Thanks so much for all your kind comments about our kitchen tour yesterday.
One of the most-frequent questions I get about our house is how we like our IKEA cabinets. We’ve lived in our kitchen for more than a year, so I thought it was a good time to come back to this question in more detail.
In short: I LOVE OUR IKEA KITCHEN.
In fact, we love this kitchen so much that we will likely use IKEA cabinetry for our next home, when that time comes.
But, I know you are looking for more scoop. More dirt. More details. Well call me Perez Hilton because I’m here with more information than you ever care to know. I figured out why I’ve put this post off for so long. It’s really lengthy, but I wanted to keep it to one post for those of you who are really interested.
The background.
When we were planning for this kitchen remodel, I knew I wanted white and I knew I wanted a Shaker-style door. Because this is not a forever house, we were looking for a basic cabinet and nothing too expensive or custom.
I had decided that I wanted white laminate, which is both cost-effective and easy to keep clean. So that just left me with the small task of picking a cabinet in our budget.
In our last kitchen remodel, we went with a local cabinet shop to get maple, Shaker-style cabinets. But when we went back to get a quote for this house, it was looking like it would be more than $9,500. That was nearly half of the entire house remodel budget. Not. Happening.
I started shopping around. I went to Home Depot, Menards and Lowe’s. I talked to kitchen designers at each to get some ideas and prices. There wasn’t a huge variety of options for the space due to the narrowness of the room and budget, which made it easy to compare apples to apples.
The base grade cabinets in white laminate were running about $6,500. Still a bit more than we wanted. And we were also running into some issues with my desire for the farmhouse sink I picked up on Craigslist. (Most basic grade cabinetry didn’t have an option for a farmhouse base.)
Why IKEA?
I had read good things about IKEA cabinetry online. And if it was good enough for Sarah Richardson, it was definitely good enough for me. So, I started playing around on the online Kitchen Planner.
It took me a little time to get the basic dimensions and layout into the program, but once I did, I quickly saw that the price was a fraction of what I was quoted elsewhere. (See the bottom of this post for our bottom line.) So, we took a little road trip to see the cabinets in person.
I loved the look of the Adel doors in off-white and I really liked all the customization options for drawers and cabinets. Coupled with the price, we were sold.
The prep work.
Before stepping foot in IKEA, I had spent a lot of time with the kitchen design.
TIP: You cannot go to IKEA and have them design the kitchen “for you.” If you show up with no planning, my understanding is that you’ll be asked to use one of the computers there to do it. However, once your drawing is “complete,” a designer will walk through everything to order and confirm there are no major mistakes. (For example, I had the wrong door dropped in in one place and didn’t have adequate clearance in another.)
Since I’m 3 hours away from IKEA, I knew I wanted everything “done” when I walked into the store. I started online with the IKEA kitchen planner. It allows you to draw out your kitchen to scale and then drag and drop the upper and lower cabinets into place. The tool will tell you if you are planning things correctly to fit your kitchen, but you also have to know what you want.
TIP: I found it really helpful to have the kitchen designs from other cabinet shops before trying it on my own. I hate to recommend going to a kitchen store simply to do the work for you, but in my case, I was truly comparing prices and options at the time. By the time I was working on my kitchen design at IKEA, I had a layout that I knew worked in the space.
Once you have your online drawing completed, the planner will generate a shopping list. And it’s a long shopping list. (Think every door, drawer stop, etc.) It’s not a quick process, but the online planner really does streamline the process and help you along the way to your dream kitchen. The online tool even allows you to see the kitchen in 3D and from different views.
Buying your IKEA cabinetry.
The day arrived. Because I am lucky to have awesome friends, I somehow talked the awesome Jen at Onion Grove Mercantile into coming to Chicago with me to PICK UP MY ENTIRE KITCHEN.
(You can read about our little adventure to IKEA here. In which I paid Jen with a late Cheesecake Factory lunch and my company. Don’t you totally want to be my friend?)
In retrospect, this sounds insane. And I really don’t know why she agreed to it. But, we met up and hit the highway in my dad’s extended 8ft pickup to make the three hour drive in time to get there when IKEA opens at 10.
TIP: If you are going to get your cabinets on a weekend, get there right when IKEA opens. You can get your first pick of a kitchen designer and it’s not super busy (yet). Go immediately to the kitchen design area when you arrive and get going. This will take some time.
