banner

News

Jan 15, 2024

10 Best Home Office Desks of 2023

We've been independently researching and testing products for over 120 years. If you buy through our links, we may earn a commission. Learn more about our review process.

Time to upgrade your work-from-home setup.

Creating a comfortable home office allows you to focus your energy on work with fewer distractions and might even make you more productive. And at the center of it is a good desk to keep you organized. Whether you need a cheap computer desk that just gets the job done or want to invest in a standing desk so you can take a break from sitting in a desk chair all day, these desks are guaranteed to be an improvement over the kitchen table (or the couch). At the Good Housekeeping Institute, our experts and analysts test and evaluate everything you need for your home office from handy desk organization ideas to office essentials like the best standing desk converters and desk mats. When narrowing down our favorite home office desks, our pros considered key criteria such as ease of assembly, ease of use, size and design, quality of construction, adjustability and special features like customization. Below are our top picks for home office desks based on our own testing and specification reviews, previous experience with top brands and online consumer feedback for popular desks we haven't yet vetted in our Labs.

After reading about the best home office desks, scroll further to find out what to look for when shopping for a desk and how we narrowed down our favorite picks.

This desk checks off everything you'd need for a WFH space. Our pros love that it features a large surface area, so you’ll have plenty of room for a monitor, laptop, keyboard, photos and notebooks. It comes in three wood shades and is supported by black steel legs that should suit most rooms and mesh with other furniture. Several reviewers on Amazon write that the desk is sturdy, easy to assemble and attractive. While we haven't yet tested this model in the Lab, our experts appreciate the shelf situated underneath the worksurface for storing easy-to-reach items. We also like the addition of a metal cable grommet hole cover so you can hide messy cables.

Sometimes you just need a desk that gets the job done. Look no further than Ikea if you need a home office desk that's simple, functional and affordable. While we haven't tested this model in the Lab, customers rave about its great value and easy assembly. Our pros like that it's lightweight so it shouldn't be a hassle to move around your home, and that you can customize the color of the tabletop surface and legs.

Whether you've moved into a new home and want to build out your home office or revamp your existing workspace, our pros recommend this L-shaped home office desk from Fully. We love the massive work surface area that enables you to fit multiple monitors thanks to an impressive weight capacity and that it has a built-in electric motor so you can a djust the desk's height and alternate between sitting and standing throughout the day. It also comes in left and right configurations so you can choose the best fit for your office. "The standing desk from Fully is far superior to any regular desks I've owned. It's comparable to the quality of sit/stand desks at offices," says one tester.

This home office desk from Nathan James is the ideal size for all your home office essentials like a monitor up to 28 inches, a keyboard and a mousepad. We love that it features a built-in drawer so you can hide your keyboard on weekends — and the pinewood legs are a stylish touch. While our pros haven't tested this model in the Lab, online reviewers say that they like the desk's high-quality design, perfect size and excellent customer service.

Our engineers and analysts love this pick if you're looking for an adjustable home office desk. We found that it remains very stable while also being able to support a monitor and other accessories. Executive Technical Director at the Good Housekeeping Institute, Rachel Rothman, recommends the Uplift desk for couples or families thanks to the desk's impressive height adjustment range. Our testers also like that this desk features handy memory settings so you (and others) can adjust the desk to your optimal working height with the press of a button on the keypad.

Consider this desk from Ikea if you have a few notebooks, headphones and papers you'd like to be able to keep organized. We appreciate that it's both affordable and practical, featuring multiple drawers and shelves for storage. Best of all, if you ever need to grow your home office, this desk can be combined with additional desks and drawers from Ikea's Micke line. Our experts also like that it's available in four colors and includes a cable organizer so your work surface never feels cluttered with wires.

We love this standing desk not only for its practicality but also for its hard-to-beat price. With space for a computer monitor and laptop on the top shelf and a dedicated area for a keyboard and mouse on the bottom shelf, it's the perfect solution for working comfortably in tight spaces. Though this desk's height can only be adjusted manually, we like that you have the option of working standing or sitting. We also like that the desk's design features wheels so you can move it around if need be (or lock it into place).

Who said your home office desk has to take up precious space? Our pros love this wall-mounted floating desk that looks like a bookshelf but features office conveniences like a cable and wire hole. It has just enough room for your laptop and mousepad during work hours, and extra shelves can be used to display photos, books and accessories. With a load capacity of 66 lbs., you shouldn't expect to fit a monitor on this minimalist desk, but it's a great solution for anyone who doesn't have room for a dedicated office in their home. Amazon reviewers note that they were pleasantly surprised with the desk's sturdiness and how much it can hold.

The pros at the Good Housekeeping Institute love this desk from Humanscale so much that we named it a winner of the 2022 Home Renovation Awards. The 28 x 36" bamboo work surface not only looks sleek but is compact enough to suit most workspaces and has enough room to accommodate a laptop, keyboard and other work-from-home essentials. We love that the desk features an electric touchpad, making it easy to adjust the height of the desk so you can choose whether you prefer to work sitting or standing throughout the day. "The pneumatic lift was easy to use and worked smoothly," says one tester. Others noted that the desk is easy to move around from room to room thanks to casters.

