You may bemoan your small kitchen, but a “step saver kitchen” (that’s realtor-speak for tiny) is actually much more efficient than a large one. With the right kitchen space savers, you’ll fully appreciate how efficient your tiny kitchen can be.
The trick is to put every inch of your kitchen to good use, so we’ve cooked up these space-saving kitchen ideas to help you do that.
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Kitchen Space Saver Ideas
1. Add a rolling kitchen island.
One of our favorite kitchen space savers are kitchen islands. Park one at the end of a cabinet and extend your food prep area and storage space. Most are on wheels, so you can move them wherever you like.
This Winsome Wood Suzanne island comes with seating, storage and a fold-down leaf for extra eating space. I love how it looks!
2. Try a foldable kitchen cart.
If you don’t have room for an island in your tiny kitchen, try a folding kitchen cart that you can pull out when you need it and tuck away when you don’t. This Origami Folding Kitchen Cart is perfect for extra food prep and serving space in a small kitchen.
If you’re the DIY type, you can even make your own rolling kitchen island!
Make Use of the Space Around your Refrigerator
3. Use the space between your fridge and wall as a pantry.
This is such a clever idea. Make your own rolling storage and add a whole new pantry in that tiny space between the refrigerator and wall or counter.
If you’re not a do-it-yourselfer, don’t fret, because you can buy a Slide-out Storage Shelf already made, like the one below.
4. Use the side of your fridge for spice storage.
These Gneiss Magnetic Spice Jars are great little kitchen space savers and their hexagon shape makes for some creative formations. Even if you have a stainless steel fridge, the sides of it should be magnetic. Hanging your spices on the side of your fridge really frees up space in your cupboards.
5. Make a DIY magnetic spice rack for your fridge.
Use plastic storage baskets (which you can spray paint, by the way) and hot glue magnets on the backs to make these magnetic spice racks pictured below. You could also use Command hooks, as long as the side of your fridge is smooth.
6. Put cafe rods on the side of your fridge for hanging storage.
This clever side of the fridge storage idea is used here to display kid’s artwork, but you could also hang kitchen towels, oven mitts, dog leashes, or anything else you can think of. You can use Command hooks and a cafe rod, OR if the side of your fridge is magnetic, simply buy a magnetic curtain rod like the one below.
Magnetic Curtain Rod
Clip Curtain Rings
Kitchen Cabinet Space Savers
7. Add pull out shelves to your cabinets.
The Rev-A-Shelf brand makes a line of wonderfully handy kitchen space savers in the form of pull out shelves. These babies can more than double your cabinet capacity and are durable and surprisingly easy to install. This is the two tier slider designed for pots and lids.
8. Use Over the Door Storage in your Pantry.
Turn your pantry door into more storage space with a handy over-the-door storage rack like the one below.
9. Use cabinet organizers in your kitchen cabinet shelves.
Cabinet organizers that slide under or over your shelves are an easy way to instantly multiply your storage space. You can find some similar to the ones below here.
10. Use an office file organizer to store cookie sheets.
A metal office file organizer is such a bulky thing to use in an office space, but it’s perfect to keep flat items in your kitchen straight and tidy. (Again…spray paint it to match your decor if it’s hideous.) If you don’t have one laying around, you can buy a cookie sheet organizer here for pretty cheap.
The below is a great deal because you get two!
Add Storage to the Sides of Cabinets
11. Hang a shower caddy on the side of the cabinet to store produce.
All flat surfaces are fair game when it comes to storage ideas for small kitchens, especially the sides of cabinets. Take a simple shower caddy, like this one, and use it to store produce, spices, or anything else you want to keep handy.
12. Attach a towel bar and S hooks and hang your pots and pans.
Why just hang a towel on a towel rack? Save space and hang your pots and pans on the sides of your cupboard. These Ikea rails and hooks are fantastic kitchen space savers and would work great for this.
13. Use the same method and hang your utensils.
Here’s the Ikea rails with S hooks:
14. Mount shelves to your shelves.
This trick gives you even more…shelves.
Kitchen Counter Space Saver Ideas
15. Use a stove cover
A stove cover expands your food preparation area by enabling you to use your stove as a cutting board. It’s completely removable when you need to use your burners. This is a trick that RV enthusiasts have been using for years and it’s a great kitchen space saver for any small kitchen.
Over Stove Cutting BoardBamboo Stove Top Cutting Board
16. Add an over-the-sink cutting board
You can do the same thing over your sink with this Squish cutting board. The cool thing about this product is that it comes with a colander that collapses down for easy storage.
17. Put a shelf over your sink for dishes and utensils
If you don’t have a dishwasher, clean dishes can take up a LOT of counter space. This nifty over-the-sink rack holds dishes, utensils, dish soap and lots more. You can even use it to store your dishes if you are really short on cupboard space. It’s very multi-functional.
Use Every Inch of Space in your Small Kitchen
18. Use the space above your kitchen cabinets.
Pretty baskets or bins can store lesser used dishes and appliances without taking up valuable cabinet or counter space, plus they add a decorative touch. Who says kitchen space savers can’t be pretty?
Farmhouse Wire BasketsBraided Storage Baskets
19. Don’t forget about the space above your stove.
Above your stove is the perfect spot for utensils and your favorite cooking pots.
20. Make use of the wall space above your counters.
The little bit of wall above your counters may not seem like much, but with the right accessories you can really make use of that space. These rods and baskets can store your most used kitchen items, and maybe a plant or doodad just to pretty it up.
Ikea CaddiesIkea Kitchen Organizer Set
Create Hanging Storage in your Kitchen to Save Space
21. Use a tension rod to hang your spray bottles
Now, this is just genius!
22. Also use a tension rod to hang your pots
Hanging your smaller pots and pans inside your cupboard frees up the shelf space for larger items. Using a tension rod and S hooks means no drilling required – easy peasy!
23. Hang all your coffee supplies
24. Hang a pegboard for kitchen storage
Pegboards aren’t just for garages. They can hold a ton of kitchen gadgets and pans and you can spray paint them to match any decor.
Check out the pegboard and accessories below. Imagine all the things you can clear out of your cupboards with this!
2 Triton PegboardsPegboard Accessories
25. Store your utensils in mason jars mounted to the wall.
Who doesn’t love mason jars? You can paint or decoupage them if you don’t like the naked look.
Here’s an easy tutorial to show you how to make a wall mounted mason jar storage unit.
Has our list of kitchen space savers inspired you to make use of every inch of your small kitchen? We hope it has helped you appreciate how efficient your small kitchen can be. What’s your favorite kitchen space saver idea? Let us know in the comments!
Feature image by Becca Tapert on Unsplash
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