A home office wall that keeps work in one place
A desk in a spare room or a corner of the bedroom works better with a planning board you can see, a calm wall behind you on calls and storage you can find in seconds.
Home office walls
A home office wall works best as three parts: a notice board beside the desk for this week's dates and tasks, a grid of four framed A4 or A3 prints behind your chair for video calls, and labelled boxes or jars for cables and stationery. Use 250 gsm card for headers and removable strips on painted walls.
Last reviewed 3 October 2026
What a home office wall usually needs
- 1
A planning board beside the desk
A cork or pin board within arm's reach, split by headers such as this week, waiting on and done. You read it while you work, so keep it to the things that change, not the things you already know.
- 2
A frame grid behind your chair
Four matching frames in a square, hung so the top row sits just above your head on camera. It gives colleagues something tidy to look at and hides a wall you would rather they did not see.
- 3
Labels for drawers, boxes and jars
Cables, chargers, stamps, envelopes and receipts each get a box with a clear label. Anyone else who uses the desk can put things back where they belong.
- 4
A door sign for calls
An A5 card on the door saying on a call or come in, turned over as needed, saves a knock in the middle of a meeting. Put it at adult eye height on the outside of the door.
- 5
A year planner
One A3 sheet with the year at a glance for deadlines, holidays and renewals. Mark only fixed dates on it and keep day-to-day tasks on the planning board.
Sizes for a desk wall
| Piece | Size | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Notice board headers | A4 strip, about 7 cm tall | Readable from the chair without taking space from notes |
| Frame grid | Four A4 frames (21 × 29.7 cm) | Fills a video call background without crowding it |
| Larger frame grid | Four A3 frames (29.7 × 42 cm) | For a wide wall or a desk set well away from it |
| Year planner | A3 (29.7 × 42 cm) | Twelve months fit at a size you can write on |
| Door sign | A5 (14.8 × 21 cm) | Seen at a glance before someone knocks |
| Box and jar labels | About 6 × 4 cm | Fits the front of a small box or a jam jar |
Free printables for a home office
Plan the frame grid behind your desk to scale, print headers for the planning board and label the boxes that hold everything else.
Grid of four frames
Plan a 2 by 2 grid of four 30 x 40 cm frames with 5 cm gaps: a scale plan with every nail height and four true-size templates. Free A4 PDF.
OpenOffice notice board headers
Printable office notice board headers: an Around the office banner in 10 cm capitals and outlined strips for health and safety, first aiders and more.
OpenJar label maker
Make printable jar labels for a pantry, spices, jam or the freezer: round lid labels, rectangles, tall and oval labels at true size. Free A4 PDF.
Open
Want the whole board designed for you?
WallKiwi's display maker designs a complete notice board from one sentence, such as a calm planning board for a home office in navy and sand, with headers, borders and cards ready to print on A4. Designs use credits, and a free account includes some each month.
Questions people ask
What should I put on the wall behind my desk for video calls?
Something calm and tidy: a grid of matching frames, a single large print or a plain shelf. Hang it so it sits at or just above head height on camera, and keep busy notice boards and to-do lists off that wall.
What goes on a home office notice board?
Things that change and that you need to see: this week's deadlines, tasks waiting on someone else, a few key phone numbers and the year planner. Clear it every Friday so it stays useful.
How high should frames hang above a desk?
A common guide is to leave about 20 to 25 cm between the desk surface and the bottom of the lowest frame, with the centre of the group roughly at eye height when you stand. Lay the frames out on paper first.
How do I hang frames in a rented home without damaging the walls?
Use removable adhesive strips or hooks rated for the weight of each frame, or lean frames on a picture shelf. Check your tenancy agreement, as some landlords allow small nails and others do not.
Can I keep work papers on a wall in a shared room?
Keep anything private or confidential in a drawer or a closed folder rather than pinned up, especially if the room is used by family or visitors. The wall is for dates and tasks, not personal details.