Working from home has its benefits. Probably not health benefits, but who’s counting? The important thing is: you didn’t have to commute or even shower. Every morning, you wake up, you (sometimes) get out of bed, and you’re at work. Wow. Living the dream. Still, you might be wishing your home office were as luxurious as a real office downtown.
Whether you need to be better at time management or find the right back pillow so you can sit at your desk all day before sitting on your couch all night, we’ve got you covered. Everything on this list is under $50, and while we can’t promise they will make your workday tolerable, we can promise that it will be fun to imagine what your work-from-home life could be with a few little tweaks.
Popular Items from this list:
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- A pillow for that fine butt. See in list
- A storm cloud for your desk to cope with the stormy weather of the mind. See in list
- Iced coffee maker so you can stay awake and shop more. See in list
Disclaimer:
Yes. It’s true. We collect a portion of the sales and other compensation from the links below, but we also use that money to continue employing editors who work from home and need these products for themselves. We painstakingly combed through items that we either have in our home office or aspire to own one day. Please, think of the person writing this post from bed when you read this post. Don’t they deserve a nice foam arm wrest so they can continue looking for more products for you?
Here are some items under $50 that will make your work-from-home situation suck a little less:
1. This fun TimeCube Timer will force you to work a full 5 minutes at a stretch before checking Twitter again:
The Fourth Dimension is Time, and what better way to stop wasting that time than with a cute 3-dimensional cube? Pick a time limit. Flip the cube over. Start working, meditating, or worse. You choose.
Promising review: I love this thing!!!!!!!! Sooooooooo simple and perfect to use. I’m a writer, which not only means I’m sitting on my a** all day, but also that I get totally lost in my head and completely lose track of time while at the computer. I primarily use the 30 min timer as a reminder to get out of my chair and move for a few minutes so my body doesn’t completely atrophy and turn into a pile of primordial goo.
Get one on Amazon for $14
2. This 6-outlet surge protector will allow you to charge your business phone, personal phone, and burner phone all at once:
Never ask a roommate or significant other “is there an outlet nearby?” ever again. Whatever it is… there’s a hole for it. Sorry, that sounded weird, but you get it. Plug it in. Plug it all in.
Promising Review: Excellent design that solved my long-term issue! For a long time we have been using an outlet extender strip, which has a thick long line laying on the floor. Even with the multiple outlets the extender provided, we sometimes still need to unplug and re-plug some chargers because they have big head that occupies multiple outlet spaces. Surprisingly, this relatively small device provides large space on the side which can easily fit chargers. Thumbs up!
Get it on Amazon for $19.97
3. Force your printer to be at eye-level when you scream at it using this printer stand:
If my printer tells me it’s not connected to my computer one more time, I’m going to give it a stern talking to. Thankfully, this stand makes it easier to see the error messages without bending over.
Promising Review: I have two printers that I use regularly for different purposes. For years my laser jet has been on my home desk and my inkjet all-in-one has been on an ugly old rolling cart. I wondered if there was something i could do to stack them both…and I found this!
Get it on Amazon for $35.98
4. Remember what it was like to go outside with this storm cloud that reacts to barometric pressure:
It’s important to remember that there is an outside world beyond your computer screen. This beautiful desk ornament reacts to the weather and changes patterns with it. How nice. I remember the weather. Yes.
Promising Review: Perfect birthday gift for my dad, a chemist who loves all things science! He immediately began researching the phenomenon and tracking the weather.
Get it from Uncommon Goods for $25
5. Stop telling your kids to shut up and listen to this white noise machine:
Whether you’re trying to focus or trying to nap during the day, a white noise machine can help. It’s like listening to classical music during the day but less pretentious. I have this one and use it every night and afternoon and sometimes morning to go to sleep.
Promising Review: This device saved. My. Life. Well, not literally, but it definitely saved my sanity. I’m a highly anxious person who is extremely noise sensitive and vulnerable to sensory overload. I would honestly pay double for this if I knew how much it would improve my quality of life. Please buy this. Please. Support this awesome product.
Get it on Amazon for $32.17
6. Stop wasting all that paper and start wasting more coal with the Rocketbook Smart Reusable Notebook:
Why are you leaving a paper trail in your journal? Tell your secrets to this reusable smart journal, scan them into an app, and put them on the internet where they’ll be safe and secure.
