16 Ingenious Kitchen Storage Spots You’re Overlooking

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The right kitchen organizational hacks can make mealtime easier. Yet sometimes, no amount of wicker baskets can help you avoid the fact that you’re starting with limited storage space. While storage options within the kitchen appear to be shrinking as our arsenal of must-have kitchen gadgets and gizmos grows, a lack of space isn’t always the problem. Inefficient use of the space you currently have can also contribute to clutter and chaos.

Now, rather than wishing your kitchen cabinets magically doubled in depth, it helps to take a look at your existing storage possibilities. Is there a way that the area below the upper cabinets can become more useful with the addition of rods and hooks? Can the unused walls of the refrigerator do more than just hold up kitchen magnets? Quite frankly, once you change the lens with which you look at your kitchen, every nook and cranny will appear to be teeming with new possibilities.

For a helpful nudge in the right direction, we’ve rounded up some handy ideas to maximize every corner. While some of these involve quick additions such as adhesive racks, others may require more work — like installing a toekick drawer (which we’ll address). Still, if you’re willing to invest the time and effort, these upgrades just may optimize your kitchen beyond imagination.

While every inch of space is valuable in the modern kitchen, the area under the sink rarely finds itself as a prime candidate for storage — and with good reason. Since it’s usually fitted out with an awkward jumble of pipes, organizing your cleaning supplies in this cramped space can be hard, though not impossible with the right approach.

The first step towards making the space under the sink work for you is investing in a set of tiered sliding shelves. Opting for a pull-out design will allow you easy access to items in the deeper areas, such as cleaning supplies purchased in bulk. While there are several adhesive iterations available on the market, metal shelves with suction cups – such as those found on this under sink organizer from Kitstorack – make for a wise choice of material for holding the weight of bulky bottles.

You can choose to further optimize this area by installing a removable tension rod on the back of the door (like this Amazons Basic product). Throw on some unused shower hooks, and you’ll create an effective resting area for dish towels after wiping down your countertop.

The refrigerator has long served as a willing canvas for invitations, children’s artwork, and life’s other memories. But that vast expanse of metal can also serve as a magnet (pardon the pun) for handy storage space with magnetic spice racks. While there’s no dearth of spice organizers available on the market, kitchen countertops are precious, highly coveted real estate. If you’re hoping to save some crucial inches, you’ll want to move the spice party elsewhere. One option is Mystozer’s magnetic spice rack, which is a handy way to use all that empty space on the side of your refrigerator.

While most iterations offer tiered shelves for keeping your spice jars and bottles easily accessible, you may like Loodkyo’s multi-purpose magnetic rack. This brand’s product includes a paper towel holder, as well as hooks for hanging smaller mugs. If you’re looking to go down the DIY route instead, simply glue some disc magnets on the back of metal spice tins to instantly create your own magnetic spice rack on the refrigerator.

While you’re turning your refrigerator walls into a multi-tasking haven, you may want to pause and consider all the unused space on top of appliances, too. The area between the top of the refrigerator and the ceiling might be harder to reach, but this just makes it a worthy canvas for lesser-used items in the kitchen. Think specialty baking supplies, larger pots and pans, or appliances that you don’t need on an everyday basis.

In its simplest iteration, this area can be optimized by adding a wicker basket for storing dish towels and kitchen supplies; bonus points if you pair it with a low-maintenance succulent for a pop of freshness. Anyone willing to invest in the long-term can choose to outfit this area with open shelves, as well, to display cookbooks and other decor.

Furthermore, with the help of multi-tiered stands, you can potentially maximize a vacant area above the microwave, as well. This three-tiered stand by Rasegicc or any similar options with multiple shelves will help you store gadgets (like an air fryer) or frequently used condiments without placing them directly on the appliance.

One of the keys to optimizing every single spare inch of your kitchen involves making the most of vertical storage space. Rather than just expanding horizontally (and generating potential clutter) or cramming the maximum amount of stuff into kitchen cabinets to increase countertop space, you shouldn’t sleep on the potential of undercabinet attachments. 

For a more efficient way to store your coffee cups, you may want to consider something like this Amazer coffee mug holder; it can easily be attached with screws, creating a sturdy home for your mug collection. Conversely, anyone hoping for a hassle-free installation can opt for an undershelf holder, like this YAMAKAZI under-shelf holder. By optimizing this space with adhesive or screw-on holders, you can say hello to a new resting spot for cleaning essentials or a display rack for decorative dish towels.

