# Lego Storage Ideas: 15 Ways to Sort, Store and Display Bricks > Sort Lego by color for young kids, by type of piece for keen builders, or by set for kids who build from the instructions, and keep sets in progress bagged with their instructions apart from the loose bricks. Shallow clear drawers beat deep bins. Hoardo lists what's in every bin, so a search shows which one a set is in. Published 2026-11-09 by Hoardo. Original: https://www.hoardo.com/articles/lego-storage-ideas Lego storage ideas usually start with a big bin, and the big bin is the problem. Every brick is in it, the piece your kid needs is at the bottom, and the half-built fire station from Christmas is in there somewhere too. Digging is half the fun for a while. Then it's the reason nobody builds anything. This guide covers the three ways to sort Lego and when each one works, where sets in progress and their instructions go, how to display what's built, minifigures, play tables for small rooms, and what to do with a tub of mixed bricks. Then 15 Lego storage ideas you can set up this weekend. ## Three ways to sort Lego There's no right way, only the one that fits how your family builds. Pick by asking one question: does your kid build sets from the instructions, or build their own things? ### By color The way most families start, and it looks great on a shelf. It works best for younger kids and for big, simple builds, since a 4-year-old looking for "a red one" finds it fast. It gets harder as the collection grows: finding one small gray piece among a thousand gray pieces takes as long as digging in the big bin. ### By type of piece Plates in one drawer, bricks in another, wheels and axles, windows and doors, slopes, Technic pieces, the tiny bits. This is how keen builders sort, because when you build you look for a shape first and a color second. It takes longer to set up and needs more containers, but it's the system that still works at 10,000 pieces. ### By set Every set stays in its own bag or box with its instructions, so it can be built again. It suits kids who love the build more than what comes after, collectors, and sets you might sell one day. It doesn't suit kids who mix everything into their own creations, because a set never stays a set for long. Most homes end up with a mix: sets in progress kept by set, everything else by type or color, and the minifigures on their own. ## How to organize Lego in an afternoon 1. **Pull out the sets that are still whole**, or nearly whole, and bag each one with its instructions. 2. **Pick out the minifigures** and their hats, hair and tools. They go in their own box. 3. **Do a first rough sort of the rest.** By color for younger kids, by type for older ones. Sort into a few big groups first, then split them later. 4. **Buy containers once you know the groups.** Count how many groups you have and how big each is, then buy drawers or bins to match. 5. **Label every drawer**, with a picture of the piece for kids who can't read yet. 6. **Give the sets in progress their own place**, away from the loose bricks, so the next bag doesn't get mixed in. ## 15 Lego storage ideas ### Loose bricks 1. **Clear drawer units.** Shallow drawers you can see into beat deep bins. A unit with 10 to 20 small drawers holds a sorted collection on one shelf. 2. **Shallow bins over deep ones.** A bin no deeper than 10 cm (4 inches) lets small hands spread the bricks out instead of digging. 3. **A play mat that becomes a bag.** A round mat with a drawstring edge: build on it, pull the string and it's a sack. The fastest cleanup there is for kids who build on the floor. 4. **Stackable lidded bins by type.** Wheels, windows, plates, slopes. The lids keep out dust and little siblings. 5. **Tackle boxes or bead organizers for tiny pieces.** The small bits get lost in big drawers. Organizers with small compartments keep them sorted and portable. ### Sets in progress 6. **One zip bag or small box per set**, with the instructions folded inside. Number the bags in the order you'll build. 7. **Keep the sealed bags sealed.** A set with bags 5 and 6 still closed can be finished next month. Opened and tipped into the bin, it can't. 8. **A tray for the build in progress.** A cafeteria tray or a shallow box lid holds the half-built model and its loose pieces, and moves off the table at dinner time. ### Instructions 9. **Magazine files or a binder.** Booklets stand upright in a magazine file; thin ones go in sheet protectors in a binder, by theme or set number. 10. **Keep a note of which set is where.** If the instructions are in the set's bag, the bag is the only place to look. ### Minifigures 11. **A small drawer organizer or bead box.** One figure per compartment for a small collection, a few per compartment by theme for a big one. 12. **A display frame on the wall.** A shallow frame with ledges shows off the favorites and keeps them out of the brick bin. ### Display and play 13. **Floating shelves for built models.** Shelves 15 to 20 cm (6 to 8 inches) deep show off finished sets at eye level, out of reach of younger siblings. 