Work From Home Accessories and Gadgets to Buy Right Now

For years, futurists have predicted that with the emergence of widely available high-speed internet, large offices would become obsolete and workers would permanently transition to working and collaborating from home.

That future has arrived, if only temporarily. We don’t yet know whether a coronavirus vaccine will prompt a return to crowded cubicles. And, if working from home becomes the norm, we can’t safely say how that shift will affect our society. In theory, working from home offers new freedoms: you can set your alarm clock a little later, avoid the rush hour traffic, eat home-cooked meals for lunch, catch up on housework during the lulls between conference calls, and work from wherever on Earth you’d like.

But do those benefits outweigh the potential pitfalls? The pessimists have plenty of questions without easy answers. Will working from home en masse lead to the collapse of our once-vibrant inner cities? Will work-life balance disintegrate into an endless sea of unread emails? How can we squeeze family time, exercise, and the new season of The Real Housewives of New Yorkinto a work-dominated homelife?

Unfortunately, we don’t have any of the answers. These are questions for PHDs and Nobel laureates, not Complex beat writers. What we do have are 40-plus recommendations for useful and (mostly) affordable gadgets that will make your work from home experience more comfortable. They may even distract you from the fact that we’re living through a slow motion apocalypse.

It is easy to forget about all of the essential human body needs while working from home or glued to a computer screen.

To ensure that you don’t wilt away while writing emails, this super-duper popular time-marked water bottle is aces in reminding WFH mainstays to stay hydrated and happy.

Our Recommendation: Giotto 32 oz. Leakproof BPA Free Drinking Water Bottle

If you’re a consistent WFH employee or advocate, you know how much your laptop doubles as a lunch tray.

Instead of asking Siri or Alexa for the best ways to get cookie crumbs out of a laptop fan, stocking up on cleaning gel for your keyboard could keep it looking better than the Board of Health.

Our Recommendation: ColorCoral Universal Dust Cleaner

No one is ever truly alone while working from home and for most busybodies, privacy is of the utmost importance.

With meetings more or less virtual via Zoom, Google Hangout or Skype—this handy dry erase door hanger is perfect to let other people or family know that this is not the moment to barge in to show off the new Jordans.

Our Recommendation: HarrisonSignCo’s No More Interruptions Door Tag

Whether you are living in a big city like New York or Los Angeles or just don’t have enough square footage in your place, it is important to not be ergonomically challenged while working from home.

Thankfully, this hanging desk can be put on any window that you’d like and turns your space into an opportunity to stretch your legs and enjoy the view at the same damn time.

Our Recommendation: MonkeyBusiness Hanging Window Desk

Being indoors and away from people may be great during this prolonged pandemic, but can make for a hard road for those with big-time allergies.

This eco-friendly air purifier is a reusable relief that can filter out dust, pollen, smoke, pet dander, and other odors with ease—and cut down on the times you need to mute your sneezes during a virtual meeting.

Our Recommendation: Sonew Household Air Purifier

Home is where the heart is. But your home may also be the site where meetings, late night planning sessions, or other assignment-related happenings go down.

In order to not pull out your hair (or toss your roommates’ pet around in frustration) — this candle scent called Home will leave a sense of calm, peace, and familiarity that will make any room you work from feel like home.

Our Recommendation: Moods by Yemmie

Staring and straining your eyes at these computers and mobile devices is more than just a full-time job—it’s a lifestyle at this point.

If you’re spending more than 10-hours in front of your computer (like us!) — getting some protection to ensure you don’t become a twentysomething-year-old Mr. Magoo is important.

Our Recommendation: Livho 2-Pack Blue Light Blocking Glasses

These days it is getting harder and harder to be active. As more of the world goes online, this means less time for those who WFH to hit the gym and stay active.

Thankfully, this low-impact number is great for anyone who wants to stave off those aches and pains from sitting in one position for waaayyy too long.

Our Recommendation: Sunny Health Under Desk Elliptical Foot Pedal Exerciser.

In case the elliptical isn’t your speed, but you still want to get your calisthenics on—you know that sitting stagnant is unacceptable.

This adjustable item is perfect for anyone who is restless, yet dedicated to their craft, and want to channel their inner Stan Lee (R.I.P.) to churn out those brilliant ideas.

Our Recommendation: FLEXISPOT Desk Bike Chair

A true-blue MVP for those working from home, a mini-fridge is important for those who might have roommates or just don’t want to step away from their computer for too long.

