How To Organize Refrigerator? [11 Simple steps]

Last Updated on October 26, 2022 by E.Pery

Do you always cringe at the thought that your visitor will open your refrigerator door and recoil with horror? If so, you are probably often stricken with guilt every time you ransack the whole fridge to look for a food item that you find decomposing at the very back of the refrigerator.

Organizing your fridge does not only make it easier to access foodstuffs; it also facilitates air circulation, which enhances the efficiency of your refrigerator. Moreover, organizing your fridge makes everything stay fresher for longer, reduces your chances of consuming expired food, and saves tons of time prepping a meal.

Stop getting lost in your fridge all the time. Be more confident when you swing your refrigerator door open by learning the tips below on how to organize the refrigerator.

How to organize a Fridge in 11 simple steps

1. Clean the refrigerator
2. Discard expired food
3. Adjust your shelves
4. Line your drawers and shelves
5. Label everything
6. Group similar items and designate shelf space by category
7. Separate certain fruits and vegetables
8. Store soft herbs like flowers
9. Create room for pantry products
10. Stack to save space
11. Keep your refrigerator refreshed

1. Clean the refrigerator

The first step towards organizing your refrigerator is to scrub it down. Begin by taking everything. The process of cleaning your refrigerator will not take you more than an hour. If you are bothered by the safety of your perishables, preserve them in a cooler and place the rest of the items on your counter or table.

Once the fridge is cleared, pull out the bins and the removable shelves and clean them on the sink with warm soapy water and a soft kitchen cloth. Alternatively, you can wipe the shelves using a mild cleaning solution and a non-fluffy kitchen towel. Also, throw out all expired and decomposing food as you clean.

You can use natural cleaning solutions available in your kitchen, such as vinegar and baking soda, to give your fridge a clean and fresh start. If you are using vinegar, dilute one part of it with one piece of water.

Put the solution in a spray bottle and use a clean towel to get rid of grime and smudges in all the nooks and crannies of your fridge. Dry the surfaces with a microfiber cloth before cleaning the outer surface of the refrigerator. Do this every once in a while to keep the refrigerator free of dirt and unpleasant smells.

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2. Discard expired food

As you put the food back in the fridge, check the condition of each food item. Toss out out-of-date and decomposing food in the bins and clean the underneath of each storage container before putting them back in.

If you have leftovers in food storage containers that you do not intend to cook soon, you need to throw them out. Toss cut of leftover fruits in a zip-top bag and wrap a wedge of cheese in wax paper.

3. Adjust your shelves

Most fridges have adjustable shelves and drawers. If your refrigerator also has this feature, organize it by setting them accordingly to save time storing and retrieving foodstuffs. Adjusting your shelves also helps you to create more storage space.

4. Line your drawers and shelves

Use a heavy-duty, water-resistant shelf liner to protect your crisper drawers from drips and spills. The protective lining also makes cleanup more manageable, especially when fruit or vegetables go soft and become sticky. So you don’t need to do deep cleaning all the time.

5. Label everything

Ensure that you get the leftovers labeled by name and date of storage. This way, you will see which foods need to be consumed before others and prioritize what needs to be restocked when you go shopping.

If you cant label everything, at least label foodstuffs that you are most likely to forget, such as cooked foods, dairy products, meat, fish or poultry, and preboiled grains that need to be used before they spoil.

To minimize food loss, you can take a step further and create a list of all items in the fridge and stick it outside the refrigerator. Cross each item off when you use it. This list will further assist you in sorting through your leftovers prep meals according to the most perishable items.

Use this list to keep an inventory of the foodstuffs you store in the freezer as well. Most people often forget the foodstuffs they leave in the freezer.

6. Group similar items and designate shelf space by category

Grouping foodstuffs and designating shelves for these foods will take your fridge organization a notch higher. Start by keeping condiments, sandwiches, and salad fixings in labeled bins, vegetables in crisper drawers, and leftovers, take-outs, and other packaged foods on the top shelf where they are easily accessible.

Consider keeping most used items like snacks front and center as it will save time to access them and reduce the time that your fridge door is left open. You can also encourage your family to eat healthy snacks by further storing them in easy-to-open containers.

Keep meat on the lowest shelf to prevent the drips from spoiling other items in the fridge, particularly fresh vegetables, and fruits, through contamination. You can also decide to keep small bottles and condiments on your fridge’s door shelves.

Designate foodstuffs like meat, milk, cream, eggs, cheese, vegetables, and pre-cooked cereals in the freezer because it helps keep these perishables fresh long enough until you are ready to consume them.

Recommended reading: How Long Do Hard-Boiled Eggs Last In The Fridge?

Consider getting organization containers and bins with handles to make these items easy to retrieve from the refrigerator.

