Spice Storage Ideas for a Small Kitchen (No Pantry Required)

No pantry, a handful of cabinets, and a spice collection that keeps growing. It's one of the most common small-kitchen problems, and the usual advice ("get a pantry spice rack!") doesn't help when you don't have a pantry. The fix is to spread spices across the spaces a small kitchen does have: cabinet doors, drawers, the underside of shelves, even the side of the fridge.

Here are spice storage ideas for a small kitchen with no pantry, from the zero-cost options to the ones worth buying.

First, shrink the collection

Every idea below works better with fewer jars. Before you reorganize, pull every spice out, combine duplicates, and set aside anything that has lost its smell. Then split what's left into spices you use every week and spices you use a few times a year. Only the weekly group needs prime space. For a step-by-step version of this, see How to Organize Spices in a Small Cabinet.

1. The inside of a cabinet door

If you only try one idea, try this. The back of a cabinet door is flat, unused and at eye level. Put your weekly spices there and every label faces you when you open the door. Our peel-and-stick cabinet door storage boxes come as a set of two, each about 10 × 3.9 × 3.3 in (25.5 × 10 × 8.5 cm). Measure the gap between the closed door and the shelves first; the boxes need about 3.9 in of clearance. More ideas for doors are in Kitchen Cabinet Door Storage Ideas for Renters.

2. A drawer, with jars lying down

A shallow drawer near the stove makes a great spice drawer. Lay jars on their side with labels on the lids (or the top of the jar) facing up, so you can read everything at a glance. The trick is keeping them from rolling. Cut-to-fit drawer dividers let you make narrow lanes sized to your jars: measure the jar diameter, cut the strips to your drawer's length, and slot them together. Measure twice, since a cut strip can't be joined back.

3. Tiers or a turntable on the shelf

If the spices have to stay on a shelf, stop lining them up flat. A stepped riser puts the back row higher than the front row so you can see every label. A turntable in a corner lets you spin the back jars to the front. Neither needs any installation. Measure the shelf depth and the height between shelves before you buy.

4. Under the shelf

Most cabinets have empty air between the top of your jars and the next shelf. A stick-on under-shelf drawer uses that space for spice packets, seasoning mixes or tea bags. It needs a smooth, flat underside; wire shelves won't work. One comes in our Spice & Pantry Door Kit, about 8.7 × 6.1 × 1.4 in (22 × 15.5 × 3.5 cm).

5. The side of the fridge or a wall

The side of the fridge is often a blank panel right next to where you cook. Magnetic spice tins stick straight to it with no adhesive, and they lift off when you move. On a wall, small stick-on shelves or containers can work if the surface is smooth and suitable for adhesive. Keep anything on the wall light, and test the adhesive on a small hidden spot first, since some paints can lift when it's removed.

6. A small tray by the stove, for the daily few

Salt, pepper, oil and one or two daily spices can live on a small tray on the counter, so they're in reach while you cook. Keep it to the few you truly use every day and keep the tray a step away from the burners. Heat, steam and light are hard on spices, so the spot right next to or above the stove isn't a good long-term home for the rest of the collection.

7. One home for packets and refills

Packets and refill bags are the reason spice cabinets turn messy. Give them one container, whether that's a small bin, a zip bag or the under-shelf drawer above, and refill your jars from it instead of opening a new bag on the shelf. Rubber-band or clip opened packets so they don't spill.

Label so any system works

Whatever mix of spots you choose, labels make it work. If you decant into matching jars, label the side you'll actually see: the lid for a drawer, the front for a door or shelf. Chalkboard labels with an erasable marker let you rewrite a jar when you refill it with something else. A roll of 120 labels and a marker are part of the Spice & Pantry Door Kit.

Putting it together

A simple no-pantry setup for a small kitchen might look like this:

• Door: the weekly spices.
• Drawer or shelf with tiers: everything else you use regularly.
• Under the shelf or one bin: packets and refills.
• High shelf: the once-a-year baking and holiday spices.
• Counter tray: only the two or three you use every day.

If you'd rather do the door, labels and packet drawer in one go, the Spice & Pantry Door Kit has all three in one box, with free shipping to the contiguous US.