8 Ways to Transform Your RV Workspace

Sep 12, 2022 | Maintenance & Mods

8 Ways to Transform Your RV Workspace

Even in tight quarters you can still have a dedicated space for work or roadschooling. A professional RV renovator shows us how.

By Renee Tilby

Photo: Renee Tilby

Overwhelmed at the idea of setting up a workspace in your RV and looking for inspiration? We’ve got you covered with these eight ideas for creating your perfect home-on-wheels office space.

Related Rig Roundup: The Best RVs for Working Remotely

1. Create an On-The-Go Workspace

One of the great things about RV life is that you can live, and work, anywhere. Your workspace doesn’t have to be fancy. Create a dedicated bag for your office-on-the-go that has everything you need, like a wireless keyboard, mouse, portable monitor, notebook, pens, etc. This allows you to take advantage of all the beautiful places that you’re traveling to. The picnic table at your campsite, a playground, the top of a mountain, or the beach can all become your workspace.

Related How to Create the Perfect Mobile Office

2. Reimagine Your Dinette

Sometimes one needs a bit more than a picnic table for an office space. Dinettes are a useful area to create a flexible space—office in the daytime, dinner table at night. Have a dedicated place in your RV to store work supplies so it’s easier to convert between eating and working. 

The dinette isn’t always the most efficient use of space for a mobile workspace. You can replace the dinette with a more official office area and desk, like full-time RVers Chris and Lindsay (@calledtowander) did for their RV workspace. Nikki Kirk (@nikkirk7), co-founder of Rootless Living Magazine and RV Today Magazine, did the same for her mobile office. 

3. Create a Custom Desk

Digital creators and RVers Keith and Raini (@keithandraini) created their RV office space by removing two recliners and adding cabinet boxes and prefabbed countertops that were cut to size. A similar custom desk could be installed in a less frequently used seating area (like a couch), on the back wall of a bunkroom, in a toy hauler, or as a replacement for a dinette. Almost any corner can be refitted for your workspace.

4. Make Your Rooms Multipurpose

If you don’t want to rip out a dinette or build a custom desk, you can repurpose the rooms you already have. A kitchen counter can become a fantastic standing desk. Turn your bed into a comfy production center, or use your couch as an office chair by simply adding in an adjustable laptop stand.

Person with a standing desk at an RV kitchen counter
Photo: Renee Tilby

Combine a laptop stand with a mobile office bag and a pair of noise-cancelling headphones, and any location you want can become your workspace. 

5. Use a Folding Work Station

If you want a dedicated work area but don’t have the space for it, a folding desk is a convenient solution. Digital nomads Jenn and Kendall (@dashboarddrifters) created a beautiful bedroom and office flex space by installing a folding tabletop across from their bed. This allows them to optimize function while still keeping the space streamlined and airy. 

RVer and realtor Erin (@Twinning_in_our_home) makes great use of her family space with a folding desk used as a workspace for her girls. You can create something similar by turning the side of your island or an empty wall of your RV into an office space with folding shelf brackets and a slab of wood that’s cut to size.

If you want a folding workstation but don’t want to build anything, you can purchase a table that folds down into a sidebar with storage, like this one from IKEA. If you like the concept of a folding workstation but want something that takes up less space, research mounted folding tables or folding wall desks.            

6. Turn a Dresser Into a Desk

Since many primary RV bedrooms have a door, they’re a prime location for creating a more private mobile office space. Digital creators and full-time RVers Mark and Rachel (@wanderfulway) removed the dresser in their bedroom and replaced it with a full office desk. Another option for a primary bedroom office is to keep the dresser and install a folding desk beside it.

7. Target the Mid-Bunk

RV living area with TV, desk space, and shelving
Photo: Renee Tilby

If you’re shopping for an RV and a dedicated office space is a priority for you, a mid-bunk floor plan might be the best option. In this renovation (pictured above), the mid-bunk was renovated to be the owner’s dedicated office space. The RV was fitted with a desk on one side, and then the couch was removed to make way for a wall-to-wall desk for multiple monitors, creating a space that’s bigger and more usable than many home offices in traditional homes. 

8. Build a Toy Hauler Office

Mid-bunks aren’t the only floor plan option for turning an entire room into an office space. Because of their larger size and open concepts, toy hauler garages are useful for multiple purposes, including full-blown office spaces. RV renovator and designer Rachel (@rv.family.reno) turned her utilitarian toy hauler “toy box” into a stunning flex space that serves as the primary bedroom, office, and laundry room.

Related Rig Roundup: 6 Toy Haulers for Your Adventures

Since most toy hauler garages come with one or two queen-sized beds on lifts, you can transform a bedroom into an open, airy office space with the push of a button. Plus, there’s typically a deck off the back of the garage, giving you floor-to-ceiling views.

This article has links to products that were carefully selected by our editors. We may earn commission on your purchases from these links. Visit this page for the full details of our affiliate marketing policy.

remote workRV ModsRV Travel

Renee Tilby

Renee and her family of seven live full-time in their RV. They've been on the road for more than 4 years, renovating RVs and the occasional home along the way. They love to find hidden gems everywhere they go and consider nature the absolute best place to do that.