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Takeout containers cluttering up your kitchen? Enter this genius organizer

I generally like to keep a clean and organized kitchen, but there’s one problem that has plagued me for years: food containers. Specifically, their lids. While the containers can be nested compactly inside one another other, the lids are another story — I have nowhere to put them. Placing them on top of the containers didn't work, as they take up too much space, so I wound up just piling them haphazardly in a corner of a cabinet. Not a great solution.

This lid organizer made my kitchen clutter a thing of the past. It's expandable too, making it especially useful for those people who are forever acquiring new lids and containers ... which is everyone, amirite? 

Pros
  • Affordable
  • Comes in various sizes
  • Easy to assemble
Cons
  • Larger lids might not fit
  • No instructions, but easy enough to figure out
$21 at Amazon

Recently, however, I purchased a YouCopia StoraLid Food Container Lid Organizer and, reader, I'm never looking back. Depending on the extent of the chaos in your kitchen, you can opt for one of these in small, medium, large or the potentially extra-large expandable model, which I selected.

The size is easily customizable, but I will say that it’s best if you have large cabinets. It expands from 13.5 inches all the way to 22.5 inches. It includes eight adjustable tall dividers, which I found fairly easy to insert — simply bend them to fit inside the slots on the side. I managed to set it up in just a few minutes without any tools. It has built-in handles on the side, which make it easier to slide the whole unit in and out of the cabinet.

a lid organizer with lots of lids and containers
Chaos controlled, sanity restored. (Nicole Lee/Yahoo)

I adjusted the length to around 18 or so inches to fit in my cabinet. Since the YouCopia organizer is so roomy, I ended up using it to store not just a bunch of lids but several takeout containers as well. Oh, and by "a bunch" I mean a whopping 48, and by "several" I mean 10. That's a lot of useful but unattractive plastic off my counter and out of sight!

At the risk of stating the obvious, I strongly advise measuring your cabinet to see which size is best for you, especially if you're not opting for the expandable model.

I’m not the only one smitten with the YouCopia lid organizer – it has over 27,000 five-star ratings on Amazon. Here are just a few of the reviews:

“Best lid organizer ever!” said one. “I have it fully expanded in a cabinet that is 11” deep, so the size is perfect. I previously had my lids in three tubs by size — small medium, large. This organizer holds all my lids except a few very big ones. There is a lid for every container in this cabinet in the organizer, with the exception of the six or seven that are just a bit too wide. Highly recommend.”

Another not-hyperbolic-at-all customer called it "the best invention ever!!!" As they reported: “I was sick over our storage cabinet and never able to find anything or open it without a pile of lids falling out. This organizer saved my life!!! Great for organizing the lids. I purchased the largest expandable one and 10/10 recommended for every family with plastic storage containers.”

“I love a good organizational gadget,” raved one. “And this one is awesome! Sturdy parts, easy to assemble, easy to use. I wish I had taken a “before” pic, but the difference is night and day. Everything stacks so much more easily when you don’t have to worry about keeping the lids together. It expands even farther back than I have it here. It holds a LOT of lids. The only piece of criticism I have is that it doesn’t hold larger lid sizes (wish it was a tad wider overall, in addition to forward expansion). It brings peace to my Tupperware cabinet…priceless!”

The holiday season means big holiday dinners and lots of holiday leftovers to be stored or handed out to home-bound guests. Guess what'll make that task soooo much easier? 

$21 at Amazon

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The reviews quoted above reflect the most recent versions at the time of publication.