A ladder bookshelf gives you five shelves in a footprint not much bigger than a doormat, and it's one of the easiest pieces of real furniture to build. Two long legs, a few angled cuts and some boards are usually all it takes, which makes it a good first project. These 20 DIY ladder bookshelf tutorials each have a materials or cut list and written steps on the maker's own page. They cover leaning bookcases, A-frames, kids' shelves, ladder desks, upcycled old ladders and plant ladders.
A few things every maker below agrees on. The lean comes from one angle. Most plans cut the bottom and top of the legs at a parallel 5° to 10°, so the feet sit flat on the floor and the top rests flat against the wall. If your miter saw only does 45° and 90°, the Her Tool Belt plan has a workaround. Shelves get deeper as they go down. That keeps the weight low and the shelf stable. Anchor it. A leaning shelf is held up by the wall, and a toddler pulling on a low shelf can tip it forward. Almost every maker recommends an L-bracket or a strap at the top into a stud. Finally, glue plus screws or pocket screws beats nails alone for anything that will hold books.
Leaning ladder bookcases from new lumber
These are the classic: tall angled legs with trays or boards stepping down to a deep bottom shelf.
Leaning Ladder Wall Bookshelf — Ana White. Built from 1x3 legs, 76-1/4 inches long with parallel 5° cuts, and box shelves made from 1x6 up to 1x12 boards. An 11-inch plywood spacer block sets the shelf heights, so you don't need to measure each one. Uses a Kreg jig, miter saw and nailer. Intermediate. Ana recommends screwing the top into a wall stud.
DIY Leaning Ladder Bookshelf — Simpson Strong-Tie. A sturdy 2x4 frame with front legs at 80 inches and rear legs at 78-1/4, joined at the top. Six plywood shelves, 9-1/2 to 20-3/4 inches deep, sit on metal gusset angles every 12 inches. It's a hardware brand's blog, so it uses their brackets, but the cut list and steps are all on the page.
DIY Leaning Ladder Bookcase — This Old House. About $55 and 4 hours, rated 1 out of 5 for difficulty. Five 24-inch plywood shelves on 1x4 supports, with 1x2 legs cut at 9°. Everything is pocket-screwed, and iron-on edge banding hides the plywood edges. Easy.
Leaning Tower of Shelves — Family Handyman. A handsome red oak version, 82-3/4 inches tall with a 10° lean and five tray shelves. Shelf cleats are glued and nailed on using a 1x3 spacer, and foam pads on the feet stop it sliding. About $51–100 and one afternoon. Intermediate. The cutting list is shown as a figure.
DIY Modern Ladder Shelf — If Only April. Five 24-inch shelves from 1x4 up to a glued-up 16-inch bottom shelf, on slim 1x2 legs cut at 10°. Uses 11-1/2 inch spacers and 2-inch screws with pilot holes. About 3 hours.
DIY Leaning Bookshelf — Fish & Bull. About $60 in pine, with 84-inch sides and five 27-1/4 inch shelves from 7-1/2 to 11 inches deep. Shelves are marked every 14 inches. If you don't have a table saw, have the store rip the shelves. The screw heads show, which some people like. It's a two-person build.
DIY Leaning Ladder Shelf — Brepurposed. Plywood shelves from 4-1/2 to 14 inches deep, nailed between legs cut at 10°, with thin pine trim glued over the plywood edges. Under $100. A chop saw and nail gun are all you need. The lumber size in the materials list doesn't match the steps, so measure your own boards.
DIY Ladder Shelf — Little House on the Corner. The one for metric readers: about €40 and 4 hours, with six 480 mm shelves cut from one 2-metre board and 1.85 m sides at 8°. Shelves are glued and screwed through the slats, pre-drilled at 3 mm. A hand saw and miter box will do.
DIY Freestanding Ladder Bookshelf — Woodshop Diaries. Unlike the others, this one doesn't need a wall: it has four legs, so it stands on its own like an open bookcase. It's 30 inches wide, 66 tall and 16 deep, with 2x2 legs, pocket holes and dowel-plugged screws. Beginner, a few hours. The full cut list is in a separate printable plan, but the steps give most of the dimensions.
A-frame and kids' ladder shelves
DIY A-Frame Ladder Shelves — Vintage Revivals. Three pivot-bolted ladders made from 1x3 pine and dowel rungs, carrying long 1x12 shelves. It's a clever, adjustable design, and a single drilled board is used as the template for the rest. Commenters ask how much weight the long shelves can carry, so add a middle ladder if you're shelving heavy books.
