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Storage solutions small kitchen


21 Small Kitchen Storage Ideas That Actually Work

By

Grace Gallagher

Grace Gallagher

Grace Gallagher is a lifestyle expert and writer with five years of experience covering home furnishings, storage, and organization. She has also written for Greatist, Veracity Selfcare, Brit + Co, and others. Grace also taught creative writing workshops in Portland, Oregon.

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Updated on 01/07/22

The Spruce / Christopher Lee Foto

A small kitchen can be frustrating, especially if you love to cook or entertain. But even the tiniest spaces can be functional (and even fun to be in), and these clever storage solutions for small kitchens will inspire you to take your kitchen from cramped and cluttered to organized and airy.

From behind-the-door storage to lazy Susans and stackable bins, here are small, easy tweaks you can make so your space feels bigger and more organized. When you have a space for everything, you can spend more time cooking and eating and less time looking for a spice or gadget you know you have crammed deep in a drawer elsewhere in your home.

The 13 Best Kitchen Cabinet Organizers of 2023

51 Best Kitchen Organization Ideas

Aaron Colussi / Thomas Loof for Country Living

When you're the chef of the house, the kitchen can become cluttered and overwhelming, especially if you have a small space. If you're looking for smart and efficient ways to store your essentials, browse through our roundup of unique kitchen organization ideas. We're sharing clever ways to make use of your cooking area, including a few DIYs and useful installations.

From finding the best racks to store your spices and ingredients to the best drawers and countertop ideas to corral utensils, our list will help you tackle everyday cooking items and appliances you can never find a place for. And as an organization tip, Nicole Papantoniou, Director of Good Housekeeping's Kitchen Appliances & Culinary Innovation Lab, suggests grouping items together to make them easier to find and store. "The most accessible things should be the things you use most often," she says. "Use high cabinets and hard-to-reach places for things you rarely use." For instance, if you're not a huge baker, keep those baking essentials above your fridge.

Ready to get organized? Say goodbye to the messy drawers and pantries (check out our best kitchen cabinet drawer organizers and clever pantry organizing tips for more ideas) and say hello to the clean, sleek and glamorous kitchen you designed when your family first moved in.

Watchtower Interiors

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Ditch Countertop Produce Bowls

Pack a deep drawer full of removable bins (like in this custom cabinet from Watchtower Interiors). If you use them to sort produce that doesn't need to be refrigerated, you'll never lose precious counter space to a fruit or veggie bowl again.

Settled

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Add Bins to Your Bottom Drawers

Reserve your bottom kitchen drawers for jars and cans. Use 16"-deep bins to keep them organized and label each bin so you know where to find what you need quickly.

SHOP DRAWER BINS

Bakes & Kropp Photography

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Store Pots and Pans in Sliding Shelves

If you can't fit your pots and pans into your square cabinet, consider installing a corner pullout cabinet system. It'll easily open and close, while making those pots accessible.

Bakes & Kropp Photography

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Install a Pullout Pantry

Pullout cabinets are sneaky ways to keep your kitchen organized. They allow you to grab items from both sides, plus it gives you easy access to what's hidden in the back.

Diamond Cabinets

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Or Try a Tall Pull-Out Pantry Drawer

Keep unsightly — but frequently used — cans, bottles, and other staples within reach with this sleek pull-out pantry setup from Diamond Cabinets.

Eric Piasecki

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Design a Bar Area

If you're a wine lover, add slide-in trays to your cabinets to store your drinks. You can also use drawer dividers.

SHOP DRAWER DIVIDERS

Art Streiber

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Add Pot Racks to Your Walls or Inside Your Pantry

Pot racks are great for hanging pots and pans that can't fit in your drawers or oven. Use racks to hang them in an empty space on your wall or inside your pantry, where they'll be hidden yet secure for grabbing.

Lauren Pressey

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Add Corner Shelves in a Small Kitchen

Fill that empty corner with functional accents. Designer Kate Lester upgraded this kitchen with reclaimed barn wood shelves — perfect for a farmhouse flair.

SHOP CORNER SHELVES

Jason Hartog

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Utilize Your Island's Storage

Your kitchen island can be a great place to store most essentials — at least the heavier ones. Purchase an island with hidden cabinets on both sides to place your pots, pans, linens and single-use items.

