Our Best Kitchen Organization Ideas For Keeping Your Countertops, Drawers and Cabinets Clutter-Free

The kitchen is the work horse of any home. It’s a drop zone, a space to create, and a gathering place where function is just as important as form. The goal of any kitchen organization project should be creating a lovely, clutter-free space that works for all members of the household. Here are our best tips and ideas to help you keep your countertops, drawers, and cabinets clutter-free:

(note: all images included in this article depict some of our favorite recent kitchen organizing projects.)

1. Before you organize, become more aware of how you use your kitchen.

Were you expecting me to say start with pretty bins and drawer dividers, like they do on Instagram?? Not this pro! Understanding how you use your space is the first step. Ask yourself:

Which cabinets and drawers are easiest to reach? What appliances are you using most frequently? Where are you prepping your food? Do you have to crisscross your kitchen multiple times to make yourself a cup of coffee? Does that annoy you? Does it seem to take longer than it should to empty your dishwasher? Is stuff accumulating on the counters because there is no more room in your cabinets, or because you will forget about it if you don’t see it?

It is important to recognize your stuff needs, your space needs, and your habits so that you can determine the most successful set-up for your needs.

 2. Declutter thoroughly — it’s the space or the stuff.

Overwhelming as it might seem, a kitchen tends to be a bit easier to declutter than other areas of our homes. We don’t have the same type of emotional attachment to our spatulas as we do with our shoe collection or vacation photos, When decluttering the kitchen, it is easiest to start with either the pantry or the kitchen supplies. Don’t do both at the same time. Go shelf by shelf. Toss expired food, chipped plates, and anything that is rusty. Donate mismatched mugs, vases you never really liked to begin with, and anything that you will no longer use, even if you have never used it (I am looking at you, mandoline slicer.) You need all the space you can get.

3. Find a home for everything.

The answers from tip #1 will give you some insights as to what goes where. Sort pantry items and kitchen tools according to type, then store items where you use them. Place your most frequently used items in the areas that are easiest to reach. (We refer to this as “prime real estate.”) Move special occasion supplies, platters, and back stock to higher shelves and kitchen cabinets.

Kits and stations are helpful for activities like making coffee, packing lunches, and baking. Create a coffee station by putting the coffee maker, coffee grinds, filters, k-cups, sweeteners, and mugs adjacent to one another. Store lunch boxes, snacks, food wrap, water bottles, and disposable utensils as close together as possible. Ditto for anything you would need to decorate baked goods.

4. Maximize space with the right organizing tools.

Our must have supplies for kitchen organizing projects include in-drawer organizers, tiered risers, lazy Susans, and pantry bins with labels, Vertical bakeware holders, which allow you to keep cookie sheets, cutting boards, and other shallow pans upright, are one of the best ways to find space inside cabinets.

With the right tools, you can use the insides of cabinet doors, backsplashes, and walls to gain more storage space, as well.

5. Label everything!

This tip is especially important if there is more than one person in your household. You would think it would be obvious what a shelf with cereal boxes or a bin with bags of chips is supposed to hold. You would think. Unfortunately, everyone approaches their categories just a little bit differently. Labels keep drawers and shelves organized because they leave no question as to where things belong.

6. Prevent kitchen clutter by using shelves and containers as boundaries.

For example, let’s say you have dedicated a section of shelves for pantry items. This is where all of your dry goods will live. If you come home from grocery shopping and find there is no more space, resist the urge to make much-needed counterspace pantry #2, or buy another shelving unit. Instead, declutter the shelves so that everything fits. Again, it’s the space or the stuff.

7. Use snippets of time to de-clutter.

Stay on top of the kitchen clutter by doing micro-organizing activities. While waiting for coffee to brew clean out a portion of the junk drawer; while waiting for something to heat up in the microwave pick a shelf (in the fridge or pantry) and toss expired items.

Once you have put these kitchen organization ideas into practice, don’t be surprised if your kitchen becomes your favorite space in the house.

This article contains affiliate links.