How to Organize Lego

I’m a huge fan of Lego and have been since I was a kid. As both an adult collector and a parent to kids who play Lego, I’ve had plenty of time to figure out the best way to organize Lego pieces. And I hate to break it to you – you’re probably doing it wrong.

This post is especially directed at parents who organize their kids’ Lego. I’m sure your average collector already has a system that works for them, but if you don’t then I hope these tips can help you out too!

I used this technique to organize the Lego that I was still hanging onto from when I was a kid, as well as other loose Lego pieces we had in the house that weren’t linked to the kids’ sets.

How to Organize a Small Amount of Lego

It’s simple: don’t! This is a great technique for kids that have some basic brick sets, only a few sets, or are quite young. Little kids likely can’t keep up with more complex systems, so this works well for them.

We keep the everyday Lego my 7 year old plays with in the largest Ikea Lego container. It’s honestly a great product, I can’t recommend it enough! Actually, everything you see in this post is from Ikea; apologies in advance if you don’t have one nearby.

Of course, these are just ideas; apply them to whatever storage solution works for you.

Anyway, any small container will work but huge bonus points if it can be a play surface too. It’s also great for leaving the builds set up for longer without having to worry about mess.

How to Organize a Lot of Lego With Ikea Trofast

Ok, this isn’t even really a lot of Lego compared to how much some people have, but it’s probably close to what the average Lego obsessed kid has kicking around their room.

You can always take this idea and expand it, too. It’s just a concept, after all. Take it and apply it to whatever systems you already have in your home or what works best for your family.

I’m a huge fan of the Ikea Trofast system so I thought: why not? It looks pretty good in my office, the bins hold Lego really well, and I managed to fit everything I wanted to inside of two units.

The best part is that the top can be used for storage. Or in my case, to hold my purchased sets that I haven’t had the chance to build yet because I’ve been too busy. You could also put built sets up there as a display space.

My kids have the shorter Trofast systems in their room and actually love using it as a Lego table too because of how low it is to the ground.

Some Examples of What’s Inside the Lego Drawers

I used inserts to help further organize the sets, and did my best to create logical categories. For example, the minifigures are all in one divided bin along with accessories and animals.

All the bricks are organized by shape and style, or at least as much as possible. Studs get their own compartment, which is different than the 1×1 bricks. And so on.

When it would be easy to find the right piece, like with the flat bricks in the last picture, I just put everything together. Generally speaking, I pulled anything smaller than a length of 3 out, otherwise it went in the general bin. As you an see, this system works really well to find what you’re looking for quickly.

There was a small gap under the divided bins when I put them in. I can use that space for manuals or larger pieces.

Other Tips for Lego Organization

Here’s some general tips to help you organize your kids’ Lego that have worked in my house.

Don’t Overdo the Categories

You don’t want to create a system that’s too complex to be used properly. It’s also no fun for kids to through a bunch of little drawers to find what they’re looking for. This is going to vary by age; older kids, teens, and adults may want some specialized storage, but younger kids don’t care.

Keep Set Types Together

I use this system to organize our bulk bricks and sets that are missing pieces. On the other hand, I keep all of the twins’ Mario Lego sets separate in their room so they can easily play with them. If you have a lot of sets from the same series, (eg. Lego Friends, Mario, Minecraft, etc) consider sorting them on their own.

Make a Display or Play Space

I love displaying my Lego, and so do my kids! When we redid my son’s room we actually made sure he had dedicated space to display his Lego sets. I also have shelves in my office to show off my favourite builds.

If sets have a dedicated place where they can be set up and viewed (or played with) you’ll need less storage space for individual pieces. Your kids will also get more enjoyment out of their Lego, too.

What is the Worst Way to Organize Lego?

I know I’m going to get slack for this from all aesthetic parents out there, but by far the worst way to organize Lego is by colour. It’s so much easier to find what you’re looking for when bricks are sorted by shape. Colours are easy to differentiate from one another. But the right brick in a sea of the same colour is nearly impossible to spot easily.

It might look good, but it makes it so much harder to build sets or your own creations when sorted this way.

Hopefully I’ve convinced you that sorting by colour isn’t the best way to organize Lego; organizing by brick type is!