7. Separate Certain Fruits and Vegetables

Some fruits produce ethylene that makes other fruits and vegetables spoil or change their original color or smell. These fruits include mangoes, apples, stone fruits, passion fruits, kiwis, and pears. So take out these fruits and store them in a bowl on your fridge’s shelf, away from other fruits and veggies.

Examples of vegetables and fruits that you should completely keep away from include carrots, broccoli, lettuce, cucumber, eggplants, and avocadoes unless, of course, you want to ripen a hard-rock avocado.

It is also advisable to store vegetables in their original packaging in the fridge to prevent the transfer of odors and for optimum freshness. If opened, you can wrap the rest of the package in plastic wrap.

8. Store soft herbs like flowers

Fresh soft herbs like basil, cilantro, parsley, mint, and tarragon get spoilt as quickly as flowers do. To keep them fresh for longer, trim the stems and put them in a jar of water.

Covering their leaves loosely with a plastic bag and placing them in the middle of your refrigerator also helps keep them a bit longer.

9. Create room for pantry products

Some food items like soy sauce, nuts and milk, organic nut butter, maple syrup, and other nut flours are often kept on the shelves rather than the refrigerator because they are believed to last longer, even without refrigeration.

However, some of these pantry products, like yeast, spoil very quickly, exposing them to heat and light. So, consider creating a little room for these products to keep them fresh for longer than they usually go.

10. Stack to Save Space

Water bottles and beer or soda cans can be space-consuming at times. So if you often like having cool refreshing beverages consider getting a can or bottle dispenser to help you organize your bottles and cans by stacking them to access them easily.

11. Keep your refrigerator refreshed

It is inevitable to have infused odors in your refrigerator. However, you can combat this problem by using several natural solutions. Baking soda is often the most common option, but you can also use vanilla extracts to keep your refrigerator smelling fragrant. Alternatively, you could get a fridge deodorizer to keep the herbs, vegetables, and fruits longer.

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6 things you should know about organizing your refrigerator

1. An empty fridge is terrible, and an overfilled one is even worse
2. Pre-cut fruits and vegetables at your own risk
3. Avoid storing your milk cans on your fridge’s door shelves
4. Keep your fruits and veggies separate
5. Keep your lemons and limes in a sealed plastic back with a bit of water
6. Meat, fish, and poultry should be stored on the lowest shelf of the fridge

1. An empty fridge is terrible, and an overfilled one is even worse

If something always falls when you open your refrigerator, you need to get a more significant appliance or organize your fridge to minimize the clutter. Overstuffing your refrigerator leads to a massive waste of forgotten foods and reduces the efficiency and life expectancy of your appliance.

Blocked air vents impede air circulation within and out of the fridge, a problem that could lead to overheating. When the refrigerator overheats, it fails to cool food properly, and hence most foodstuffs items spoil earlier than they should.

It also reduces your fridge’s energy efficiency as the overworked appliance demands more power to cool food. Having a nearly empty fridge is just as bad because it leads to unnecessary energy use. So If you have a large appliance with few users, consider stocking it with water bottles or cans of soda and beer.

Recommended reading: How Many Watts Does A Refrigerator Use?

This helps the fridge to maintain cool temperatures without demanding excess energy. Avoid these mishaps by keeping your refrigerator three-quarters full at all times.

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2. Pre-cut fruits and vegetables at your own risk

You probably like keeping your fruits washed and sliced in the most accessible area of your fridge to encourage healthy snacking. Although this habit has its benefits, it also has a downside that you should seriously consider. Sliced fruits tend to deteriorate faster than whole fruits.

The larger the exposed surface area, the shorter the time that the fruit will stay fresh. To avoid the fast deterioration of fruits, wash them and store them whole in the fridge in an accessible area.

3. Avoid storing your milk cans on your fridge’s door shelves

Many people recommend storing milk cans on the fridge’s door storage to maximize space in the refrigerator. Most people don’t realize that the door and the top shelf are the warmest spots in the fridge.

Being among the most perishable food product in your fridge, consider moving your milk can to the middle shelf. It will still be accessible for quick breakfast prep and enjoy a consistent temperature.

Recommended reading: What Temperature Should A Refrigerator Be?

You should apply this principle to other foodstuffs like eggs, condiments, and sandwich meats. Save your door storage for beverages like processed juices that can stand temperature fluctuations.

4. Keep your fruits and veggies separate

Newer fridge models have two separate drawers designed to store your fruits and veggies. The veggies drawer is designed to have higher humidity because fresh veggies wilt slower in the presence of moisture. On the other hand, the fruit drawer has lower humidity because fruits rot slower in the absence of moisture.

Moreover, some fruits contain ethylene which causes premature vegetable spoilage. Hence, try to keep fruits and veggies separate to keep everything fresh for longer.

