Nowadays, many people choose to live in a tiny home over a sprawling mansion. These 400-square-foot houses are cozy, functional, and easy to clean. Many of them are also designed sustainably, which helps the environment. 

If you’re a fan of compact living, these photos from the r/TinyHouses subreddit are for you. It features miniature homes from around the globe, giving a glimpse of how people live and enjoy minimalist lives. 

Scroll through these images and see if any of them catches your eye.

#1 I Would Love To Live Here !

Image credits: ryan5648

#2 I Really Like These Tiny Homes

Image credits: ryan5648

The concept of tiny homes dates back to the early 1860s through the 1920s, when shotgun houses first became popular. 

These single-story dwellings are usually one room (12 feet) wide and up to four rooms deep. The first versions had a living room at the front, two bedrooms with no hallways, and a kitchen. Bathrooms and indoor plumbing weren’t part of the home at first but were eventually added at the back.

#3 333 Sq Ft Built By Me

Image credits: freddyblang

#4 I Built A Playhouse For A Family In Oh, And Now I Want To Build It In Full Scale For My Actual House

Image credits: AwkwardMethod

#5 Thank You Humans For Cleaning My Domain

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#6 I Could Spend My Whole Summer Here! Who Has Ever Stayed At/Built/Lived In A Floating Tiny House Before?

Image credits: JerseyGuyonReddit

Shotgun homes were originally from Haiti and West Africa, but they arrived on American shores via New Orleans through immigrants and enslaved people. They became a top choice for homeowners during the population boom of the 1800s, and housing demands likewise skyrocketed. 

#7 The Exterior Of This Tiny House Is One Of The Best I've Seen In A While! So Cute

Image credits: JerseyGuyonReddit

#8 I Love The Kitchen In This Tiny House

Image credits: ryan5648

#9 Who Needs A Big House When You Can Have This

Image credits: Stupidnickname94

#10 Still A Heap To Finish But I Love My Kitchen

Image credits: Jbuckl3y

#11 Gorgeous Tiny House In Mexico That I Found On Airbnb!

Image credits: reddit.com

Because many early shotgun houses stood close to each other, it helped form tight-knit communities. People would gather outside at their porches and mingle with one another, a practice believed to have originated the friendly nature in New Orleans culture. 

Many shotgun homes still exist today, although some were destroyed during Hurricane Katrina in 2005. However, they are considered historical landmarks, and cities like Winston-Salem in North Carolina plan to make them official. 

#12 Felt Like This Should Go Here

Image credits: TruckThunders00

#13 The Other Half Of My House

Image credits: DeliriousAdeleide

#14 Things Have Really Come Together On Our Build

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#15 I Like This Simple Tiny House..no Internet.. Just Calmness

Image credits: kissedbloom

#16 My Tiny House I Started Building Exactly A Year Ago! Moved In Last August

Image credits: datGfromNextDoor

#17 Completed Tiny House Finally!

My family has been cooperatively working on building a tiny house for my sister over the past five years. I know it sounds like a long time but we could only do 4-5 weekends of work every year due to how far away I live. And then covid. The trailer and frame (with roof installed and sub siding, but no windows or anything else installed) came from Tumbleweed back when they sold the Barn Raiser unfinished tiny homes. We took on all of the labor ourselves though we did hire an electrician and then a spray-foam installer. My mom even made the cushions and drapes! All in all my sister is super pleased with how it came out and will be towing it to it's new home this fall. My cat (the black one in the photos) is going to be sad to see it go.

Image credits: Sweethang190

#18 26ft Thow I Just Built For A Wonderful Couple

Image credits: SpartacusTiny

#19 My Tiny Home And Quarantine Oasis :)

Image credits: Oreococaine

Outside of the shotgun houses, there was the tiny house movement. Its origin varies depending on who you ask. Some credit artist Allan Wexler with first exploring the idea in the 1970s. 

Others may say that Jay Shafer pioneered the movement in the late 90s. He began building his 110-square-foot house in Iowa in 1997, which he completed in 1999. That same year, he founded the Tumbleweed Tiny House Company, which designs and builds small homes. 

