Small Kitchen Storage: 9 Ideas That Really Free Up Space

Declutter first, then organise

The most common mistake is buying new organisers before you know what actually belongs in the kitchen. Take an afternoon and empty one cupboard at a time completely. Sort into three piles:

• Used daily or weekly: stays at grabbing height.
• Used rarely: goes up high, to the back or out of the kitchen altogether, such as a hall cupboard.
• Never used, broken, duplicate: donate, sell or bin.

Only then will you see how much space you really need, and you’ll buy only the organisers you’re missing.

1. Use the height inside cupboards

A typical wall cupboard has 30–35 cm per shelf, but plates and mugs are only 3–10 cm tall. That leaves a lot of air. Stackable shelf inserts split the shelf into two levels: plates below, bowls or mugs above. That doubles the usable space without fitting anything.

2. Sort out under the sink

The cupboard under the sink is often a black hole of cleaning products, bin bags and sponges. A two-tier under-sink organiser fits around the trap. With pull-out baskets, you slide things forward instead of reaching to the back on your knees. Bottles stand securely and don’t topple. If you have children, fit a child lock to the door.

3. Make spices visible

Spices stacked behind each other mean you buy paprika three times and never find the cumin. A tiered rack puts jars in rows, each row higher than the one in front, so every label is visible. Alternatively, use shallow drawer inserts where the jars lie flat.

4. Walls instead of worktop

Everything on the worktop takes away chopping space. A magnetic strip replaces the knife block. A wall rail with S-hooks holds wooden spoons, ladle, whisk, tea towels and small baskets for spices or kitchen roll. Fitted under the wall cupboards, everything is to hand yet out of the way.

5. Use the inside of cupboard doors

The inside of cupboard doors is almost always forgotten. Slim over-door baskets or small stick-on hooks hold oven gloves, foil, cling film, measuring jugs or pan lids. Make sure the door still closes and nothing hits the shelves.

6. Store pans and trays upright

Stacked pans are impractical: you always need the bottom one first. A pan rack or simple vertical dividers stand pans, baking trays, chopping boards and trays side by side. Just pull out what you need.

7. Use the gaps

Beside the fridge, between a cupboard and the wall, or on top of the fridge, there are often narrow gaps. A slim rolling trolley, a narrow shelf or a basket on top of the fridge for rarely used items turns them into storage.

8. Tame the corners

Corner cupboards are deep and hard to reach. A turntable (lazy Susan) brings things at the back to the front. For corners in wall cupboards, two-level corner shelves work well.

9. Matching containers for dry goods

Half-empty packets of flour, pasta, rice and cereal take up lots of space and are hard to see. Stackable, clear storage containers with the same footprint use the cupboard better and show you when something is running low. Label them with the contents and, if useful, the best-before date.

The right order

Declutter, then measure, then buy. Measure the width, depth and height of your shelves and the space around the trap before ordering organisers. And start with the cupboard that annoys you most every day. Success there will motivate you for the rest.