I just discovered the '5S' cleaning method — here's how it totally transformed my home

My search for the best decluttering methods has taken me to the weirdest sides of TikTok, the furthest corners of the internet, and somehow, I've suddenly found myself seeking inspiration from a method that originated from Japanese car manufacturing to tidy my home.

The '5S' method started out as a system for organizing and cleaning up the workplace boosting productivity and efficiency. But, it turns out, it also translates incredibly well for decluttering and tidying your home.

Since these methods always take a bit of explaining to get your head around them, like the 'drip drop' method or 'poop rule', it's important to take a look at what exactly you're getting yourself into.

I've personally been practicing it for a while now and I can safely say it's totally transformed my home.

What is the '5S' method?

When I first discovered the '5S' method I found a lot of flow charts and diagrams that explained what the concept was, but they looked very 'office-like'.

This isn't all that surprising considering it's a workplace-first system, but it doesn't have to be that complicated.

With its earliest roots in Japan, the 5S's actually stand for Seiri, Seiton, Seiso, Seikesu and Shitsuke.

But, now that it's been thoroughly embraced by the Western world, these have been translated to Sort, Set in Order, Shine, Standardize and Sustain.

For Sort, you look at all the items in your home (room-by-room works best) and remove any unnecessary ones, whether they're in the wrong place or to throw away/donate.

For Set in Order, now that you've got all your misplaced items, you organize and rearrange them so they find their homes in the right places.

For Shine, it's time to clean up the areas of your home that are now a lot more easier to tackle.

For Standardize, you come up with a routine to make sure you do the first three S's in the same way each time across your home.

And, for Sustain, you have to make sure that you implement the 5S method into your life for the long-term, whether that's once a day, once a week, or once a month.

Trying out the '5S' method

I've been trying out the '5S' method for a while and it's definitely given me some different things to think about.

Firstly, by outlining set tasks to complete, tidying my home suddenly feels a lot less overwhelming. Stripping down each room of unnecessary objects and putting them back where they actually belong meant I could clean and tidy with less stuff to move about (when that used to feel like the easier option).

Now, I grab an empty storage box and tackle it one room at a time. I grab everything from the first room that doesn't need to be there and take it out. Then, I tidy up what's left and clean as I go.

In the next room, I take a look at the storage box and take out anything that belongs in that room. I then fill it up with anything that doesn't need to be there and so on.

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I really don't think you can ever have enough storage boxes, especially when they can slot so easily under your bed or in the loft. And having excess comes in handy with the '5S' method as you can keep one to gather the items around your home. In this set, you get six 12 qt. stackable boxes with lids.

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The '5S' method does exactly what it was designed to do in the workplace and brings that your home. So, ultimately, I do actually feel much more productive and certainly more efficient. Two words I never thought I'd use for household cleaning.

Since I'm visiting each room of my home one-by-one with a box of things, I'm organizing my entire home without even feeling like it's a chore.

I love to declutter for the sense of achievement it gives me and there's something so rewarding about the '5S' method knowing everything is in its place and, if I was an employee, I might even earn myself a promotion.

This method was especially helpful when I recently moved home. Already, I had so many objects in boxes that needed to be sorted and set in order. Though, I'd argue that the 'Shine' part of the process might be best suited with coming before everything's set back in place! A house, after all, is a lot more to tackle than your office space.

Overall, I love this method for how cyclical it is. Now, I know for certain that next time I've scheduled in the '5S' tidy, I have a game plan that'll tackle my home and totally reset it.

More from Tom's Guide

• How to achieve a clutter-free home with the ‘One In, One Out’ method
• I finally tried the 'House Hushing' method to declutter my kitchen — here's what happened
• I finally tried the 5x5 speed cleaning method — and it really paid off