In your quest to avoid letting any inch of vertical space slip by unnoticed, you’ll want to poke your head inside the actual kitchen cabinets to conduct a deeper inspection. To make the most of this space, opt for shelf risers that serve as a miniature ledge with legs — thus creating a second tier of storage space within your cabinet. By adding vertical dividers, you’ll find the storage options within a cramped cabinet can effectively be doubled.

Now, it’s important to measure your cabinet before purchasing anything to ensure your shelf risers have enough space to allow two levels of storage. Then again, many modern cabinet iterations offer adjustable heights, so there’s potential to work with any cabinet in your kitchen.

Dersyer’s acrylic shelf risers are among the most common iterations you’ll find online, though metal and wire shelf risers make for a sturdy option to store heavier goods, as well. If you’re looking to invite this efficient organization system into other areas of your kitchen, consider the OXO adjustable refrigerator shelf riser. It’s designed with slimmer legs to create new storage possibilities within the standard set of racks in a refrigerator.

Once you’ve thoroughly exhausted the storage opportunities available under your cabinets, it’s time to examine the cabinet doors themselves for storage solutions. On that note, if you’re looking to keep kitchen essentials nearby without creating visual overwhelm, the inner side of cabinet doors is an ideal place for storing a wide array of everyday staples. In fact, there’s a wide world of cabinet door organizers that would like to be of service.

Renters can rest easy with a slew of adhesive options, which makes challenging installation procedures a thing of the past. To bring some order to an otherwise anarchic land of jumbled pot lids, you may want to try MIXISAV’s adhesive cabinet organizer. Then again, perhaps you’d like a simpler approach for maximizing cabinet doors. If so, there are also over-the-door organizers at your disposal. These can be slung onto any door with hooks to cut through the clutter of a messy pantry. You can opt for something like this Delamu over-the-door pantry organizer to get your spices in formation.

If your kitchen cabinets were among the characters in “Harry Potter,” the toekick area would be Peeves — completely invisible, yet waiting to be called upon. Now, while many hard-to-reach nooks eventually find their time in the spotlight, the toekick area is largely dismissed as dead space by some. Of course, this hollow indentation at the bottom of kitchen cabinets — which gives your toes room to stand closer to the counter — is needed to ensure you aren’t straining your back by leaning over too much. And you can also put it to better overall use by installing a toekick drawer.

To be clear, installing a drawer in this area will likely require some facetime with a carpenter. But the payoff comes in the form of additional storage space that stretches as far back as your cabinets go into the wall. This clever storage space allows you to make the most of the shallow area by storing items that aren’t needed on a regular basis, such as appliance manuals, parchment paper, or spare rolls of aluminium foil. Furthermore, shallow baking pans, spare oven mitts, and dish towels can also be stored in this space with ease.

Is there a blank stretch of wall in your kitchen that doesn’t have enough leeway for hanging adhesive shelves? If so, you can still put it to good use in other creative ways. In fact, instead of devoting an entire drawer to mismatched grocery bags, you can hang a wall-mounted dispenser, making the bags easily accessible while freeing a drawer.

Think of these organizers as a tissue dispenser but for your grocery bags. With that in mind, there’s a range of choices, such as a CFGBFDGH fabric-based option, which can be slung on any spare hook in the kitchen. This Calindiana farmhouse-style tin organizer, meanwhile, can be attached to the side of a refrigerator. If you’re looking to make the most of your wall space in a tiny kitchen, though, you may prefer a hybrid-type option, like this Vorshape dispenser. This allows you to store individual plastic grocery bags at the top and standard garbage bag rolls at the bottom (among other possibilities).

The refrigerator makes for a handy backdrop for magnetic shelves, but why stop there? You can infuse some whimsy into your kitchen via chalkboard magnetic pain, creating a multi-purpose wall for messages, pictures, and any souvenir magnets from your travels.

Magnetic paint works by infusing small particles of iron into the fluid to hold up magnetic objects. Once a few base coats of magnetic primer have been applied to a flat surface, you can follow it up with wall paint in a color of your choice. Now, it’s worth remembering that magnetic paint won’t be able to offer the same hold as the stainless steel walls of a refrigerator. With that in mind, feel free to add multiple coats of magnetic primer until you reach the desired intensity.

Spice tins, lightweight wire baskets, and other metallic items can also find a home on a magnetic wall. Additionally, if you prefer to keep things discreet, consider opting for a coat of magnetic paint on the inside of a cabinet door instead. Doing so will create a useful spot for hanging up any reminders and invites — sans visible clutter.

Few storage crimes tend to prove as costly as ignoring the space afforded by corner cabinets. In fact, wasting this space — like a blind corner where two cabinets meet at a 90-degree angle — is a sign that it’s time for a kitchen remodel. With that in mind, if you’re redesigning your kitchen, you may want to have rotating or pull-out shelves installed. This will allow for easy access to a storage space you may have otherwise ignored.