We immediately found a kitchen designer and shared the plan I had put together on the online kitchen planner. She took a look at everything very carefully, asked a few questions for clarification, and then went through individually and ordered the pieces I would need.
This will take some time. For us, it took a an hour or two for her to get everything completed, if I remember correctly. (It has been almost two years now and I barely remember what I had for lunch today.) Then, she ordered the cabinetry and I paid for it right there. My order would be pulled by IKEA staff for me over the next hour or two. (There were two pieces that were not in stock. That sucks, but I did have to drive back up a few weeks later to pick them up at a Chicagoland warehouse.)
The time it took to get everything picked gave Jen and I plenty of time to shop IKEA.
Once we were done shopping, my entire list was picked by IKEA staff. I could claim everything on the way out the door. There were three rolling carts of boxes. Around 60 larger flat boxes and 100 boxes in total (including hinges, small boxes, etc.).
That’s a lot of boxes. And before I could leave, I had to verify that everything I had ordered and purchased was there. So sweet Jen and I went through box by box and counted.
I love Jen.
By this point, it was raining outside. (Of course.)
So, Jen and I (mostly Jen because I’m a weenie), loaded my entire kitchen into the back of the truck in the rain. (Not to mention the few carts of other IKEA stuff we had picked up.) Oh, and of course the wood countertops were about 4,000 pounds and three inches too long for the truck bed because of the packaging. So, we had to open those boxes to get them to close the truck bed.
I kid you not, we barely had room to fit ourselves into the cab of that truck. (Okay, in full disclosure, we also fit a few Crate & Barrel bags in there.)
TIP: You may want to bring an extra vehicle. Or pay for shipping, if it’s offered. (I’m too far away for that to be an option.)
I really didn’t think that everything would fit. But it barely did.
It’s assembly time.
There are big differences between IKEA cabinetry and cabinets you purchase from a home store. (And obviously from custom cabinetry, although I cannot speak to that because that is well beyond my budget.)
But you know that and are willing to suffer through assembly and installation for the perks. Namely cost. So get that Allen wrench ready. (Kidding. You don’t really use an Allen wrench.)
Now it’s time to resurrect a favorite NewlyWoodwards quote. From Renovation Progress Report Week 43, when we were assembling IKEA cabinets:
Warning: IKEA cabinetry instructions are about as clear as mud. Unless you read hieroglyphics, in which case YOU ARE GOLDEN.
Classic. Moving on …
This is a good time to reiterate that IKEA cabinets are flat-packed.
Let me say that again.
IKEA cabinets come packed in flat boxes like everything else at IKEA. And there are several boxes for EVERY individual wall cabinet, floor cabinet and drawer. When my dad caught a glimpse of the boxes, his jaw dropped. “I thought you were kidding when you said we had to put them together,” he said.
Ha. Ha. I don’t kid about something so serious.
When we unloaded them into the garage, Ryan and my dad stacked them together together by cabinet to make it easier. (Also, something strange we noticed is that the numbers on the pick sheet from IKEA did not match the numbers on the boxes. That made it a little confusing at first but we got the hang of it.)
That is a LOT of boxes, friends.
The cabinets and drawers aren’t difficult to assemble, but the process is definitely time-consuming. All of the holes are predrilled and truly, everything pretty much screws into place with a screwdriver. Even the doors have the holes for hinges. Of course, I didn’t assemble a single piece. But once my dad and Ryan had a few together, it seemed to be pretty speedy. There was a lot of eye-rolling at me for subjecting them to assembling all the cabinets and drawers.
Once they were assembled, it was time to get those puppies up.
Which brings us to a downside. There has to be a downside. The main thing Ryan did not like with IKEA cabinets were the way the cabinets were installed.
The uppers were mounted using a metal bracket that the cabinets slid onto one-by-one. This makes the installation quite a deal easier than “normal” cabinet installation. But, Ryan prefers mounting them directly to the wall to keep them flush. It’s not noticeable to me, but this in a downside to the installation, in my handy husband’s opinion.
The bottom cabinets are also installed a bit differently than normal cabinets. They sit on plastic legs instead of having an integrated toe kick. (There is a piece that covers the legs, to mimic the look of the normal toe kick.)
