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Real Homes
Real Homes
Eve Smallman

Bookmark this: Your first apartment move-in shopping list

Three pictures, one of a peach rug, one of a cactus shelf, and one of a pink and green print in a living room

Moving into your first apartment? Yas, that’s a big deal. You’ve probs got a lot to think about RN, like apartment decorating ideas, so you def want ways to make that move-in process as breezy as poss. That’s why I’m here, to take some of that work away from you.

There’s nothing worse than moving into an apartment, wanting to do something, and then finding out that you haven’t got the right things to make it work. This ain’t your parents’ place, peeps, you’ve gotta get everything yourself. So, I’ve put together a checklist of items that you’ll need for each room.

This covers the four key apartment rooms: The kitchen, bathroom, bedroom, and living area. Some items you might need for each room, and some items you might end up swapping about as you get comfy in your living space. But trust me, having them all will make your life 10x easier.

Let's get started — scroll on down for each list. Oh, and free to screenshot and tick them off as you go, so you know what you still need to buy. 

What do I need for my first apartment? The ultimate checklist

No need to get stressed, this is everything you need to make your first apartment move-in a piece of cake and help shape it into a space that feels like home. I’ve also shopped some buys, to save you the effort of scrolling through sites trying to find what you need.


The prices below were correct at the time of publishing this article.

Bedroom checklist for first apartment

  • Pillows: You can’t sleep without one (or I sure can’t anyway!).
  •  Laundry hamper: Go for either a big hamper, a bag, or a bin

Kitchen checklist for first apartment

What’s cookin’, good lookin’? Well, hopefully lots of things, once you’ve got everything you need to get started.

Living area checklist for first apartment

AKA, the Netflix and chill zone. This list has all the items you need to spread out and make the space your own.

  • Wall art: Fy! And Deseino are my go-to places to look for art pieces.

Bathroom checklist for first apartment

All set for your new apartment? You should be once you’ve ticked all these off. Once you’ve got the essentials down, you can then play about with more decor and organization ideas, to really make the space your own. The fun is officially about to begin, bestie.

Up next: How to organize a small apartment, according to the experts 

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