Top 17 'Showroom-Shine' Cleaning Hacks to Decorate Your First Apartment When You're Broke
Congratulations! You’ve done it. You’ve signed the lease, grabbed the keys, and are standing in the middle of your very first apartment. The feeling is electric, a mix of pure freedom and maybe a tiny bit of "Oh wow, what now?" The possibilities are endless! You can already see the gallery wall, the cozy reading nook, and the perfect spot for your monstera plant.
Then, reality hits. Your bank account, still recovering from the security deposit and first month's rent, is looking a little lean. That designer sofa and mid-century modern coffee table will have to wait. Decorating on a budget feels less like a fun challenge and more like an impossible mission. But what if I told you the single most effective way to "decorate" your new space is completely free? It's not about what you add; it's about what you reveal.
Before you spend a single dollar on throw pillows or posters, the secret to making your apartment look incredible is to make it sparkle. I'm talking about a deep, satisfying, "showroom-shine" clean. A truly clean space looks bigger, brighter, and more intentional. It makes hand-me-down furniture look chic and empty corners look minimalist. It’s the ultimate decorating hack for when you’re broke, and it lays the perfect foundation for all the amazing things to come.
Ready to roll up your sleeves? Here are 17 budget-friendly cleaning hacks that will transform your first apartment from a blank slate into a brilliant masterpiece.
1. Master the Faucet with a Lemon
Your kitchen and bathroom faucets are the jewelry of the room. When they shine, the whole space looks more polished and expensive. Over time, however, they get cloudy with hard water stains and soap scum. Forget pricey chemical cleaners; the secret weapon is probably already in your fridge.
Cut a lemon in half. The citric acid is a natural powerhouse for dissolving mineral deposits. For extra scrubbing power, dip the cut side into a small bowl of baking soda. Now, use the lemon half to scrub your chrome faucets, handles, and drains. You’ll feel a slight fizzing action as the acid and base react, lifting the grime away. Let it sit for about five minutes, then rinse with water and buff dry with a clean microfiber cloth. The result is a brilliant, streak-free shine and a fresh, citrusy scent.
2. Steam Clean Your Microwave with Vinegar
That caked-on spaghetti sauce from the last tenant? It doesn't stand a chance. Cleaning the inside of a microwave can feel like an archeological dig, but this hack makes it virtually effortless. It’s a simple science experiment that does all the hard work for you.
Find a microwave-safe bowl and fill it with one cup of water and one cup of white vinegar. For a pleasant aroma, you can add a few drops of lemon juice. Place the bowl in the microwave and run it on high for 5-7 minutes, or until the mixture is boiling and the window is steamy. Let it sit with the door closed for another 5 minutes to let the steam penetrate every stubborn food particle. When you open the door, you'll be able to wipe away all the gunk with a sponge or paper towel. No scrubbing required!
3. Degrease Kitchen Cabinets with Dish Soap
You might not notice it at first, but a sticky, grimy film of cooking grease and dust eventually settles on kitchen cabinets, especially the ones above the stove. This layer of grime can make an entire kitchen feel dull and dirty. The solution is simpler and cheaper than any specialty degreaser.
Fill a spray bottle with warm water and add a few generous squirts of a good grease-cutting dish soap (like Dawn). Shake it gently to mix. Spray the solution onto your cabinets, one section at a time, and let it sit for a minute or two to break down the grease. Then, wipe it clean with a damp microfiber cloth. For stubborn spots, a little elbow grease with a non-abrasive sponge will do the trick. Your cabinets will look brighter and feel so much cleaner.
4. Revive Your Sink with a Baking Soda Scrub
Whether it's stainless steel or white ceramic, your kitchen sink sees a lot of action and can quickly become stained and scuffed. To restore its original glory, all you need is the humble box of baking soda. It's a mild abrasive that cleans and deodorizes without scratching surfaces.
Rinse your sink to get it wet, then sprinkle a generous layer of baking soda all over the basin. Using a damp sponge or cloth, scrub in a circular motion. You'll see coffee stains, food discolorations, and small scuffs begin to lift away. For an extra deep clean, you can make a paste with baking soda and a little water and let it sit on tough stains for 10-15 minutes before scrubbing. Rinse thoroughly, and your sink will be the sparkling centerpiece of your kitchen again.
5. Polish Stainless Steel with Olive Oil
Stainless steel appliances give a kitchen a sleek, modern look, but they are notorious magnets for fingerprints and smudges. The secret to a showroom-worthy finish isn't an expensive polish; it's a drop of cooking oil.