Amy Bartlam. Design: Jenn Feldman Designs

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Create a Slide-Out Prep Station

Here's a clever solution for a kitchen short on counter space: Build a butcher block board into a drawer like designer Jenn Feldman did here. With a hole right over the trash can, it's easy to dump peels and pits as you go, using a scrapper-chopper.

Diamond Cabinets

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Add a Paper Towel Cabinet Inside Your Trash Bin Drawer

What makes this trash and recycling bin drawer from Diamond Cabinets stand out from all the rest: the built-in paper towel rod above it. Cleaning up kitchen messes has never been easier.

Margaret Rajic

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Design a Beverage Nook

Similar to this look by designer Kate Marker, you can upgrade your kitchen with a pantry cabinet that's functional and eye-catching. This one includes a beautiful counter workspace that's brilliant for prepping your morning coffee and storing your mugs and cups.

Decora Cabinetry

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Put a K-Cup Organizer in Your Drawer

Searching through the cabinet for your favorite coffee before you're caffeinated can feel, well . .. exhausting. This custom K-Cup drawer from Decora Cabinetry lets you store all of your options (up to 40 at any given time, in fact) face-up for easy early-morning locating.

Rev-A-Shelf

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Install a Charging Drawer

This sleek drawer idea is the secret to banishing unsightly cord clutter. Planning a reno? Talk to your contractor. You could also DIY it by installing a surge protector in an existing drawer or pick up this fully loaded version from Rev-A-Shelf.

SHOP CHARGING DRAWERS

ShelfGenie

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Try a Tray Organizing Drawer

Serving trays, baking sheets, and other large tins can be a pain to store in often-unaccommodating cabinets. Swap your usual stack of pans for this tray-friendly drawer from ShelfGenie to keep them upright and easy to locate.

Eric Lawler

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Design a Wine and Drinks Section

An ordinary closet in your kitchen can become the ultimate drinks station, where you store your favorites and separate them by type. Installing motion-sensor lights is another great addition.

Rev-a-Shelf

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Add a Food Storage Container Drawer Organizer

Fact: The Tupperware cabinet is the hardest part of a kitchen to keep orderly. But that's where this genius drawer organizer comes in — it has a spot for every last one of your food storage containers and their matching lids.

SHOP DRAWER ORGANIZERS

Mike Garten

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Designate a Drawer for Dishes

Keep your dishes protected and in place with adjustable plate holders, perfect for deeper drawers. Opt for holders with carrying handles, so you can lift them out of the drawer when it's time to set the table.

SHOP DISH HOLDERS

Victoria Pearson

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Or Try a Peg Drawer Organizer

Or you can try a built-in quick-to-assemble peg system allows you to move your plates from high-up cabinets to deep, down-low drawers. (The best part: They'll be easier to pull out and put away. )

SHOP PEG SYSTEMS

Danielle Occhiogrosso

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Attach a Spice Rack to Your Walls

Keep your condiments away from your counter space with a spice rack. Attach the rack to one part of your kitchen wall or use a hanging rack on your pantry's door.

SHOP SPICE RACK

ShelfGenie

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Or Add a Spice Drawer Organizer

Tired of digging around the back of your spice cabinet until you finally find the cumin? This genius drawer from ShelfGenie puts your full collection on display.

Mike Garten

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Install Bracketed Shelves

If there's an open space you haven't yet designed, install bracketed shelves for a practical look. They're not as bulky as cabinets and they'll make great storage for your colorful and cute glassware.

Dr. Organizer

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Install a Pull-Out Pots and Pans Drawer Organizer

If you've ever tried to pull a pan out of a big, heavy pile just to be met with a cookware avalanche, you're not alone. Avoid the crashing and clattering with this pull-out organizer, where you can hang up to 100 pounds worth of pots and pans on adjustable hooks.

SHOP PULL-OUT ORGANIZER

Erika LaPresto

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Create a Command Station

Stick chalkboard contact paper and adhesive pockets to the inside of one of your cabinets, so that everyone in your household knows where to look to find the grocery list, coupons, recipes and WiFi password. Add a plastic pouch to store coupons and receipts!

