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How to Declutter Your Kitchen: 24 Kitchen Organization Ideas

Looking for kitchen organization ideas? These DIY kitchen storage and decluttering tips can help you maximize space in your kitchen cabinets, drawers, pantry, fridge, and more. Check out these 24 kitchen organization tips!

Organize with Pantry Storage Bins

Organized pantry with bins and baskets. Photo by Instagram user @theprojectneat

Photo via @theprojectneat

Want better kitchen pantry organization? Whether you have a walk-in pantry or you’re using kitchen cabinets for your food, baskets help make your pantry storage more accessible. Simply store canned goods, bread, chip bags, cereal, snacks, spices, and more in their original packaging and store in the basket. Stay organized and purchase pre-labeled food storage containers or design pantry labels. If you’re working with a smaller storage space, a great kitchen pantry storage idea is using rotating, rolling, or sliding pantry shelves that neatly tuck back in once you’re finished!

Use Baskets for Fruit & Veggies

Leaving loose fruits and vegetables on your counter can take up valuable prep space in your kitchen. Not only does storing fruit and vegetables in baskets keep them together in a convenient spot, but it can also help them stay fresh longer. If you need to save space in a small kitchen, go vertical with tiered fruit and vegetable baskets! Or use a banana hanger to keep your bananas from turning brown.

Opt for Clear Storage Bins

Labeled food storage containers. Photo by Instagram user @thehomeedit

Photo via @thehomeedit

If you want to maximize pantry storage space, try replacing boxes with clear storage containers so you know what’s inside. Boxes take up a lot of usable space in kitchen cabinets and on pantry shelves. Pull your food and ingredients out of their original packaging and place them in clear food storage containers that you can seal and label. Before you implement this kitchen storage tip, make sure you declutter your pantry and dispose of expired or unneeded items.

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Declutter with Refrigerator Bins & Storage Drawers

Organized fridge with labeled bins. Photo by Instagram user @thehomehabit

Photo via @thehomehabit

The refrigerator is often forgotten when it comes to kitchen organization, but it’s one of the most important places to keep tidy to prevent germ growth. Find food, drinks, and ingredients quicker when using refrigerator organizer bins. Attach clear refrigerator storage drawers to fridge shelves to add extra storage space. These kitchen storage products also allow you to see more of your inventory so you’re less likely to waste food or buy things you already have.

Utilize Hard-to-Reach Storage Space

Space above the fridge with dividers for storage. Photo by Instagram user @hambuilt

Photo via @hambuilt

Small kitchens in particular require some creativity when it comes to kitchen organization. That’s why one of the best kitchen organization ideas is to think vertically! The space above your fridge, above your kitchen cabinets, and your highest shelves can be harder to access, so these are great spots to store items you don’t use as frequently, such as china, serving trays, or small kitchen appliances. Just make sure to stay away from storing large, heavy items in these high storage spaces, as it could make it difficult or dangerous to get these items down when you need them!

Add Shelves for More Storage Space

Especially if you don’t have a lot of kitchen counter or cabinet storage space available, shelves can be an excellent addition to add kitchen storage. Keeping dishes, glassware, kitchen utensils, and appliances you’re not using out of the way can help you organize your kitchen and stay clutter-free! Wherever you have open wall space, take advantage of this latest kitchen design trend by adding in floating shelves. You can also opt for kitchen shelves with hooks beneath so you can hang anything from dish towels and oven mitts to coffee mugs and measuring cups.

Install Tiered Drawers in Large Kitchen Cabinets

Do you have large base cabinets in your kitchen? To avoid wasting storage space, maximize the available height of these cabinets by installing tiered kitchen cabinet drawers. Not only does this allow you to store more items in one cabinet, but it also makes locating kitchen cookware faster since you can pull out these sliding cabinet drawers to find what you need!

