Do you want to set up an office in your home but do not have a room for it? The living room can be split to create an organized and aesthetic workspace! Whether it is under the stairs, in a cupboard, a niche or behind the sofa, it is possible to set up an office area easily! Discover our 35 ideas for setting up an office in the living room.
1. Place the office under the attic in the living room
In order to make the most of the space in your attic living room, set up your office under the slope. Because, despite popular belief, the attic can be a real advantage. Its angles, shapes and architectural features make it a definite unique asset. Few pieces of furniture are enough to stage this space, so just place a narrow table as a desk and you’re good to go. All you need to do is take the measurements and have a good decorative eye. As if recessed under the wall, the desk literally blends into the living room decoration.
2. Opt for a retractable desk on the living room side
In this Scandinavian style living room , the desk could seem completely invisible as it takes up little space in the room. Conveniently placed in a corner but also in front of a window, this retractable desk literally blends into the decor. Open, it offers a work table of reasonable size. Closed, it saves space in this small living room but also hides the paperwork visible in the shelves of the neighboring cabinet. A more than clever office for those who do not want to have their office life in front of their eyes all weekend!
3. Separate the living room into two
Both practical and aesthetic, this desk has a dual function. The multiple boxes, which are also available on the rest of the living room furniture, create significant storage spaces, in addition to being a workplace out of sight. Here, the office acts as a partition and becomes a distinct separation between the relaxation area and the work area. To copy this idea, all you need to do is install a thin and relatively high piece of furniture against which you will set up your desk. A simple and effective tip for working and relaxing in the same place.
4. Integrate the desk into a piece of furniture in the living room
Today, most decoration brands offer bookcase furniture incorporating a desk module. Something to delight us, because this ultra ingenious layout hides a work space in the living room discreetly. Here, the desk becomes invisible and acts as a console or additional shelves, but when you slip an office chair inside, the module becomes a more than ideal workplace. Most? The files are stored among the books in the library, the illusion is definitely perfect!
5. Hang the desk from a living room wall
The wall secretary remains the best space-saving solution to create an office space in the living room. And for good reason, it does not take up space on the ground and knows how to be very small. Closed, it becomes almost invisible and acts as a console. When it is open, the folding door becomes a functional work surface, ideal for putting down your computer or just writing … The pluses? Once the door of the suspended office is closed, the whole mess is hidden! Finally, the lockers and drawers allow you to store and organize all office accessories. In other words: a more than perfect layout!
6. Set up your desk between two sideboards
In this arty and colorful living room, a desk on casters sits between two sideboards. Two pieces of furniture with completely different looks between which is installed this large and simple white work table which contrasts with a piece of furniture in blond wood and another in red steel. Yet this desk literally blends into this colorful decor. The office area does not at all break the atmosphere of this living room with a very creative look. On the contrary, it comes to perfect it and allows in particular the white walls to continue its collection of decorative frames. A very inspiring workspace.
7. Lean the desk against the back of the sofa
Here, the desk with its graphic and refined look leans against the sofa. Ideally placed, it invests an often forgotten space without being in the way. Indeed, although it sits in the center of the living room, the office area in no way encroaches on the space, on the contrary, it subtly looks like an extension of the back of the sofa. The good idea? Install long shelves under the desk to create additional storage. For more harmony, choose the bookcase or other furniture in the living room, in the same style as that of the office.
8. Use paint to visually stand out the office
In this ultra sleek white living room, the office space is delimited by the very pepy lemon yellow color. This visual demarcation, which runs from floor to wall, distinctly separates the office area from the rest of the room. Thus, if you have the necessary space, do not hesitate to install your desk in a corner well away from the sofa. Then, bet on the color of your choice! Your office will add a touch of color and will be an integral part of your living room without invading the living space. To visually separate the office from the living room, you can also install a rug under the workspace.
9. Place the desk under the window
In this loft- style living room, the industrial-style office is judiciously placed under the high window with a glass roof. A way of intelligently crisscrossing the space, of creating an office area in the heart of the living room by reserving space for it under the window, while not denoting the spirit of the place. Design office chair and steel shelf brilliantly accompany this teleworking corner where you can take relaxing breaks by simply taking a look outside …
10. Place the desk in a corner and separate it with a bookcase
In this large living room, the space devoted to office life is arranged in a corner of the room. Placed against a wall and with a wall storage passage, the desk coordinates its look with that of the large bookshelf which gently closes the corner reserved for the home office. A staircase shelf, a smart choice to separate the study space from the living space without dividing it up.
11. Make corners and recesses your allies to create an office
Do you have recesses in your living room/bedroom? It’s perfect ! Nothing better than this kind of place to set up an office with a custom-made tablet and shelves to store your office stuff. It’s cozy, it’s chic and you can even highlight it with a different color to clearly define the work area.
