This Kitchen Cleaning Checklist Helps You Tackle Messes One Step at a Time

Between hurried breakfasts, weeknight meals, and food-centric get-togethers, kitchens take a messy beating. Crumbs, spills, and splatters collect quickly on kitchen surfaces through daily activities, making it difficult to keep up with cleaning. But if put off for too long, cleaning your cooking space can become a time-consuming, overwhelming task. Countertops, cabinets, appliances, sinks, and floors provide a ton of surface area that takes time to scrub and wipe clean. By breaking kitchen cleaning down into smaller tasks, however, you can turn a daunting mess into an easy-to-tackle job.

A little routine cleaning and regular upkeep make more in-depth monthly kitchen cleaning less intimidating. The key to sticking to a routine is to create a kitchen cleaning checklist that works for your schedule and preferences. Use these kitchen cleaning checklist ideas as a guideline and make them your own, setting a schedule that works for you. Depending on your kitchen's level of use, you might need to complete some tasks more and less frequently. Develop your own kitchen cleaning checklist and stick to it. Once you're in the habit of following the routine, kitchen cleaning tasks will happen like clockwork.

white kitchen with teal backsplash Credit: Nicole LaMotte

Everyday Kitchen Cleaning

A few minutes of daily cleaning keeps on track and messes at bay. With day-to-day grime wiped away, more thorough weekly and monthly cleanings aren't such a chore.

Checklist Daily Kitchen Cleaning Checklist Spray and wipe the countertops and range top Dont' forget to clean off splatters from the vent hood, too.

Sweep the floor and wipe up spills

Scrub the sink with a general-purpose cleaner and wipe dry

Deal with dishes Unload clean dishes from the dishwasher and take care of hand-wash dishes as soon as possible.

Tidy up and put away stray items Relocate anything that doesn’t belong in the kitchen to its proper home.

white kitchen with wood floor and bar and stools Credit: Kim Cornelison

Kitchen Cleaning Tasks for the Week

Set aside time every week to take your daily cleaning a bit deeper. Pick a time during the week when your schedule is usually free and make a date with your kitchen. Establish an order and process that works for you and before long, you'll be able to breeze through this weekly kitchen cleaning checklist.

Checklist Weekly Kitchen Cleaning Checklist Mop the floor You might need to mop more often if you have young children or pets in your household. Or messy cooks.

Clean the exteriors of appliances That includes large appliances as well as small countertop appliances, such as coffee pots and toasters.

Wipe the refrigerator door Clean up any smudges in the interior, too.

Toss leftovers or refrigerated items that are past their prime

Scour and polish the sink Give a little extra attention to crevices and seams where gunk loves to hide. Once the sink is finished, clean the faucet, too.

Spot-clean cabinets to remove fingerprints and smudges Play close attention to doors and drawers you use frequently. Don’t forget about the cabinet boxes and drawer interiors.

Toss towels and dishcloths into the wash

black and white kitchen with geometric tile floor Credit: Buff Strickland

Monthly Routine for Kitchen Cleaning

With a regular and frequent basic cleaning routine in place, a monthly kitchen deep-clean will be a breeze. This monthly kitchen cleaning checklist turns your attention to the places that miss most of the day-to-day grime but still benefit from an occasional once-over.

Checklist Monthly Kitchen Cleaning Checklist Wipe down cabinet doors and drawers

Clean the oven If you're hesitant to use oven cleaner, try scrubbing the inside with a combination of baking soda and white vinegar.

Clean the refrigerator and sanitize its drip pan

Rinse out any drawer dividers or organizers They're great for bringing order to your kitchen, but they are dirt and crumb magnets.

Give a little extra attention to the toe-kick area beneath your cabinets Crumbs and dirt tend to migrate here and hide during daily sweeping and weekly mopping.

Dust the tops of cabinets and your refrigerator Give light fixtures a once-over.

Clean and sanitize trash and recycling receptacles You should also do this as needed if a nasty spill happens or an odor lingers.

Clean your dishwasher Take a peek at the inside of your dishwasher, especially around the seal and filter, and wipe away any grime and water deposits.

gray and white cabinets in kitchen with herringbone backsplash Credit: Kim Cornelison

Tips for Sticking to a Kitchen Cleaning Checklist

As you establish your own kitchen cleaning checklist, commit to your routine with a printed version. The visual presence of a kitchen duties checklist is a good reminder and having something to check off feels like an accomplishment. Remember that this cleaning schedule isn't set in stone, however. Always tackle spills and messes as they happen and be thorough. Spilled milk that splashes across the counter and onto the floor, for example, also tends to find its way into odd places. Open drawers and cabinets to assess the extent of the mess.

To make ticking off your kitchen cleaning checklist easier, keep a spray bottle of your favorite homemade cleaner or all-purpose cleaner handy for quick and efficient cleanup. (Lemons, baking soda, distilled white vinegar, and even vodka can be used as DIY cleaning substitutes.) Similarly, keep a broom and dustpan in the kitchen for sweeping after meals and cooking sessions. Knowing your kitchen materials will also help the process run smoothly. What is suitable for laminate countertops might do a number on granite or quartz. With material-appropriate cleaners, your kitchen surfaces will stay sparkling.