Use Organizers on Kitchen Cabinet Shelves

Kitchen cabinet with dish organizers. Photo by Instagram user @house_on_lew

Photo via @house_on_lew

Even if you already have shelves in your kitchen cabinets, you can further maximize kitchen storage space by adding dish racks, stacking shelves, and tiered organizers. This kitchen organization idea allows you to fit varying sizes of dishes and glasses in your kitchen cabinet so that you don’t waste any available storage space—not to mention, it makes grabbing dishes easier since you won’t have to move everything else around!

Go with Peg Organizers in Dish Drawers

Need more ideas for organizing dishes? If you keep your dishes in a deep kitchen drawer, insert a dish drawer peg organizer! This kitchen storage tip makes it easy for you to customize kitchen drawers for your dish size. That way, you can store all your plates and bowls without them falling over or scratching other dishes. And if you’re a DIYer, you can make your own dish drawer organizer with a pegboard, dowels, and a few simple tools!

Create a Spice Drawer

If you need somewhere to store spices and don’t have room for a spice rack, designate a kitchen drawer for your ingredients. By repurposing a drawer, you can free up storage space in your pantry or kitchen cabinets, and you’ll have an easy-to-reach spot where you can quickly grab the spice you need. You can also transfer your spices into labeled jars to ensure they’re all the same size, which is a great kitchen storage idea for better drawer organization!

Designate a Snack Drawer

An excellent kitchen storage idea for families is to create a snack drawer that’s easily accessible for everyone in the house. Moving on-the-go snack foods to a drawer means kids can grab what they need without having to dig through the kitchen pantry or reach up to high cabinets. Just add a few baskets, bins, or dividers in a drawer to keep chips, crackers, and other snack foods organized.

Optimize Kitchen Storage with Dividers

Instead of throwing your baking sheets under your oven or into a kitchen cabinet without organization, opt for a baking sheet divider! This simple kitchen storage solution is perfect for organizing baking sheets, cooling racks, and cutting boards. You can even take this kitchen organization idea one step further by using drawer dividers to separate and organize food storage containers and lids—an especially popular kitchen organization tip for those who prefer to store containers with their lids on!

Improve Corner Cabinets with Pullouts

Corner cabinets, or blind cabinets, can pose a challenge when it comes to kitchen storage and organization. They’re deeper than most kitchen cabinets and typically include awkward angles, which makes storing cookware, small kitchen appliances, and other items difficult. One way to get around the inconvenience of these cabinets is to install tiered shelving that can be spun inside the cabinet or pulled out of the cabinet entirely. This kitchen organization tip makes it easier to find what you need in a pinch! Whether you want a half-moon Lazy Susan, sliding drawers, or swing-out baskets, you can install all kinds of blind cabinet ideas based on the shape of your cabinet.

Organize Lids on Cabinet Doors

Pots and pans take up a lot of room in kitchen cabinets, and when you add lids to the mix, it can be tricky to manage. If you need a better solution for how to organize pots and pans, move the lids to the cabinet door with an attachable or over-the-door storage organizer. These over-the-cabinet kitchen storage racks and hooks allow you to keep lids and pans together in a more manageable way!

Go with a Stacked or Hanging Pan Organizer

Stacked pan tower insert for cabinets. Photo by Instagram user @azhouseoforder

Photo via @azhouseoforder

Stacked pan organizers are a simple kitchen organization idea to help you quickly access cookware. These storage racks are set up like a tower, allowing you to place pans on individual shelves rather than directly on top of one another. This kitchen storage product avoids damaging your cookware’s protective coating and prevents you from pulling out all of your pans just to find the one you need. Plus, pan organizers are a great space-saving kitchen storage tip for small cabinets, as well as an awesome way to maximize space in a tall base cabinet with no shelving. Or utilize vertical storage in your kitchen by installing a hanging pots and pans organizer onto your ceiling or wall.

