Van Organization Ideas: 7 Tips For Simplifying Small Living Spaces

I am asked all the time if my van is always so tidy and I’d have to say…yes. It’s not that I’m so clean. And I’m not a great organizer. But I have set up some really good low-maintenance systems that keep it this way even when I’m too tired or lazy to do it.

I found out a long time ago that if my space isn’t calm and clear, my mind isn’t going to be calm and clear, either. And when the space is especially tiny, that is especially important.

I also know that to keep things simple here, my strategy needs to be quick and simple, or I’m not going to do it. So here are three steps for van life organization: declutter, define, and design.

1. Declutter

You don’t have the space to manage any extra stuff in a small space. You need to see if the things around you are the things you use day to day. If not, the stuff needs to be stored away in an area where you know you can quickly access.

If it seems scary to declutter and organize your entire space, just pick one little area at a time, inventory what you have, and sort through things. 

2. Take inventory and sort 

For example, I recently went through a small storage box where I keep my toilet accessories. I emptied the box to take my inventory. You need to lay it all out, sort it all out, and see what you have.

The first thing I noticed is that there are things missing from the box that should be in there. That’s because I reorganized my van and put things in different places where it didn’t make much sense. So I’ll take those items and put them into the box.

So now everything that’s now placed in the box makes sense to be grouped together. 

3. Put things in their right spots

There was a catchall basket hanging in my van that people would clunk their heads on when they got up from the seat. So I decided to go through that and I found things that needed to go into my toilet supply box. I also found a windshield repair kit in the wrong place so I put it with my tools.

4. Do you love it?

If you are having trouble figuring out what you keep and what you don’t keep, simply ask yourself if you love it, do you leave it, or do you need to think about it?

If there’s something I really don’t love, I’m not going to keep it around. You can also ask yourself if you use the thing or not and how often? If your answer is “I don’t even remember that I had it,” you should just give it away or get rid of it.

I may have things for a whole year and haven’t used them once. Next time I am at a van meet-up, I’ll see if someone else can use it.

Ask anyone who has been on the road for a long time and they will tell you they have in their vehicle more stuff than they need and they are always getting rid of or exchanging stuff.

There are always places to get things along the way. There are tons of Walmarts around. There are exceptions to the rule. If you want to keep items to fix, maintain, or create things, keep them in a spot that is accessible but not in the way all the time. 

5. Define the drop zone

Now that you know what you have, go through everything and sort like with like and then categorize them or classify them to what you use them for or what it is. This is also classifying things. For example, I put games with games. If you have labels, you may want to label areas.

6. Design areas

Design the area specifically for what you have by creating drop zones and easy access points.

Here’s a tip: flat surfaces should remain open and empty because they tend to look cluttered even with a few things on them. Think bins, bags, and hooks–basically anything that will get things off surfaces.  

7. Easy access systems

If you don’t have a simple plan, you won’t maintain it. It should take one or two steps for you to access something. If it takes more, it will frustrate you and you won’t do it.

If I had a box stored in the back of my van, and I had to get out of my van, get the box, come back with it, open it up, and set it up, that’s too many steps.

The item has to be just as easy to put away as it is to get out, too. For example, I intentionally designed a spot for my stove. I slide open the cabinet, take out the stove, put it on the counter, and use it. Easy.

Van organization

I hope these van organization ideas were helpful to you. Once there’s a good system in place, you’ll find it gets easier to go through these steps until you get it down perfectly. Let me know if you have any van organizing ideas you can share.