If you live in an apartment or don't have room to set up an entire home office, consider this mini home office desk from West Elm. Our pros love that it can double up as a trendy side table when you’re not working and that it features two convenient storage drawers. "The metal legs and textured wood drawers — with just enough space to hold things like notepads and pens — are a nice touch," says Senior Home Editor at Good Housekeeping, Monique Valeris. "It's also lightweight, which is key for a design fanatic who likes to switch up their layout from time to time. I can easily move it around my workspace whenever the mood strikes."

The experts and analysts at the Good Housekeeping Institute have been testing the best home office essentials since way before working from home became so common. When choosing the best home office desks, our pros evaluated a number of key criteria such as ease of assembly, ease of use, size and design and special or customizable features like portability and electric height adjustment. Several of the models we feature were tested in real homes and evaluated for construction and design quality by our pros. Chief Technologist and Executive Technical Director, Rachel Rothman, coordinated tests of several of the standing desk units and similar models on this list, evaluating based on design, comprehensive height range and ease of assembly from a consumer's standpoint, as well as desk stability throughout multiple hours of standard use and ease of adjustability through electric or manual operation. For desks that haven't yet been vetted in our Labs, our experts reviewed online consumer feedback as well as specifications.

✔️ Size: Before you get ahead of yourself and splurge on a home office desk online, first make sure to measure your space. Then determine how large of a working surface area you'll need. Do you need room for a monitor or just a laptop? How about accessories like a keyboard and mousepad?

✔️ Height and adjustability: Next, ask yourself who will be using the home office desk. If you plan on sharing with a partner or family member (especially if they're taller or shorter than you), consider purchasing a desk with an adjustable height. Desks that feature adjustable heights are often standing desks, so you can alternate between sitting and standing throughout the day.

✔️ Design and appearance: Do you want an L-shaped desk, or do you prefer a compact, minimalist desk that can blend in with your other furniture? It's important that you pick a desk that's not only functional but one that suits your style. After all, you'll be looking at it every day.

✔️ Storage: Several of the desks above feature storage options like drawers or shelves while others only come with a work surface. If you're someone that likes to use multiple accessories (think notepads, headphones, etc.), consider a home office desk with built-in storage.

✔️ Ease of assembly: Some desks will be easier to put together than others. Check reviews for whether other consumers found the assembly to be cumbersome. Also, consider the weight of the desk so you have a better idea of how heavy it will be when delivered.

✔️ Special features: Some desks are super minimalist, while others have customization options like the ability to change the finish, add a wire management kit or monitor arm and more. Pay attention to what extra add-ons are offered if that's something you're interested in.

Media & Tech Reviews Analyst Olivia Lipski covers everything from consumer electronics to home appliances, health and fitness. She has regularly collaborated with GH health and home experts to test and review the best home office essentials, and she's a firm believer in alternating between sitting and standing throughout the workday.

Olivia (she/her) is a media and tech product reviews analyst at the Good Housekeeping Institute, covering tech, home, auto, health and more. She has more than five years of experience writing about tech trends and innovation and, prior to joining GH in 2021, was a writer for Android Central, Lifewire and other media outlets. Olivia is a graduate of George Washington University, with a bachelor's degree in journalism, political science and French, and she holds a master's degree in communications from Sciences Po Paris.

11 Best Sleeper Sofas of 2023

9 Best Garage Door Openers of 2023

9 Best Toilets of 2023

Best Cheap Mattresses Under $500 in 2023

10 Best Velvet Sofas of 2023

14 Best Drop Leaf Tables of 2023

8 Best Lawn Sprinklers for the Greenest Grass

The Best Organic Mattress Toppers 2023

6 Best Gutter Guards 2023

The Best Mattress Toppers of 2023

14 Best Mattresses

8 Best Outdoor Home Projectors You Can Buy

Our top products: large surface area, so you’ll have plenty of room simple, functional and affordable a djust the desk's height and alternate between sitting and standing throughout the day high-quality design, perfect size and excellent customer service couples or families thanks to the desk's impressive height adjustment range multiple drawers and shelves for storage perfect solution for working comfortably in tight spaces it's a great solution for anyone who doesn't have room for a dedicated office in their home easy to adjust the height of the desk so you can choose whether you prefer to work sitting or standing throughout the day. can double up as a trendy side table when you’re not working ✔️ Size: ✔️ ✔️ ✔️ ✔️ ✔️ ✔️ ✔️ ✔️ Height and adjustability: ✔️ ✔️ ✔️ ✔️ ✔️ ✔️ ✔️ ✔️ Design and appearance: ✔️ ✔️ ✔️ ✔️ ✔️ ✔️ ✔️ ✔️ Storage: ✔️ ✔️ ✔️ ✔️ ✔️ ✔️ ✔️ ✔️ ✔️ ✔️ ✔️ ✔️ ✔️ ✔️ Ease of assembly: ✔️ Special features: ✔️ ✔️ ✔️ ✔️ ✔️ ✔️ ✔️
SHARE