In theory, this makes them easier to level in an old house (like ours). But Ryan thought they seemed chintzy. We haven’t had a lick of trouble with them, but I thought I’d mention this in the interest of full disclosure.
In no time at all, the guys had the cabinets installed and they were looking goooooooood.
Bippity boppity boo – add some appliances, some hardware, some window trim and the countertops. (All of these steps are detailed in our weekly progress reports for the renovation, if you are interested.)
The down low.
All-in-all, there are a lot of things to love about IKEA cabinets.
- They really look nice. We always get compliments on them. They have a really classic look and clean, modern lines.
- Drawer stops give all the drawers a soft-close mechanism.
- Door stops give the doors a soft-close mechanism.
- The metal drawers are super easy to clean and are really sturdy.
- The drawers are much deeper than normal drawers from other basic cabinetry manufactures. They never get stuck by overloading them. (And I have a tendency to overload drawers.) I love the drawers so much that I think I’d do all drawers for lowers in our next kitchen.
- The cabinets are available in a wide variety of styles and sizes – including extra tall uppers, extra deep drawers, farmhouse sink bases, pull-out pantries, etc. There are also some really great options for tight spaces
- They are really easy to keep clean and wipe down.
For these reasons, I actually prefer them to the cabinets I had at our last house, which were from a local cabinet shop.
Now, I think it’s worth mentioning – these are not heirloom-quality cabinets. They aren’t crafted by an artisan by hand. They have particle board. But, they are really sturdy and I’ve been very impressed with the quality over the past year. I’m confident enough in their durability to use them again and recommend them.
The bottom line.
We saved a ridiculous amount of money on this kitchen. I mean, seriously. Ridiculous. Nearly laughable.
For a cost comparison sake, we were quoted $6,500 at Lowe’s for the baseline white cabinets. (Lower than the $9,500 we were quoted at the local shop.) This was cabinets alone – no countertops, sink, etc. And these cabinets would have been comparable in quality to the IKEA version – meaning particleboard, melanine, etc.
On the other hand, we paid $2,600 for the entire kitchen at IKEA, including the countertops (we went with Numerar oak) and a new sink (we went with something very similar to the DOMSJO single basin apron-front sink).
I ended up selling the other farmhouse sink from Craigslist, which netted us around $100.
That brings the cost of the entire kitchen to around $2,500.
That’s a $4,000 savings over Lowe’s, before factoring in countertops and the sink. This gave us more than enough wiggle room for the hardware, appliances, faucet, and … our entire renovation. For $4,000, we can justify the work it took to get the cabinets ordered, transported and put together.
And that, my friends, is all there is to know about our journey towards a new kitchen with IKEA cabinets. It wasn’t a short journey, but I think it was worth it.
What do you think? Was it worth all the effort?
(Also, did I miss anything? If you have a question, please leave it in the comments and I’ll do my best to get you an answer.)
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Keri says
What is the name of the cabinets you chose? thanks!
Elizabeth Smith says
Thanks for a really helpful post. We’re about to embark on our 5th house renovation and I will definitely look at IKEA first.
Kim Woodward says
Best of luck! Sounds like you have loads of experience with homes!
Cara says
I love your kitchen and thanks so much for the info. I also installed an IKEA kitchen and have had some questions. First of all, I was also concerned about the wall cabinets not being flush with the wall, but I suppose I can live with it. But one of my main concerns is that our wood countertops (from IKEA) do not sit flush on the lower cabinets and there is a small gap. Did you have this issue by chance? I wonder if they were not installed correctly or if there are any tricks to know. Thanks.
Kim Woodward says
I didn’t have that issue! I’m sorry to hear that! My understanding is that the counters should be standard depth …. very odd.
Wendy says
This is great!! How long did it take to put all the cabinets together? How many linear feet of cabinetry was there in your kitchen for this great price? Did you purchase a lot of the interior gadgets for the drawers etc? I am just trying to figure how much the extras will be if I go with ikea cabinets in my large kitchen. Thanks so much for posting.
Paula says
I have another question for you, as I can’t find it in your posts that I have looked through:
How did/do you like butcher block counters? I loved the stain your friend put on your birch counters. How did it hold up? Easy to keep clean/unscratched/sanitary? I love the look but am afraid to do it!!