DIY A-Frame Ladder Bookshelf — Modern Builds. A hinged A-frame from 2x12s and ripped 1x2 slats, glued and brad-nailed, with a 39-inch bottom shelf. A good weekend project. It was made alongside a video, and the cut sizes are in a diagram rather than in the text.
Small Ladder Bookshelf — Ana White. A Pottery Barn Kids–style ladder with three trays for picture books, about $25 in wood. It uses 1x2 legs cut at 10° and trays with 1/4-inch plywood bottoms. Intermediate.
DIY Kids Present Ladder — The Home Depot. A kid-height folding A-frame with 42-inch 2x2 legs, brass hinges and two shelves of about 28 and 16 inches. It was designed to display presents, but it makes a great reading-corner shelf for the rest of the year. It's decorative, so don't let kids climb it.
Ladder desks
A ladder desk adds a writing surface at desk height. It's ideal for a teen's room or a small home office.
DIY Ladder Desk — Saws on Skates. The most ambitious build here: a leaning desk with a small cabinet, a drawer on 16-inch slides and shelves above, in 19 numbered steps. Front legs are cut at 12-1/2°. The author says it's tippy and must be anchored with L-brackets.
Leaning Crate Ladder Bookshelf and Desk — Her Tool Belt. Weathered wooden crates become the shelves, held between 60-7/8 inch legs with a 1x6 desk top. There's an alternate leg option if your saw can't cut the 10° miter. If you like this look, our crate shelves guide has 20 more crate builds.
Upcycled old ladders and wall-mounted shelves
Got an old wooden ladder in the garage or at a yard sale? These turn it into shelving.
Upcycled Ladder Shelves and DIY Crates — Scavenger Chic. Half of an old stepladder, with small crates made from reclaimed boards and cut at 5° to match the ladder's taper. The crates are screwed to the rails, and the unit is screwed to the wall through one of them. Easy. Your measurements will depend on your ladder.
DIY Corner Ladder Shelf — Bosch DIY. An old ladder sawn into two pieces and hung horizontally on brackets as a corner wall shelf. About £70 and 1–3 hours. Medium. It's a tool brand's site, but the steps work with any tools.
Double A-Frame Ladder Plant Stand — Mother Daughter Projects. Two yard-sale stepladders with fence-picket shelves bolted through, so it comes apart for storage. It's built for a porch, but it works indoors too.
Ladder plant shelves
DIY Plant Ladder Shelf — Woodshop Diaries. Four 16-inch cedar trays on 1x3 sides, set with a spacer block, glued, nailed and screwed. A couple of hours. Pair it with a macrame plant hanger for trailing plants.
DIY Ladder Plant Stand — The Merrythought. A short three-shelf stand, about 40 inches tall, from one 1x8 and two 1x2s, with shelves at 9, 18 and 27 inches. It fits under a window, and the angles are given exactly.
More DIY storage and shelf ideas
For a nearly free version made from reclaimed wood, see these DIY pallet bookshelf ideas. For more cheap wood builds, try a pallet shoe rack for the entryway or a wood pallet planter for the porch. If you're shelving a child's room, a dollhouse bookcase is a fun companion piece, and a play teepee makes a reading nook. Fill the shelves with crochet baskets for clutter, and tuck a crochet bookmark into whatever you're reading.
Frequently Asked Questions
What angle do you cut a leaning ladder shelf?
Most plans use parallel cuts of 5° to 10° on both ends of the legs, so the feet sit flat on the floor and the top rests flat against the wall. Ana White uses 5°, Family Handyman and Fish & Bull use 10°, and This Old House uses 9°. A steeper angle takes up more floor space but feels more stable.
Do I need to anchor a ladder bookshelf to the wall?
Yes, especially in a child's room or if it holds heavy books. A leaning shelf relies on the wall, and pulling on a low shelf can tip it forward. One L-bracket or anti-tip strap screwed into a stud near the top is enough.
How much does it cost to build a ladder bookshelf?
Usually $25 to $100 in lumber. The kids' ladder from Ana White is about $25. This Old House's comes to about $55, and Fish & Bull's to about $60. Plywood shelves are the cheapest option, and oak or other hardwood costs the most.
What wood is best for a DIY ladder shelf?
Select pine or poplar for the legs, since they're straight and cheap, and 3/4-inch plywood or 1x boards for the shelves. Use cedar or pressure-treated wood for an outdoor plant ladder. Pick straight boards at the store, because a warped leg makes the whole shelf rock.
