7 ways to organise the stacks of pots and pans cluttering your kitchen

A rack gives you an organised way to stack your pans horizontally. It lets you to see every pot, pan and lid, while keeping items separated (no scratches here!) and making the most of your cupboard space.

This design from Joseph Joseph makes the list because it’s extendable (from 30.5cm up to 56cm) and adjustable to suit your pan set. It comes with 7 wire dividers which can fit into any of the notches along the edge. So it wont waste any space in your drawers and it can fit the skinniest of frying pans alongside your heavy-duty saucepans.

Want to take advantage of empty wall space? A hanging rail is what you need! And it’s a brilliant idea for any pans you’re particularly proud to display.

It would need to be drilled into your wall to give it sufficient support for hanging heavy cookware. But once it’s in, it’s great for grabbing any items you use daily, and that’s including utensils as well as pots and pans; just hang what you need from the hooks.

We chose this design for our list because it provides a level of shelving as well as two rails from which to hang your pans and utensils. There are 12 hooks in total and it claims to hold up to 59kg in weight. Plus it can be inverting and can have uses all over the home, such as a towel rail or book shelf.

If you want to keep your pans grounded, but organised, a tiered rack would be ideal. These essentially provide a shelving system for your pots and pans, suitable for taller designs as well as shorter ones.

We chose this design from MUDELLA because it claims to support up to 36kg of weight without tilting – ideal for cast iron and ceramic. There are 8 adjustable shelves which you fit and move yourself; you can even assemble it one-sided to take up half the space if needed.

But keep in mind, when you measure up your space for such a design, you must consider the protruding pan handles as well as the height of pans on the top shelves.

This storage solution is ideal if you’re often digging through piles of pots and pans, determined to find a missing lid.

As the name suggests, lid holders are designed for holding your lids separately from your pots, ready to be grabbed when needed. They’re fitted to the wall, meaning your lids take up zero space in the drawer itself and have no chance of scratching and smashing (as long as items aren’t crushed up against them).

We like the Joseph Joseph design because it’s simple, yet effective. You just stick each holder to the wall with the self-adhesive stickers and you’re good to go. It can hold pan lids ranging from 16-24cm and looks great on the inside of cupboard doors and alongside the shelves. You get 4 in a set too.

Pegboards are ideal when you’re storing a range of shapes and sizes. You just fit the pegs (or hooks) where you want on the board and then they hold your items in place – simple as! They can be used horizontally (within drawers) or vertically (fitted to walls), depending on the design.

For pots and pans, a pegboard can be customised to suit everything from woks to milk pans. And once everything has its place, you don’t need to move the pegs again (unless you want to move things around).

We like the Wall Control Kitchen Pegboard because of the versatility it provides and the range of colours it comes in. Thanks to the included 18 hooks and the accessories you can purchase separately, it can hold all kinds of utensils as well as pots and pans on your wall. There’s even shelves you can fit for anything else. And with colour options including black, blue, green, grey and orange, you can buy a board to suit your kitchen décor.

Are your pans your pride and joy – gleaming with no end of shine? A ceiling rack will display them with gusto!

Just like the hanging rail, a ceiling rack hooks onto your pans and suspends them from their handles, ready to grab when needed. Fitted to your ceiling, these are often hung over a kitchen island, where they’re not likely to catch your head as you work. Look out for an adjustable design, so you can get it at the right height.

That’s one reason for why we like the KES Ceiling Hanging Pot and Pan Rack. At full length, the wires measure 30 inches long, but you can adjust these to the desired height. It claims to hold up to 66lbs and comes with 15 hooks to carry your pots and pans. Plus, there’s extra space on the shelf above for even more.

Always check with a professional whether your ceiling is suitable to support a rack before installation.

You might be happy with stacking your pots and pans the old-fashioned way. But, if you want to prevent scratches and wearing, we’d still recommend fitting a few pan dividers in-between. These help to hold your pots and pans in place and keep them separated so they’re not scratching one another in storage, or making a terrible noise as you stack them up! It’s a small change which can make a big difference to the overall look of your pan set.

We’ve chosen the Le Creuset Pan Protectors because they’re designed to handle cast iron casserole pots as well as your general pans. They’re made from thick felt which helps to absorb the impact and friction as you stack. Plus, they’re suitable to hand wash when they start to look grubby. You get 3 in a set.