An L-shaped desk gets a lot of desk into a room that doesn't have much wall. It uses the corner, which is usually dead space anyway, and gives you two work surfaces within reach of one chair. The catch is that it has to fit two walls at once, so measuring properly matters more than it does with a straight desk.
How L-shaped desk sizes are written
Listings usually give two lengths: the long side and the short side, sometimes called the return. A 130 x 120cm desk has a 130cm side and a 120cm side. Some listings give the long side and the depth instead, so check the dimensions in the photos and specifications as well as the title.
Each side is usually 45cm to 60cm deep. Deeper suits a monitor. A shallower side is fine for a laptop or for writing.
Measuring your corner
- Measure along each wall from the corner to the first thing in the way: a door frame, a radiator, a window reveal or a socket you need to reach.
- Take 5cm off each measurement so the desk isn't jammed against the skirting.
- Check the walkway. You need about 70cm to 90cm of clear floor behind the chair to pull it out and sit down.
- Look at the windows. A sill lower than the desk (about 75cm) stops the desk going flush against that wall.
If you're unsure, mark the shape out with masking tape on the floor. It takes five minutes and shows you straight away whether the chair has room.
Left or right: check it's reversible
Which way round the desk goes depends on your room. Most of our L-shaped desks are reversible, so you can build the short side on the left or the right. That's also useful if you move house or rearrange later. Where a desk isn't reversible, the listing photos show which way it's built.
Desks for small corners
For a box room or bedroom, look at desks of around 100cm to 120cm on the long side. The small L-shaped desk with power outlets comes in 100 x 70cm, 120 x 70cm and 140 x 70cm. It has reversible shelves and a built-in power strip with USB and USB-C charging.
The L-shaped desk with RGB LED lights comes in three lengths, 106.5cm, 132.5cm and 147.5cm. It has three sockets, two USB ports and storage shelves that fit on either side.
Two monitors and bigger rooms
If you run two monitors, or work from paper and screen at the same time, go for at least 140cm on the long side. The L-shaped computer desk with drawers comes in 140 x 80cm and 160 x 80cm, with a four-tier set of fabric drawers, a monitor shelf, and two sockets with two USB ports.
The L-shaped desk with power outlets and LED lights is reversible, with a hutch that fixes on either side, open shelves and a movable monitor stand. For the longest run, the 181cm L-shaped corner desk has a full-length monitor shelf with space for two screens and a laptop.
Sockets, cables and assembly
Many L-shaped desks now have a power strip built in. It's handy, but it still has to reach a wall socket, so check the cord length on the listing (1.5m is common) against where your sockets are. Cables collect in the corner behind the desk, so leave a small gap at the back or use the cable holes.
These are bigger flat packs than a normal desk, and a second pair of hands helps when you join the two sides together. If you'd like to stand for part of the day, have a look at our standing desks too. Delivery is free to the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland, and most orders arrive in 3 to 7 days.