First, clean your appliance with a damp cloth and a bit of mild dish soap, always wiping in the direction of the grain. Dry it completely with a clean towel. Now, pour a tiny amount of olive oil (or even baby oil) onto a soft cloth—a little goes a long way! Buff the oil onto the surface, again moving with the grain. This not only erases any remaining smudges but also creates a protective barrier that helps repel future fingerprints.
6. Brighten Grout with a DIY Paste
Dingy grout can make even the cleanest bathroom tiles look old and dirty. Professional grout cleaning can be expensive, but you can achieve dramatic results with a simple homemade paste. It’s one of those apartment cleaning hacks that delivers incredible visual impact for pennies.
In a small bowl, mix baking soda with hydrogen peroxide until you have a thick, spreadable paste. Using an old toothbrush, apply the paste directly onto the grout lines. Let it sit and bubble for at least 15-20 minutes. The peroxide will help bleach stains, and the baking soda will scrub them away. After it has time to work its magic, scrub the lines with the toothbrush, then rinse the entire area with water. You'll be shocked at how much brighter your tile looks.
7. Unclog Your Shower Head in Your Sleep
Is your shower head sputtering with weak, uneven streams? The culprit is likely mineral buildup (limescale) clogging the nozzles. This is an easy overnight fix that requires zero scrubbing and will dramatically improve your shower experience.
Find a sturdy plastic bag (like a sandwich or freezer bag) and fill it halfway with white vinegar. Carefully place the bag around your shower head, ensuring all the nozzles are fully submerged in the vinegar. Secure the bag in place with a rubber band or a hair tie. Leave it to soak overnight. In the morning, remove the bag and run the hot water for a minute to flush out all the dissolved deposits. Your water pressure will be back to full strength!
8. Get Truly Streak-Free Mirrors with Alcohol
Nothing says "clean" like a perfectly clear, streak-free mirror. Commercial glass cleaners can sometimes leave behind a hazy film. For a flawless finish, create your own superior cleaning solution with an item from your first-aid kit.
In a spray bottle, mix one part rubbing alcohol with one part water. The alcohol is a solvent that cuts through toothpaste splatters and hairspray residue, and it evaporates quickly, which is the key to preventing streaks. Spray the solution directly onto a flat-weave microfiber cloth (not the mirror itself, to avoid drips). Wipe the mirror clean from top to bottom in a zig-zag "S" pattern. You’ll be left with a crystal-clear reflection.
9. Erase Soap Scum with a Dryer Sheet
The cloudy, white film that builds up on glass shower doors is stubborn soap scum. It can feel impossible to remove with a regular sponge. Here's an unconventional trick that works wonders: a used or new dryer sheet.
Lightly dampen a dryer sheet and use it to scrub the soap scum on your glass door or shower curtain. The texture of the sheet provides the perfect amount of abrasion to lift the scum without scratching the surface, and the ingredients in the sheet help to break it down. It requires a bit of elbow grease, but the results are worth it. Rinse the door thoroughly with water and squeegee it dry for a transparently clean finish.
10. Deep Clean Your Toilet with a "Volcano"
Let's be honest, cleaning the toilet is nobody's favorite chore. This "volcano" method makes it more effective and a little more fun. It uses the classic science-fair reaction of baking soda and vinegar to disinfect and deodorize your toilet bowl.
Pour one cup of baking soda directly into the toilet bowl, making sure to get it around the sides. Let it sit for a few minutes. Then, slowly pour in about two cups of white vinegar. The mixture will begin to fizz and foam dramatically. Let this powerful reaction work for about 10-15 minutes, then use your toilet brush to scrub the entire bowl. The fizzing action helps to loosen stains and kill germs below the waterline. Flush, and you're done.
11. Make Walls Look Fresh with a Magic Eraser
Moving into a new place often means inheriting scuffs, marks, and mysterious smudges on the walls and baseboards. Instead of worrying about repainting, your first line of defense should be a magic eraser (or its generic melamine foam equivalent). These are truly magic for making paint look freshly applied.
Simply dampen the sponge and gently rub away scuffs from shoes, furniture marks, and crayon art. They are especially effective on light switches, door frames, and baseboards—all high-traffic areas that collect dirt and grime. It's the fastest way to brighten up a room and make the entire space feel cleaner and newer.
12. Whip Up a Custom Dusting Spray
Dust is the enemy of a showroom-shine finish. A dry cloth often just pushes dust around, sending it airborne only to resettle elsewhere. A simple DIY dusting spray helps trap the dust so you can actually remove it.