There are an array of turntables available on the market, such as this OVICAR lazy Susan turntable organizer. You can store any number of kitchen items on such a turntable, including baking supplies, pots, and pans (among others). Additionally, anyone shopping for a turntable for spices should look for a non-skid surface to ensure the delicate jars don’t fly off as you spin the disc.

If your cabinets seem to be stacked to maximum capacity, it may be time to call upon some external storage options. One practical way to expand your current kitchen storage — without opting for a full-blown remodel, of course — is with kitchen trolleys.

Are you hoping to create some more prep space? Would you like to have all your decorative dishware on hand when entertaining guests? Do you need a resting area for hot pots and pans while you carry on with your cooking chores? If you answered yes to any of those questions, your kitchen could use a trolley.

Beyond generating additional storage and serving as a workspace area, the beauty of a trolley lies in the fact that it can be wheeled in as needed. For instance, you can use it when hosting guests for the holidays, and relegate it to the basement once done.

Over the decades, the backsplash has stood as a firm fixture in kitchen designs — ready to serve and protect your walls from splatters and food stains. But it can also serve as a focal point of your kitchen decor (especially if you’ve been eyeing these backsplash tiles to give your kitchen a vintage feel). In fact, you can choose to further maximize this oft-ignored storage area by adding open shelves.

Whether you’d like to keep certain cooking essentials handy or hoping to flaunt your cookbooks, there are several compelling reasons to repurpose the blank expanse of the backsplash. Floating shelves work as an easy way to break up the monotony of a tiled wall, for instance, though it’s helpful to remember they can’t handle excessive weight since they’re not supported by additional brackets. To play if safe, you’ll want to use a 4-inch shelf, which offers just enough space to display your favorite mugs, succulents, and other decorative objects to tie together your decor.

Open shelves are an easy way to generate more space in a cramped kitchen, and it helps that they’re often more affordable than installing traditional kitchen cabinets. If you’ve been running out of places to optimize with shelves, then, you’ll want to consider the area around your kitchen window.

For those who aren’t particularly attached to a particular window’s view, it may be worth repurposing this space. Floating shelves can be installed in this area by mounting the ends to the wall, or upper cabinets flanking the sides of the window. A small shelf running across the window also makes for an effective option, particularly if you’d rather not block the natural light. As a coincidence, this spot makes for a handy area for your herbs and plants to get their daily sun bath, as well.

For the most part, it makes sense to keep your kitchen floor as empty as possible to reduce the risk of banging into things. On that note, high ceilings don’t just make for an appealing design detail; they can also be put to work to help you maximize storage options in the kitchen. In fact, a high kitchen ceiling can be used to create a resting area for larger pots and pans that aren’t frequently needed.

Now, if the thought of hauling a ladder to retrieve items from high shelves doesn’t sound appealing, fret not. After all, pull-down shelf options are available to save the day. There are several conventional ceiling-mounted shelves to be found online, including this jkxoo pull-down alternative. It offers ease of access — even if you haven’t been gifted with height — and as a side bonus, you can have your dishes disappear above when not in use.

In your quest for outfitting your kitchen with portable storage, you’ll also want to consider furniture with in-built storage options. An elegant banquette with integrated storage may be the ultimate dream for those who love to host, but you can make the same principle work for you — even in a smaller kitchen — by opting for breakfast bar stools with hidden storage.

Generally speaking, breakfast bar stools are designed to be discreet, and take up minimum space in an area of the kitchen with high traffic. You’ll find a host of new-age options beyond the traditional bar stool silhouette, though, allowing concessions for drawers and hidden storage areas. Among these options is VASAGLE’s 360-degree swivel bar stool with a hidden compartment. You can use these areas to store dish towels and other kitchen essentials, or move it to the living room as a handy side table when guests come over.

One of Julia Child’s most important kitchen tips doesn’t involve cooking, but facing up to failure. Consequently, if you’re planning on replicating her iconic kitchen pegboard wall to create additional storage without the hassle of installing a plethora of cabinets, it’s good to know there’s a little room for error when you do.

If you have a smaller expanse of blank wall in the kitchen, you’ll want to outfit it with something similar to this pegboard panel by Ultrawall. To ensure your pegboard doesn’t impede on your everyday work in the kitchen, you’ll want to mount it on a wall where the items being hung won’t intrude on any walkways.

Once mounted securely with wood screws, you can unlock a new world of storage options. This may involve flaunting your mug collection, or allowing all of your copper pots and pans their time in the social spotlight. After all, if it worked for Julia Child, it will work for you.