This must-have number has just enough storage space for your beverages, small snacks, and seltzers to be your go-to throughout the workday.

Our Recommendation: AstroAI Mini Fridge

There is nothing quite like being about that cozy life. As a fellow WFH-er, comfort is key when you’re not afforded the luxury of having a masseuse come by like how it was pre-COVID.

With your health being of the utmost importance, this device is important to work out all of the kinks and knots in your body that make you feel like a human Excel spreadsheet.

Our Recommendation: MagicMakers Back & Neck Massager

Skype and Zoom calls are the bane of everyone’s existence at this point, which makes going traditional all the more worthwhile.

A solution to having to use headsets or bluetooth speakers while on a call is this speakerphone that is designed for group conferences and has great sound quality for interviews or group calls.

Our Recommendation: Anker PowerConf Bluetooth Speakerphone

You're going to spend a lot of time in front of your screen this year, and maybe next year as well. And maybe even the year after that. If you're working from home for the long haul, consider upgrading your computer. You don't need a state of the art, high-powered gaming rig or anything. Just a solid system that doesn't lag and doesn't crash five minutes before your next conference call or Zoom class.

Our Recommendation: MacBook Air

Public service announcement: your Ikea couch is not a suitable replacement for the fancy desk chair you had at the office. Neither is that floppy La-Z-Boy you dragged out of your parent's basement. All of your mismatched kitchen chairs also suck.

If you plan to work from home for months on end, get an ergonomic desk chair. It's literally an investment in your health. You don't want to end up like the lady in the picture, right??

Our Recommendation: Ticova Ergonomic Office Chair

If you're not comfortable dropping a few hundred bucks (or a few thousand - chairs are apparently very expensive) on a state-of-the-art desk chair, grab an ergonomic cushion instead. It won't look as nice as some Dutch-designed masterpiece, but it will get the job done aaalmost as well.

Our Recommendation: Wondergel Simply Purple Seat Cushion

Sitting all day sucks, as we've already mentioned. It even sucks with a fancy ergonomic chair. The best thing for your back is to take a long break, go for a walk, and do some yoga. Or maybe just quit your job.

But when your gig demands 10 hours a day of relentless focus, a standing desk can be a spinal savior. Even better, look for a convertible desk, one that allows you to sit for a few hours, then crank 'er up, get comfortable, and keep working. They're not cheap, but you can't put a price on good lumbar health. Just look how happy the lady in the picture is to be standing!

Our Recommendation: Uplift V2 Commercial

Picture this: It's early quarantine. You're still adjusting to working from home. You set up a little workstation at you and your partner's newly-acquired dining room table. You place your laptop, your phone, a mug, and a big bodem of coffee on that beautiful walnut finish.

Cut to thirty minutes later: Your partner notices the coffee pot and mug. They rush over and lift up the bodem. Sure enough, rings are forming. They berate you tirelessly. They strongly consider pushing you off the apartment balcony. Your relationship and your quarantine are in jeopardy.

Don't let that happen to you. A simple waterproof desk pad will protect your surfaces - and relationships - from scratches and liquid damage.

Our Recommendation: Weelth Multifunctional Office Desk Pad

Don't hunch over your laptop. It's bad for your back, it's bad for your neck, and it makes you look like a weird, early 2000s dark web denizen trading snuff films with dudes in Ukraine.

A simple, affordable laptop stand will keep your chin up and back straight, like a proud American.

Our Recommendation: AOOU Cool Desk Laptop Stand

There is a reason hackers in the movies and those dorks on Silicon Valley use two screens. It's not just for looks - a second screen actually makes it way easier to run multiple apps, reference your emails, compare graphs and charts, and watch the NBA playoffs while you're on a Zoom meeting with clients.

Our Recommendation: Samsung 27" SF354

I don't know about you, but my wrists absolutely hate the razor-sharp edges of my 2018 Macbook Air. What was Apple thinking? These things are like steak knives! Really, I've now got permanent 'typing grooves' just below my palms, battle scars from a summer of self-isolation.

Of course, the scars could have easily been avoided. I could've spent $15 bucks on a simple wrist guard or a little more on a fully ergonomic keyboard with built-in wrist protection. That's what you should do.

