Kitchen Cabinet Organization 101: Essential Tips for Decluttering and Streamlining

Decluttering your kitchen makes it easier to clean, maintain and find the items you need. It also means putting items in reach, such as cooking utensils near the stove and eating utensils closer to the dishwasher or dining room. It leads to more efficient meal planning, faster food prep and a more enjoyable cooking experience. You’ll also reduce food waste since you’ll know exactly what you have and won’t buy duplicates.

Assess and Declutter

Be ruthless when you declutter. Assess what you have by emptying your kitchen cabinets, pantry and drawers. Evaluate each item. If you have never used it, consider getting rid of it. Get rid of broken and outdated items and food. You can donate or recycle items that are in good condition if you no longer use or need them.

As part of your assessment, look for areas that you are not using to their full potential. Think of ways you could better use the space before you start putting things away.

Organize Similar Items

Create zones in the kitchen so you can organize similar items together. Designate a specific kitchen cabinet or drawer for pots and pans. If you are planning a kitchen remodel in the future, think of ways your kitchen can do with better organization, such as larger drawers or cabinet pull-outs for pots and pans and special cabinets for baking supplies and food storage containers. These might have additional shelving, so you don’t have so much wasted space.

Whether you are working with what you have or you are planning a remodel, creating designated zones makes it easier to find the items you need and keep them organized over time.

Make Use of Vertical Space

Most kitchens have tons of vertical space that people don’t use. You can install hooks and racks on the inside of the kitchen cabinet doors to hang measuring cups and store boxes of foil, plastic wrap and other items. You can even add narrow baskets or wire racks to hold lids for your pots and pans.

Add shelving or wire racks to kitchen cabinets to increase the amount of space where you have many smaller items that you can’t stack, including cups, dishes, spices, and more. When you use the vertical spaces in your cabinets, it’s easier to keep items you use frequently within reach.

Invest in Storage Solutions

You can find tons of storage solutions for your cabinets and drawers to help organize everything, including:

Stackable containers for dry goods

-Drawer dividers

-Lazy Susans for corner cabinets

-Slide-out organizers for cabinets

-Tiered shelving

-Wire racks

-Hooks

Keep Countertops Clear

Countertops that are cluttered can make even large kitchens feel small and cramped. Store small appliances, including toasters and blenders, in cabinets when you’re not using them. Invest in attractive storage containers for items you frequently use, such as cooking utensils, cooking oils and spices.

Get rid of countertop décor. It only causes extra work since you have to wipe food splatters off it and dust it. Move these items elsewhere – possibly shelving in a dining room. You can also place décor on the top of your cabinets – but be aware that you’ll have to climb up there and dust it.

Move cookbooks to wall-mounted shelving or use a separate cabinet – or at least a separate shelf in a cabinet for cookbooks. While they look great sitting on kitchen countertops, they take a lot of space and make your kitchen look cluttered.

Keeping your countertops uncluttered gives you more room for food prep and makes your kitchen easier to clean.

Pantry Decluttering

Many kitchens have a pantry to keep food and larger items, such as stock pots. A cluttered pantry not only looks bad, but you may not be able to find the items you want. Invest in storage solutions for dry goods so you don’t have many different-sized boxes and bags vying for space on shelves.

Go through cooking items, such as large pots and appliances. Get rid of items you no longer use. For example, you might have canners but no longer can – you can donate or get rid of these large canners to make room for other items when you declutter your kitchen.

Organize your pantry so everything has a space. Keep similar foods together, such as various types of pasta or rice. For smaller items, such as pre-packaged foods, consider using clear storage bins to keep them together and prevent them from sliding all over your pantry shelves.

Use can organizers to store canned goods. They ensure you use the oldest canned goods first and keep them from falling if you have canned goods stacked on a shelf.

Regular Maintenance

Maintaining an organized kitchen is an ongoing project. However, when you make a habit of cleaning up and tidying everything each day, including putting items away and wiping down countertops and cabinet doors, it makes it easier to stay organized. If you notice clutter starting to accumulate again, declutter sooner rather than later so you won’t have such a big job.

Refurbishing your kitchen with new kitchen cabinets also allows you to have a place for everything, which makes it easier to keep your kitchen decluttered.