About Workspaces
An independently run archive of real desk setups and home offices, gathered from interviewing creative people around the world.
Workspaces is an independently run newsletter and growing archive of real desk setups and home offices gathered from interviewing creative people around the world. Founded in 2020, it has grown to feature 500+ real-life workspace tours with one new setup added each week.
Workspaces launched on April 5, 2020 — at the exact moment the world shifted to remote work. Founder Ryan Gilbert noticed something: professionals everywhere were suddenly sharing photos of their home offices, and those photos were genuinely interesting. Not just the gear, but the personality behind each setup. The plants, the art, the weird cable runs, the specific chair someone spent too much money on.
The idea was simple: interview one person a week, ask them about their setup, publish the photos and gear list. Five years and 500+ issues later, that's still exactly what it is.
Each feature includes workspace photography, a short bio, a full gear list with links, and four interview questions. New issues go out every Saturday morning.
April 5, 2020
Issue #001 published
Workspaces officially launches during the global shift to remote work. The very first interview featured Shivkanth Bagavathy, who was an engineer at Facebook at the time.
February 2021
500 subscribers
The first major milestone. Newsletter growth starts to accelerate.
May 2021
1,000 subscribers
This felt like a massive win at the time. Proof it wasn't just me and my group chat. A thousand people wanted to see how other people work. Workspaces = validated.
October 2021
100 interviews
A hundred creators had shared their desks and workflows with me.
March 2022
5,000 subscribers
The weekly publishing habit stuck. Readers started sending in their own setups faster than I could publish them.
October 2022
10,000 subscribers
Ten thousand people opening a tour of a stranger's desk every Saturday. What started as a side project was now a real publication.
August 2022
Workspaces is acquired by Loops
Loops acquired Workspaces and joined the team with it. New resources, a bigger platform, and a real chance to grow the thing I'd built.
May 2024
Re-acquired by me
I got laid off. But I wasn't ready to let Workspaces go — so I bought it back for $1.
September 2025
15,000 subscribers
Moved the newsletter to beehiiv. Growth begins accelerating.
April 2026
20,000 subscribers
"Can this thing be a legit business?" - Me, to myself.
July 2026
v4
The most ambitious change to the project in 6+ years. A full rebuild with a searchable Gear Directory, product comparisons, deep-dive guides, and more. Six years of consistent work packaged in a way that finally does it justice.
GENERAL
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