Promising Review: This product amazed me and exceeded my expectations. The Rocketbook app is so simple and easy to use. The scanning is perfect, it captures the colors, exposes the page with the right lighting, and crops and adjusts the page properly. Each scan takes less than a second.
Get it on Amazon for $26.34
7. This wall-mounted table from IKEA will turn any room into an office so that you can work all day every day:
I live in NYC and am always trying to get my 100-square-foot studio to feel bigger. Adding a table that folds next to my murphy bed might do the trick.
Promising Review: I love this little desk!! I bought it for my apt so my son can do his homework without having a full-size desk taking up valuable space in his room. Now I’ve bought a second one for my room!!!
Get it from IKEA for $39.00
8. Hold your phone all day and all night with a PopSocket:
I keeping holding my phone with two hands like a rube! What I need is something that can prop up the phone and make it easier to hold. If only my phone could hold me back. Sigh.
Promising Review: This thing is great! I have small hands, and this allows me to use my phone with one hand, which is difficult otherwise. Props up nicely to use my phone for videos or baby monitor.
Get it on Amazon for $14.99
9. A Papillon back massager will make you feel like you work in one of those cool offices that has a masseuse on the payroll:
I have one of these and it took a lot of weight off my dog’s shoulders who I kept trying to train to walk on my back. This gets the knots out more efficiently.
Promising Review: A lot of pleasant sensations and clear benefits. My job is connected with the whole day sitting at the computer, in the evening the shoulders become stone, and my neck hurts and turns poorly. Therefore, first of all, after purchasing the unit, I tried to massage the neck and shoulders. Simply divine.
Get it on Amazon for $25.49
10. There’s no water cooler in your home office, but you can put anything in this vacuum-sealed bottle that keeps… beverages… cool:
I’m thirsty all day. I crave… drinks. Drinks from a bottle. I’m not trying to encourage you to do anything wrong here, but come on. If there’s no meeting today, it’s time for an ice-cold… coffee?
Promising Review: Love this! Not only does it keep your beverage cool. It holds a bottle, and converts into a can holder too. It also comes with a plate insert to raise your drink if it’s too short, which happens a Iot. Major plus.
Get it on Amazon for $29.99
11. Sit at your desk for an unimaginably long time with this lumbar pillow:
LeBron James pays someone a million dollars a year to make sure his lower back doesn’t give out before his time in the NBA is up. The rest of us can only spend a little bit of money. Thank you pillows.
Promising Review: Back support pillow worked great. I recently took a long road trip using this pillow and it supported my back perfectly. After driving for more than 2 hours I had no back pain.
Get it on Amazon for $19.99
12. Forget your desk altogether and work on this foam lap desk inside a dark closet or in your bed, depending on how your day’s going:
This is a very important investment for anyone with genitals. The heat from the bottom of the laptop is not good for you. You need a buffer between you and your crotch. That’s where this wonder comes in.
Promising Review: The absolute best investment I’ve made for doing my school work. Perfect size, comfortable wrist pad, and it’s not heavy. It fits my 13″ MacBook Air & a mousepad with ease. The back slot can hold my iPhone as well.
Get it on Amazon for $37.24
13. Complete your Milton from ‘Office Space’ costume with the original red Swingline stapler:
I’ve shown up to multiple meetings in my life with a stack of papers that need to be stapled, but I can never find a stapler in my home. I know I had one at some point, but it was probably a cheap knockoff of this gem.
Promising Review: Love this stapler. It’s well built, heavy, feels good in your hand, and the classic red is a must have for any cubicle employee. I get compliments on it regularly, usually followed by a brief Office Space quote exchange. 5-stars.
Get it on Amazon for $13.99
14. Actually finish what’s on your to-do list by writing it on this glass desktop whiteboard that will stare you down all day:
I make to-do lists on my computer and phone all day. The problem is: those devices do other stuff. Stuff that distracts me. I’m talking about photos of dogs. This whiteboard can hold lots of information, and zero GIFs of puppies. Stay focused.
