Working from home: The space-saving folding desks you need

As the government encourages people who can work from home to continue doing so, now is the time to perfect your setup

A folding desk will help separate work from downtime, as they can easily merge into one while working remotely (The Independent)

In the latest of the prime minister’s announcements on 22 September, people who can work from home, are again being encouraged to do so. While those who can’t should still go to work and follow covid secure practices.

 There is no date to fully return to offices anytime soon as we head into autumn and winter though. 

 As reported by The Independent, Google has told its employees that they’ll be working remotely until the summer of 2021, while other tech companies, including Facebook and Twitter have allowed most employees to work remotely indefinitely.

So as we’re now six months into working from home for lots of people, your workspace is probably starting to feel in need of a revamp – especially if your make-shift office and bedroom have merged into one.

However, as the pandemic has forced us to both work and live in our personal spaces, it's important to keep your free time and work hours separate so work doesn't consume every room.

Easier said than done you might think, but that's where the folding desk comes in. Compact, neat and mounted to your wall, it can be folded away once your working day is over. Out of sight, and hopefully out of mind too.

That means no more working from your bed, sofa or kitchen table and not feeling like you can't face eating your meals at the latter anymore.

From the quirky to minimal, here are nine different styles for every budget and room size.

You can trust our independent round-ups. We may earn commission from some of the retailers, but we never allow this to influence selections. This revenue helps us to fund journalism across The Independent.

Laptop friendly

If you work from a laptop, a huge desk won't always be necessary, so look for smaller sizes that pack away neatly and won't make you feel like you're sleeping in the office.

This Esme wall desk (Made, £149) has a retro 1960s feel but is made with the modern worker in mind.

Simple and minimal, this is ideal if you're living in a flat-share and don't want to work in communal areas (Made)

With rounded edges, interior shelving and adequate workspace for one, it’s not bulky, nor will it be an eyesore when mounted to the walls of your bedroom or communal areas.

This discreet pull-down desk Fläpps secretary sunrise by Joa Herrenknecht (Iamfy, £255) is ideal if you want to add some colour to your space, thanks to its rainbow ombré design. It’s currently out of stock, but keep an eye on the website if you’re keen to buy this one.

Embrace the rainbow with this brightly coloured style (Iamfy)

You can use it seated or standing, simply attach it to the wall at your preferred height, then fold up when you’re done and go back to your free time spent at home.

Ikea always delivers when it comes to functional and affordable furniture. This budget-friendly option norberg wall-mounted drop-leaf table (Ikea, £35) adapts to your home so easily, showing that making a work space doesn’t need to be an expensive endeavour.

This compact desk is ideal if you plan on working in the kitchen (Ikea)

It folds down, rather than up and can also work as a spot to keep candles or a vase of flowers to brighten up the room.

Keep things simple with this Trigala wall-mounted bureau (La Redoute, £199).

A tidy desk will help you get on with your work (La Redoute)

It has a handy storage compartment under the desk too for important papers and laptop chargers.

Permanent fixtures

If you run your own business from home or need multiple screens, look at larger pieces that can hold more weight.

For something more permanent, take a look at this Kleur leaning desk (Made, £149).

This leaning design doesn't need to be limited to just work bits and bobs, you can also decorate it with plants (Made)

A clean, contemporary take on a space-saving desk, it doubles up as shelving and desk, so if you’re working from a laptop, this is ideal.

If you like jotting down to-do lists, calendars and reminder notes, you’ll love this Serchio wall desk (Furniture Work, £129).

This sturdy structure has space for hanging notes up too (Furniture Work)

It comes with an interior bulletin board and the large flip-down door doubles into a spacious desk, and a leather handle to pull it up and down from the wall.

While not attached to the wall, this compact flip-flop folding computer desk (Daals, £42.99) is perfect if you're in the market for a more traditional desk.

At the end of your workday, fold this flat and store safely out of sight (Daals)

It folds flat so you can easily move it from inside to the garden on a sunny day or store behind the sofa on weekends when you have friends over.

For an investment piece of furniture to help you get your home office in order, this Gaston wall writing desk (Made In Design, £528) will do the trick.

Slash out on this sturdy piece for your home office (Made In Design)

It arrives assembled so all you have to do is mount it and it has plenty of storage space to keep your space neat and tidy for a more productive workday.

From afar, you could almost mistake this Gavin floating desk (Wayfair, £176.99) for a minimal wooden piece of wall art, but it’s actually a chic, sturdy desk.

This is the perfect piece of office equipment that doubles up nicely for displaying home decor (Wayfair)

If you want to leave it permanently down, you can also use the shelves to display plants or as a bookshelf.