Kim Woodward says
We have done butcher block twice and liked it both ways – I did write about the first time here. https://newlywoodwards.com/2013/03/a-review-ikea-butcher-block-countertops.html
I would say that the darker countertops (stained birch) show a LOT more than the lighter counters in our last house. In both cases, I had a few wear marks and knicks over time, but it’s much more noticeable in the darker stain. Just something to think about. I love the look of the darker wood, but I don’t know if I’d choose it for the long term.
Hope this helps.
Paula says
Perfect! Thanks again!
Paula says
Kim, THANKS SO MUCH for this post! I just read through it and most of the comments, and must say that this is the single most helpful post on the internet I have found, for information about IKEA cabinets. We bought some of them for use as a desk for our kids to do their homework on a few months ago, and we installed them ourselves (my husband and I, and my 16- and 13- y-o kids, mostly). They have been great! I am so glad you like yours for the actual kitchen, because my current kitchen needs serious help. We moved here about a year and a half ago, and the kitchen cabinets are literally falling apart. I think they may be the original cabinets installed when the house was built in 1977. It may be a while before we can redo the kitchen, but knowing that IKEA cabs can hold up and look nice in actual use is great! We are going to expand our little galley kitchen into part of the garage, so measurements are a challenge right now. Good to know that I should use the online planner! I tried using it and had a hard time, but I’ll try again before we go to Ikea to order (ours is only an hour away). Good to know how long it takes at the store too! We won’t be taking our 10 kids with us on that day!!
Kim Woodward says
Wow! 10 kids would be an extra adventure at IKEA. 😉 Good luck! Hope your IKEA kitchen turns out lovely. We were really happy with ours.
Paula says
We did take them when we bought all of the cabinetry for the desks, and it was actually fun! Especially since they had a special going on where whatever you paid for your stuff was applied to your dinner bill – so we all got free dinner!! I love Ikea.
Lori says
We are considering using IKEA products throughout the house; however, my husband is worried about the durability. This original string was from 2013. Do you still live in the home? How are the cabinets holding up? Thank you so much! I really enjoyed reading of your adventure. I love IKEA! They have EVERYTHING!
Kim Woodward says
We moved in late 2014 and everything looked like new. In the three years we lived there, we truly never had a single issue. Nothing broken. Great durability. Sorry I can’t speak to anything beyond this, but I hope it helps.
Lori says
Thanks! This helped!
Andrea says
Love your kitchen. When we updated our kitchen in our old house- we bought “some assembly required” cabinets. We didn’t use IKEA, we went through “Cabinets to Go!”. I didn’t want to murder my husband so we hired someone to assemble them- (they also assemble stuff for IKEA- who knew?!) I chose white cabinets. I think mine was solid wood but had a realllly sturdy paint on them. I LOVED those cabinets. I mean freaking LOVED them. The drawers had the easy close. They were so pretty. and even with paying for someone to assemble them, we got them on sale and stayed on our small budget. I still say that is what sold our house. (small house- small galley kitchen) I will even say that they are better quality than the cabinets we chose in our house that we built. (we went with the builder grade level). This time I went with Espresso, which I wanted first in the old house- but the white were less expensive (go figure). I like them, but they are not the quality of the ones in the old house. I Like the color, but I miss my white cabinets. So yeah- if people are willing to assemble them- there ARE good ones out there to be had.
Kim Woodward says
Thanks so much for sharing! We actually looked into Cabinets2Go for our next house and I wondered about the quality. Good to know that it’s a great deal.
Jon Murphy says
Not sure where you are getting $6500 from big box stores. They all have cheaper options than ikea for comparable quality. The mdf frame laminate stock cabinets from Lowes only cost us $980 + delivery during their quarterly 20% off cabinets sale.
Kim Woodward says
Thanks for commenting, Jon. I’m getting the price from the quote I received. It’s pretty close to an apple-to-apple comparison from what I ended up getting at IKEA> although it was NOT the in-stock options off the shelf. These weren’t the right sizes/styles for our kitchen. I’m sure I could have gotten something even lower-priced if I was willing to change the style/options/etc. that I wanted. All that to say, the price is legit for my experience. Glad to hear you got such a great deal. Definitely a good option.
