How to organize a freezer: Tips and ideas

What is the best way to organize a freezer?

The best way to organize a freezer is to do what works for you. Start by taking an inventory, figuring out what you reach for most, using organization containers and storing your items vertically.

Freezer dividers, freezer baskets and freezer storage bins are all useful tools for helping you get organized. Once you have learned how to organize a freezer, it is much easier to maintain the organization, so you can stay on track with weekly meals.

Organizing your freezer: A guide

Organizing your freezer can help you make the most out of its long-term food storage capabilities. How you go about this task will depend on the type of freezer you have and your preferences. Explore tips for organizing your freezer below to help optimize your kitchen storage.

Supplies:

• Freezer bins

• Freezer organization containers

• Magazine holders or file sorters

• Labels

• Permanent marker

• Dry erase board/marker

1. Determine what kind of freezer you have

There are many types of freezers, so knowing what kind you have will help you figure out which organizational method might work best for you. You might have a refrigerator with a top freezer, a drawer freezer on a French door refrigerator, a side-by-side freezer, or a stand-alone upright or chest freezer, like these options from Whirlpool brand.

Consider if the freezer requires you to reach down for your items, such as a chest freezer, or if it is an upright freezer as you determine how to store your items. Whirlpool brand offers a variety of freezers that can help you keep your meals organized while fitting in with your kitchen layout and lifestyle.

Freezer organization ideas for different freezer types

• Side-by-side refrigerator freezer: The door is going to be the warmest part of a side-by-side freezer, so use it to store things like bread, nuts, flour, herbs and ice packs and consider organizing it with skinny, freezer-safe bins and containers.

• Bottom freezer refrigerator: You’ll likely need to stack items. Stacking like items helps ensure that nothing is lost in the depth of the drawer. For instance, keep your chicken stacked on chicken and vegetables stacked on vegetables.

• Top freezer refrigerator: You can make the most of the space in your top freezer by creating your own drawers using bins and labeling them based on contents. You can even use magazine holders or file storage bins to create organizational systems and zones.

• Chest freezer: Use bins of different sizes to create layers since chest freezers have depth. You can keep the items you use the most in the top layers and the items you might not use as often in the deeper layers. Label the containers to make it even easier to find what you are looking for.

• Upright freezer: In an upright freezer, you can create zones to organize freezer shelves, so that each shelf has its own purpose. Use freezer-safe bins and containers to break down the zones to further categorize your items.

2. Take and keep an inventory

Knowing what you have on hand in your freezer can result in less excess food and less food waste. Taking and updating a freezer inventory is a great way to make sure that you always know what you have in your freezer.

• Determine what you already have in your freezer.

• Write it down. Using a dry-erase board on the door or front of the freezer is a great idea.

• Include the date that items were purchased or the expiration date, if possible.

• When you grocery shop, update your inventory to reflect what was added.

• When you use an item, remove it from your inventory.

3. Know which items you reach for most

The next step in freezer organization is to determine what you reach for most in your freezer and make those items most accessible. If you have to move everything around in your freezer to get to the things you use most often, you will likely need to keep re-organizing. Determining which items you’d like to be able to access easily will make your freezer organization last longer and work to your benefit.

4. Organize items by expiration date

As you begin to figure out where items should go in the freezer, you also want to consider the expiration dates and when you purchased them. By keeping items that expire sooner in a more visible location in the freezer, you will be more likely to use them and less likely to have to dispose of foods due to expiration or freezer burn.

Just like organizing the items you use the most, having the things that expire sooner more accessible can result in less food waste and less searching and re-organizing. Learn more about zero waste cooking for more tips on reducing food waste.

5. Use freezer-safe bins and storage containers

A great way to maximize your available space and stay organized is to use freezer bins and storage containers. Putting your items in freezer baskets and containers helps you to categorize them because it breaks your freezer into zones.

You might use specific bins for vegetables, others for ground beef, and others for freezer-ready meals, and then further organize by keeping certain bins in certain areas based on their contents. Clearly label each bin with the category of items in it, even including the expiration or purchase dates, if you want to be specific. You can use labels, or masking tape and a permanent marker works great, too.

• If you have a top freezer, you can use bins to create drawers. Drawers allow easy access to food that is deeper in the freezer and will help you to utilize a top freezer’s depth efficiently. 

• For side-by-side freezers, you can use skinny bins inside the doors to organize and utilize that space.

• For chest freezers, you can use a flat, wide storage container to create levels of storage and make use of all available space.

6. Store vertically

If you line your items up in your freezer vertically (like books on a shelf), you can easily see what you have and take out what you need. If you like to prep freezer meals ahead of time, you can store them in large freezer-safe bags or silicon containers and then label the edge with the meal and the date so you can easily take inventory, find what you need and maintain your organization all at the same time. 

By utilizing storage bins and containers, you can use this tip regardless of your freezer type. If you have a drawer freezer, this method might seem hard to translate, but you can even use magazine holders and file sorters to help you store your items vertically. In freezers that have depth like a drawer or a chest, storing vertically can often come in handy.

Explore large-capacity refrigerator freezers from Whirlpool brand

Store your family’s fresh and frozen favorites with ease with Whirlpool^® Refrigerators with large-capacity freezers. Select models offer features like the Pizza Pocket that lets you easily store frozen pizzas upright without the hassle of trying to fit them on flat freezer shelves or the Flexible Freezer Divider that helps find the right fit to keep the freezer organized.

Freezer organization FAQs

Still need help organizing your freezer? Explore frequently asked questions below to help keep your frozen food within reach.

How do you organize a freezer without shelves?

The best way to organize a freezer without shelves is to use freezer-safe bins and organizers to categorize items and to create layers, drawers and zones. You can use magazine holders, file sorters, milk crates or bins designed specifically for freezers. 

Some magazine holders and file sorters make great drawers and long, flat bins help to create layers in a freezer so that you can utilize the depth in a more efficient way. Once you have created zones and layers in your freezer, be sure to label each bin and try to store like items together.

Does organizing your freezer help it run more efficiently?

Keeping your freezer neat, tidy and easy to access can help you avoid blocking the vents that keep the freezer’s interior cold. Before filling your freezer, locate the vent (typically on a side wall of the interior) and pack in your food leaving some space around the vent on all sides.

How often should you clean and reorganize your freezer?

Regular cleaning and maintenance can help extend your appliance’s lifespan. A light cleaning once a month and a deep cleaning two to four times a year can help keep things fresh and help prevent food waste.

Shop Whirlpool^® Freezers

One of the best ways to make use of all the space and benefits of your freezer is to keep it organized. If you’re still trying to decide which size would be best for your home, check out the variety of Whirlpool^® Freezers. Whether you frequently host gatherings or buy your family’s frozen favorites in bulk, Whirlpool^® Freezers can help you keep your groceries stored and organized. Explore select models with features like the Fast Freeze Option that helps you chill large amounts of food fast at just the push of a button, to find the right fit for your home.