How to save money and counter space in your hall kitchen

When you move in, it is tempting to arrive fully stocked. My advice, resist a little. Some kitchen things are much better bought together once you have met your flatmates, both to save money and to save counter space.

Here is what to leave off your shopping list until you have had the first kitchen conversation.

1. Salt, pepper, and basic seasonings 🧂

Everyone uses them, nobody needs five of each. Olive oil, sugar, stock cubes, the staples that sit at the back of a cupboard all year. One shared set is enough.

2. Cutlery 🍴

If everyone shows up with a sixteen piece set, you suddenly have eighty forks. Decide with your flatmates how you're going to play it!

3. Spatulas, large knives, and the "special" kitchen equipment 🥄

Whisks, ladles, peelers, graters, tongs. You use them once a week and they take up drawer space the rest of the time. One of each, shared, works far better than five flimsy versions floating around.

4. Baking parchment and foil 🧻 

Bulky rolls that last forever and live in a drawer. No need for everyone to have their own.

5. Cleaning supplies 🧽

Washing up liquid, sponges, kitchen roll, bin bags, surface spray. These run out constantly and splitting them from day one avoids the month two stand off where nobody has bought any in weeks.

Of course, every flat is different. Some are organised from day one, others figure it out as they go.

Most people land on something like Splitwise, a rotating monthly buyer, or a shared kitchen fund. None of these need to be sorted before you arrive. They just need to happen at some point in the first couple of weeks, ideally before the bin bags run out.

The point is not to arrive empty handed. Bring your mug, your plate, your own cutlery if you want, a small pan. Just leave room in the suitcase, and in the budget, for the things that work better when bought together.