Tiny Apartment Kitchen? 10 Easy Ways to Declutter Your Kitchen Counter

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Updated on February 3rd, 2023

The kitchen – the heart of your home or apartment – is often one of the most frequented places throughout each day. A great place to entertain, bring people together, or share a meal after a long day of work, your kitchen is also a place where clutter piles up. And when you have a tiny apartment kitchen, the visible clutter may make your place feel even smaller. But we’re here to help give you the tips and tricks to declutter your kitchen counter. 

We’ve consulted with top professional organizers from Phoenix, AZ, to Indianapolis, IN, for their best advice on how to declutter your kitchen counter – and keep it organized. Check out what they had to say so you can organize your space today.

smaller kitchen with an island and clutter free countertops

Choose function over form

As a professional organizer, I’m all about ease of cleaning and preventing clutter before it occurs. My top tips for a tidy kitchen are to place anything that must be kept on the countertop on a tray and to store Tupperware with lids on (after matching tops to bottoms and purging anything old or unwanted). Finally, remember function over form: what works for influencers who make curated content may not be a good fit for your family. – Alaina Yonkers, Dynamic Order LLC, Central MA

Keep non-kitchen items off your kitchen counter

It’s easy for kitchens to become drop zones for clutter. Be vigilant about preventing non-kitchen items from entering the room or kitchen counter. Designate a landing pad in another room for all incoming mail and paper. – Tori Guyer, Organized With Care LLC, Cumberland County, TN and Oconee County, SC

Unboxing your items equals less clutter

Decanting leads to smart shopping. Decanting (unboxing) things like cereal, grains, kids snacks, etc serve two functions – first, we ditch all that bulky packaging, and two we can actually see what we have so we don’t overbuy. – Jaime Hecht, Aunt Jaime Organizes, Washington, DC

Pick organizing solutions that will be easy to use

Place circular rotating trays for quick access to spices, sauces, and oils inside of kitchen cabinets. Rotating trays assist with keeping your favorite cooking ingredients organized and off of your counter space. – Candace Hora Designer, HORA Studios, Dallas, TX

Make sure your items have a home

In small kitchens, I like to add risers inside cabinets to use more vertical space. Risers can add a whole new shelf to stack or store items. To keep counters clear, give each item a home. You want to make putting things away just as easy as taking them out. If you don’t have a home for your items, they’ll often end up on the counter because people don’t know where to put them. – Christine, Nicely Sorted, Minneapolis-St. Paul, MN

clean kitchen with lots of storage and decluttered kitchen counter

You can make big improvements on a small budget

Chances are if you have a small kitchen, you have a small budget. The inexpensive white plastic baskets at Wal-Mart or Dollar Stores can corral like-items together. The sides of the basket allow you to put more items in that space than if those same items were spread out on the cupboard shelf. Keep only the appliances you frequently use on the counter. Put the rest in the pantry or basement to free up the workspace. –  Laura, Simple Steps Organizing, St. Louis, MO

Everything you have should be a necessity

I like to keep things as simple as possible for my clients. Everything you have in your small kitchen should be a necessity and have a home for it. Once the item is used and washed, put it back immediately in its home. – Tracy Brugman, Simply Organized By Tracy, Phoenix, AZ

Sort, purge, and organize

To avoid feeling overwhelmed, start with the low-hanging fruit – what can you do now that will make an impact with little effort? Follow the S.P.O. method to get started: Sort, Purge, Organize. Sort items by function, purge what you don’t use or need, and store like items together in or near the space where it will be used. To help keep your kitchen tidy, clear your countertop or use trays or containers for intentionality. – Tiffany Smith, Simply Put Organizing LLC, Indianapolis, IN

Get creative when you declutter your kitchen counter

There are so many fun and creative ways to make any small space work. If you’re looking to make the best of a small kitchen these are a few of my favorite ideas: Before trying to organize, take some time to sort through your items and figure out what you really use and what you’ve been ‘hanging on to for that holiday party you might host next year’. Ditch the stuff you don’t need to make space for the things you do. Next, optimize your vertical space. Try moving that knife block off your countertop and onto a mounted magnetic board like this beautiful Crate & Barrel Knife Holder or consider hanging pots and pans from a cool and versatile Amazon Hanging Pan Holder. I’m also a huge fan of using a turntable anywhere possible as they make it so much easier to access items stored in back pantry corners or deep cabinets. Lastly, don’t be afraid to make use of products that aren’t specifically designed for the kitchen. Get creative and don’t forget to have fun. – Brooke Held, Held Together DFW, Dallas-Fort Worth, TX

Keep your countertops clear and open

Just because your kitchen is the busy hub of home life doesn’t mean it should look chaotic. Introduce a sense of visual calm with clear, open countertops and neatly organized cabinets. Reducing the contents of your kitchen is the easiest way to make room for everything without resorting to using your counters for overflow storage. If space is at a premium, skip the fancy gadgets and stick with multipurpose equipment and appliances only. Making use of your vertical storage opportunities (inside cabinet and pantry doors, strategically-placed wall shelves, shelf risers to double your cabinet space, etc.) and avoiding overshopping will ensure you have enough room to put everything away instead of leaving it out on the counter. Dry and put away hand-washed dishes immediately, and ditch the bulky drying rack in favor of a foldable mat that requires less storage space. – Valerie Sheridan, EasyPeasy Living, Montgomery County, MD

Alison is part of the content marketing team and enjoys writing about housing affordability and home interior design ideas. Her dream home is a cottage-style house with a chef's kitchen and a cozy room to store and play vinyl records.
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