Cabinet Types:
What are the differences between stock cabinets, semi-custom cabinets, and fully custom cabinets?
When considering cabinets for a home, homeowners can pick from a few different options: stock cabinets, semi-custom cabinets, or fully custom cabinets. While each type of cabinet has their pros and cons, it is important to weigh your options depending upon the type of project, budget, and what you need from your cabinets. Here we will discuss the three types of cabinetry and give a little insight on what you can expect with each cabinet type.
Stock Cabinets
Stock cabinets are premanufactured cabinets that are sold by big box stores. These cabinets come in specific sizing and have little flexibility when it comes to material, finish, and overall design. While stock cabinetry tends to be more affordable with shorter lead times, you will have to sacrifice overall quality of your cabinets in exchange. The lifespan of stock cabinets is much shorter than their fully custom counterpart and are unlikely to be able to be refinished as the low-quality materials experience a lot of wear and tear – this means you will be replacing them in a few years!
Overall, stock cabinets are most ideal for homeowners with a smaller budget, homeowners looking to quickly renovate, or those with inexpensive rental properties who need to replace cabinetry frequently.
Semi-Custom Cabinets
Semi-custom cabinets are a hybrid between stock cabinets and custom cabinets – basically, they are stock cabinets with extra detail options. While quality and lifespan of semi-custom are similar to stock cabinets, semi-custom cabinets have a bit more leeway when it comes to material, finish, and design. The price of semi-custom is more than stock but tend to be only fractionally less expensive than fully custom. Semi-custom cabinets allow you to add in those off-size cabinets and offer different hardware options at an upcharge. This type of cabinet might be able to be refinished easier than stock cabinets but, again, the quality of semi-custom is much less than fully custom cabinetry.
Overall, semi-custom cabinets are ideal for homeowners that are more design orientated that don’t mind having to refinish their cabinetry every few years.
Fully Custom Cabinets
Fully custom cabinets are cabinets designed to fit a space with limitless options when considering style, finish, material, and hardware. Custom cabinets are built to order and, therefore, will have longer lead times than both stock and semi-custom. While you might be waiting a bit longer for your cabinetry, this type of cabinet is meant to last a lifetime – many people who opt for custom cabinets enjoy their cabinetry for over 20 years – as the quality of this cabinet far surpasses every other cabinet on the market. Homeowners with custom cabinets will have a space that is unique to their home and a team of expert designers, cabinetmakers, and installers to help them throughout the design and build process.
Overall, custom cabinets are best suited for those looking for long-lasting cabinetry made from scratch by professionals with the expertise to execute the perfect end result.
In conclusion..
All cabinet types have their merits and downfalls. Deciding on what type of cabinetry best suits you is key in being happy with the final product. Remember to consider your budget, needs, design style, and expected lifetime of the product when looking at cabinetry. And don’t be afraid to reach out to one of our showrooms if you need a little more info!
