The hardest part of decluttering always lies in the what. What exactly should you be decluttering? What really counts as clutter? We’ve all heard the phrase ‘one man’s trash is another man’s treasure’, so how do we know what’s our treasure?
Well, in my opinion, it’s all about what you use and when you use it. The words ‘use it or lose it’ come to mind whenever I’m advising friends or family on how best to declutter. So when I heard about the 5/7 decluttering method – a trick that works as you go about your day-to-day routine, asking very little time of you, but promises serious results – safe to say, it sounded right up my street.
I decided to put the week-long method to the test, seeing how it helped me kick off a long overdue spring cleaning session. Here’s how I got on.
What is the 5/7 decluttering method?
So, this method is done over the course of one week. And essentially it’s like a test, to see which items you actually use in your day-to-day life, and therefore which items are useful – and which are just wasting space.
The idea is you only keep items on visible surfaces, such as kitchen counters, bathroom vanities or desks, if you actually use them at least 5 out of the 7 days of the week. Anything used less frequently is stored away in cabinets, drawers or designated spaces to create a clearer, more functional, and easier-to-clean environment.
While it is intended to help you decide where to store different items, it can also highlight what items aren’t serving a purpose. When looking at the items that have sat unused in the last 7 days, you’ll be able to make a much more informed decision on whether something deserves to stay in your home at all or if it’s finally time to declutter.
How did the 5/7 decluttering method work for my clutter?
I trialled the method over a particularly busy work week – and honestly, it couldn’t have come at a better time. After one hell of a month, my bedroom had become the kind of space where every available surface was slowly disappearing under clutter. Clothes, unopened letters, beauty products and random bits and pieces had started piling up everywhere.
The only tricky part of the method was remembering how often I’d actually used something. You could use stickers or some kind of tracking system, but realistically, that felt far too fiddly. Instead, I found memory, honesty and a bit of common sense worked perfectly well.
Throughout the week, I kept asking myself the same question: have I genuinely used this five out of the last seven days? If the answer was no, it either needed to be stored away properly or decluttered altogether.
What surprised me most was how naturally the mindset slipped into my routine. I found myself noticing clutter hotspots I’d completely stopped seeing before. The hallway bookshelf, for example, was full of books and knick-knacks I never touched, so by the end of the week, I’d cleared most of it out – storing sentimental items away and donating the rest.
Another surprisingly satisfying win was our exposed ‘junk drawer’ – actually a Sports Direct mug full of random cables, batteries and receipts that permanently lives on the kitchen counter. None of us touched it once all week, which made it very clear none of it needed prime counter space.
The method also made me realise that leaving paperwork out on my desk ‘to remind myself’ to deal with it absolutely does not work. If anything, I’d just stopped noticing it completely.
What I liked most about the 5/7 method is that it doesn’t feel harsh or overwhelming. Instead, it quietly changes how you think about the items around you, making it much easier to spot what’s genuinely useful and what’s simply taking up space.
My verdict
Overall, I can absolutely see why the 5/7 decluttering method has become so popular. What I liked most is that it doesn’t demand a huge weekend clear-out or force you to make dramatic decisions on the spot. Instead, it works gradually in the background, helping you become more aware of what you genuinely use day-to-day – and what’s simply become part of the scenery.
It’s also incredibly realistic for busy people. Because you’re assessing items as you naturally move through your routine, it feels far less overwhelming than traditional decluttering methods. I found it especially useful for tackling surface clutter, which can quickly make a room feel chaotic even when there isn’t that much stuff.
That said, the method does rely quite heavily on honesty and memory. There’s no real structure for tracking usage unless you create one yourself, and it can be easy to justify keeping items “just in case”. It’s also probably less effective for sentimental belongings or seasonal items that you naturally won’t use every single week.
Still, if you struggle with clutter building up on counters, desks and shelves, I think the 5/7 method is a genuinely helpful and low-effort way to reset your space without feeling overwhelmed.
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