How much does it cost to reface kitchen cabinets?

Refacing — new doors, drawer fronts and veneer over your existing boxes — typically runs $8,000–$20,000 for a full kitchen, roughly half the cost of comparable replacement. It only makes sense when the boxes are sound and the layout already works, because it locks both in.

Are custom cabinets worth it?

When the kitchen has awkward dimensions, when you want cabinetry to the ceiling, or when the design depends on paneled appliances and exact grain matching — yes, that's what custom buys. In a straightforward layout, good semi-custom delivers most of the look for meaningfully less.

What's the cheapest way to update kitchen cabinets?

Painting sound cabinet boxes and replacing hardware costs a fraction of any other option and photographs shockingly well. It's the right move when the layout works and the boxes are solid — and the wrong one when doors are failing or the kitchen needs replanning anyway.

Field Notes · August 21, 2026 · 6 min read

How Much Do New Kitchen Cabinets Cost?

Kitchen cabinet costs for 2026: stock, semi-custom and custom pricing, what refacing costs instead, why cabinets are half your kitchen budget, and where the money is actually worth it.

Custom kitchen cabinetry installed by ENF General Contracting

“How much do new kitchen cabinets cost” is one of the fastest-rising remodel searches in Washington right now — because cabinets are the line item that decides a kitchen budget. Here’s how the pricing really works, tier by tier, including the refacing question everyone asks next.

Why cabinets dominate the budget

In a full kitchen remodel, cabinetry routinely takes a third to half of the total spend — more than counters, more than appliances. It’s the most labor-intensive thing in the room and it covers the most visible surface, which is also why it’s the upgrade buyers register first. Our kitchen cost guide shows how it fits into the whole budget.

The three tiers, honestly

Stock ($8k–$20k installed). Factory sizes, limited finishes, fast delivery. Perfectly good boxes for a rental, a flip, or a budget refresh — the compromise is filler strips where your walls and the factory sizes disagree.
Semi-custom ($15k–$40k). The sweet spot for most remodels: modified sizes, real finish and door choices, proper drawer hardware. Gets you to-the-ceiling uppers and deep drawers without custom-shop pricing.
Custom ($30k–$80k+). Built for your room to the quarter inch — paneled appliances, grain-matched fronts, any dimension. This is what our Bellevue White Oak Kitchen is: white-oak custom cabinetry to the ceiling with a paneled refrigerator wall. When the design is the point, custom is the medium.

The refacing question

Refacing — new doors, fronts and veneer on your existing boxes — runs roughly half the cost of comparable replacement. The honest test is two questions: are the boxes structurally sound, and does the layout already work? Two yeses make refacing a smart move. Any no makes it lipstick on a floor plan you’ll still hate — in a kitchen that needs replanning, the layout moves matter more than the door style.

Where the money is worth it

Three upgrades earn their cost every time: drawers instead of doors in base cabinets (you can reach everything), full-extension soft-close hardware (the daily-use difference between tiers), and cabinets to the ceiling (storage plus height, as covered in the small-kitchen guide). Exotic interiors and appliance garages are taste; those three are function.

Installation is half the outcome

The same boxes hung out of level read as cheap; mid-tier cabinetry installed dead level with consistent reveals reads as custom. Scribing to real walls, aligned doors, square runs — installation quality is why identical cabinets look different in different houses, and it’s where a builder earns the line item. The kitchen timeline guide shows where installation falls in the schedule.

Get cabinet numbers for your kitchen

Linear feet, ceiling height and door style set the real price — which means the accurate number comes from measuring your room, not a national average. The free in-home estimate prices your kitchen at each tier so you can see exactly what the next step up buys.

Price your cabinets →

Frequently asked questions

How much do new kitchen cabinets cost?: For a typical Seattle-area kitchen in 2026: stock cabinets run roughly $8,000–$20,000 installed, semi-custom $15,000–$40,000, and full custom $30,000–$80,000+. Cabinets are usually the single biggest line in a kitchen remodel — commonly a third to half of the total budget.
How much does it cost to reface kitchen cabinets?: Refacing — new doors, drawer fronts and veneer over your existing boxes — typically runs $8,000–$20,000 for a full kitchen, roughly half the cost of comparable replacement. It only makes sense when the boxes are sound and the layout already works, because it locks both in.
Are custom cabinets worth it?: When the kitchen has awkward dimensions, when you want cabinetry to the ceiling, or when the design depends on paneled appliances and exact grain matching — yes, that's what custom buys. In a straightforward layout, good semi-custom delivers most of the look for meaningfully less.
What's the cheapest way to update kitchen cabinets?: Painting sound cabinet boxes and replacing hardware costs a fraction of any other option and photographs shockingly well. It's the right move when the layout works and the boxes are solid — and the wrong one when doors are failing or the kitchen needs replanning anyway.

Written by

Eduard — Owner & General Contractor

Eduard owns ENF General Contracting and has built and remodeled homes across Everett, Seattle & the Eastside for over a decade. Licensed, Bonded & Insured. He runs every ENF project personally — and writes these guides from the job site. More about Eduard · (425) 217-9921