The 7 Best Ways to Organize a Pantry

You shouldn't open your cupboard or pantry and be met with an avalanche of canned goods or spend 10 minutes searching for the colander. Use these effective DIY techniques to organize your pantry and fix the mess once and for all. 

How to Organize a Pantry

1. Centralize Sauce Packets
2. Organize by Size and Frequency
3. Rubber Band Tool
4. Canned Food Storage
5. Downsize on Boxes
6. Make Mini Snack Packs to Go
7. Stadium Seating for Jars and Cans

Let's dive deeper into each tip.

1. Centralize Sauce Packets

Keep packets of sauces and gravies in one easy-to-manage spot in your pantry—we suggest using an empty child’s shoebox! Stand the envelopes upright in the box, so the labels are easy to read, and the shoebox should fit perfectly on a shelf in your pantry.

2. Organize by Size and Frequency

Make the most of your pantry space by organizing your items by size and frequency of use. Got lots of bulk-size and backup dry goods? Place the lighter items (oats containers, ketchup, mayonnaise, tomato paste) on the topmost shelf, and the heavier ones (giant bags of rice) on the bottom.

3. Rubber Band Tool

When storing foods in opaque containers, such as oatmeal, coffee, flour, and other dry goods, place a rubber band around the outside of the container marking the level of remaining contents. (Then simply move the rubber band down as the level goes down.) It will serve as an easy visual reminder to know when you need to go shopping for that item again.

4. Canned Food Storage

Canned vegetables can be tricky to store neatly. However, now you can say goodbye to awkward stacks of cans. Grab an unused magazine holder (or pick up a new one), turn it on its back, and lay the cans inside on their sides—the width of the holder is the perfect size for the length of the cans. Keep them in place by attaching pins at the outer opening to form a small grate in front.

5. Downsize on Boxes

If your family is anything like ours, your shelves are always well stocked with cereal. That’s why we love this idea so much, we’ve used it for all sorts of boxed foods—from cereals to soup mixes to drink powders to snack pouches. Downsize the number of bulky boxes in your pantry by pulling out the bagged foods and storing them in an over-the-door shoe organizer. Less cardboard, more space!

6. Make Mini Snack Packs to Go

Oversize bags of snacks take up tons of space in cabinets and pantries. To use your space wisely and cut down on overeating, pour the snacks into smaller individual bags—then grab a mini pack on the go for a real snack-size portion.

7. Stadium Seating for Jars and Cans

When you’re searching for something in the pantry, it can be a huge pain to shuffle things around until you find what you’re looking for at the very back of the shelf. To simplify the hunt for foods in the pantry, pick up tiered shelf risers at a home goods store. The tiered shelving will place items in the back a few inches higher than those in the front. Everything will be easier to spot—no hassle!

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