36 Best Garage Storage Systems (2022 Edition)

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Garage storage space can be hard or even impossible to acquire. A garage is usually filled with equipment, used items, tools and other things that needs to be stored outside the house. A well-organized garage can serve as a storage space for all your unused items and/or equipment.

Between ladders, bicycles, and golf clubs, there’s usually not much room left in the garage for actual cars. Even if there were leftover space, it’s often an obstacle course of epic proportions to actually exit the garage without hitting anything. Worry not, for a few smart tricks are all you need to help you regain extra square-footage. Here is our list of the 36 best garage storage ideas that will surely help you utilize your garage to its fullest.

1. Ladder Hanger

Hang your ladder in the ceiling of your garage to quickly free up space to store other things. This can also help you ensure the safety of your children when they come running into the garage.

2. Organize Your Sports Gear

Keeping your sports gear in place can prevent unnecessary medical expenses. Get a sports gear organizer to keep your balls, rackets and jackets in one place. 

3. Mesh Storage Bin

Hang a mesh storage bin on your wall to toss all your dirty jackets, clothes, and shoes before entering the house. This helps you separate used clothing from clean ones for the next laundry day.

4. Hanging Storage Bins 

Is the floor space occupied by your vehicle? We’ve got you covered. Hang storage bins and never trip over objects again with this storage bin ceiling hanger. It saves you space for other things that you might store in your garage.The garage ceiling is a perfect place to store light and medium weight seasonal items like holiday decorations and camping gear.

5. Cleaning Supplies Rack

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The only thing worse than actually cleaning is finding a spot to store all your cleaning supplies. This handy organizer won’t do the sweeping for you, but it’ll make sure to keep mops and brooms out of your way.

6. Wire Racks

You may already have shelves, but wrapping a row of wire racks and placing in the corner maximizes that tricky square footage. Add a big basket for sports equipment.

This will maximize your garage storage space quickly and easily. These simple and inexpensive shelves, baskets, garage storage racks etc. will only take you one morning to achieve happiness.

7. Tool Tower

If you opt for a clean-looking garage wall, stop worrying about drilling holes. This free-standing storage unit keeps shovels, brooms, and rakes upright and out of the way.

8. Cabinet Conversion

Turn a garage corner into a mudroom with freestanding garage storage cabinets. This can help you save space and utilize existing storage space. Hooks and drawers are perfect for this purpose, because dealing with hangers is a pain when you’re in a hurry.

9. Garden Tools Storage

Keep your garden tools organized and within an arm’s reach to ensure you get your weeding done. This tool storage product will help you to keep garden tools in one place, making it easy for the next maintenance session.

10. Trash Bins

Small items can easily fill up the garage and take up precious space that can be used for other storage. Keep the garage clean and organized with trash cans and recycling bins. 

11. Paint Station 

DIY-ing doesn’t seem so bad when all of the essentials have a dedicated place. This steel pegboard will help you to keep brushes, rollers, and tape close at hand for tackling that paint project when inspiration strikes.

12. Fishing Rod Storage

All you need is a length of 3-in.-diameter PVC pipe and a foam swimming pool noodle for this DIY garage storage system. Drill 1-in. holes spaced every 4 inches in the PVC pipe. This DIY Fishing Rod Storage can help you save storage space and money at the same time.

13. Storage Towers

Plastic storage bins are one of the best garage storage systems to separate and organize your equipment by sport or season. Unfortunately, they usually get stacked against a wall somewhere. This permanent DIY garage solution is only a weekend away with our easy-to-build storage towers that are an attractive and ingenious way to provide easy access to your bins.

14. Car Care Products Cabinet

Organize your auto lubricants, fluids and other items with a simple shelf/work table cabinet. You can mount a fold-up door on special hinges, but we’ll show you a faster method of how to organize your garage that requires just a couple of bucks’ worth of hardware.

15. Garage Storage Wall 

This storage system solves two challenges: first, how to design storage space for the narrow alley between the garage side wall and your car; and second, how to create a solid mounting surface to hold shelves and hooks that are capable of carrying hundreds of pounds of stuff.

The solution is to create a framework of horizontal wood strips and inexpensive shelf standards. It can hold almost any arrangement of shelving and hooks, at any point on the wall, and it’s easy to rearrange.

16. Utilize the Wall

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If you mount hooks, brackets and other hardware only on studs, you’re wasting lots of opportunities for garage wall ideas. The best strategy is to add a layer of three-quarter inch plywood over the drywall or bare studs. That gives you a continuous fastening surface so you can mount storage hardware easily, arrange items in a space-efficient way and store more items.

17. Monkey Bars for your Walls

When you need storage above your wall unit, Monkey Bars has the solution. Engineered of steel for durability, the system offers custom solutions to get tools and materials off the garage floor but still within reach. You can modify the hook-and-bar system to suit your own storage needs.

18. Use A Tent For Sports Gear

This sturdy ball tent holds a herd of balls and lets kids easily grab the balls at the bottom without unloading all the ones on top. It’s built from 3/4-in. plywood and 2x2s. The hooks on Bungee cords can be a safety hazard for kids and adults alike, so cut the hooks off the cords. Thread the cord through predrilled holes and secure it with knots. Drill the holes slightly larger than the cords to make threading them easier.

