7 Clever Kitchen Corner Shelving Ideas for Small Spaces

Looking to maximize every inch of storage space in your modestly-sized kitchen? Clever corner shelving offers an ingenious way to capitalize on what is often wasted area in room layouts.

With a bit of creativity, you can transform those forgotten corners into highly functional storage solutions. Read on as we share seven smart shelving ideas to help organize your kitchen essentials with style.

Save Precious Counter Space with a Tiered Corner Shelf

Multi-layered, tiered corner shelving is a space-saving alternative to bulky cabinets along your countertops. By installing slim, staggered shelves in a corner instead, you open up precious real estate for food prep and cooking.

Tiered corner units come in a variety of materials like wood, glass, or metal to match your kitchen decor. Opt for an open design to easily identify contents or ones with subtle lips to avoid items sliding off. Fill the shelves with frequently used ingredients, small appliances, cookbooks, dishes, and more.

Keep Items Visible and In Reach

A major benefit of tiered corner shelves is keeping what you need within sight and arm’s reach. No more rummaging to find your go-to spatula or oregano. Install corner tiers at a height that allows you to comfortably access each layer.

Stagger taller items like canisters towards the back and shorter jars and bottles in front for visibility. Regularly used pans and mixing bowls also find a convenient home on corner shelves.

Maximize Vertical Storage Capacity

While horizontal counter space may be limited in a small kitchen, you likely have ample vertical storage capacity along your walls. Multi-tiered corner shelves tap into this unused potential.

Look for units with three or more tiers to maximize storage cubic feet. Sturdy steel or thick finished wood can support the weight of multiple loaded shelves. Take measurements to ensure the shelves optimally fill yet don’t overcrowd the corner space.

Pots and Pans Find a Perfect Home on Wall-Mounted Corner Racks

Free up precious cabinet space by moving bulky pots, pans, and baking sheets to wall-mounted corner racks instead. Vertical storage keeps these essentials handy but out of the way.

Corner-fitting racks and rails designed expressly for cookware storage ensure everything stays neatly in place. Mount them near your stove for quick access while cooking. Opt for metal racks with hooks to hang pots by their handles or open slated shelves to neatly stack items.

Organize Lids and Baking Essentials Too

Look for corner racks with a mix of hanging posts, slated shelving, and hooks to accommodate more than just pots and pans. Utilize hooks to hang often-used spatulas, serving spoons, oven mitts and aprons.

Slated shelves provide a convenient spot for organizing baking sheets, and cooling racks, as well as oversized platters and bowl lids. Arrange pans and lids vertically to save space and simplify accessing what you need.

Anchor Mounted Storage for Heavy Items

The benefit of wall-mounted racks is keeping heavy cookware off precious counter space. However, sturdy installation is key to avoid accidents. Securely anchor racks into wall studs with long screws.

For extra stability with heavy cast iron or stainless steel cookware, look for wider corner racks with three solid mounting points. Properly installed, wall-mounted racks withstand years of daily use.

Lazy Susans Spin Kitchen Essentials Right to Your Fingertips

Ever struggle to find that mustard hiding in the back of your corner cabinet? Spinning lazy susans makes even deep corner spaces totally accessible.

A lazy susan consists of round shelving fitted with ball bearings allowing them to rotate a full 360 degrees with just a simple push or pull. This turbocharges storage by delivering items right to your fingertips that typically get buried.

Convenient Storage for Spices, Plates, Appliances and More

Full-round or half-moon lazy susans adaptable to a variety of corner sizes are perfect for keeping everyday kitchen essentials at your fingertips. Organize spices, oils and cooking sauces, canned goods, baking necessities, plates, bowls and glassware.

Smaller quarter-round spinning units conveniently store everyday gadgets like electric beaters, food processors and blender pitchers inside low cabinets. Install a lazy susan – your innermost cabinet spaces instantly become ultra-accessible.

Maximize Corner Cabinet Capacity

Even with their moving parts, lazy susans maximize storage capacity by utilizing all available corner space. Full-round units especially fit more jars, cans and containers than static corner shelves.

When determining the size lazy susan to install, take measurements of the full inner cabinet area to size appropriately. Also consider the weight the spinning shelves need to accommodate – like heavy dishes or appliances – when choosing the right lazy susan.

Half-Moon Shelves Double Your Corner Storage Capacity

Half-moon shaped shelving smartly adapts to fill unused corner nooks. The specialized shape hugs wall edges and utilizes space other furniture can’t occupy. This allows you to double up storage along corners.

Half-moon units come sized to fit inside standard corner cabinets or larger freestanding options work with extra deep walk-in corners. Their graceful curved silhouette and open display make them ideal for showing off pretty dishware, collectibles and decor.

