Tips and Hacks for Small Apartment Kitchens

Here’s a list of helpful ideas and tips for residents dealing with small to moderate amounts of kitchen space. With just a few changes, you could have the kitchen you’ve always wanted!

Kitchen space is some of the most valuable real estate in any home. If you live in an apartment, you’re likely dealing with a more modest-sized kitchen than those living in houses or condos. For some, that could hinder their baking or grilling hobby, but it doesn’t have to! You might have a modest apartment kitchen without much room, but there are a ton of ways you can maximize your space and utilities so that you have every tool and meal you could ever want. From small kitchen shelf ideas to new forms of kitchen space savers, we’ve got you covered.

There’s no need to fret or worry about that small countertop anymore because we’ve got a bunch of helpful tips and life hacks for your apartment kitchens!

Keep Counters Clean With Storage Containers

It’s not easy to clean up every utensil or plate after every meal, but it frees up a lot of space. Unfortunately, most countertops are as much of a storage space as they are a food preparation area. They could have bread boxes, fruit bowls, or even extra cutting boards. When that storage space is occupied, though, it limits the area’s potential and limits what you can cook. That’s why the first and possibly most important tip is to store everything whenever it’s not being used.

You get a more organized kitchen and an open space where you can do your food prep.

Install Shelving and Hooks

Now that we’ve established that storage is key, you need to find that storage space. There’s nothing more helpful than turning empty walls into an entire storage space. Now, that doesn’t mean you should immediately head to Home Depot and try to DIY your own custom shelves. Shelving needs to be built, and installed, with the utmost care. Otherwise, you’ll awaken one morning to find your floor covered in broken dishes or spilled spices. So make sure whatever brand of shelf or wall storage you choose is strong enough to support whatever you need.

If you live in an area with earthquakes, be conscientious of what you store. It might make sense to move heavy plates into strong cabinets and store utensils, tools, or accessories on your new shelves or hooks.

Utilize Every Corner and Windowsill

If you’re complaining about your kitchen space while you have an unoccupied windowsill, you’ve got nothing to complain about! While it might not be a new countertop or cabinet, a windowsill or corner can be an absolute game-changer when it comes to storage space or adding style and personality to your kitchen. There are so many unique containers and accessories that are specifically designed for certain spaces. You’ll be able to find food containers built specifically for your kind of corner or windowsill.

Or, if you’re looking to add more style and personality instead of storage, add a plant or antique to brighten the space.

Use EVERY Shelf In Your Cabinet

If you’re not an inch or two above six feet tall, there’s a good chance you won’t make use of your top shelf. No one likes to be reminded of their height when arranging their kitchen, so most people tend to use the bottom shelf for nearly all of their storage. That’s a huge mistake and it’s one that a simple footstool can fix.

While it might not make sense to put the most frequently used foods or plates on the top shelf, it can still easily house the pans or pots you use once a week.

Borrow Space From Your Living Room

Your living room doesn’t have nearly as many accessories as your kitchen, so why not borrow some of its space? Modern-day living rooms are not as tidy as they were in the past. People are using every inch of space to add character or to simply save their other rooms from getting cluttered. Items like coffee mugs, dishes, actual coffee, or baking utensils can all double as decorations in your living room while saving some valuable kitchen space.

Then when you need that particular spatula or hand-crafted mug, you just need to make a quick trip to the living room.

Add Magnetic Hooks or Knife Racks

If you cook or do food prep as a hobby, you likely have more than just one or two knives. They’re the most versatile tool in your kitchen but they can take up a ton of space. So instead of throwing a bunch of sharp knives into one of your drawers, why not display them like the artful tools that they are? Magnetic knife racks are present in some of the most famous kitchens in the world. They can save a significant amount of space for chefs who use them for different dishes and they can help free up storage space for the average home cook.

Even if you don’t have a chef’s set of knives, moving a couple of knives to a simple magnetic hook or wrack can add some style and help maximize your drawer space.

Portable Carts with Wheels

Shintenchi Kitchen Island available on Amazon!

Once the hottest trend of 1960s parties and kitchens, wheeled carts are making a comeback in modern-day homes. Just like borrowing space from another room in your home, it allows you to move a shelf’s worth of accessories or utensils into another room when it’s not needed. They could be baking tools or even your grill accessories. Some people even decorate their carts to reflect what they contain. Every baker or coffee connoisseur would love the idea of wheeling their favorite hobby into the room in an instant, and a wheeled cart is a convenient and affordable means of bringing that to life.

Foldable Kitchen Tables

Tiptiper Folding Table available on Amazon!

Kitchens used to double as dining rooms, but if you can barely move around the sink how do you expect to enjoy your meal? So many accessories and products are foldable and compact now and that includes kitchen tables! Most are only available for 1 – 2 diners, but when you’re looking to spend some time away from the living room sofa, it’s the perfect local getaway. It allows you to dine in your stylish kitchen and even create a romantic dinner with your partner without having to leave your apartment. Some of the foldable tables even have additional shelves and drawers to add even more small kitchen storage to your space.

Over-the-Sink Cutting Boards

Kindled Ivys Over-the-Sink Cutting Board available on Amazon!

This is another helpful tip for our many chefs out there. You can never get enough cutting board space. There’s nothing more difficult and even dangerous for a small kitchen chef than trying to maximize space while wielding sharp knives. So instead of negotiating with your cut vegetables for every inch of space, an over-the-sink cutting board gives you an entirely new food prep area.
When they’re versatile like the above option, you can even adjust the cutting board so that it expands even further across your sink. This is an extremely useful kitchen space saver and even those who live with larger kitchens should use it!

Replace Junk Drawers with Spice Drawers

Possibly our best kitchen space-saving idea is relevant to every kitchen in the United States thanks to the dreaded “junk drawer”. We all have one. It has everything from local menus to rubber bands to even plastic food utensils. Admittedly, every one of those objects is useful, but an empty kitchen drawer is much more valuable than one left for junk. Instead of filling that drawer with unused chopsticks, buy a small order of spice jars or storage containers. Then, you can keep any kind of perishable that doesn’t need to be stored in the fridge in one of your new small kitchen storage drawers.

That way you have an easily accessible pantry right at waist level!