Amazon makes buying things incredibly easy. With a few clicks, whatever you need shows up at your front door, sometimes the very next day. But there’s one part of online shopping that isn’t nearly as convenient: dealing with everything after it arrives.
The boxes, bubble wrap, packing paper, and purchases you haven’t gotten around to putting away can quickly take over your entryway, kitchen counter, or that one corner where everything seems to collect.
And somehow, even after you’ve opened the package and taken out what you ordered, the empty box can sit there for another three days.
If this sounds familiar, try a simple habit that can keep delivery clutter from becoming another household chore.
Treat Your Amazon Packages Like Groceries
Think about what you do when you get home from the grocery store. You don’t usually leave grocery bags sitting in the entryway for days. You unpack everything, put the food where it belongs, and throw away the bags.
The same approach can work for online deliveries.
Cleaning expert Jolie Kerr shared how she started treating packages like groceries after realizing that dealing with delivery boxes had become another frustrating household chore.
Instead of letting packages sit around until she felt like dealing with them, she made a habit of unpacking and putting everything away right away.
It’s a small change, but it prevents those unfinished tasks from piling up.
Don’t Just Open the Box — Finish the Job
Opening a package is only part of the process. If you leave the empty box on the floor or move the contents to the kitchen counter, you’ve really just moved the clutter somewhere else.
The idea is to deal with the entire delivery at once.
Bring the package inside, open it, remove the contents, and put everything where it belongs. Break down the cardboard box and take the packaging to your recycling or trash area.
If you’ve ordered household supplies, put them in the cabinet or closet where you normally store them. If it’s clothing, try it on and decide whether to keep it rather than leave it in the shipping bag for another week.
And if something needs to be returned, put it back in its packaging and keep it in a designated return spot so it doesn’t get mixed in with everything else.
The goal is to avoid creating another task you’ll have to deal with later.
Related: Decluttering? Start With These 12 Things First
Make It Easier to Keep Up
Keep a box cutter or scissors somewhere convenient, have a designated place for cardboard recycling, and make sure everyone in the household knows what to do with their deliveries.
If you receive several packages in one day, you can unpack them together rather than dealing with each one separately.
And if you’re in the middle of something when a delivery arrives, that’s fine too. The important part is to finish dealing with it before it becomes another forgotten pile.
It’s also worth paying attention to how much packaging comes into your home. When available, combining deliveries can mean fewer boxes to break down and fewer trips to the recycling bin.
One Less Thing to Clean Up Later
Keeping a home organized doesn’t always require a major decluttering session. Sometimes it’s about changing what you do with the things coming into your home in the first place.
Amazon deliveries are convenient, but the boxes and packaging can quickly become another chore if you keep putting them off.
Next time a package arrives, unpack it, put everything away, and deal with the packaging before moving on to something else.
A few minutes now could save you an entire afternoon of dealing with a mountain of cardboard later.
