Are you tired of looking at a cluttered kitchen? Here are 7 kitchen decluttering tips to make your kitchen clean & spacious this year.

In my opinion, the kitchen is the most crucial room that contributes to the overall state of your home.

The kitchen is generally the foundation to a clean house- or a messy one. I have yet to see a house that has a messy/dirty/cluttered kitchen, but the rest of the home is clean.

So if you’re struggling with a messy house or a home full of clutter, start in your kitchen. And once that is under control, it will do wonders for your house as a whole. 

It can be challenging, though, to get your kitchen under control when it’s really messy or cluttered. (Trust me, I’ve been there!)

So in this Podcast or Post, we’re going to share 7 tips for how to declutter your kitchen.

(Below you can read the post or play the podcast version- about 12 mins.)

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QUICK LINKS:

Below are the resources mentioned in this Podcast or Post.

✅Download our free Kitchen Declutter List. This checklist shows 30+ items that you can start decluttering in your kitchen right now.

✅Download our free Daily Cleaning Roadmap. This includes a kitchen cleaning checklist.

✅Get the Living Well Planner. (This is my favorite physical planner!)

✅This is the 2-tier fruit basket I use that I found on Amazon. (It looks pretty and maximizes my counter space.)

1.) Get in the right mindset. 

A lot of what we do starts in our mind and heart. The truth is we all only have 24 hours in a day. And we can only physically do so much.

We act on things that are important to us.

And we procrastinate or don’t even try to do the things that we filter out as less important or that we don’t feel capable of accomplishing.

There are 2 essential parts of your mindset that will motivate you to declutter your kitchen:

1. You need to determine why a clutter-free kitchen is important to you.

Why unclutter your kitchen?

What is your why that will motivate you to actually take the time to improve it?

Each person has unique reasons that matter to them about why they want their kitchen to be decluttered and clean.

But if you can’t think of a reason right away, here are some questions you can ask yourself:

Do you want to feel less stressed about your home? 

Would you be embarrassed for friends or family to drop by and see what it looks like right now?

Are you sick of trying to clear counter space whenever you need to prepare food/cook?

Do you want to walk into a welcoming, clean kitchen every day?

Do you want to set a better example for your kids (if you have kids)?

Does the mess cause tension in your household?

For myself, I used to feel like a failure when my house looked like a disaster. 

It added to my anxiety, added tension in my marriage, and I was absolutely mortified whenever someone would stop by. 

Even when we planned company in advance, I still couldn’t get my house completely clean before they came. (Embarrassing, I know!)

Cooking was time-consuming, because I had to clear & clean an area off of my counters to have a place to prep the food. And I’d need to wash pots/cooking tools I needed because I was never caught up on dishes.

I was always behind on my kitchen. And I honestly didn’t have time for that as a mom and stepmom of 4 kids, including a toddler and infant.

So I knew something had to change. And once I was convinced of that in my mind, I took action until I found a strategy that worked.

Whatever your personal reasons are that a clutter-free kitchen is important to you, write them down in your planner or in a note in your phone to keep as a motivating reminder for yourself.

I personally love using the Living Well Planner.

It has places to jot down notes and plan out goals. After trying many other physical planners, this is by far my favorite one that helps motivate me to actually stick to a schedule. I love that it has hourly time blocks for each day. This helps me to plan my day so that I have time blocked out for cleaning/decluttering I need to do.

2. Believe it is possible to make a change and believe you will have a clutter-free kitchen.

If you’ve been telling yourself you can’t get your kitchen or house clean/decluttered, stop telling yourself that.

It’s not true. Your kitchen CAN be clean and decluttered, and your house as a whole can be too. 

I promise you it is entirely possible. It’s within your power to make it happen.

But when you tell yourself that you can’t do it, because you’re too busy, you aren’t as great at doing things as so-and-so, (that person who seems to have everything in their home and life together,) you aren’t naturally good at it, or any other limiting belief that’s floating through your mind, then you aren’t going to try with the effort you would when you know and believe it’s possible.

So if you’ve been feeding on negative thoughts or negative things other people have said to you or about you, it’s time to flip the script in your head. 

Start telling yourself you are going to get your kitchen decluttered and clean. And then take it step by step till you get there.

2.) Set a countdown timer when you declutter.

Decide how long you have to declutter and set a countdown timer for that time.

You can do 5, 15, or 30 minutes at a time or however long works for you. 

Start in one area and get as far as you can before the timer goes off. 

When the timer is finished, then you have permission to stop. 

Of course, if you want to keep going at that point and have the time to keep going, you can. But you don’t have to.

When you’re done decluttering for the day, schedule another day/time to keep working on it and repeat this process until you are completely done with decluttering your kitchen.

3.) Only keep in your kitchen the amount of dishes, bakeware, & cookware you regularly need.

Figure out how much you need for your family, as well as for guests, if you frequently have people over that you use real dishes for.

If you have more dishes or cookware than you need, decide what you want to do with the extra.

