I just moved into a new condo -- one of the first things I did was to rip off the doors of my cabinets and move the microwave from the counter to one of the shelves in the cabinet. Looks SO much better, and wahoo, more counter space!

I remodeled and put mine under the induction cooktop. I took out a range with a microwave/vent above it and replaced it with a setup that includes an industrial hood, an induction cooktop set into granite, and a custom cabinet underneath with a microwave shelf and a drawer. I put in double wall ovens instead of the range.

Safety and children are considerations. Installing a microwave at an elevation where a child can reach up and use it is an invitation to spilling something hot in their face. If kids are going to use it, consider putting it low enough so they can use it safely and see what they are doing.

Where I live now, the MW is built-in over the cooktop. Nothing new there (except to me), but it is a convenient spot for it. Guess that's why it's so common.

In the past, I've placed the MW on a shelf just under a countertop, which I liked a lot, though I can see how it might not be a good solution for every household. I find that I am less likely to spill something when I am lifting it up than when I am taking it down.

The worst MW arrangement I've had situated the MW on top of my fridge. It was a small apartment fridge, but it was still too high. I was always afraid of getting a faceful of hot soup. And it was impossible to keep an eye on things while they are heating up.

That said, the last picture with the MW on top of a very large refrigerator is an outrageously bad setup, especially in what appears to be a "high-end" kitchen. Seriously, what average citizen could reach that? (And it's a very bad idea to stash wine up so high--the heat will ruin it.

We used to have a venting microwave mounted over the range, but it didn't vent well and it made it difficult to reach into tall pots on the back burners. We replaced it with a standard range hood, which really opened up the area over the range and made it more pleasant to cook.

Our microwave right now is on top of the refrigerator, which is not ideal, but I'm not willing to give up counterspace for it at this point.

At our old house, countertop space was limited and the microwave sat out in the garage (the door to the garage was in the kitchen). At our new house, we put the microwave on a shelf in a cupboard. Needless to say, we don't use our microwave very often, which is why it has been relegated to such an inconvenient spot. Once every 1-2 weeks is about all the use it gets.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/kls987/3589077929/

Surely you mean "set" in the headline.

@jls988 Send me photos of your remodel! I'm dying to see it. sonia@apartmenttherapy.com

@Leisureguy and fredward, nope, I meant sit. Items can sit on things, http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/sit

@soniaz Technically, the microwave can "sit", but you cannot "sit" the microwave. (But you could set it on it's seat and I'm certain it would sit. =P)

The wheeled cart picture isn't that inspiring, but it's likely the solution I'll be going for. My kitchen has almost no counter space, so my microwave is on my hope chest, which is too low, and it can't go in a cupboard since it's too high. I'm hoping to get a cart twice the width of the one pictured and score myself some extra counter space and storage while I'm at it.