12. Hide the desk behind a sliding partition
There is a time for everything, when it’s time to work, you like being able to enjoy a real office at home with storage space. But, once you’re done with your chores, you don’t want to have a view of your files and computer as you sit quietly on the couch watching a series.
The trick is to hide the office with a sliding door or a removable partition . Like that, your living room or your bedroom, as soon as the computer is put away, quickly regain their real function!
13. Attach a folding desk to the wall: space saving guaranteed!
If you have a very occasional need for an office area at home, when you do the accounts on weekends for example or to consult your emails quickly, there is no need to devote a lot of space to it. The ideal solution is to mount a folding desk on the wall that you can open and close as you wish.
14. Use a corner of the TV cabinet to set up a desk
For a very small office area that does not lack storage or class, the idea is to sacrifice part of the TV cabinet/bookcase. You can either opt for a custom-made piece of furniture, or create a small niche yourself with a worktop. There you go, it’s done!
15. To avoid working facing the wall, opt for a glass roof!
An office in a living room does not necessarily mean a cramped and dark work area. On the contrary, let in the light with a canopy, you will be isolated just enough while benefiting from a great luminosity.
16. Play the contrast with a dark color
Who said dark colors are sad and oppressive? Here, the choice of a black paint, in opposition to a living room with light shades is quite judicious. The dark color tends to mislead the real dimensions of the desk and to make you forget it if you choose a neutral color, or on the contrary to highlight it if you opt for a peacock blue or a duck green.
17. A discreet corner desk
Here is an office that knows how to be forgotten! Neutral in color, it fits in a corner of a room and allows you to enjoy an occasional workspace.
18. Set up an office area in a closet
To set up an office area in the living room but also in the bedroom for example, one of the solutions is to install it in a closet! Perfectly invisible when it is closed, the primary function of the part is thus preserved. Depending on the possibilities and the style of the room, you can choose to fit out an office area in a built-in cupboard or adapt storage from supermarkets. Depending on the space available around the closet, you can opt for hinged, accordion, sliding doors or even a curtain. We think of installing light sources inside the closet to work comfortably!
19. Arrange an office area discreetly with a flap cabinet
To arrange an office area in the living room discreetly, a simple but effective idea is to use a secretary or flap cabinet. As with the principle of cupboards, the secretary offers the advantage of being able to hide all the clutter in the office in one gesture. The little extra? The secretary’s flip-top shelf system allows for shallow use. This solution is therefore ideal for mini spaces such as entrances for example or even corridors! You can opt for a piece of furniture on legs like this pretty secretary, or a wall unit for maximum discretion.
20. Integrate an office area in a library
To make an office area less present in a room, it can be integrated into another piece of furniture. In the living room, the trick is to make it disappear in the library! Economical and modular, rack shelves are a simple solution to implement. For design lovers, the essential thongs will make you happy! You can also set up an office area in a living room by surrounding it with storage modules as in the last photo.
21. Use the nooks and crannies of the room to create an office area
One of the tips for creating an office area in a living room is to use the volumes and features of the room. A nook, a niche, a space between a closet and the wall, a mezzanine or even a staircase, think of these often unexploited spaces to install your office!
22. Set up an office area with a wall shelf
The wall shelf frees up floor space and creates a light office area. If you can drill your walls, this minimal and economical solution will allow you to create an office area in a living room or bedroom without encroaching on the living space.
23. Opt for a 2-legged console desk
Still according to this principle of freeing up floor space, there is now “hybrid” furniture between the wall shelf and the 4-legged desk. If you are renting, these console units are easier to install than a shelf and also offer the advantage of low depth.
24. Choose an office that knows how to be discreet!
Last tip for setting up an office area in a living room, simply choose a suitable office! For example, I suggest you opt for the efficiency of transparency and choose a tempered glass desk. You will also find many office proposals for small spaces on the market. Whatever the style, we focus on clean and sober lines so as not to weigh down the space. I love the Volga model, compact and full of practical details!
25. With color
The colored wall section to separate the office from the rest of the living room.
26. Under the stairs
The office under the stairs which saves space in the living room.
27. In a corner
The desk in a corner of the living room that slips into the decor.
28. Invisible
The invisible office. When you’re done working, just close the closet doors and the desk disappears.
29. Vintage
The vintage secretary that we sublimate with the help of plants. It blends into the background!
30. A colorful office
The blue paint on the wall makes it possible to delimit the office space from the rest of the room. Thus, you benefit from your workplace, stand out from the living room.
31. An office in a partition
The partition, which separates the living room from the dining room. We take advantage of this to install a custom-made office.
32. A deconstructed office
The unstructured desk, which consists of shelves that cover the wall.
33. Scandinavian desk
The Scandinavian wooden desk, which decorates the living room wall.
34. The corner desk
The family corner wooden desk, reminiscent of the room’s parquet. For a warm atmosphere, hang a few children’s drawings above.
35. A desk on a pliable support
The desk on trestles or on removable support to be able to move it easily. We opt for a glass board for more discretion.