I’m personally not against keeping extra dishes, or even certain cookware items. 

You may have some that break or crack in the future. And certain cookware can get worn out or damaged too. Or you may need to have extra cookware for special occasions where you do more cooking.

But if you do keep extra items, try to only keep a realistic amount for future use and consider storing them elsewhere, perhaps packed away outside of your kitchen.

This way you will keep the space in your kitchen occupied by items you’re currently using.

Having too many dishes in your kitchen can also lead to a messier kitchen if you procrastinate with washing them. Dirty dishes are one of the messiest forms of clutter.

GET YOUR FREE KITCHEN DECLUTTER LIST

4.) Maximize your kitchen storage space.

Store things efficiently so you make the most of your space.

While getting rid of things is an important part of decluttering, you also want to use the space you have in a practical way, so that the items you want to keep don’t look cluttered.

Add storage space where possible if it’s needed, with organizers such as racks, shelves, and containers. These can be used for dishes, cookware, bakeware, food, and more.

You may also be able to add shelving, cabinets, and/or hooks on your kitchen walls if you have space and a use for them.

Something I recently added to my own kitchen to add space and to store things in a way that looks better is a fruit basket that sits on the countertop and has 2 tiers.

This fruit basket looks pretty and our fruit looks much better in the basket instead of being sprawled all over my counter.

It works great for fresh produce that doesn’t need to be refrigerated, but it can also be used for more than just fruit, which is cool.

(I like it so much I’m actually going to get a couple more- one for storing snacks in my kitchen and another to use in our bathroom to hold items we regularly use.)

5.) Get rid of food that’s expired or that you won’t use.

Many people who are struggling with kitchen clutter often have food clutter.

By food clutter, I mean food items that are not where they should be, (such as out on your counters instead of put away in your cabinets or pantry,) and/or food items that are expired, old, or you otherwise won’t use.

You should toss out any old or expired food or any opened food items that you know you won’t finish.

Furthermore, if you have shelf-stable foods that are unopened and still good, but are items you know you aren’t likely to use, you can either donate these or give them away to someone who will use them.

You don’t want to keep extra food items that are taking up space but won’t be used.

6.) Remove miscellaneous clutter from your kitchen and pantry.

Put simply, any items that don’t belong in your kitchen or pantry, shouldn’t be in your kitchen or pantry.

This can include papers, toys, or other miscellaneous objects that don’t belong in these areas.

Put items away where they belong, make a home for them elsewhere in your house if you don’t currently have a spot for them, or get rid of any items that you don’t need or have a reasonable future use for.

7.) Maintain a daily kitchen cleaning routine.

You want to maintain your kitchen so it stays clean and decluttered.

After you’ve decluttered you kitchen, you don’t just want to pat yourself on the back and never think about your kitchen again.

The best way to keep your kitchen in a decluttered state is to implement a daily routine that will keep your kitchen clean.

And if you’re consistent, it won’t take you too long. Instead, I have found that I spend way less time cleaning my kitchen- and house as a whole- when I stick to my daily cleaning routine.

For help with this, you can download our free Daily Cleaning Roadmap, which identifies important tasks to do for the kitchen and other rooms, as well as the recommended order to do them in.

And this will help your kitchen to stay clean and decluttered going forward.

So those are 7 tips for decluttering your kitchen.

By getting in the right mindset, setting a countdown timer, getting rid of or packing away dishes or cookware you don’t need, maximizing your kitchen storage space, getting rid of food you won’t use, removing miscellaneous clutter, and maintaining a daily kitchen cleaning routine, you will be able to declutter your kitchen and keep it clean and decluttered.

✅To start decluttering your kitchen, grab our free printable Kitchen Declutter List.

GET YOUR FREE KITCHEN DECLUTTER LIST

This kitchen declutter list gives you over 30 items you can start decluttering in your kitchen right now.

In our next Podcast or Post, I’m going to discuss specific steps for how you can declutter kitchen cabinets, drawers, dishes and counters.

And when you sign up for any of our resources, such as our Kitchen Declutter List or Daily Cleaning Roadmap, we’ll notify you of the next Podcast or Post.

I’ll be posting again soon, as I’m going to try to publish a new one about every 2 weeks or so (or about 2 a month.)

I apologize that I haven’t been regular with these, but I’m working on that. (I had taken some time off because I’m pregnant right now and I was honestly not feeling that great in the first half of my pregnancy.) Currently I’m still dealing with issues with my back and spine, but thankfully I’m not nauseous anymore and I don’t feel as fatigued. (We found out we’re having a girl, so we’re excited about that!)

Have a great day and I wish you the best in your kitchen decluttering!

And if you found this episode helpful, please repin & share. 🙂

Related Podcasts or Posts

How to Declutter Kitchen Drawers, Dishes, Cabinets, & Counters

The Best Kitchen Declutter List (Over 30 Items to Declutter This Week!)

How to Purge Your Kitchen of Clutter