If you’ve ever lived in a studio apartment, you know that managing the layout can be tricky.  In a studio apartment, the bathroom is typically the only area that’s clearly sectioned off — the kitchen, living room and bedroom are all one room. The low rent and simplicity of this kind of apartment living make it appealing to many renters, but it goes without saying that the floor plan can be challenging to work with. Not to worry, though: If you’re moving into a studio apartment, here are some tips to help you set up the space in such a way that apartment living feel organized and comfortable.

Prepare for Your Move

If you haven’t moved yet, take time now to prepare. Make a list of all the things you have, like end tables, accent chairs, bookshelves, a sofa, desk, bed and dining room table. Next, get the floor plan. Ask your apartment manager for a copy of the floor plan. If they don’t have one, draw it as best as you can. Look at the items on your list and start thinking about how they’ll fit. If you’re moving from a house or large apartment and you think you’ll have way too much stuff for the new place, consider downsizing before moving day or putting some items in storage. Doing this can save time and money and reduce stress when it comes to your new style of apartment living.

Creating “Rooms”

One of the coolest things about studio apartment living is that you can create your own “rooms” within the space without building walls or doing any kind of construction. You’re essentially deciding the floor plan, and that’s definitely not possible with a regular apartment… unless your landlord is okay with you knocking down walls (probably not). So how exactly do you create rooms in a studio apartment, then? Easy: Use furniture and curtains as room dividers.

Bookshelves come in especially handy as room dividers. For example, if you want to section off the sleeping area from the living room area, you could put a bookshelf and sofa back-to-back, with a coffee table and TV stand in front of the sofa and your bed in front of the bookshelf. If it’s a tall bookshelf, though, just make sure it’s secure so it doesn’t wind up falling over. Using a bookshelf that doesn’t have any backing will allow light to go through and will feel more open. But if you’d like more privacy, hang a curtain.

Arrange and adjust your furniture until you have something you’re happy with. Area rugs can also help the sleeping area, kitchen and apartment living room feel like their own space. It may take several tries to get things just right, but you’ll have a comfortable, organized studio apartment in no time.

Finding a Studio Apartment

If you’re intrigued and want to rent a studio apartment for your next home, we have free apartment search tools to help you out. It can make finding an apartment and apartment living a little easier.