Promising Review: I have terrible ADHD and would always misplace To Do lists, or misplace clipboards with reminders on them. THANK YOU! I just wish ya had invented it 20 years ago!
Get it on Amazon for $21.06
15. Work as far away from a room with a TV by adding this WiFi extender to your life:
I have one of these so that I can work in a room that’s not right next to my router. In the old days, my only option was to swear a lot and call my internet service provider. Now, I can swear at this thing. JK. It works great!
Promising Review: Easy to setup and works great! Have a total of 2 of these WiFi extenders in my house and they really do work! Setup up time is 5 minutes and your good to go. Just make sure to put them in the opposite end of your home for it to work well and get the best coverage. I have strong WiFi throughout my house.
Get it on Amazon for $44.99
16. Get a flat-folding portable standing desk so that you can stand up for something other than to see what’s in your fridge:
I used to have a standing desk that had to be cranked. It was like living in the olden times before power windows in cars. This is a much simpler solution, especially considering how expensive a big standing desk can be.
Promising Review: ‘Too simple to work,’ I was thinking as I ordered this. Guess what? It IS simple… and solid, portable and amazingly useful. It’s perfect. It’s also an attention grabber. Everywhere I go people ask me about it.
Get it on Amazon for $27.95
17. Treat yourself like an adult for once and get an ergonomic office chair:
My life immediately got better when I stopped working from a bean bag chair and sat at my desk like a real person. I still don’t put on pants, but come on. I’m at home.
Promising Review: What can I say? These chairs are great. Being forced to work from home to prevent the spread of the coronavirus, my fiance and I scrambled to find solutions that would quickly help us setup a home office so we could work more efficiently. Supportive and comfortable. For this price, don’t hesitate, just buy one!
Get it on Amazon for $37.99
18. This cell phone stand will make you feel the magic you felt the day you bought the phone from Best Buy. Rekindle the love:
Sometimes you want to look at your phone but don’t want to go through the whole rigamarole of actually picking it up and looking at it. I shouldn’t have to touch my phone to see why it’s buzzing! Turn it into another computer screen, displayed like the day you bought it with this unit.
Promising Review: I purchased one of these in the brushed aluminum finish (as well as a larger one for a tablet) and both have been great. My husband was admiring them, and wanted one for his phone so I got him this cell phone stand in black. He likes how it looks, he likes how it works, and uses it at his office to facilitate calls on speaker phone.
Get it on Amazon for $9.99
19. If you keep forgetting that you poured some coffee for yourself, and then have to drink it cold, try this Mr. Coffee mug warmer:
Did this make an appearance on the most recent season of Curb Your Enthusiasm? Yes. Does that make it a bad idea? No. I think it’s pretty pretty pretty pretty good.
Promising Review: It’s going on a little over a year since I got this coffee warmer & I felt I needed to let everyone know that this is the best coffee warmer I’ve gotten. I work 7 am to 5 pm and it is on the entire time, 5 to 6 days a week. It keeps my tea at just the right temperature. Not scalding or room temperature like other warmers I’ve purchased.
Get it on Amazon for $10.99
20. Get cable clips for organizing your cables before they turn into a Gordian Knot:
Recently, I went into my parents’ basement (no, I don’t live there, thank you) and came across a pile of cords that they almost threw out. untangling them seemed like an impossible task. If only we had kept them separate with these clips in the first place! I’m still untangling the cord knot. The Cordian Knot. LOL.
Promising review: So far these are amazing and I highly recommend them to anyone for small (USB thickness) cable management! The fact that you get so many sizes in one package to meet all of your cable needs is fantastic.
Get them on Amazon for $5.99
21. Maybe if your weekly planner looked as nice as this one, you’d actually get some stuff done? No promises:
I enjoy pretty things. This one is nice enough I almost feel bad writing “call doctor about colonoscopy” on there, but I gotta get it done.
Promising Review: I love this notebook, the design is so cute! Super fast shipping too. Thank you so much for creating this, I can’t wait to give it to my friends!!
Get it on Etsy for $18.00
22. If you want to convince your coworkers that you don’t work in complete darkness, try this ring light:
I make a lot of videos for the internet and I sit through many Zoom meetings for work. A ring light is perfect for looking like I live in a home that hasn’t been condemned. I also have a SAD lamp, but that’s for the SAD feelings. Still, the ring light brightens my day!
