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Pull-Out & Slim Cans

The best slim and narrow trash cans

A slim can keeps full capacity by going deep rather than wide, which is why the gap beside a refrigerator is the most underused space in most kitchens.

By Ryder M. · Last reviewed September 27, 2026

Narrow gap between furniture in a room

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The short answer

The simplehuman 45L Slim Step Can for a kitchen, because it gives you a genuine 45 liters in a narrow footprint rather than making you drop to a 30-liter bin. The Umbra Skinny at 6.5 inches wide for the smallest gaps.

#ProductBest forPrice
01
Narrow slim-profile stainless steel kitchen trash can
simplehuman 45L Slim Step CanFull kitchen capacity in a can narrow enough to live in the gap beside a fridge or at the end of a run of cabinets.
Best narrow full-size can
02
Slim rectangular bathroom wastebasket beside a sink
Umbra Skinny Trash Can, 2 GallonSix and a half inches wide, which is the number that matters when the only space is between the toilet and the wall.
Best narrow small can
03
Narrow open-top brushed stainless steel trash can
simplehuman 50L Slim Open Top CanHeavy-gauge stainless with no lid and no pedal, for the spot where speed matters more than odor containment.
Best open-top
04
Small round stainless steel bathroom step trash can
simplehuman 4.5L Round Step CanA proper step can shrunk to bathroom size, with the same damped lid rather than the sprung flap most small bins use.
Best small bathroom can
05
Semi-round stainless steel step trash can with a flat back
simplehuman 60L Semi-Round Step Can with Liner RimA flat-backed can that takes the wall line seriously — the rounded front keeps a genuinely wide opening without pushing into the walkway.
Best large capacity
06
Large open-top plastic waste basket
Umbra Venti Waste Basket, 16.5 GallonA 16.5-gallon open-top bin for a utility room, workshop or garage, where volume beats containment.
Best large open can

How we picked

  • Width, as the primary criterion. In this category the limiting dimension is width and everything else is secondary. Published widths only — we have not estimated any.
  • Capacity retained at that width. A narrow can that is also small is not solving the problem. The good ones move the volume backwards.
  • Stability. A narrow, deep can with an open lid and someone leaning on it tips more easily than a wide one. This is a real drawback of the shape and we have named it on every product.
  • Whether it goes against a wall. A flat back is worth as much as a narrow body, because a curved can standing two inches off the wall wastes the gap you were trying to use.
  • Cleanability. Narrow and deep means harder to reach the bottom. Removable buckets and smooth interiors matter more here.

Methodology · disclosure.

The picks in full

Narrow slim-profile stainless steel kitchen trash can

01 — Best narrow full-size can

simplehuman 45L Slim Step Can

Full kitchen capacity in a can narrow enough to live in the gap beside a fridge or at the end of a run of cabinets.

Capacity
45 liters / 11.9 gallons
Shape
Slim — deep rather than wide
Lid
Soft-close

The trick is that the volume goes back rather than sideways — it is deep, not wide. If the only free floor space in your kitchen is a narrow slot, this is one of very few cans that gives you a genuine 45 liters there rather than forcing you down to a 30-liter bin.

What we'd flag: a narrow, deep can tips more easily than a wide one when the lid is open and you lean on it. Push it against a wall rather than leaving it free-standing.

Slim rectangular bathroom wastebasket beside a sink

02 — Best narrow small can

Umbra Skinny Trash Can, 2 Gallon

Six and a half inches wide, which is the number that matters when the only space is between the toilet and the wall.

Capacity
2 gallons
Dimensions
13.5" x 6.5" x 13"
Material
Polypropylene
Handle
Integrated

Almost every small bin is round, and a round bin in a rectangular gap wastes most of it. This is a genuine slot-filler at 13.5" x 6.5" x 13", with rounded internal corners so liquid does not get trapped and an integrated handle so you can lift it out one-handed.

What we'd flag: no lid. In a bathroom that is usually fine; anywhere food goes, it is not.

Narrow open-top brushed stainless steel trash can

03 — Best open-top

simplehuman 50L Slim Open Top Can

Heavy-gauge stainless with no lid and no pedal, for the spot where speed matters more than odor containment.

Capacity
50 liters / 13.2 gallons
Lid
None — open top
Material
Commercial-grade heavy-gauge stainless steel
Bag change
Lift-off rim

Every step can eventually fails at the pedal or the hinge. This one cannot, because it has neither. Heavy-gauge steel resists denting in a hallway or a busy prep area, the narrow footprint keeps it out of walkways, and the lift-off rim means bag changes take seconds.

What we'd flag: an open can does nothing about smell and nothing about flies. Do not put this where food waste goes — put it where paper and packaging go.

Small round stainless steel bathroom step trash can

04 — Best small bathroom can

simplehuman 4.5L Round Step Can

A proper step can shrunk to bathroom size, with the same damped lid rather than the sprung flap most small bins use.

Capacity
4.5 liters / 1.2 gallons
Lid
Soft-close, damped
Mechanism
Foot pedal

Small bathroom bins almost all use a cheap sprung lid that snaps shut loudly and eventually stops latching. This uses the same damped mechanism as the kitchen cans at a fraction of the volume. In a bathroom that shares a wall with a bedroom, quiet is not a luxury feature.

What we'd flag: 4.5 liters is genuinely small. If your bathroom bin takes diapers or a household's worth of cotton pads, you will be emptying it daily.

