Planning a Kitchen Makeover? Don't Forget This Storage Essential, Organizing Pros Warn

There's almost nothing more exciting than planning a new room in your home, and the kitchen is one of the most inspiring of all. But once you've tackled your backsplash, flooring, and cabinet colors, consider storage carefully to maximize long-term functionality.

With food, pots, pans, and cutlery all to keep tidy and tucked away, your kitchen storage arguably has to work harder than any other room in the house.

So, here, professional organizers share the one non-negotiable kitchen storage idea that they consider an absolute essential for a streamlined space.

Drawer Dividers Are the Kitchen Storage Essential to Never Overlook in Redesigns

To find out more about which storage ideas professional organizers always recommend for organizing a kitchen, I spoke to Ashley Bailey, the owner of Everything Orderly.

She advises, 'One storage essential homeowners should never overlook for their kitchen is drawer dividers – which are also great for those pull-out pantry drawers too,' and therefore work just as well for organizing a messy pantry as they do for organizing kitchen drawers.

'While, as a professional organizer, we often focus on functional bins or stylish storage baskets, the real impact lies in the drawers we use every day,' she continues. 'Dividers turn chaotic drawers into functional, easy-to-use zones.

'They create structure, keep items neatly separated, and ensure every category has a defined home, making things easy to locate.'

Additionally, says Ashley, drawer dividers, available at Walmart, when used to organize deep drawers, for example, also eliminate the feeling of a "junk drawer," and make it easy to follow the rules for a clutter-free kitchen long-term. For that reason, they're one of the many things organized kitchens have in common.

'When everything has its place, you spend less time digging and more time actually enjoying your space,' says Ashley, and we agree. You can shop the drawer dividers she uses below:

All prices were correct at the time of publication.

Along the same hidden storage vein, Anne Steppe, the owner of Step by Steppe Organizing, also recommends that homeowners should never overlook an effective under-the-sink storage and organization setup, either, to make organizing under the sink a breeze.

'Time and time again, I see this area looking more like a storage unit for cleaning supplies than a fully functioning space for homeowners,' she warns. 'Keep it simple – a mat to place down to catch possible water leaks or spills, trash bags, dishwashing and dishwasher solutions, replacement scouring pads, appliance cleaner, stove top and counter cleaner. That's about it.

'Don't stuff this space so full with 18 different cleaners and keep your back stock in a secondary location – limit this!'

So, if you've got an overly extensive collection, it's best to declutter under the kitchen sink before you begin organizing.

Meet the Experts

Ashley Bailey

Ashley is the owner of Everything Orderly in Raleigh, North Carolina, which helps families create beautiful, easy-to-maintain organizing systems that simplify daily life. As a mother of two teenage boys, she understands better than anyone how important storage essentials are for maintaining a neat home.

Anne Steppe

Anne is a 15-year veteran in the organizing industry based out of Charlotte, North Carolina. She has worked with clients for over a decade and is passionate about turning chaos into calm on her mission to simplify spaces so that her clients can live well with less clutter.

Shop our edit of the kitchen organizing products our editors can't live without for more organizational inspiration.