10 Minimalist Desks That’ll Turn Your House Office Into a Home Office

The bed you spend one third of your life in, the couch you Netflix on, the kitchen table you hold court at: these are purchases worthy of your time, money and careful consideration.

Your home desk, on the other hand, doesn’t get the same billing.

Whether it’s a lacquered hand-me-down from your parents or an asymmetrical monstrosity from your ex-interior designer, there’s one main culprit for what is most likely a subpar home workspace: you work elsewhere. And besides, who needs to spend time picking out a desk when one can just as easily bring a laptop to the kitchen, porch or — don’t lie, we’ve all done it — toilet?

But you need look no further than Papa Hemingway for your answer. The man is Exhibit A for setting up a dedicated workspace, having famously kept his typwriter at his “work desk” — aka “a square foot of cramped area hemmed in by books on one side and on the other by a newspaper-covered heap of papers, manuscripts, and pamphlets” on top of a bookcase.

So whether you’re trying to punch up your Paris memoir or simply need a space to pay the bills, you deserve a desk that’s more than an afterthought.

To wit, we’ve collected 10 top-notch home desks below, some standing (also a favorite of Hemingway), none from IKEA and all priced competitively at under $1,000.

Autonomous SmartDesk 3 | $499

Artifox Desk 02 | $950

Housefish Pocket Desk | $765

Nazanin Kamali for Case, Celine Desk | $995 (up to $1,295)

Ronan + Erwan Bouroullec for HAY, Copenhague Desk | $795

Fully Jarvis Bamboo Standing Desk | $395

Emko Double Drawer 4.9 Desk | $980

The Floyd Desk | $460

Uplift Bamboo Stand Up Desk | $495

Note: If you buy through these links, RealClearLife may earn a small share of the profits.