The only exception to this rule is strawberries. Strawberries become mushy and moldy in the absence of moisture and have little tolerance for ethylene. Extend the freshness of your berries by storing them in the vegetable crisper rather than the fruit drawer. However, you should avoid washing them before storage because too much humidity works against them.

5. Keep your lemons and limes in a sealed plastic back with a bit of water

Most people store their lemons and limes on their countertops. Although this practice still works, you can extend the life of your lemons and limes by keeping them in sealed plastic bags with a bit of moisture in the middle of your refrigerator.

These citrus foods are highly porous; hence they dry more quickly in the open air compared to a humid environment. So as you organize your fridge, use the freed-up space to keep a few lemons and limes.

6. Meat, fish, and poultry should be stored on the lowest shelf of the fridge

Meat is one of the most perishable products in your fridge. So you either want to keep it in the freezer or on the bottom shelf because it’s the coldest area of your fridge.

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In addition to this, it produces juices that could contaminate other foodstuffs in the fridge by dripping. So keeping it on a tray in the lowest drawer prevents the leaking juices from dripping and contaminating other food items in the refrigerator.

Storing meat on the bottom shelf also makes the cleaning process safer in spillage as the chances of accidentally splashing its juices on other foods are lower.

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8 refrigerator organization hacks

If you’re anything like me, your refrigerator is a mess. It’s not that I don’t try to keep it organized — I do! But somehow things just get messy again.

I’ve found that one of the best ways to stay on top of my refrigerator’s organization is to use baskets and bins for food storage. They give me the freedom to organize by type or meal instead of location, which makes it easier to find what I need when I need it.

Here are some fridge organization hacks that will help you keep your kitchen in order:

1. Use a cookie sheet to organize condiments, sauces, and other ingredients.
2. Use magnets to hold recipes and grocery lists on the door
3. Store plastic bags in an old water bottle
4. Use binder clips to hang up plastic bags or bags of nuts and cereal.
5. Put Tupperware lids on the back of the door to use as a dry-erase board for grocery lists or notes from friends and family members.
6. Use a coffee can lid rack to hold plastic containers with lids (like spaghetti sauce).
7. Store baking trays in the door for easy access to cooking supplies like muffin tins, cookie sheets, and cooling racks without taking up valuable space in the main compartment of your fridge.
8. Use egg cartons for storing chopped veggies like carrots and peppers (they don’t take up much room but keep things from getting soggy).

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How to organize the fridge door?

Your refrigerator door is a mess. You’ve got half-finished cups of coffee, half-empty bottles of ketchup and mustard, and missing food containers that have been lost in the abyss.

You’re not alone. Many people don’t use their refrigerator door for its intended purpose — storing food. Instead, it’s often a catch-all for everything from sports drinks to makeup brushes, pens, and more.

But there are ways to change up your fridge and make better use of the space inside. Here are some of our favorite hacks for organizing your fridge door!

1. Use jars to store spices.
2. Make use of the handle slot with paper towels or cleaning wipes (or even snacks!).
3. Use a magnetic strip to keep metal utensils handy and off the shelf.
4. Create a designated spot for bottles of salad dressing or condiments like ketchup or mustard using a hanging rack or basket with handles on top.

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5 tips on how to organize fridge with containers

Containers can be a great way to organize your fridge. They can help you better see what you have, and make it easy to retrieve and replace items.

But if you don’t have the right containers, or if they’re not well-organized, then they won’t be helpful at all.

Here are 5 tips for using containers in your fridge:

1. Get sturdy ones
2. Leave space between items
3. Put frequently used items in front and less frequently used items in the back
4. Label containers with permanent markers or stickers
5. Use baskets or bins on top of shelves

1. Get sturdy ones

The best kind of container for the fridge is one that’s sturdy enough to hold its contents without tipping over or spilling — especially when it’s full of liquid. Look for containers with wide bases and strong handles that are securely fastened onto the lid. You might also consider using small boxes with snap-on lids instead of plastic containers with hinged tops; these tend to be more stable.

2. Leave space between items

If you stack containers up against each other, they’ll be harder to reach and remove, which defeats the purpose of having them in the first place! Make sure there’s at least 1 inch of space between items so they can easily slide around in their spots.

3. Put frequently used items in front and less frequently used items in the back

This way you won’t have to dig through a whole bunch of stuff every time you want to get something out of the refrigerator. For example, put milk at eye level so that it’s easy to grab when you need it most.

4. Label containers with permanent markers or stickers

So you know what’s inside without having to open them first. You can also use plastic storage bins for this purpose. They’re much more durable than plastic bags and easier to stack than cardboard boxes too!

5. Use baskets or bins on top of shelves

To hold small items like condiments and salad dressings that come in bottles or jars rather than cans or cartons because they take up less space this way and make it easier for everyone in the family to find what they need quickly when they’re making supper preparations throughout the week

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4 tips on how to organize a single-door fridge

A single-door refrigerator is great for those who live in small spaces or don’t have much storage space. They are also ideal for people who like to entertain a lot and want to keep their food organized by category. If you are going to buy a single-door refrigerator, then it is important that you know how to organize your fridge so that it looks neat and clean.