Kate says
Looks are deceiving! The Ikea cabinets are modeled beautifully in the store but the savings of these cabinets are really not worth the delivery nightmare, disfunctional stocking pattern in the warehouse and poorly made material of these cabinets. WARNING- do not go with IKEA kitchen!
Kim Woodward says
Katie – it sounds like you had a bad experience with IKEA – what a bummer! We have first-hand experience buying, installing and living with an IKEA kitchen and can honestly say it was worth all the savings. We never had a single issue with quality and got compliments on the design constantly. But I do appreciate your thoughts – always good to hear lots of different opinions. Thanks for stopping by!
ashley says
So helpful thank you for taking the time to share
Gina says
Our home had the same white Ikea cabinets and they are awful! So matte that everything stains and gets stuck. Scrub too hard and the paint comes off. The cabinets are so flush that dirt gets stuck into the crevices and under the doors and in some places you cannot clean unless you remove the door! Poor quality and design. Looks nice for a while. I have been in the house with these cabinets for 5 years and they are 7 years old. They now need to be replaced or painted.
Kim Woodward says
INteresting – so sorry you had a bad experience. We had ours for almost 5 years and loved them – no issues at all. They really still look good as new. But it was only my husband so I would say it was light use.
Kelli says
This was extremely helpful! My husband and I are redoing my Nana’s cottage and are on a tight budget. We were thinking of an IKEA kitchen but wanted some firsthand advice before committing. You sealed the deal for us! Thanks so much for taking the time to add all the details!!!
Kim Woodward says
Awesome! I hope your experience goes really smoothly!
Comet says
Kim—I love your kitchen and THANKS for posting the entire re-do. My kitchen is very similar to yours in layout and really not changeable. I was wondering–what did you end up using cabinet shape-wise for the corners to the LEFT of the sink–top and bottom?
We currently have an aged (1977) wood kitchen and the top cab is so deep but so narrow we barely have room for plates; and the base cab is a nasty old lazy susan on a “wedge” cabinet that we never close as it is so hard to open and close! And–NO DRAWERS. Nope. there were three; two of which would barely hold a spoon and one completely removed from the work area on a free standing cabinet across the room! Somehow we never noticed that there were NO drawer BOXES. Nope==just drawer–fronts. I have been thinking of doing IKEA here as we are not going to be in here for more than a few short years and I would def do ALL BASE DRAWERS—It would be a drive but hey that’s why I have a trailer! IF I get real lazy I could just do bases and shelves up top.
And–I “hear” what you are saying about the other estimates–and my husband is a store manager at one of the “Big Box” home stores and WE don’t even get a good deal anymore. Looking at Habitat has been futile too–I don’t know where all the fab things I see people on line get from there are coming FROM but they are NOT in ours in Albany NY!
Thanks again—-
Lissyanna says
Great job! Question on the plastic feet – I’ve heard from some habitual renovators and real estate investors that these feet are their only gripe with Ikea cabinets, but I’ve also recently heard that there are metal feet available (for a little higher price, of course). Were metal feet offered when you were shopping?
Thanks!!
Kim Woodward says
Hmmm…. I don’t remember that being an option. We didn’t have any issues with the feet, but metal seems better to me.
Terri n da Hood says
Absolutely awesome! This post will go on forever in the Pinterest world!
I’m venturing out into the homeowner world late in life and am turned off by either having to just Gel stain existing old oak style kitchens or the cost of a remodel. Darling daughter who actually works at IKEA finally said, “hello? mom! I can hook you with a kitchen designer when you’re ready and your handyman can hang them!” Head thunk.
But I LOVE your real world experience and thank you for sharing!
Larry Emerson says
My wife and I are also thinking about IKEA cabinets when we remodel our kitchen in a couple of months, so we really enjoyed your story and pictures. I see that in one of your pictures you have the microwave mounted above the range. Is it vented outside or is it recirculating? We are facing the same issue since our range will be on an interior wall.
Kim Woodward says
If I remember correctly, this was just recirculating. But having a true hood vent is on my MUST HAVE list when we build. =)
Good luck!
Joan Wyatt says
We installed white Ikea cabinets along with the farm sink about 7 or so years ago and saved a ton of money. We love them and they look great but for some reason, they have yellowed. We do have a sunny kitchen but we live in the Pacific Northwest and it’s not overly sunny here so I’m not sure we can blame it on UV rays. We will just end up painting over them because we really like them otherwise and even if Ikea replaced them, it would be major work. Has anyone else had this problem? We are installing white laminate closets in the bedrooms of our 106 year old house because they look so nice and are affordable and I’m hoping they don’t fade also.