Promising Review: This is like Christmas morning opening something you really wanted and finally treated yourself to it. I am happy to have this ring light.
Get it on Amazon for $35.99
23. Your elbows deserve the same treatment as the rest of your tight bod. Try out these foam elbow pads for your desk chair:
I have tennis elbow from… tennis? Yeah, that’s it. Too much tennis. Thankfully, I found this solution!
Promising Review: I’ve gone through a LOT of armrest cushions in my life, both as a home-office nerd and a gamer, and at a glance this one is a clear winner. For one thing, it DOESN’T have those ugly, scratchy and obtrusive Velcro straps found on almost every other armrest cushion. Nope, it’s just a nice, tight, elastic fit
Get it on Amazon for $17.99
24. Get a gel-enhanced seat cushion to match the nice toilet paper you buy yourself. Your butt deserves it:
I am wary of my butt. If it has a bad day, then I have a bad day as well. Thankfully, I can buy some extra padding. Now, all I have to do is fix my terrible diet.
Promising Review: I HIGHLY recommend this seat cushion. I am a receptionist and sit pretty much all day long. I’ve had back and neck issues from a car accident, and sitting just aggravates things more. Two of my co-workers have also purchased this seat cushion as a result of my success, and they love theirs too!
Get it on Amazon for $32.95
25. You feet deserve some love from you and not just your subscribers on OnlyFans. Get this footrest for under your desk:
Now that you’ve covered your elbows and your back, it’s time to show your feet some love!
Promising Review: This thing is great! I’ve been working from home for a couple months and I usually sit like a troll at my desk so I got this to see if it would help me sit upright and it’s great!
Get it from Amazon for $18.69
26. Forget the compressed air and get this electronics cleaning brush to clean the dirtiest most-used items in your life:
If you’re like me, I’m sorry. That sounds awful. I wish it on no one. But if you really are like me, you rarely clean your most-used products! Change that today.
Promising reviews: This item is super cheap and if totally anal about keeping your devices immaculate, this is awesome. I spent a full hour using the silicone tip to dig around all of the keys, brushed that out with the super-soft brush.
Get it on Amazon for $6.99
27. If you need a cup of coffee just to get to the end of this list, try the Takeya Patented Deluxe Cold Brew Coffee Maker:
I’ve had this item for a few years and it’s amazing. I’m very particular about my coffee. If it doesn’t give me a panic attack after a few sips, it ain’t doing its job. This is nice because you can choose how much you put in the filter. It’s also the laziest way to make coffee besides a Keurig. Put it in your fridge, coffee for days.
Promising Review: Easy to clean and use, coffee tastes great, not going back to buying pre-made!
Get it on Amazon for $21.05
28. Add a hidden drawer to your desk and clean your workspace up, even if you can’t afford a desk with drawers:
As I write this, I’m looking at a bowl of pens that I wish I could unsee. Luckily, this hidden drawer exists just for me!
Promising Review: I love this stupid drawer. I would like to get a bunch to line the entire top part of my bookshelf with them, however, that’s just a bit expensive. I spent a long time debating on where to put in it. I just really like this concept.
Get it on Amazon for $10.95
29. This bendy light is flexible even if you’re not anymore:
Not to brag, but I read a lot. I do! Jeez. I am always looking for a good light source, and now I can adjust my lamp any which way I want, so I can finish the novel I’m reading instead of answering emails.
Promising Review: I received my Lamp today and am very pleased with it! It’s the perfect size for my office and is exactly what I needed. It was inexpensive, shipped fast, and works great with 3 different levels of brightness. I’m really stoked that I can charge my iPhone through it as well.
Get it on Amazon for $17.39
30. This mobile laptop desk cart will make it easier to switch from work to eating your microwave dinner in front of your TV at night:
I do all work and eating in front of a screen. Well, now I can do both and easily scoot my desk away from me when I’m sick of working. It also doubles as a dining room table!
Promising Review: Table works great!!! Height is adjustable and perfect for 15 inch laptop. I can even add a small notebook.
Get it on Amazon for $33.88
Reviews for this post have been edited for length and clarity.