In a spray bottle, combine two cups of water, a tablespoon of white vinegar, and a teaspoon of olive oil. The vinegar helps to clean, while the tiny amount of oil helps to polish wood surfaces and trap dust. For a nice scent, add 5-10 drops of your favorite essential oil, like lavender or lemon. Lightly mist the solution onto your microfiber cloth and get to dusting.
13. Use a Lint Roller on Lampshades and More
Fabric surfaces like lampshades, throw pillows, and even upholstered chairs can be tricky to clean. They are magnets for dust, pet hair, and lint. The easiest, most gentle way to clean them is with a sticky lint roller.
Simply roll it over the surface of your fabric lampshade. You’ll be amazed at the amount of dust it picks up. This method is much safer than vacuuming, which can dent or damage delicate shades. It’s a quick-fix that instantly makes the lighting in your room look cleaner and brighter. This is a perfect example of a small detail that makes a huge difference.
14. Clean Windows Like a Pro with Cornstarch
Sparkling, streak-free windows can completely change the feel of a room, making it feel brighter and more connected to the outdoors. Here at the Goh Ling Yong blog, we love a good professional-level hack you can do yourself. The secret ingredient for a perfect window clean is cornstarch.
In a spray bottle, mix a quarter cup of white vinegar, a quarter cup of rubbing alcohol, one tablespoon of cornstarch, and two cups of warm water. Shake well to dissolve the cornstarch. Spray the solution onto your windows and wipe with a microfiber cloth. The cornstarch acts as a very fine abrasive to scrub away grime and, most importantly, it helps prevent streaks as the solution dries. For best results, use a squeegee, wiping the blade after each pass.
15. Deodorize Carpets and Rugs with Baking Soda
Rugs and carpets can hold onto odors from previous tenants, pets, or just general mustiness. Before you even think about renting a carpet cleaner, give your floors a simple, dry refresh.
Sprinkle a liberal amount of baking soda evenly over the entire surface of your carpet or area rug. If you want to add a fresh scent, you can mix in a few drops of essential oil into the baking soda before sprinkling. Let it sit for at least 30 minutes, but several hours (or even overnight) is even better. The baking soda will absorb and neutralize the odors trapped in the fibers. Then, vacuum it all up thoroughly. Your carpets will smell noticeably fresher.
16. Use Dryer Sheets for Dust-Repellent Baseboards
Cleaning baseboards is a tedious task that often gets overlooked, but clean baseboards frame a room and make it look truly finished. This two-in-one hack not only cleans them but also helps them stay clean longer.
After you've wiped down your baseboards with a damp cloth to remove the initial layer of dirt, go over them one more time with a used or new dryer sheet. The sheet will pick up any remaining dust, and its anti-static properties will leave behind a residue that actually repels future dust from settling. This means you'll have to clean them less often—a huge win for any first-time apartment dweller.
17. The Only Floor Mop Solution You'll Ever Need
Unless you have unsealed hardwood, this simple, all-purpose floor cleaning solution works wonders on tile, linoleum, and vinyl flooring. It cleans, disinfects, and leaves your floors squeaky clean without any sticky residue.
Get a bucket of very hot water. Add a generous splash of white vinegar (about half a cup per gallon) and just a single, small drop of dish soap. Too much soap will leave a film, so less is more. The hot water and vinegar do the heavy lifting of cutting through grime and killing germs, while the tiny bit of soap helps lift away dirt. Mop your floors, wringing out the mop head well each time, and let them air dry. The slight vinegar smell will dissipate as it dries, leaving nothing but a clean scent behind.
The Foundation of a Beautiful Home
Moving into your first apartment is a huge milestone. It’s a space that’s entirely yours to shape and define. While your budget might be tight right now, don't underestimate the transformative power of a deep clean. These 17 hacks prove that you don't need a lot of money to create a home that feels bright, fresh, and beautiful.
By investing a little time and elbow grease, you’re not just cleaning; you’re decorating. You're creating a sparkling clean canvas. Every shiny faucet, every streak-free window, and every clean baseboard contributes to a "showroom" feel that will make you proud of your new home. Now that your space is truly shining, you can slowly and intentionally add the decor pieces you love.
What are your favorite budget-friendly cleaning or decorating hacks for a first apartment? Share your wisdom in the comments below—we'd love to hear them
About the Author
Goh Ling Yong is a content creator and digital strategist sharing insights across various topics. Connect and follow for more content:
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