20 Creative Canning Storage Ideas: Easy, DIY, Hacks

Get ready for some great canning storage ideas!

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Are you struggling to find space and efficiency in storing food goods for long-term preservation? In this article you’ll find canning storage ideas to suit every budget. You’ll find ideas for small spaces, and ideas that are the best the food storage industry has to offer and then finally several step-by-step DIY projects for those who are handy.

Storage Ideas for Small Spaces

1 - Stackable Can Rack Organizer

【Can Organizer for pantry】The can dispenser is made of sturdy durable metal construction, and has a stable structure, no rust, no bent, and strong load-bearing capacity. Rubber pads to prevent it from sliding or scratching surfaces.
【Stackable Design】Each can organizer can hold up to 36 variety-size cans/jars. And you can place another rack on top to expand the storage capacity, making your cabinets and refrigerators compact and tidy, which is a reliable can organizer for most homes.
【Perfect Size】 – The can rack size is 16.53″(L)*13.38″(W)*14.76″(H). Can storage rack set stores up to 72 cans, Six adjustable dividers allow you to align and store fit variety size cans/jars, great for creating more storage space in your kitchen pantry cabinet and countertop.
【Tilt Design】The can holders for pantry are designed with a tilt angle(15 degrees). So when you take the front can, the back can will automatically roll forward, making these cans easier to reach, and great for small spaces.
【Easy to Assembly】The can organizer can be installed in a few minutes, with no extra tools. Please contact us if you have any questions, and we will solve them for you within 24 hours.

Click here to purchase the stackable can rack organizer at Amazon

2 - Behind the Door Storage

Multifunctional Pantry Door Organizer – Not only can it be fastened to the pantry door to store spice bottles, cans, tea, fruits and vegetables. It can also be placed in the bathroom to store and organize towels, bathroom supplies and washing products etc. Perfect for home, pantry, living room, kitchen, or basement to extend your house space
New Upgrade Premium Sturdy Materia – Over door kitchen organizer made of metal material is sturdy, stable and has a long service life.
Easy to Use and Assemble – Upgraded in design, this over the door pantry organizer is super easy to assemble, To protect your doors from unwanted scratches, the parts that touch them are padded – no worries if you’re in a rental! The pantry door organizer will help you easily declutter & create additional over the door storage space in any room, they are universal

Click here to purchase this over-the-door shelving item at Amazon.

3 - Lazy Susan

Lazy Susans hold a surprising number of cans and obviously provide easy access to items in the back of a shelf. They really help to utilize pantry space. If your pantry has shelving that goes around corners, this is a great place to use Lazy Susans.

Click here to purchase this Lazy Susan at Amazon

4 - Optimize Shelving Height in Pantry and Storage Rooms

When you have limited space to store food, if you have the financial means to replace any existing shelving with shelves that optimize the items you want to store. Having the shelf height optimized to the items you are storing is a great way to maximize how much you store.

5 - Vertical Storage Bins

If you have storage shelves that have a large vertical space, try stacking these baskets. Or, use these baskets separately when your shelving has more horizontal space.

Similar to these baskets, you can also use magazine holder(s).

Click here to purchase these stackable wire baskets at Amazon

Professional Storage Options

6 - Shelf Reliance - Maximizer Variety Can Rotation Organizer

If you are looking for the best option in canned food storage solutions, the Maximizer Variety Can Rotation Organizer from Shelf Reliance, is top-notch. What makes it so great? Their patented first-in, first-out rotation, ensures you are always eating the oldest items first.

The best place to set up this unit is in a cool, dry place to ensure the quality of the food for the longest shelf life.

It holds up to 300 cans of different sizes

Purchase the Maximizer Variety Can Rotation Organizer from Shelf Reliance

7 - Shelf Reliance - Cansolidator Cupboard

If you are looking for a ready made solution for a canned food rotation option that fits easily on our pantry shelves, the Cansolidator by Shelf Reliance is a sturdy container and a great option. This unit holds up to 20 cans.

By loading newly purchased cans in the top and retrieving cans from the bottom to use for meals, this can dispenser ensures you use the oldest cans first.

Purchase the Cansolidator from Shelf Reliance

8 - Container Store - 3 Tier Shelf

This 3 tier shelving unit makes it easy to see each item in your cupboard. It is adjustable to 19″ wide. These work for a pantry shelf and for your kitchen cabinets.

Purchase this 3-tier shelving item from the Container Store.

9 - Amazon - 3 Tier Shelf

Three tiers of this spice rack, designed to provide you with both space and visibility so you can store the items you need in the best way possible. This spice organizer has a stepped design to make it easier to find the herbs and seasonings or other items in the kitchen cabinets.
The spice rack organizer is retractable and has a width range of 14.56″ – 25.79″. The width can be adjusted according to your needs, making efficient use of your storage space. The perfect storage solution for spice jars. This spice rack is BPA-free.