SHOP CHALKBOARD CONTACT PAPER

Smart Design

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Add a Refrigerator Egg Drawer

Easily organize fresh eggs with this refrigerator-ready drawer. (Worth noting: This organizer comes fully assembled, so all you have to do is clip it on to one of your fridge's shelves.)

SHOP EGG DRAWER

Lucy Call

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Mount a Double-Duty Shelf

Here, one shelf gives you two smart ways to store your kitchen essentials: Stick seasonal platters and pretty dishes on the top shelf for all to see, and hang cutting boards and oven mitts on the lower hooks.

Aaron Colussi

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Arrange Baskets High and Low

Trevor Tondro

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Make the Most of Your Drawers

Find ways to make your drawers work for you. Carve out spaces to hold your most-used utensils, baking supplies and spices. In this case, an ice cream-obsessed family dedicated an entire drawer to their sundae-making essentials.

Thomas Loof for Country Living

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Fill up Clear Canisters

When done right, your pantry staples can make an eye-catching display. Transfer all of your nuts, cereals, pastas and baking ingredients into glass jars, marking each and every one with a custom chalkboard label.

Mike Garten

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Add a Built-in Storage Block

Build a knife block into a narrow drawer to keep your knives sharp and secure — and your hands safe.

How to organize storage in a small kitchen: 5 ideas

1. Make the most of all the space under the headset

When we say "maximum", that's what we mean - use every centimeter to complete the task.

The first thing that comes to mind - make cabinets up to the ceiling . Yes, it will be more expensive than limited to standard wall cabinets, but you have to choose - austerity or increased storage space. We vote for the second! So, add another tier to the ceiling to the wall cabinets: here you can store dishes and appliances that you rarely use, but which you cannot do without. Maybe you're just whipping egg whites for Easter cake, or you're just pulling out your waffle iron to make breakfast for your husband's birthday. Or additional dishes are needed only for the New Year, when guests arrive. Even such “little things” must be taken into account when organizing storage. nine0005

Second - use corners . If you decide to make a corner kitchen, do not save on fittings and filling corner cabinets. It is convenient to place there not a bucket for household waste, but a roll-out storage system for pots and household chemicals. Believe me, you will thank yourself for such a decision.

Third - give preference to drawers, not hinged cabinets with shelves . Any hostess knows how inconvenient it is to get dishes or products that are located at the far wall of the cabinet - therefore, more often this space remains free or turns into chaos. Drawers make it easier to access contents, while trays and boxes help you sort all items by purpose and frequency of use. nine0005

Fourth, don't think that 15-20 cm is too little for storage. At this width, you can install a roll-out bottle for oils, spices or household chemicals. It is both convenient and functional.

2. Expand your workspace

Imagine organizing a small kitchen space is a game where you have to win. Take a piece of paper and draw all possible options for increasing the usable area. For example, you want to install a linear set and a standard dining table - how can you improve this arrangement? For example, replace a free-standing table with a countertop and connect them with another row of cabinets - they may be less deep than the main set. What do you get as a result? Additional storage space for groceries, cans, small household appliances. Plus, an increase in the area for cooking: on the one hand, you can lay out the products, on the other, put a board for cutting them. nine0005

3. Use hanging storage systems on the walls

When there is not enough space in the kitchen, pay attention to the surface of the walls - any free space can be turned into additional storage.

Roof rails
This is the most common option - they are conveniently located on the kitchen backsplash for storing cutlery, cooking utensils, scissors, potholders and towels.

Wall Mounted Knife Holder
Magnetic knife holder that attaches to the wall and saves precious countertop and drawer space. nine0005

Open shelves for dishes
They can be of different designs. We like models with special holes for attaching glasses - no need to take up space and constantly wipe the dust inside.

4.

Minimize the amount of furniture and appliances

When arranging a small kitchen, you often have to make compromises - choose more spacious storage systems instead of another item of household appliances. If the area allows, you can increase the capacity of the headset by replacing standard appliances with more compact ones: for example, install a small refrigerator under the countertop, buy a dishwasher with a width of not 60, but 45 cm, abandon the 4-burner hob in favor of a 2-burner model. nine0005

Pay attention to multifunctional appliances - ovens with a microwave function, a multicooker that will replace several appliances. Install a built-in hood instead of a separate hood - then you will have storage space in the cabinet above it.

