By Arabella Peterson 27.04.2025

Digital Decluttering Tips For Organizing Your Online Life

Clear your mind with these simple – and free – hacks.

If you need more than two hands to count the number of open tabs on your computer, you dread your screen time notifications, and you have unanswered emails and texts clogging your inbox – consider this your sign to start digital decluttering.

Unsurprisingly, we’re spending more time online than ever before. Studies show that Australians aged 16 to 64 spend an average of 6 hours and 14 minutes per day on the internet, and this constant connectivity is leading to rising levels of digital overload and feelings of overwhelm. In fact, a study conducted by Currys in 2024 revealed that 89% of UK adults feel stressed or overwhelmed by digital clutter. With so much of our lives unfolding through screens, it makes sense to give our digital spaces the same care and attention we give our homes.

As a tech and productivity coach who trained under Marie Kondo, Amanda Jefferson sees the impact of digital overload every day. Through her business, Indigo Organizing, she offers 1:1 coaching, online courses, and accountability groups to help people – especially women and solopreneurs – get more done. Her philosophy is that technology should act as your free personal assistant, not an added stressor.

“What can be sneaky about digital clutter is that it doesn't feel finite like physical clutter,” says Amanda. “We can look at a physical pile and see an end in sight. With digital clutter, we're talking about tens of thousands of emails or photos or files. It feels like a black hole and people feel defeated before they even start. Especially with women, it can make us feel like we’re failing at life, when really, the systems are failing us.”

Getting started

Just as with physical cleaning and organization, feelings of shame can often stop us from taking the first steps toward streamlining our digital lives. As Amanda explains, “Guilt and perfectionism come into play so much. Take photos, for example. So many moms wish they had kept up with photo albums for their kids since day one. They beat themselves up about it, and in the end, do nothing. I try to encourage a "good enough-ish" approach (that's the name of my podcast!). Instead of organizing every photo from the beginning of time, how about making an album called Summer 2024? Start small and get quick wins.”

“Here's another example. You might have 30,000 emails to go through. You feel like you have to go through ALL of them, so you go through exactly none of them. Instead, dump them all in an Archive folder and then declutter and organize as new emails come in. No need to overcomplicate things or beat ourselves up! We avoid these tasks because we’re waiting for the perfect uninterrupted afternoon… that never comes. The antidote? Permission to start messy. Progress over perfection. Good enough-ish.”

For those feeling totally overwhelmed by digital chaos – Amanda’s advice for getting started is simple: “start with what’s driving you the most nuts. Is it your inbox? Your camera roll? That folder of mystery files on your desktop? Start there,” she says. “Pick one thing. And make it as fun and rewarding as possible. Set a timer, light a candle, and play your favorite music. Make a good enough-ish goal like clearing out 1000 emails or photos or setting up 10 passwords. The goal isn’t perfection. The goal is less friction in your day.”

Tackling overflowing inboxes

If just the thought of that red "new message" icon is enough to send a shiver down your spine, your inbox probably needs some serious attention. Luckily, there are a few easy wins you can use to start to get the ball rolling towards a calmer, more organized digital life.

Amanda recommends beginning by setting up a few clear folders or labels, including an "Action Needed" folder to easily identify emails that require a response. She also suggests creating an "Online Orders" folder to corral order and shipping confirmations, along with a handful of simple folders – like "Home," "Kids," or "Newsletters" – where emails can be easily dragged and dropped.

The next step? Amanda advises using search tools like "Find emails from this sender" to quickly archive, delete, or unsubscribe in batches. She adds, "Consider creating an Archive folder and dumping any emails older than one month there. Then just process the emails from the last month. As new emails come in, act quickly – decide if you want to unsubscribe and do so right then. The trick is to slow down the flow."

Organizing files, photos and tabs

Another major pain point for the digitally overwhelmed is finding a home – and a logical system – for all the documents that have accumulated over the years. Amanda’s approach here is a combination of manual sorting and leaning on tech tools to take the edge off the tedious tasks.

She explains, “For files, drag your favorites to the sidebar so you’re not constantly hunting. Use clear, consistent folder names – especially for shared drives. I love Dropbox because it's ‘agnostic’ – it works well no matter what tech set-up you have."

For photos, Amanda recommends the Cleaner Kit app for iPhone, which helps you delete blurry photos, duplicates, similar photos, and screenshots. "It even lets you declutter by month, which keeps things from getting overwhelming," she says.

When it comes to digital notes, Amanda advises picking one tool – whether it’s Notion, Apple Notes, or DayOne – and sticking with it. "You want to have one source of truth," she adds.

As Amanda aptly puts it, "Open tabs can feel like a never-ending to-do list that stares at you all day." She champions browser bookmarks as a best-kept secret that not enough people take advantage of: "Create folders for sites you access all the time or are using for a current project. Then you know exactly where they are when you need them."

Finding the right tools

There’s nothing wrong with outsourcing a little help when it comes to staying organized. We have tools at our disposal to make our lives easier – it’s just a matter of knowing the right ones and how to use them. Luckily, Amanda has rounded up her go-to apps, extensions, and programs that can save you time and stress:

“1Password is a lifesaver for managing passwords. It has a bit of a learning curve, but it's a game-changer once you're all set up.”
“Google Drive and Dropbox, especially when you bring them right into your computer’s Finder or Explorer so they feel more like a regular folder.”
“Chrome bookmarks – but supercharged. Organizing those can make your daily workflow feel like butter.”
“Priority Inbox for Gmail – I love using Priority Inbox in Gmail to make my inbox way less chaotic.”
“Cleaner Kit for iPhone – It clears out not just photos but contacts and more.”
“Smart Albums in Apple Photo Library – It's so frustrating when you can't figure out which photos aren't already organized into an album. You can create a Smart Album to find them easily.”
“Asana – I love Asana for collaboration with team members. It eliminates back-and-forth emails and keeps project management in one place.”
“Apple's smart grocery list – Such a time-saver! You can add items with Siri, and it auto-categorizes them. You can also share the list with other family members.”

Forging new habits

Amanda cites one of the biggest mistakes people make when organizing their digital lives is simply a lack of awareness of the tools available to make life easier. Without this knowledge, many people “end up fighting with their tech instead of leaning into all of the cool things it can do.”

Another mistake she sees often is honing in too deeply on one task or getting bogged down in perfectionism, which can be too much work to even get started. Instead, she encourages people to "go wide before you go deep." She explains that using tools like Cleaner Kit or taking actions like dumping old emails into an Archive folder – clearing out the obvious clutter before tackling a deeper clean – is the smarter, more sustainable approach.

But the number one mistake to avoid? Ignoring your future self. “Name things like files and passwords clearly and save them where they belong,” says Amanda.

If you’re feeling a little overwhelmed by all this talk of feeling overwhelmed, Amanda suggests starting with three simple tasks you can do this week to feel more in control:

“Use a clear naming convention for files. A clear name now = way less frustration later. I like to start with the year and then a clear description, eg 2025.04.08 - Presentation for XYZ Client.”
“Use the "find emails from" feature in your email. Instead of going through emails one-by-one, select an email, then choose "find emails from". This will bring up all of the emails from that sender in one place so you can decide to archive, delete, unsubscribe, etc.”
“Supercharge your bookmarks bar. Save time every single day by putting your most-used links front and center – school websites, your calendar, news sites, and favorite tools.”