Pantry Tour + Organization Tips: Inventory, Zones, Food Hacks, & More!

Apr 25, 2021 | Cleaning Tips and Tricks, Organization, Video

The pantry is the place where food either goes to thrive (yay!) or die (boo!)… Use our simple pantry organization tips and learn how to organize a pantry the functional way. Keep track of your food and save on your grocery budget!

Jordan organizing her pantry, from Fun Cheap or Free

It's so much easier to keep track of your food in your pantry when it's all organized so nice and neat with a pretty bow on it… But sometimes life gets in the way and the pantry can turn into a hot mess, quick! That's why I filmed a little video that shows you how to organize a pantry. It's quick, easy, and you'll get some great pantry organization tips!

I'm talking inventorying, making zones for your pantry, and some great food hacks along the way. So come watch me tackle my mess of a pantry… See how it goes from crazy messy to crazy organized! 😉

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Click to watch me organize my pantry online HERE, or keep scrolling to watch how to organize a pantry below:

Wasn't that crazy to watch?! It may be a little overwhelming at first, but once you use my tips on how to organize a pantry, you'll be able to tackle your mess, big or small, in no time!


Want to see how bad my mess was before I cleaned my pantry?

Messy, disorganized pantry from Fun Cheap or Free

Quite the wreck, right? But don't worry, you'll see the end results soon enough!


WHY YOU SHOULD USE OUR PANTRY ORGANIZATION TIPS

Pantry items organized in baskets from Fun Cheap or Free

I believe that a well-stocked, well-organized pantry can help you to save money. It allows you to keep track of what you have (by keeping an inventory of your food) and what needs to be used first. That way, when you're shelf cooking and shopping your pantry staples for your meals, you know exactly which foods you need to use up first.

For those of you who are going to ask, you can get even more pantry organization tips from our post over on ShelfCooking.com! I go over the complete set up of how I have my pantry organized, as well as where I got all of my baskets that were total game-changers for this pantry!


HOW TO ORGANIZE A PANTRY

Alright, so let's get down to the nitty gritty on organizing your pantry! It really isn't hard, especially if you stay on top of it once it's organized. It'll definitely be worth the time and effort you put towards it! Start off with a trash bag to throw away all of the stale or expired food, a Sharpie, a pen and paper (or my printable kitchen inventory), a cleaning rag, and a handheld vacuum.

CLEAN UP THE PANTRY

Jordan vacuuming out her pantry, from Fun Cheap or Free

This may sound like a no brainer, but do these things while you're going through your pantry instead of waiting until the end!

  • Tidy Up – Do a general tidying up and put like things together. You can assess what all you have, then get a game plan together for where you want it to go.
  • Throw Away Old or Stale Food – Throw out the junk as you come across it to make room for everything else. Taste-test if you're not sure so you don't throw away good food!
  • Wipe Down or Vacuum Messes – During the tidying stage, clean up any messes you come across on the shelves or on the floor.

PANTRY ORGANIZATION TIPS

Baskets and food containers organized on a shelf, from Fun Cheap or Free

Now, let's organize that pantry! Use these tips and transform your messy pantry into a super organized one.

  • Function over Form – When you organize a pantry, think about its function. It's more about how it works than how it looks! You can find some pretty pantries on Pinterest, but most of the time, they're not really that functional.
  • Organize by Zones/Frequency of Use – Keep the most-used items on the shelves at eye level. Put lesser-used items up high and heavier items down low. Keep like things together so you can easily find what you're looking for in that group of items.
  • Use Large Baskets and Containers – Baskets allow you to store a lot of items in one space. You can pull them out and grab what you need while keeping the older items at the front. Large containers hold a lot more food than small containers, so you can throw away their packages and clean up your pantry!
  • Store Extras Behind Front Containers – If you're blessed with a large-enough pantry, then store extra or unopened boxes behind the front food storage containers. Utilize the open space behind any containers of food, just don't forget about it!
  • Use Corner Shelves for Bulky Items – Corner shelves are usually pretty deep. They're a great spot to store those bigger, bulkier kitchen gadgets.

A FEW EXTRA PANTRY HACKS

Jordan cutting the tops off a large bag of chips, from Fun Cheap or Free

Use these last few pantry hacks to take your pantry organization to the next level!

  • Write Small Expiration Dates in Sharpie – Most expiration dates are either really small or are hard to see. Make your life easier and write them on the packages with a Sharpie so you can easily see them. Do this every time you go to the store and it'll be easy to keep up with.
  • Reuse Plastic Baggies for Smaller Items – We keep our plastic baggies and reuse them. (Hello, frugal living!) Oatmeal packets can get lost or hidden in a basket. Throw them in a baggie and they'll all stay together so you can easily find them.
  • Cut off Excess on Large Bags – If you buy in bulk, then you know the struggle is real when it comes to getting down towards the end of the bag. Cut off the top of the bag and use a chip clip to close them. This also makes them more airtight, which keeps them fresher longer.
  • Use Flat Soda for Baking – Did you know you can use stale soda for baking?!
  • Keep Extras in Basement/Other Area – Where are all my bulk-lovers at?! If you have the space, store your extras in the basement or somewhere else in your house. This will free up space in your pantry. Make a note of it somewhere to help you remember where you've put it!

Now, are you ready to see the end result?!

Organized and clean pantry, from Fun Cheap or Free

Doesn't that just make your organized heart happy?! I know it definitely does mine!


ORGANIZE YOUR LIFE

If you loved these tips and want more like them in your life, then check out my Productivity Boot Camp program! It's a fun video program that will help you be more productive and organized in your day so you have more time to do the things that are important in your life.

Make sure you check this program out! You can use the code FCFBLOG for 10% off just because. 😉 You won't regret it!


SHARE YOUR FAVORITE PANTRY ORGANIZATION TIPS WITH US!

Alright, well there you have it! Now you know how to organize a pantry the easy way! Let me know what your favorite pantry organization hacks are in the comments, it's always fun to share with everybody to give more ideas!

Image with text that reads "pantry tour plus organization tips" from Fun Cheap or Free

Looking for more fabulous ideas?

Happy organizing!

Jordan Page Signature from Fun Cheap or Free

2 Comments

  1. Cherelle | The Inspired Prairie

    Hey Jordan,

    This post is inspiring me to once again, tackle my pantry and re-organize it!

    Last year I did a pantry makeover, and everything was all cutely labeled and super organized!

    … but now? A hot mess!

    I can say thanks to my 3 young kiddos, and quite possibly myself for not always putting things back where they go.

    I need to get my pantry organized again! Thanks for the encouragement 😊.

    Reply
    • Fun Cheap or Free

      You can do it!!! It’s easy to let the organization go when life gets crazy… and young kids definitely don’t help sometimes!

      Reply

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