Stand your lunch box up

Standing your lunch box upright instead of laying it flat is the single biggest space-saver for narrow fridge shelves.

Most lunch boxes are designed to sit flat, which wastes the vertical space between shelves. If you have a narrow shelf, treat your lunch box like a book: slide it in standing up. Bento boxes and tall rectangular containers work best because they hold their contents upright without leaking or mixing.

Measure the shelf height before you buy anything. A 4-inch-tall box stood on its end takes up a fraction of the footprint it does lying flat. And if you pack multiple lunches, file them in vertically next to each other instead of stacking them in a tower.

For soups, yogurts, and drinks that won’t stand up, use the door shelves — that’s literally what they’re for. If your shelf is adjustable, drop it down and add a cheap wire riser to double your capacity.

Your fridge has more room than you think. It’s just arranged wrong.