14. **A Lego table with storage underneath.** A table with a building surface on top and bins below. For small rooms, a baseplate on a lid that sits over a storage bin does the same job. 15. **Build plates on the wall.** Baseplates fixed to a wall become a building space that takes no floor at all. ![Built toy brick models on a white floating shelf above shallow lidded bins of loose bricks, in a child's bedroom](https://www.hoardo.com/guides/lego-sets.jpg) *Finished sets on a floating shelf, loose bricks in shallow lidded bins below.* ## What to do with a big tub of mixed Lego If you've bought a secondhand lot or inherited a cousin's collection, sort it in passes rather than trying to get it perfect at once. - **First pass: pull out the big and the special.** Baseplates, minifigures, wheels, windows, anything with a sticker or print. - **Second pass: big groups.** Bricks, plates, everything else. - **Third pass, later: split each group** by color or type, whichever way you chose. Give it a rinse in lukewarm water in a mesh laundry bag, never hot, and dry it on towels. If a set was clearly in there, set aside the pieces and look up its instructions online; many full sets come back together this way. And be honest about how much you need. A tub you'll never sort is a good candidate to sell or pass on: see [declutter and sell](https://www.hoardo.com/articles/declutter-and-sell). ## Lego storage mistakes to avoid - **Buying containers first.** You can't size them until you know how much of each group you have. - **One deep box for everything.** The bricks you need are always at the bottom. - **Too many categories too soon.** 40 drawers is a lot to put away into. Start with 8 to 10, split later. - **Mixing the sets in progress with the loose bricks.** Once a set is in the bin, it's gone. - **Small pieces where babies play.** Lego pieces are a choking hazard for children under 3. Keep them up high or in another room when there's a baby in the house. ## Find any Lego set later Once the bricks are sorted, the next question is always "where's the space shuttle?" If the sets are bagged in a few bins, that's a search instead of an afternoon. Hoardo is a free app where every bin, drawer unit and shelf is a numbered box with a list of what's in it. *The playroom in Hoardo: the loose bricks drawers, the sets being built and the minifigures, each by number.* 1. **Make a room for where the Lego lives**, the playroom or a bedroom. 2. **Add each drawer unit, bin and shelf as a numbered box**, with the number written on it. 3. **List what's inside, with notes.** "Fire station set, bags 1 to 4" with the note "Bags 5 and 6 still sealed, instructions inside" tells you exactly how to finish it. 4. **Print QR labels** for the bins. Scanning one with a phone opens that bin's list. *Box #2, sets being built: the fire station with its note about bags 5 and 6, the space shuttle and 14 instruction booklets.* Then searching for a set shows which bin it's in and the room. The same works for every other toy: see [toy storage ideas](https://www.hoardo.com/articles/toy-storage-ideas) for the rest of the playroom, and the full list of [storage ideas for every room](https://www.hoardo.com/articles/storage-ideas). **Know which bin every Lego set is in Number your bins, list the sets and pieces inside and find any of them with a search. Free, every feature included.** [Start free](https://www.hoardo.com/login) ## Questions about Lego storage ### What's the best way to sort Lego? It depends on how your kids build. By color is easiest for young children, by type of piece works best for big collections and keen builders, and by set suits kids who build from the instructions. Many families mix them: sets kept whole, everything else by type or color. ### How do I store Lego sets that are half built? Keep each set in its own zip bag or small box with its instructions, and leave the unopened numbered bags sealed. Put the half-built model on a tray so it can move off the table in one piece. Keep these away from the loose brick bins, so nothing gets mixed in. ### How do I store Lego instructions? Upright in magazine files, or in sheet protectors in a binder, sorted by theme or set number. For sets in progress, keep the booklet in the set's bag so the bag is the only place to look. ### How do you store a lot of Lego in a small space? Use height and furniture: a drawer unit on a shelf, a play table with bins underneath, baseplates on the wall and a play mat that pulls into a bag. Keep only what's played with in the room, and the rest in labeled bins in a closet. ### How do I find which bin a Lego set is in? Number every bin and keep a list of what's in each. In Hoardo every bin is a numbered box with its sets and notes, like which bags are still sealed, and a search shows the bin and the room. A QR label on the bin opens its list on your phone. ### Is Hoardo free? Yes. Hoardo is free, with every feature included: rooms, numbered boxes, QR labels, search and sharing with your family. There's no paid plan.