#20 Getting Cozy In Vermont

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#21 I Love The Idea Of Incorporating A Type Of Balcony In The Design Of A Tiny House

Image credits: iDunnWlife

#22 Been Living In My Tiny House Almost A Year Now, No Regrets!

Image credits: DeliriousAdeleide

#23 Remodel Of An Old House Converted Into A Loft Style Tiny Apartment

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#24 3 Years Later - 1 Man DIY Build - Done!

Image credits: TahkoBell

#25 Since You All Like To See "Lived In" Spaces - Clutter For Karma

Image credits: rhampotheca

As Shafer revealed in a 2023 interview with Grist, his idea of building a tiny home was initially an act of rebellion and the desire to prove something that went against mainstream beliefs at the time.  

“Once I learned it was illegal to live in a house that small, I decided I had to, just to show that it was actually a safe and efficient and reasonable thing to do.”

#26 A Few Photos Of My Tiny House!

Image credits: PineValentine

#27 A Little Paint Makes A Huge Difference

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#28 Building My Cob House. Two Hands And A Dream

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#29 Enjoying Movie Night In A School Bus

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#30 Indefinite Stay

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#31 I Need This!

Image credits: Stupidnickname94

Tiny homes are popular on Airbnb, trending up by 112% in 2019 and 85% in 2020. Listings also jumped from 14,000 to 24,000 between both years. For real estate developer Zach Millburn, the appeal to consumers is threefold: 

“They’re Instagrammable, and the cute-cozy aspect is attractive to people as well,” Millburn told Grist. “And especially after the birth of these shows like Tiny House Nation, I think a lot of people want to try it out and are willing to pay a decent amount for a unique experience.”

#32 Lived In Tiny- The Reality Of Our Space

Image credits: WineO4life

#33 A Few More Pics Of Our Tiny House/Tiny Room/ Wooden Tent For Those Who Were Interested!

Image credits: needarecomendation

#34 Location, Location, Location...this Is Crazy!

Image credits: JerseyGuyonReddit

#35 So Happy With How This Came Out!

Image credits: Gas_Station_Baguette

#36 Celebrating Our First Full Year Of Tiny Times In Georgia

Image credits: hau5cat

#37 My (Mostly) Self-Built Tiny House - Happy To Answer Any Questions

Image credits: OpeGonnaSqzPast

#38 The Little Building - This Is The Newspaper Place In A Little Town In Southern NY. Thought You Would Appreciate It Here~

Image credits: Claydogh

But with the boom of tiny vacation homes, other experts believe that the cultural connection with shotgun houses could be fading. 

“It used to be something that was an extreme enough lifestyle that it was more exciting to get a window into how someone did it, why they chose to go that route, and how it was panning out or impacting their daily life,” said Merete Mueller, who directed the 2013 film TINY: A Story About Small Living. 

“But when you could book one for the weekend and stay in it as a vacation house, it just became more and more normal. It became less exciting.”

#39 This Design Is Definitely...different! Do You Guys Like It? Located In Canada

Image credits: JerseyGuyonReddit

#40 Who Says There Is No Space For Terrariums And A Gaming PC In A Tiny Flat? Welcome To My 35m2 Loft! You Can "See" My Murphy Bed In The Last Picture, Gives Me A Lot Of Free Space :)

Image credits: natsupa

#41 Today Was Insulation Day!

Image credits: Bokatana

#42 Multi-Purpose Barn Door / Ladder With Library In This 3 Bedroom Thow With Murphy Bunks Under The Loft

Image credits: instacrabb

#43 I Think This Is A Shepherd Hut

Image credits: katiethebohemian

#44 The Tiny House My Wife And I Built During The Quarantine Surrounded By The Starting Of Our Garden. (8x24ft Trailer)

Image credits: TheBrotherEarth

#45 Hangin Out In The Build

Image credits: RADroid

#46 Getting Closer!

