It doesn’t matter how large (or small) your office space is: there are some must-have office supplies you shouldn’t be without.

A tidy office has been proven to be the best start to ensuring top productivity, but there are so many more ways to improve your efficiency and reduce running costs with just a few tweaks to the equipment and supplies you use.

Save money, improve morale, and boost productivity: make sure your office has everything on our list of essentials (and nothing on the must-trash-now checklist).

Must-Have Office Supplies Your Office Needs Now

Whether you’re sprucing up a home office or equipping a startup in a downtown building, make sure you include these office supplies for ultimate productivity.

Notepads and Planners

While it’s tempting to assume everything is digital these days, sometimes there’s nothing better than writing down your thoughts with old-fashioned pen and paper.

Meeting notes, idea dumps, and telephone messages are all easy to keep track of with stylish notepads. Planners, whether for the individual or appointment books for the business, ensure you’re always prepared – even if there’s a power cut.

Desk and Drawer Tidies

There is nothing less productive than a messy office. You spend ages looking for important papers and can never find a pen when you need one.

Invest in desk tidies for paperwork. You can even get ones that are combined as computer monitor stands to minimize the footprint while doubling the product use.

Drawer tidies are essential for keeping track of pens, tape, and business cards. No more rummaging – everything is at hand and visible straight away.

VOIP Headsets

Reduce your communication costs by using a Voice Over Internet Protocol (VoIP) headsets. A VoIP phone uses your internet connection to make calls using services like Skype, which will significantly reduce your bill.

A handset is great for a traditional desk setup, or for those who aren’t on the phone all day. If you spend a lot of time talking to customers, consider a headset to improve productivity. The hands-free element allows you to type while you talk, so you can take notes without typing them up after a call.

Staple-less Staplers

You’ll never spend ages hunting for staples again, thanks to the staple-free stapler.

A unique mechanism punches holes in papers and folds the corners together in one motion. It’s a one-off cost too: you won’t need to keep restocking staples!

Envelopes and Stamps

Your stock may not need to be huge, but make sure you have envelopes and stamps ready to hand for last-minute documents and letters. Email does a lot these days, but sometimes an old-fashioned letter is essential – such as for signing important contracts.

A stock of standard sizes can easily be stored in a drawer, ready to use when you need – without a trip to the store each time you need to send something.

High-Volume Printer

Unless you’re working from home, your printer is going to get a daily workout. Make sure yours is designed for heavy-duty printing, and make sure it can produce photocopies and digitally scan documents, too.

It’s a good idea to set up a regular printer ink supply agreement, as this will prevent you from the dreaded downtime while you wait for new cartridges to arrive.

Paper Shredder

Everyone wants a paperless office – it’s tidy and more efficient to keep everything ‘in the cloud’ on computers.

However, you still need a way to dispose of sensitive information, such as credit card statements, once you’ve scanned them into online storage. A crosscut paper shredder, that cuts vertically and horizontally, provides you the most security.

Smart Thermostat

Save on your office costs by controlling your electricity usage when the office is closed. A smart thermostat, such as the Nest series, means you can control the heating and lighting remotely.

This is great even for home workers, as you can switch your heating on ready for your return from a meeting without having to leave it on while you’re away. Return to a toasty house every time – and still save on your utility bills!

Surge Protectors

Every business needs surge protectors for all electrical appliances. A power surge could be disastrous if your circuit can’t cope – your computers and backup drives could be fried. What would you do without them?

Surge protectors aren’t expensive, but they are essential. Invest in them to prevent huge costs caused by power surges!

Efficient Coffee Machine

An office runs on caffeine, there’s no doubt about it. No matter if there are two of you or two hundred on your staff, good coffee makes a difference in employee morale and productivity.

Go for the best one you can get in your budget – the only thing worse than no coffee is bad coffee. If you can splash out, why not invest in a coffee machine that offers other drinks, such as hot chocolate, too?

Sensitive Skin Hand Cleanser

In 2017, 53% of adults took at least five sick days off work. Can you afford for each of your staff to take so much unplanned time off?

Sick days cost you a lot of money, and your employees a lot of morale. Nobody likes to be off work, or the stress that comes with taking unplanned time off, so it makes sense to have preventatives in place.

Make sure you have anti-bacterial hand cleanser available for your staff so that you can minimize the spread of bacteria and reduce the chances of illness spreading.

Office Products You Can Trash Today

Any business that’s been running for some length of time is likely to have a dinosaur or two in the back cupboard. They’re just cluttering up your office space, so here are the things you can throw out (or recycle) today.

Fax Machines

Even if you need to send a fax these days, you can do so online. There are services that allow you to upload a PDF document that is then faxed out to the number you need.

Floppy Disks

If your business is old enough to still have floppy disks hanging around, it’s time for a serious spring cleaning.

Dictaphones or Tape Recorders

You’ve got a phone that can do that. And a laptop. And a tablet. Get rid of your tape recorders, now.

How to Keep Your Office Tidy

You need to keep your must-have office supplies somewhere, and if you’re not using a slick system then you’re not going to be productive.

Make sure you’re storing your files, stationery, and other office supplies efficiently by following these top office storage hacks.