Here are 4 tips to help you organize your single-door refrigerator:

1. Use baskets and containers to keep fruits and vegetables fresh
2. Place bottles of water or juice on top of the fridge to save space inside it
3. Keep frequently used items on top shelves
4. Store smaller items like condiments, spices, and sauces in drawers inside your fridge

1. Use baskets and containers to keep fruits and vegetables fresh

Baskets are perfect for storing fruits like oranges, apples, and pears, while containers can be used for vegetables like carrots and potatoes. You can also use this space to store leftovers like cooked rice or noodles.

2. Place bottles of water or juice on top of the fridge to save space inside it

3. Keep frequently used items on top shelves

So that they’re easy to reach when you need them quickly. You can also use the middle shelf for storing large containers such as pasta sauce jars or cans of soup or beans.

4. Store smaller items like condiments, spices, and sauces in drawers inside your fridge

So that you don’t have to open its door every time you need an item from there!

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7 tips on how to organize a french door refrigerator

With a French Door refrigerator, you can enjoy the convenience of opening both doors at once. The large capacity allows you to store all your food items in one place and keep them organized.

Getting the most out of your new appliance is easy with these simple tips for organizing French door refrigerators.

1. Organize foods by type
2. Store leftovers properly
3. Store condiments properly
4. Separate fresh fruits and vegetables
5. Store milk and eggs at the back of the fridge
6. Use glass or plastic bins to store items
7. Use clear bins with labels

1) Organize Foods by Type

Foods like meat and dairy should be stored according to the expiration date. Keep meat in its original packaging or in a separate plastic bag from other foods to prevent cross-contamination. Dairy products such as milk, cheese, and yogurt should also be kept together in the refrigerator’s lower bin so they don’t spoil faster than their expiration dates.

2) Store Leftovers Properly

Don’t forget about leftovers! They can be stored in an airtight container on the top shelf of your refrigerator or freezer until you’re ready to eat them again. You can also use small containers so they’ll fit into the crisper drawer.

3) Store Condiments Properly

Condiments like mustard and ketchup should be stored far away from high temperatures as they tend to spoil quickly when exposed to heat sources like light bulbs or coils on your stovetop range hoods or overheads lights if those are present in your kitchen area where you

4. Separate fresh fruits and vegetables

From other food items in your fridge. This will help them last longer.

5. Store milk and eggs at the back of the fridge

So they don’t spoil as quickly. You should also make sure these perishables are in their original containers so they stay fresh until you use them.

6. Use glass or plastic bins to store items

On the inside of the doors and shelves. This will help you keep track of what’s in each bin so that you know where things are when you need them.

7. Use clear bins with labels

So everyone knows what goes in each bin without having to open it first, which will save time when looking for something specific

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How to organize a small fridge [In 3 Simple steps]

Organizing a small refrigerator can be a challenge. The good news is that it doesn’t have to be. With the right tools and some smart planning, you can make the most of your limited space.

Follow these 3 simple steps to get the most out of your small fridge:

1. Clean it out thoroughly
2. Arrange your items by type, then size, and finally color
3. Get rid of anything that’s expired or has been sitting around for too long

1. Clean it out thoroughly

This means emptying all of your food and drinks so nothing is left inside. Take everything out and wipe down the shelves with vinegar or bleach water to remove any lingering odors or stains that may be lurking there.

2. Arrange your items by type, then size, and finally color

Group similar items together into categories such as dairy products, meat products and produce items like fruits and vegetables. Then put these categories into sections such as condiments, beverages, and snacks — all on one shelf.

3. Get rid of anything that’s expired or has been sitting around for too long

If it doesn’t look good enough to eat anymore then it probably isn’t! You don’t need to keep everything in your home so get rid of any unnecessary items such as old cleaning supplies or damaged cans of food (anything that would be unsafe to consume).

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You can write directly on the refrigerator!

As discussed earlier, making a list of most if not all food items in the fridge helps you minimize food wastage by keeping a comprehensive inventory of all your perishables. The thing with writing on a piece of paper is sticking out items from the list makes your fridge look a little untidy.

The great news is that you can write the list directly on the fridge with an erasable marker. This trick helps you keep track of your food and keeps your refrigerator looking neat.

Line your refrigerator shelves and drawers

Keep your fridge clean by simply lining your shelves and drawers. When you line your drawers and shelves, the lining acts as a barrier between the stored items and your refrigerator’s shelves and drawers.

You do not need to worry about stubborn stains forming on your shelves in case of spillages or smudges. Just remove the liners and wash them. The clean lines not only make your cleaning job easier but also preserves your shelves and drawers.

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