Keep Items Visible and In Reach

The broad open face and ample surface area of half-moon shelves makes them perfect for frequently accessed items you want front and center. Keep mugs, glasses and plates at the ready for setting tables.

Use for small kitchen electrics to save outlet space. Nestle your pod coffee maker, toaster or electric kettle on corner shelves close to transitions from counter to table. Everything essential stays conveniently at your fingertips.

Optimize Hard-to-Reach Spots

Standard cabinet depths combined with a corner’s confines often results in difficult-to-access spaces. Shallow, specialized half-moon shelves optimize such challenging real estate in your kitchen.

Install half-moon shelving just below eye level for ergonomic access. Then utilize that previously hard-to-reach zone for storing and displaying lightweight kitchen items you use daily like spices, cooking utensils or tea canisters.

Pull-Out Corner Storage Units Offer Easy Accessibility

If digging to the back of kitchen cabinets makes you crazy, installing pull-out corner storage units makes finding what you need a total breeze.

Pull-outs mount on smooth rolling tracks allowing you to fully extend them with just a gentle tug. This provides complete visibility and access to the entire storage area – no more rummaging and disorganization!

Keep Supplies Organized Yet Out of Sight

Unlike fixed corner shelving, pull-outs allow you to neatly organize kitchen gear inside, while keeping surfaces clutter-free when closed. Designate pull-outs for pots and pan lids, baking sheets, plastic containers, or cleaning supplies.

Many feature built-in dividers so you can customize storage zones. Others have tiered racks, perfect for upright storage of canned goods and appliances for quick ID and access. Closing pull-outs hides everything neatly away again.

Easy-Access Storage with Special Features

Quality pull-outs include convenient design details like wipe-clean interiors, soft-close dampers, and child safety locks. Even fully extended, soft-close mechanisms gently catch the cabinet door preventing noisy slamming accidents.

For sink-side corner storage, choose moisture-resistant bamboo or antimicrobial copper pull-out interiors that handle wet sponges and cleaning bottles with ease. Durable pull-outs withstand daily use for years.

Vertical Corner Shelving Creates New Storage Dimensions

Traditional shelving units occupy horizontal planes. For small kitchen spaces, vertical corner shelves provide game-changing options by creating storage along a vertical axis instead.

Vertical units feature long shelves running front-to-back rather than side-to-side. This allows you to take advantage of unused vertical real estate. Alternate the depth and width of shelves for storing everything from cookbooks, muffin tins and mixing bowls to stand mixers.

Tailor to Your Storage Needs

When measuring for vertical corner shelves, map out the heights of items you intend to store. This allows custom sizing shelves to perfectly fit – no wasted space.

Mix slim shelves just inches deep for housing spices and kitchen linens with wider ledges to securely hold hefty stand mixers, large cookware or appliances. Vertical storage fully utilizes previously overlooked air space.

Easy Access in Tight Quarters

Vertical orientation is perfect for tight spaces where opening cabinet doors is a chore. Shelves built to precisely occupy corners keep everything fully accessible yet out of the way.

For especially narrow galley kitchens, vertical shelves create a perfect staging area. Keep items you frequently move between counter, stovetop and fridge/freezer within arm’s reach for smoother meal prep and cooking.

Floating Corner Shelves Add Modern, Airy Ambiance

Wall-mounted floating shelves impart an ultra-modern, clean-lined look in kitchens. Made from wood, glass, metal or acrylic, floating shelves enhance the casual styling preferred in small kitchens.

Unencumbered by legs or brackets, floating shelves seem to magically hover against your walls. Aside from stylish good looks, they make clever use of corner space typically filled by bulky hulking cabinets.

Display Precious Kitchenware and Plants

Lithe floating shelves are perfect for showing off pretty kitchenware, gleaming glassware or colorful ceramic pieces. Their airy transparency keeps the focus on lovely displayed objects instead of the shelves themselves.

Work floating shelves into kitchen plant displays as well. Tuck small potted herb gardens, air plants or trailing ivy in corner nooks to bring living greenery into your cook space.

Consider Lighting and Placement

Proper placement and lighting ensure floating shelves show themselves and display items to the best effect. Position in well-lit corners near windows or integrate discreet LED lighting.

Mount floating shelves at eye level for easiest access. Keep only lightweight objects on floating shelves to avoid buckling or accidents. Properly installed floating shelves lend a handsome modern edge to small kitchen spaces.

Clever corner shelving solutions reveal the storage potential in overlooked kitchen corners. Tiered units, wall racks, lazy susans and more utilize every inch of available space when thoughtfully incorporated.

Kitchen storage stops being a struggle when you tap into vertical real estate and make smart upgrades. Use these seven shelving ideas as inspiration to start tackling your small kitchen’s organization challenges.