Pro Organizers Say These Storage Items Are a Waste of Money

When it comes to simplifying your belongings and maximizing space, opinions can be polarizing. That’s why we tapped professional organizers to share their hot takes on the storage products they think are a waste of money. According to these pros, some may even be detrimental to your organizing systems.

First of all, Meghan Cocchiaro, certified professional organizer and owner of Organized by Meg, says some storage products don’t function well because they’re low-quality: they’re hard to open and close and they can also can be flimsy.

She mentions that these items might not work for your intended purpose. For instance, they could add extra steps to your routine (e.g. like opening a lid when you just need an open top) or she says that they’re not transparent when it’s important for you to see the contents inside.

You might also find that buying a storage product seemed like a smart buy in the moment, but over time, you find that it actually makes
things a lot more difficult instead of easier. “Some storage products may seem like a good idea at first, but end up working against you over time,” says Kenna Lee, Owner of Calm Spaces Professional Organizing.

1. Front-Facing Bookshelves

Even though Lee says that parents often buy these types of bookshelves for nurseries and young children’s rooms with the best intentions, in her opinion, they are “a complete waste of money.” “You may think that the visibility of the books’ covers will look nice and encourage your child to read. The reality is they don’t function well and almost never look tidy due to the varying sizes of children’s books. They are difficult for children to use since you’ll likely have to move books around to get them to fit properly. They have very limited capacity as well,” Lee says. Instead, she says you should opt for a neat, organized, functional bookcase.

2. Lazy Susans with Dividers

Those clear, plastic lazy Susans with dividers certainly look handy, but they’re deceiving. Cocchiaro says that since those dividers are built-in and not removable or adjustable, they’re not versatile enough for someone’s changing needs. “When the dividers are built into the turntable, it is limiting the size of products you can put into each compartment,” she says. She recommends purchasing a lazy Susan with no dividers, or ones that are removable and/or adjustable.

3. Tea Organizers

Tea organizers certainly have aesthetic value, especially when you see all your pretty tea bags in their organized compartments. But according to Lee, she rarely sees one that functions well. “Inevitably, you will buy a new tea that has wider or taller tea bags than will fit in the organizer,” she says. Instead, “use something more versatile where the size of the tea bag doesn’t matter. Large clear mason jars work well, as do labeled canisters and generic divided clear bins.”

4. Plastic Food Storage Lid Organizers

Those organizers for stashing lids certainly appear to be convenient, but as Cocchiaro says, “Nobody has the time or energy to put the different sized lids into individual inserts in these special organizers. It’s overkill, and the product itself ends up taking more space than necessary.”

In its place, Cocchiaro advises buying a simple drawer divider, preferably a deep one, or an open-top square lined bin placed inside a drawer that can corral these lids together, separate from the plastic food storage containers themselves.

5. Cheap Dressers

Since Lee says that dressers aren’t just furniture (“they are important organizing systems that you use multiple times a day,” she points out), she believes that “bargain dressers” are a waste of money.

“Their poor functionality means drawers won’t open fully or smoothly. This might be enough of a barrier to discourage you from using it, leading to the dreaded ‘floordrobe’,” she says. “And cheap dressers lack durability. The drawer bottoms will likely be cardboard, the rails will malfunction, and you’ll either have to replace it sooner or you’ll avoid using it altogether.”

6. Storage Cubes of Poor Quality

Those “cheap fabric storage cubes,” as Cocchiaro calls them, the ones that are typically inserted into cube shelving systems, may not be the best storage choice, since Cocchiaro notes that they’re “not see-through, not sturdy, and limit the shelf storage space available.” If you need cubes for a cube system, Cocchiaro suggests finding clear versions in plastic or a stronger, high-quality acrylic so you can see the contents.