Skip to content

Which Cabinet Brand is Best for Me?

Let Us Help You Decide Which Kitchen Cabinet Brand is Best for You

Bishop Richmond cabinet door style in Medium Stain

“What kitchen cabinet line is best?” and “What kitchen cabinet brand do you recommend?” are the most common questions we receive on our blog. The answer depends on several factors, including budget, how fast cabinets are delivered, and how long you want the cabinetry to last.

Every cabinet line tries to fill a specific niche in the cabinet market.

About half of them are trying to compete for contractor and builder business. These manufacturers—and the builders they sell to—tend to rank construction quality below finish, style, and availability. So, if cabinet durability is a priority, avoid these brands.

The reason for this is that builders and people renovating to sell homes have less incentive to pay even minor upgrades for well-made cabinetry as their responsibility to the seller only lasts 12 months. A good example of how little home builders value cabinet construction is that an expensive home builder like Toll Brothers uses the lowest construction quality.

Cabinet manufacturers that make cabinets for the homeowner market build cabinets well. Or offer upgrades to acceptable standards.

 

Here is Main Line Kitchen Design’s criteria for quality construction:

  • A face frame made of 1 1/2″ x 3/4″ thick solid hardwood.
  • 1/2″ plywood sides, bottoms, and tops with 3/4″ plywood shelves.
  •  A solid wood 3/4″ hanging rail or a 1/2″ plywood back. A 3/8″ back is OK but not preferred.
  • Ibeam construction and wooded corner blocks are preferable to plastic corner blocks.
  • Solid wood dovetail drawers Blumotion tracks, and soft close doors are mandatory.

.

Example of well constructed cabinet
Example of a well-constructed cabinet

It is surprising how many higher-cost cabinets do not meet these construction minimums.

On the other hand, after meeting these standards, cabinetry should last a lifetime, so there is very little advantage in paying for cabinetry that exceeds the criteria. Generally, the best choice for most consumers is the least expensive cabinet line with the desired wood species, finish, and custom features.

 

Kitchen Cabinet Cost vs. Design Preferences

Homeowners and kitchen designers must balance the cost of different cabinet lines with how well those lines meet design and finish preferences.

It is not uncommon for small compromises to save a significant amount of money. For example, the most expensive cabinet lines are high priced because of their ability to customize or do unusual finishes. This means if you don’t need cabinetry customization or you are getting a solid painted finish, you could be paying for the availability of features you won’t be selecting. Beaded inset doors, furniture grade-stained finishes, distressed finishes, glazes, and paints with visible brushstrokes are features only available in higher-priced cabinetry. These expensive and distinctive finishes usually aren’t perceived as superior or more expensive by the general public.

A homeowner not opting for these features does just as well in a less expensive cabinet line as long as the cabinetry being ordered meets the recommended minimum requirements.

example of Beaded Inset Cabinet
Beaded Inset Cabinetry – Doors and drawers are recessed into the cabinet face frame.

 

The 6 Major Cabinet Brands Main Line Kitchen Design Carries

At Main Line Kitchen design, we offer 6 cabinet lines, and all 6 meet our requirements for being considered well-made: Cubitac, Fabuwood, Timberlake, Bishop, Brighton, and our custom line, Wellsford.

We selected these lines because they are all well constructed, and they all have more customization than comparable lines at their price point. This makes each of them an excellent value for designing more complex kitchens.

 

Which kitchen cabinet line is best?

Well, of course, the most expensive full custom one is Wellsford. Can our customers recognize the difference between Wellsford and even the least expensive line we carry, Fabuwood? Surprisingly, most cannot. So, the extra money spent upgrading to higher-cost cabinet lines often goes unappreciated.

On the other hand, almost all our customers prefer and can recognize a well-designed kitchen when we show them one. Most of the designs we see by designers from home centers and other dealers are poor. Accordingly, homeowners should focus on finding a good kitchen designer rather than spending time determining “which cabinet line is best.”

“…homeowners should focus on finding a good kitchen designer rather than spending time determining which cabinet line is best.”

 

European Frameless Kitchen Cabinetry

It should be noted that European frameless cabinetry is in a class of its own.

No frameless cabinets meet our minimum construction requirements for a well-made cabinet. However, contemporary and modern door styles look much better with the ultra-tight gaps between frameless doors and drawer fronts. The ONLY reason to purchase the lower quality frameless construction is if you are getting contemporary door styles. Main Line Kitchen Design’s Bishop, Fabuwood, and Wellsford all make their frameless cabinetry with 3/4″ plywood sides. The best possible way to make a European cabinet.

Frameless cabinet Construction
Frameless Construction Bishop European Cabinetry

Since Main Line Kitchen Design’s customers are 90% homeowners, we put kitchen design and cabinet construction quality first. We only offer cabinet lines that provide our customers with the highest quality at the best price.

If you want to read more about specific cabinet brands, check out Cabinet Reviews: Ratings for the Top 150 Cabinet Brands.

Have a wonderful rest of the spring … and, of course …

Bon Appetit!

Paul, Julie, Chris, Ed, Lauren, Jeremy, Juliet, Camilla, and Mark

Main Line Kitchen Design

Join the conversation

TOP