FREE Home Canned Goods Inventory Printable + How to Organize Your Canning Pantry

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Are you looking for ways to organize your canning pantry? This Free Canning Inventory Printable will help you keep track of your canned goods.

Are you looking for ways to organize your canning pantry? This Free Canning Inventory Printable will help you keep track of your canned goods.

Organizing Your Canning Pantry

I love canning! It’s our way of being able to preserve the produce that we can get for free, grow for free, or buy in bulk. By canning, you can make the most of your money and enjoy fresh produce year-round without the use of cold storage or even having to use a fridge. It’s a win-win!

My yearly goal for canned foods is to put away at least 500 jars. That gives us roughly 1 1/2 jars per day during the most expensive food-buying season of the year. Some days, we use canned foods, and some days, we don’t, but this seems to be a pretty good baseline amount for our family.

Tip: Check out these 12 Simple Ways to Save Money on Groceries for more ideas on saving on food costs during the winter months.

Canning Pantry Ideas

Here’s a picture of one of my previous canning pantries. This pantry was so easy to see what was available since it was tall and shallow (I could only place the jars 2 deep). I loved using it, but it wasn’t quite enough room for all of my canned foods.

Soon, I discovered that no matter where I put the canned goods (that weren’t in their designated spot) I wouldn’t have space in my little house to be able to see all of the canned foods as I could with the nice canning panty. I ended up packing some in Jar Boxes and some in regular boxes and stacking them in the closet and under the bed. It’s working great for storage, but sometimes I’m not totally sure what’s in there because it’s out of the way.

Tip: Only have a small space? Here is some Small Space Pantry Organization ideas.

Canned Goods

When we moved into the little farmhouse I didn’t have a canning pantry at all, and all of my canned food storage was limited to boxes and Jar Boxes, so it was even more difficult to see what I had available. I knew I needed to come up with a better way to organize canned goods in a pantry.

Food Storage Inventory Sheets are a great way to keep track on all of your home-canned foods to save you trips to the grocery store and to help prevent food waste. Plus, these free printables just look pretty!

Canning Inventory Checklist

So I came up with this little canning jar printable so that we can keep track of exactly what we have, no matter where in the house it’s been stored! Enter your email below to download the printable and take control of your canned foods inventory.

In the first column, fill out the name of the canned food and use the little jars to track how many you have left. If you have jars stored all over the place, you may want to mark where each is stored as well.

Canning Inventory Sheet Printable

The nice thing about this canning inventory printable is that you can use it for future meal planning. By easily being able to see exactly what you have, you can plan your meals around them. It’s so easy, that you could even plan your entire winter menu based on what you canned and put away during the summer, just by looking at your canning inventory printable!

This simple inventory checklist will help you keep your yummy carrots, green beans, veggies, soups, meats, sauces, salsas, jellies, and fruits all organized. You can also use it to help keep track of any grains, beans, dehydrated foods, or dried goods that you have in your pantry in jars or other containers.

Keep these printable pages somewhere close to your pantry door so that you can view them whenever you need to and check off items that you are using.

Thanks for the inventory form. I love it!

Amy, Little House Living reader

Storage Ideas for Empty Jars

If you are a canner you will always have empty jars that need a home, here are some ideas.

Place the clean, empty jars into boxes. Put cardboard in between any layers of canning jars in the boxes so they don’t hit together.

Place all the boxes of jars in a storage area where they will not be disturbed such as a basement or shed. We put empty jars in boxes in our root cellar when we had space.

Make sure they are in a box with a lid to prevent as much dust as possible and make them easier to clean again later.

Root Cellar

Common Questions About Canned Goods Storage

How do you stack canned goods at home?

Canned goods can be stacked two high IF you remove the rims and IF you place cardboard in between each layer.

How long does canned food last?

I try to store canned goods no longer than 3 years, however, if they are properly sealed, they can last much longer.

Why is canning important?

It’s important to know not only how to grow your own food, but how to preserve it for later. You can’t eat all the food you grow at once so preserving food by canning is a good way to make it last.

Not into canning yet? You can find dozens of canning and preserving recipes in our recipe index, and you can find some simple and basic canning and preserving how-to videos on my YouTube page.

Don’t have a canned food pantry? You can also print off a regular pantry inventory printable to keep track of your pantry items. You could also use this for your fridge inventory, freezer inventory, or anything else that needs to be organized.

Tip: Before completing your printable, make sure you Organize The Farmhouse Pantry so you don’t miss anything.

Homestead Management

More Organization Tips

What are some ways that you store and keep track of your canning pantry?

Me and Kady

Merissa Alink

Merissa has been blogging about and living the simple and frugal life on Little House Living since 2009 and has internationally published 2 books on the topic. You can read about Merissa’s journey from penniless to freedom on the About Page. You can send her a message any time from the Contact Page.

This post on Organizing your Canning Pantry was originally published on Little House Living in October 2012. It has been updated as of October 2023.

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11 Comments

  1. Hello, May I ask you about your pickles? I try every year to can pickles but they come out limp and soggy. I have tried many different ways to try and get them to be crisp. Do you have any suggestions? Thank you so much for your time

    1. Mine aren’t perfectly crunchy but they aren’t limp. I have this weird method that I’ve never written down but it’s only a mixture of vinegar, garlic cloves, fresh dill, and water.

    2. I’ve had best luck with normal pickle recipes using whole pickles. The less brine gets directly inside, the crispier they’ll be. Cut pickles come out soggier. But the best results are from refrigerator pickles. They only last a couple of months, but they’re crispy and delicious!

  2. Hi Marissa, I love your blog and I loved reading about your early days of marriage in an old house and the RV. We have been married over 50 years and we started out in a 2 room apt and had to share the bathroom. Then we bought an old rundown house because it was cheap. We worked on that and spent every dime we could rake & scrape. Finally 20 years later we moved to the country and were able to build a new house and have the garden we dreamed about. God is good and He does provide for our needs just as He promised. I am inspired by your story and I admire your determination and hard work. Too bad there are not more just like you and your husband. So many now a days just want free stuff and food stamps. We love gardening and canning and being able to share with older folks that can’t garden anymore. It makes us happy to share the abundance of our garden. I am looking forward to your newsletters and wish you and your family much success and happiness! Blessings, Betty

    p.s. There is a recipe on Mrs. Wages Lime pkg. for the best crisp pickles and they are easy, too.

  3. I am looking for information on canning my date paste. I would like information on processing. Where can I find this information? Also I would like information on canning a recipe that has condensed milk in it.

  4. Hello from Saskatchewan!
    Todays dilemma is making my own vanilla! Vodka or substitute for pure maple syrup?
    Any other ideas?

    1. I’ve made it the last 2 years. I used vodka & grade “B” vanilla beans. I gave it as gifts and anyone that received it was very happy with it. Start a couple months before you want to give them out. I got the grade “B” vanilla through Amazon.