Our Recommendation: Gimars Memory Foam Set

We're all hopping on a lot of Zoom meetings these days, and there's nothing more frustrating than trying to understand a coworker or client who's mic keeps cutting out. Don't be that coworker or client - invest in a standalone mic for the singular purpose of sounding crystal clear on your next conference call.

Our recommendation: Blue Yeti USB Microphone

Cameras, in my humble opinion, are secondary in importance to mics in the world of Zoom.

Still, I appreciate it when the person on the other end of a video call comes through in high-def. I love being able to read the spines of the books on their shelves or make out the brand of that coffee maker in the background. A great camera also means you can show off your new haircut, or that new top that just arrived from Amazon, or the makeup you did this morning for the first time in five months.

Our Recommendation: Logitech C922 Pro Stream

It's 2:30 PM. You had a big bowl of leftover mac and cheese for lunch. You're out of coffee. You're a third of the way through your fourth revision of a project you don't care about and barely understand. Your eyelids become heavy…

Time for a break. Crank up your brand new, pretty-good-but-not-crazy-expensive computer speakers and blast whatever gets you hype these days. "DOLLAZ ON MY HEAD" by Gunna? Sure. The soundtrack from A Star is Born? Go off. "Rich Girl" by Hall & Oates? It's a banger. Do whatever it takes to keep your eyes open and your head in the game.

Our Recommendation: Creative Labs T100

One of the only great joys of working from an office is shutting down your busy, impersonal, tab-filled desktop computer and coming home to an equally busy, equally tab-filled, but endlessly more personal and comforting laptop. That joy, like so many others this year, is gone. But it can be found again through a tablet.

Now, when you drearily close your once-personal laptop at the kitchen table and make the lifegiving migration to the couch, your tablet, stocked with unread articles and unwatched videos from the night before, will be waiting.

Our Recommendation: Apple iPad Air

Even in a year dominated by illness, natural disaster, and political violence, there's nothing scarier than waking up to an uncharged phone. Banish that fear forever with a wireless charging stand! Plug it in beside your computer, pop your phone in place, and work all day in the soothing glow of your favorite handheld device.

Our Recommendation: Native Union Dock Wireless Charger

"Let's shed some light on the subject."

My dad said that every single time he turned a light on for his entire life. He's gone, but the value of shedding light on a subject isn’t. A great desk lamp will not only save your eyes on those long nights in the home office, but it can actually elevate your whole setup.

Our Recommendation: Ikea Forså

It's summertime, the pandemic is raging, and we're all stuck in our stuffy, hot, mostly-tiny houses and apartments. As this happy gentleman knows, a cute little desk fan can provide a breath of cool fresh air when you need it most.

Our Recommendation: Vornado Pivot Personal Air Circulator Fan

Just because a gadget isn't high tech doesn't mean you shouldn't use it! I challenge the big tech companies of the world to come up with a more useful and efficient organization tool than a simple desktop divider like the one pictured above. You put your pencils in one cup, your pens in another, your useless desktop knick-knacks in a third, and voila: clean and organized desk.

Our Recommendation: MobileVision Bamboo Multi-Function Desktop Organizer

Some things should always be kept separate. Church and state come instantly to mind. Nike shorts and Adidas shoes are a close second.

After that, the two things I most want to be kept separate are:

1) the proposal I'm finishing for a lucrative new digital marketing client, and

2) the exhaustively-curated folder of 80s and 90s rom-coms I keep on my desktop.

Until the pandemic ends, When Harry Met Sally is exiled to the hard drive. 

Our Recommendation: ADATA SD700

Believe it or not, there are still some things you actually need to print: government documents, rent agreements, zines, whatever. Some of these things you're going to need to print for the next 10 years, at least. If society collapses and the internet disappears, printers could become essential to largescale communication!

That said, buying a simple printer today will pay for itself in avoided headaches tomorrow.

Our Recommendation: HP Tango X

Look, a shredder isn't an essential home office accessory in 2020. We all know that. Nobody's receiving sensitive faxes anymore. Nobody's getting their credit card bills in the mail. (Although, if you do, what a great use for a shredder!)

Buying a paper shredder - they're actually pretty cheap - is all about Office Space-era nostalgia. Take a break from scheduling your company's weekly Instagram posts to shred the notice your building just sent about a suspected termite infestation.