Organize Kitchen Utensils

One useful kitchen organization tip to save you from rummaging through disorganized kitchen drawers is to use silverware trays and drawer organizers. With this kitchen utensil organizer, you can sort out cooking utensils by type, size, or use. If you don’t have a lot of kitchen drawer storage space, mason jars are a budget-friendly kitchen storage solution that keeps spatulas, tongs, whisks, and other bulky kitchen utensils within reach on your counter. Or you can save drawer and counter space by hanging kitchen utensils on the wall, on the inside of cabinet doors, or even on magnetic fridge hooks.

Declutter the Space Under Your Kitchen Sink

Under kitchen sink organizer. Photo by Instagram user @tle119

Photo via @tle119

The storage space under your kitchen sink is great for storing cleaning supplies, sponges, trash bags, and other non-food items. Adding pullout drawers, tiered storage bins, or hanging racks where you can group like items together can keep this spot clutter-free. Sliding storage drawers under the sink can even be used for storing grocery bags and extra kitchen towels.

Opt for an Over-the-Sink Drying Rack

Over the sink drying rack in kitchen. Photo by Instagram user @farmhousefor8

Photo via @farmhousefor8

Drying racks are nice to have in the kitchen when you need to hand-wash delicate dishes and cookware, but racks that sit on the counter can take up usable food prep and kitchen storage space. Rather than getting a dish drying rack that fills your kitchen counters, find one that can be placed over your sink. This kitchen product even helps your dishes dry faster because it allows for more airflow!

Add a Magnetic Knife Strip

Ditch the chunky knife block on your countertop and opt for something a little more versatile and easy to reach! A fantastic space-saving kitchen organization idea is to mount a magnetic knife strip onto your wall near your food prep station or stovetop, so you can grab the knives you need quickly and get cooking!

Go Vertical with Your Indoor Herb Garden

A woman hanging another pot in a hanging indoor herb garden. Photo by Instagram user @ijeomakola

Photo via @ijeomakola

Are you growing herbs in your kitchen as part of an urban garden? Utilize the vertical storage space in your kitchen! You could add hanging planters above your sink or install shelves on a wall that gets good sunlight. No matter how you decide to set up your vertical garden, keeping your herbs up high is a good kitchen organization idea that frees up your kitchen counter space.

Design a Beverage Station

Your morning routine shouldn’t include searching for the right coffee pod, sugar, or favorite coffee mug. And when you’re tired from a long day at work, the last thing you want to do is look forever for a wine glass. Simplify your mornings and evenings by moving all of your drink items to one place. Whether it’s a spot on your counter, buffet table, or a kitchen bar cart in the corner, setting up a beverage station where you can keep all of your drink fixings will make preparing your favorite drink a breeze!

Store Wine Bottles in a Drawer

Wine drawer in kitchen. Photo by Instagram user @jewettfarms

Photo via @jewettfarms

If you don’t have room for a wine bar or wine shelves in your small kitchen storage, transform one of your kitchen drawers into wine storage. Drawers are a good place to store wine because they keep your bottles in a dark, cool space. To ensure your wine bottles don’t roll around in your kitchen drawers, you can use drawer dividers with risers or create a DIY drawer wine rack.

Add Hidden Trash Storage

One of the best ways to declutter your kitchen is to create hidden kitchen storage for trash cans and recycling bins. These containers can take up a lot of small kitchen storage space, and they’re often unsightly. Instead of keeping the mess out in the open, convert one of your base cabinets into a hidden trash compartment! This kitchen organization idea allows you to throw things away quickly and is a great solution for keeping small children and pets out of your trash.

Hide Pet Dishes in Drawers

Have a dog or cat whose food dishes are always in the way? Adding a toe-kick drawer at the bottom of a cabinet or creating an under-cabinet kitchen drawer under your kitchen cabinets is a perfect kitchen organization idea! With this simple storage hack, you can keep your pet’s food and water bowls in the kitchen without sacrificing any floor space. Plus, it’s easier to contain spills!

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Declutter Your Kitchen: 24 Kitchen Storage Ideas