work as a desk in this apartment decorated by Merci-Ancsa Decor. A table of almost any size can work, from a simple living room end table to a long dining room side table.