Purchase this 3-tier shelving item from Amazon

10 - Can Dispenser

This canned food dispenser could be your next DIY project but maybe you think it is a good idea to just purchasing it.

If you have wall space that will only allow for shallow shelving like this, then you have the perfect place to hang one of more of these shelves.

Click here to purchase this can dispenser on Etsy

11 - Closet Shelving Hack

Install these shelves to maximize the storage space for canned goods, install wire shelving upside down and slanted down toward the front. Place cans on their side on the shelf, so they roll to the front when removed.

Visit todayshomeowner.com to get the step-by-step instructions for installing these shelves.

Click here to purchase closet racks from Home Depot

12 - Metal Shelfs - Load Back to Front for Food Rotation

A less expensive option, to the Shelf Reliance food rotation shelving, is to use sturdy metal shelving and then simply load the cans in the back and retrieve cans of food from the front. These shelving units have a lot of space and work well in conjunction with other storage containers. The shelves are adjustable, which is nice to have varying shelf heights. For the bottom shelf, I put buckets of food.

I use these in my cold storage room for storing food and canning supplies, such as empty jars (mason jars). These could similarly be used in other storage areas like root cellars.

Costco is a good source for sturdy metal shelving.

DIY Storage Options

13 - Magnets and Sheet Metal

This is a very satisfying and easy DIY project that makes finding your spices a breeze. You can accomplish this project in an afternoon as it doesn’t take much time.

I accomplished this project with the following materials:

Metal sheet from the local hardware store
Magnets purchased from Amazon
Spice Jars purchased from IKEA
Homemade labels Mod Podged on

I was able to slide the metal sheet into the grooves of the cabinet frame. I understand not everyone may be able to do that. If that is the case for you, I would suggest gluing the metal sheet on. The magnets are about the perfect strength. They hold the jars well but also allow for the jars to be removed reasonably easy.

14 - Wall Mounted Custom Size DIY Wooden Shelves

Optimize any available wall space by building a custom sized DIY canned food organizer.

Visit this TrueValue site to get the detailed instructions on how to build a back wall mounted shelving unit to maximize your shelf space. Be sure to modify the dimensions to your specific needs and the height of the items to be stored on the shelves (i.e. storing mason quart jars vs. cans of food).

This style of storage shelving is ideal for being able to easily find commonly used food items.

Get the step-by-step instructions for this DIY wood food storage shelving unit from True Value

15 - Optimize Existing Shelves with DIY Can Holders

To get the step-by-step instructions for this DIY canned food storage system check out this Shanty Chic blog post.

There are two sizes. The smaller size holds 7 cans and the larger size holds 12 cans.

Click here to go to Shanty Chic to get the step-by-step instructions here to make this project.

16 - DIY Slanted Shelves Food Storage Unit

If you lack adequate shelving and want to store a lot of cans of food, consider building this shelving unit.

Slanted shelves are a space-efficient method for both storing and rotating canned foods. The shelf pattern provided here requires access to both the front and back ends of the shelf (or left and right if you face the side of the shelf). Cans are fed from one end and roll to the other for retrieval.

Get the step-by-step instructions for this DIY wood food storage shelving unit intelligentlivingpoes.wordpress.com

17 - Back of Door DIY Spice Storage

Another great DIY shelving unit with step-by-step instructions from the Shanty Chic blog

This shelving unit can be built for about $50.

Click here to go to Shanty Chic to get the step-by-step instructions here to make this project.

18 - Pull-Out Cabinet DIY Shelves

This great idea is a quick and affordable DIY project that will make a big difference with your small lower cabinet shelves, that feel like black holes.

Click here to go to thekimsixfix.com to get the step-by-step instructions here to make this project.

19 - Custom Wood Shelves

Imagine having this can rotation system in your kitchen. The cans get loaded in the top slot and roll down to the lower slot, which ensures the oldest can of food can be selected for use. This system also optimizes the use of space.

Click here to go to www.buildmyowncabin.com to get the step-by-step instructions here to make this project.

20 - Custom Wood Canning Shelves

If you have the skills and tools necessary to build your own custom shelving, a design like this one can optimize the usage of space.

Looking for details on how to store food for up to 25 years?

Check out this post “How To Store Freeze Dried Food : 25 Year Shelf Life”

More Great Canning & Food Storage Recipes

Canning Recipes:

Pantry Meals:

This post was all about canning storage ideas. We provided food organizers that can be purchased to use right away, storage options for small spaces and many DIY projects for food storage ideas. We would love to hear your feedback on any ideas you implement.