Semi-round stainless steel step trash can with a flat back

05 — Best large capacity

simplehuman 60L Semi-Round Step Can with Liner Rim

A flat-backed can that takes the wall line seriously — the rounded front keeps a genuinely wide opening without pushing into the walkway.

Capacity
60 liters / 15.8 gallons
Back
Flat — designed to sit flush against a wall
Bag retention
Liner rim, not an inner bucket
Lid
Soft-close, damped

The semi-round shape is the most underrated in the category. A flat back means the can sits against the wall instead of two inches off it, and the curved front keeps the throat wide enough that a cereal box goes in without folding. The liner rim holds the bag by the lip rather than using an inner bucket, which is one fewer thing to wash.

What we'd flag: the liner rim only really works with simplehuman's own code liners. A generic bag sits on it, but loosely, and will slip down the inside over a day or two.

Large open-top plastic waste basket

06 — Best large open can

Umbra Venti Waste Basket, 16.5 Gallon

A 16.5-gallon open-top bin for a utility room, workshop or garage, where volume beats containment.

Capacity
16.5 gallons
Lid
None
Material
Polypropylene with brushed metallic accents

Open cans get a bad press because people put food in them. Put packaging, offcuts or yard waste in one and the lack of a lid is purely an advantage — nothing to lift, nothing to break, and you can drop things in one-handed from across the room.

What we'd flag: 16.5 gallons is bigger than a standard 13-gallon bag. You will need oversized liners, and this trips people up constantly.

Find the gap first

Most kitchens do not have spare floor. They have narrow slots between fixed objects, and those slots are almost always wasted. Measure these five before you look at cans.

WhereTypical widthNotes
Beside the refrigerator4-10"The best gap in most kitchens, and the most overlooked
End of a run of base cabinets8-16"Usually the only genuinely open floor
Between the counter and a wall, in a corner10-18"Buy rectangular — a round can wastes most of a corner
Beside a dishwasher4-8"Avoid — heat and damp make a can smell
Between the toilet and the wall6-9"The bathroom case. Bathroom sizing

Two things to add to the width when you measure. Allow an inch of clearance so the can is not wedged — a wedged can is a can you cannot pull out to clean behind. And check the lid clearance above, because a slim can is usually tall and a swinging lid needs about a foot. Eight placements ranked.

Slim can or pull-out?

Slim free-standingCabinet pull-out
CapacityFull 45-50 LUsually 30-35 L per bucket
InstallNoneScrews into the cabinet
Hides the canNoCompletely
Cabinet space lostNoneAll of it
Moves with youYesNo
OdorDepends on the lidContained in a closed cabinet
Suits rentersYesUsually not

The slim can wins on capacity, cost and reversibility; the pull-out wins on concealment. For a rented flat the answer is nearly always the slim can, and there are no-drill alternatives if you specifically want it hidden. For a kitchen you own and are keeping, a pull-out is a genuine upgrade.

The two drawbacks of the shape

They tip

A narrow base and a tall body is an unstable combination, and it gets worse when the lid is open and shifting the center of gravity backwards. The practical answer is simple: push it against a wall rather than leaving it free-standing, and if the floor is uneven, check the can sits flat rather than rocking. A can that rocks will eventually go over.

They are harder to reach into

Deep and narrow means the bottom is a long way down a tight shaft. Fishing something out that fell in is genuinely awkward, and cleaning the base needs a long-handled brush. A can with a removable inner bucket largely solves this, because you lift the bucket out rather than reaching in. The cleaning method.

Neither is a reason not to buy one. They are the reason to buy the version with a flat back and, ideally, a bucket — rather than the narrowest thing you can find.

Common questions

What is the best slim trash can?

The simplehuman 45L Slim Step Can for a kitchen, because it keeps a genuine 45 liters in a narrow footprint. The Umbra Skinny at 6.5 inches wide for a bathroom or the very smallest gaps.

How narrow can a trash can be?

About 6.5 inches for a small bin — Umbra publishes 13.5" x 6.5" x 13" for its 2-gallon Skinny can. Full-size kitchen slim cans are typically 8 to 11 inches wide.

Do slim trash cans hold less?

The good ones do not. They move the volume backwards rather than sideways, so a slim 45-liter can holds the same as a wide one. Cheap narrow bins do cut capacity, which is why the published figure matters.

Why does my slim trash can keep tipping over?

A narrow base with a tall body is inherently less stable, especially with the lid open. Push it against a wall, and check it sits flat rather than rocking on an uneven floor.

Where do slim trash cans fit best?

The gap beside the refrigerator, which is wasted in most kitchens and is usually four to ten inches wide. Then the end of a run of base cabinets, or a corner — where a rectangular can wastes nothing and a round one wastes most of it.

Slim can or under-sink pull-out?

A slim can keeps full capacity, needs no install and comes with you when you move. A pull-out hides the can completely at the cost of the cabinet and about a third of the capacity. For renters, the slim can.

Sources

Every specification on this page traces to one of these, checked at the time of writing. Where a manufacturer does not publish a figure, the page says so rather than estimating it.

Read next

The author

Ryder M.

Owner and editor of Lid & Liner, published by Magoo Media Group. He started the site after getting tired of the same problem everyone has: every “best trash can” article covers ten products and none of them tells you whether a 13-gallon bag actually fits a 13-gallon can. Lid & Liner covers one category and tries to cover it completely.

Last reviewed September 27, 2026. Spotted an error? Tell us and we will correct it and note the correction.