Our Recommendation: AmazonBasics 6-Sheet Cross-Cut Paper and Credit Card Home Office Shredder

Pre-COVID, the western world was obsessed with making every minute more efficient than the last. Take 5G for example: 5G wireless internet will shave milliseconds off your favorite app's load time. That's it. Yet it's supposed to usher in a new digital revolution.

Smart speakers are another example: they're designed to shave precious seconds off hands-free tasks, so you can make shopping lists and buy shit off Amazon while simultaneously making dinner or changing the kids. But that's not all: they can also help make you ruthlessly efficient while working from home. Don't you dare stop typing that follow-up email to answer a text from your mom - speak it into your corporate-produed espionage device instead!

Our Recommendation: Amazon Echo Plus

It's not the 2010s anymore, losers. Single-device charging cables won't cut it. I'm proud to say that I own roughly 30 items that need a daily charge, at least five of which are moments away from dying at any time. I need a heavy-duty, multi-port charging station to keep my status symbols juiced and ready for action. When my boss wants to know how a website looks on a tablet, I'm ready. When my girlfriend wants to know how many steps I took yesterday, I'm ready. And it's all thanks to my powerful charging station.

Our Recommendation: Satechi Charging Station Dock

You've got your laptop plugged in in front of you. Your secondary monitor is plugged into the left. Your little desk fan and humidifier are plugged into its right. To the right of that is your old digital picture frame loaded with pre-pandemic memories (remember parties? remember your parents?). Your brand new shredder and printer are also taking up space. In other words, you've got a lot plugged in.

Don't let the back of your desk become an unsightly rat's nest. Just look how ashamed this lady is of her untidy workspace. Straighten that shit out with a simple cable organizer. It'll give you peace of mind and keep you focused on the task at hand.

Our Recommendation: Scandanavian Hub Under Desk Cable Management Tray

You've probably already got a little power bar under your desk. I'm sure it's fine. But it could be better. Upgrade to a big, beautiful new power bar with rotating outlets, surge protection, and as many inputs as possible. You shouldn't have to worry about where to plug in all these new gadgets.

Our Recommendation: APC P11GTV SurgeArrest

There are two classes of people in the work from home world: those of us tethered to our laptops by wired headphones, and those with AirPods.

I know what happens when you turn your cameras off - you're walking freely around your apartment, making sandwiches in the kitchen, folding laundry, playing with your dogs. I cannot stress how badly I envy you. The wireless headset is the gold standard of WFH accessories in 2020. When my bonus comes in, I'm joining your ranks.

Our Recommendation: Apple AirPods Pro

You probably thought Jacob, the class clown of your open-concept office, was annoying as hell in January. What you didn't know is that the family in the apartment next door is doing a full kitchen renovation during quarantine and that the local fire station uses your street as a north-south expressway during the day.

No matter where you're working, distractions abound. Invest in high-quality noise-canceling headphones to drown out the drilling today and Jacob when you return to the office in 2027.

Our Recommendation: Marshall Monitor Bluetooth Wireless Over-Ear Headphones

No office has ever achieved a stable, comfortable room temperature. They either try to freeze you out or turn the break room into a sauna. At home, you're in control. Love the heat? Go ahead and crank it up until you're working shirtless in March. Prefer the cold? Blast that AC until it feels like Christmas in August.

Either way, don't bother getting up to adjust the temperature - invest in a smart thermostat and, much like God, you'll have climate control at your fingertips.

Our Recommendation: Ecobee Smart Thermostat

For even more climate control, grab a mini desk humidifier. No more unexplained midsummer nosebleeds; no more sandpaper eyelids. And even though they're a bit obtrusive for the office - there's something weird about voluntarily emitting scented steam into a crowded workspace - they actually don't look bad! Plus, they're really affordable.

Our Recommendation: Sbode Humidifier

Instant coffee, more the most part, sucks. Running to and from your local beanery three times a day is expensive and a waste of time.

The solution: a simple french press coffee maker and a bag of pre-ground beans once a month from the grocery store. The coffee will be fresh, your bank account will thank you, and you'll be uncomfortably alert and energetic until lunch every day.

Our Recommendation: Bodum Chambord Coffee Press

The challenge with home offices is preventing work from invading every corner of what was your private home. Try keeping a yoga mat beside your desk. It should remind you that working from home actually offers more freedom than being at the office all day. If you're feeling frustrated or uncomfortable, take 30 minutes off to stretch and work out the kinks.

Our Recommendation: Jade Level 1 Yoga Mat