19. Sliding Shelves

Roll-out shelves and sliding bypass units can make more efficient use of the sidewalls of your garage. The bypass unit adds 50 percent more storage for long-handled tools and all sorts of items that take up too much wall space. You can simply slide the shelves to either side to access the items behind.

20. Multi Purpose Shelf Brackets

Shelf brackets designed to support clothes hanger rods aren’t just for closets. The rod-holding hook on these brackets comes in handy in the garage and workshop too. You can bend the hook to suit long tools or cords. Such closet brackets are available at home centers and in hardware stores.

21. Overhead Garage Storage Systems: Attic Decking Panels

To maximize the overhead garage storage space above garage rafters, install attic decking panels to create a usable and accessible surface for storage. Before you embark on this project, though, consult a knowledgeable building professional to make sure your rafters are rated to carry extra loads.

22. Bike Storage Systems For The Garage

Hanging bicycles from the rafters is a great way to save garage space. But even hanging bikes can take up a bunch of room.This system also makes it easier to take down the bikes when they’re hanging over a parked car, a boat or a big mess like in my garage. That’s because you can pull or push the bikes clear of the obstruction before you lower it. 

23. Bicycle Hoist 

When it comes to garages, there’s no such thing as “enough space”. One product we find useful to free up some floor space is a bicycle hoist. It’s easy to install and very easy to use. When shopping for a hoist, beware of models that have undersized ropes as they can easily slip off the pulley wheels and/or get stuck. Look for one with a good, hefty rope.

24. Storage Bin Index             

Solve labelling problems by labeling your bins with large numbers. Each number corresponds to a page in a binder that lists the contents of each bin. It’s simple to change the list, and a heck of a lot easier to find what you need by checking the binder than rummage through every single bin. 

25. Joist Space Storage   

Don’t waste all that space between joists in a basement or garage. Why not screw wire shelving to the underside of the joists instead? Shelving that measures 8-ft. x 16-in. and a pack of plastics would do just nice.

26. Color-Coordinated Workspace   

Let your home’s farmhouse interior flow into the garage by designing a workspace that combines functionality and style. Along with wire bins, metal racks, and shelving units, attach magnetic strips to the wall to hang screwdrivers, pliers, and paintbrushes.

27. Grab and Go Baskets       

Hang a tiered organizer right next to the door to store reusable shopping bags, umbrellas, and other miscellaneous items you find yourself needing most when you’re out and about.

28. Air Out Equipment   

Take advantage of your garage’s natural ventilation system and give any smelly sports equipment hockey bags, jerseys, you etc. a place to dry.

29. Kid Toys Storage         

Section off an area in the garage to encourage little ones to learn to keep their environments tidy. Make sure that the bins for bike helmets, sidewalk chalk, and outside toys are within eye-level, so your little ones can put everything away on their own after each play session.

30. Easy Totes   

Totes are my favorite way to store things I don’t need access to that often. They are affordable, come in a variety of sizes, stack easily, can be hung with a rail system, and provide a place to store materials away from dust and dirt that is bound to happen in even the cleanest of garages.

31. Work Space 

Garages really do benefit from flat surfaces of some sort to not only store things upon but to utilize as designated work areas. This DIY idea really takes into account much of what has been highlighted above to provide storage solutions for a variety of different tools, as well as using all of the space given.

32. Use Ceiling Racks

Never underestimate the amount of space properly placed shelves can be provided. Tall walls are frequently ignored even when they provide the perfect place for long-term storage. Shelves can pretty much be added to any sort of garage system with very little effort and open up spaces you didn’t even realize you could take advantage of.

33. Take Advantage of the Wall           

A wall of well-built shelves may end up taking up a bit of square footage altogether, but it certainly saves you the floor space you’d use to store all your items. These built-in shelves fit totes perfectly but can be utilized in any way you can think of to help get your garage organized.

34. Store by Hanging   

There truly is no end to the usefulness of these types of hanging shelving systems. This close up provides a more detailed look at exactly how useful they can be. The gaps created along the back are perfect to set your more narrow tools within, and S-hooks provide the perfect hanging hardware.

35. Sports Hooks   

No matter what kind of sports you are into, there’s no denying that sports equipment can take up a lot of room. Plus, you hate to pack them away as if you are really into your sports you want them accessible and within reach no matter what season it is. Paneled walls are excellent solutions to providing hooks and hanging displays to create a space for all your extracurricular needs.

36. Sliding Rails                                                           

This compact storage solution, along with sliding storage rails allows you to mix and match how and where you get your belongings organized. These hook systems are excellent for yard and garden type products as they are durable and keep things well within reach.

Cleaning up your garage clutter is as easy as taking the time to envision what space is best utilized, and then making it happen. Shelving, cabinets, peg and panel board, are all solutions to organizing any size space, and you can definitely stay within budget with some simple DIY solutions as well. Just be sure not to underestimate those high spaces (your ceiling included) and to take advantage of all surface square footage with the garage storage systems above!