Image credits: PerceptionHacker

#47 Drophouse

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#48 My Cozy Tiny House (With A Drum Set!)

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#49 The Loft In This Tiny Home Is The Living Room!

Image credits: LethaYamada

#50 Moved Into Our DIY Tiny 6 Months Ago And Love It. Cheers!

Image credits: Denverfotog

#51 Man Has Built A10ft-Wide House To Spite His Neighbours

Image credits: TimesandSundayTimes

#52 Today Marks 2 Months Of Living In Our Tiny!

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#53 School Bus Kitchen Coming Along Nicely!

Image credits: DJtwreck

#54 Here Is The Inside Of A Tiny Cabin In The Woods I Built After NYC Shutdown

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#55 I Love My Kitchen In The Morning Sunlight

Image credits: PineValentine

#56 My 750sq Ft Home I Built

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#57 I Built My Tiny House For Less Than $20k

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#58 Self-Built, No Experience, 2 Yrs Almost Done!

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#59 My Family Usually Stays In A Tent When We Visit Our Land. Decided To Upgrade. It Took Me About Five Weeks On Nights And Weekends To Build

Image credits: dating-a-finn

#60 Furniture I Made For My Tiny House

Image credits: Quantity-Worldly

#61 First Snow At Our Tiny House!

Image credits: needarecomendation

#62 400 Sq Ft Tiny House Almost Complete! Moved In And Working On The Finishings

Image credits: Sideshow87

#63 My Dad And I Firing Up Solar Power System At My Tiny Cabin In Mt

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#64 So The Kitchen Is Coming Along Nicely

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#65 I'm In Love With This Stunning Tiny House In Joshua Tree, California That Keeps Popping Up All Over My Instagram Feed! Such A Cute Exterior

Image credits: JerseyGuyonReddit

#66 My Tiny House! Built And Designed By Me

Image credits: datGfromNextDoor

#67 Finally Got My Stairs In Today :)

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#68 This Is A Really Interesting Tiny House

Image credits: ryan5648

#69 Our Newly Finished Tiny House Kitchen!

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#70 Guest House In The Making

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#71 1917, 1 Bed 1 Bath, ~750sqft. Just Paid Off This Month!!

Image credits: Nit3fury

#72 2 Years In The Making...i Present To You The "Nugget"!

Image credits: unpetitjenesaisquoi

#73 This Is An Amazing Use Of Space For The Shed To House Conversions

Image credits: FewDare5008

#74 Small House, Big View

Image credits: ryan112ryan

#75 I Sure Am Going To Miss This Place... Loved Living The Tiny Home Life For A Few Years But Kids Made Me Upgrade

Image credits: International-Emu920

#76 Work In Progress - UK

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#77 1.5 Years In My 20' Tiny Home, And Still Going Strong

Image credits: Skye-is-falling512

#78 Got A Little Bit Of Snow. Winter Is Coming. The Greenhouse Entry Saves Us About 2/3rds On Our Winter Heating. It's A Wonderful Place To Get Warm. We Call It Summerville

Image credits: TheSierraDawn

#79 Just About Done With The Outside!

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#80 First Time Post! Here's A Quick Glimpse And One View Of My Thow (Living In It For 1 Yr In Vt)

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#81 Mountain Refuge In Italy

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#82 Bought A Tiny Cabin In The Woods And Moved From Toronto, Canada To The Bay Of Fundy, New Brunswick

Image credits: redinthecity

#83 Inside My 16'x16' 'Bunkhouse'

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#84 All I Need!

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#85 Does This Count?

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#86 In February I Went To Finland And Stayed In One Of The World's Smallest Tiny Houses! It's 50 Sq Ft (I'm Not Even Exaggerating Haha...). It's A Tiny House On Skis And You're Towed Out To The Middle Of A Frozen Lake By A Snowmobile To Watch The Northern Lights! Video Tour Linked In The Comments! (Oc)

Image credits: JerseyGuyonReddit

#87 Chateau At Treehouse Utopia

Image credits: blacksea01