5. Use modern filling systems for kitchens

Designers come up with new systems every year to increase the functionality of kitchen sets. We are talking about all kinds of roll-out nets and baskets of the “Magic Corner” type, which allow you to get everything you need from the farthest row. There are special drawer systems built into cabinets for storing vegetables and fruits or for sorting household waste. Roll-out drawers can be equipped with convenient stands for placing pots, pans and lids so that they take up less space. The space of upper cabinets with shelves can be optimized by fixing a metal basket shelf for storing small items or textiles. Believe me, it's convenient. nine0005

Ideas for storage in a small kitchen

Rational storage of things in the kitchen is the key to its comfortable operation. And for owners of small kitchens, compact storage in the kitchen is especially important, because every centimeter counts! In this article, we have collected useful tips and ideas for organizing storage in the kitchen. We will tell you how to organize the storage of pots, pans, spices, cereals and other kitchen stuff.

How to store spices in a small kitchen

If you love to cook, then you probably have a lot of spices in your kitchen. So that seasonings and spices do not lose their aroma, they must be stored in a tightly sealed container, preferably glass. For convenient use, spices must be signed. nine0005

Special spice jars are best for storing spices. It is both comfortable and beautiful. But if you don’t want to spend money on special containers, you can make them yourself. For example, jars of baby food can be adapted for storing spices.

An interesting idea for storing spices in tick-tock boxes. Small bottles with screw caps are also suitable.

The second question that worries housewives is where to store spices, especially if the kitchen cannot boast of space. With the help of special fasteners, spices can be stored on the inside of the wall cabinet door. nine0005

If possible, the spices can be stored in a small drawer.

Special drawer systems are also compact and convenient. They can store not only spices, but also bottles with vegetable oil, vinegar, etc.

You can store spices compactly using special containers with magnets. Most often, spices on magnets are stored on the door, or side wall of the refrigerator. nine0005

But they can be attached to the wall and to the hanging shelf after attaching a metal bar to it.

Stores also offer a wide range of special spice stands. They are both beautiful and convenient, but these coasters take up space on the table or in the kitchen cabinet, so if you have a small kitchen, you might be better off choosing a more compact option.

You can also store spices on small hanging shelves.

How to store cereals in the kitchen

Like spices, cereals are best stored in glass or plastic containers. Containers should be tightly closed, this will protect the cereal from moisture, as well as the penetration of insects. You need to store cereals in a dry, dark and cool place. Therefore, it is better to choose a place to place cereals away from the stove, oven and sink.

You can store cereals in wall cabinets or drawers. Storage in a drawer is more convenient, since there is always free access to cereals, you don’t need to reach anywhere and you don’t even have to get them out of the drawer. It is better to choose transparent containers for storing cereals. So you will always see where which cereal is, as well as how much of it is left.

Cans of cereals can also be stored on open shelves. But in this case, it is better to choose small jars so that the cereals are more often updated and do not lose their taste. nine0005

How do you store pots and pans in a small kitchen?

For storage of pots and pans, see our separate article, which you can find HERE .

How to store lids in the kitchen?

Storing lots of pot and pan lids is just as much of a hassle as the cookware itself. Often, lids cannot be stacked, and if you cover pots with them, you will not be able to store dishes compactly. The first thing you can do is review the number of lids in your home. Get out all the pots and pans you have in the house. Sort them by size. Check, maybe the same lid will fit on several pots, and maybe for a frying pan? If you have, for example, 5-6 pans, you are unlikely to use them all at the same time. In this case, one lid is enough for several pots. If you do not like that the lid, for example, does not match the design of another pan, it does not matter - buy a universal lid with transparent glass - it will fit any cookware! nine0005

We have already shown some ways to store caps in the photo above. The lids can be stored in the crockery by separating them with a divider.

If you make furniture to order, you can provide a special drawer for the lids.

Lids can be stored on the kitchen cabinet door. You can easily make such fasteners yourself. All you need is a set of ordinary self-adhesive towel hooks. nine0005

Or you can use the ready-made lid holder.

Learn more