Kim Woodward says
Hmmm… I haven’t had this issue, but maybe another reader can chime in.
Abbey Jo says
Thank you so much for this post! We moved into a house where the previous owners had painted the cabinets black and did not do the best job. I have been looking at the possibility of re-painting, but for the price you mention for the Ikea cabinets I may price those out prior as I would love to alter our layout a little bit to better accommodate our fridge.
THANKS!!!
Kim Woodward says
Good luck! You’ll love IKEA cabinets!
Whitney says
Super helpful post! We have been throwing out the idea of remodeling our kitchen since the day we bought our house. I love IKEA and found the kitchen designer tool online and laid out everything, however like others was curious about the quality and installation of their products. This post helps a ton by laying out the “nitty gritty” details of the full process! Thanks!
Kim Woodward says
Thank you so much for the encouraging words. Good luck with your remodel.
Michelle Hall says
Thanks for the awesome blog post! I am thinking of remodeling our kitchen and of going the ikea-route so this was very informative. We are not that handy so we might go with the installation option ikea offers. Did you look into that? Anyways, good job and the kitchen looks great!
Heather C says
We looked into the install and it was $99 more per cabinet. We installed it would have added a chunk to our totally cost. This was the first time my husband did a project like this and it tuned out fabulous. We even switched around two wall cabinets after we used the kitchen for a few months. It took about a hour but we like it so much better, you couldn’t do that with any other cabinets. We did use the design service, I highly recommend it. They had ideas we never would have thought of. All so the kitchen sale should be starting soon if it hasn’t already.
Sandy says
Were your counter tops laminate or wood? I noticed in the catalog that they have both options. If your’s were wood, then how did you treat them? Did you use mineral oil? Thanks for any info you can give me! Love your blog and congrats on the beautiful kitchen! Sandy
Lorraine Schmiege says
I have an Ikea kitchen which we put into our condo and I chose quartz for the counter. I have a wooden painted island with the Ikea wood counter top. I went all over to see what was safe to use and bought a product especially for wood kitchen counter tops from either Lowe’s or Home Depot. If I had to do it over I would buy it from Ikea and save my self the research time. My island does not have a sink so I can avoid water problems. I like the wood look. It is certainly cheaper than quartz but a couple times a year, depending on wear you have to paint on the product especially made for it. I had a chopping block next to my sink in my home and I would Never Again put Wood Next to the SinK.
Kim Woodward says
Thanks so much for sharing your experience – we have had wood countertops in three kitchens now, and it really does add warmth to the space. I prefer Waterlox around the sink and pure tung oil anywhere else. I’ve written a lot about this!
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Kevin Carney says
For the savings you achieved, what you did was totally worth it. Having never installed IDEA cabinets before, I’m curious if the upper cabinets are ever attached to the studs or is that beta bracket the only means of connecting the cabinet to the wall?
Kim Woodward says
I’ve been told you can do it either way. But I don’t have any experience with that.
Rhonda Shook says
Were the cabinets a normal height? When I looked online it seemed like the base cabinets were all 30″ rather than the standard 34″.
singingtothewheat says
I love this review and am so thankful to know that the Ikea cabinets are a good route to go in a remodel. We live in a single wide trailer and we do not have extra money to blow on cabinets. This is DEFINITELY go this direction. I will absolutely love having a decent set of cabinets. The ones in this old trailer are really truly awful!
Jessica says
Hey Kim! I loved reading your post! We are expecting to do the exact same thing and we live about 2 . 5 hours from our nearest. It was encouraging to read someone did it successfully! Thank you so much for that! I do have a question though, I originally planned on doing darker cabinets for my kitchen but am recently considering doing the white shakers like yours. Do you like them still? Are they easy to keep clean and would you do white again? I have 3 kids and we’ll have more, and I crazy for leaning towards white??
BJ says
We have a kitchen reno coming up in the near future, and while I like the thought of solid-wood, custom-build cabinetry, I can’t see it working for us now. We’ll be doing the kitchen while also adding a granny suite on for my in-laws, so we’ve got to find ways to save money. I will also mention we have a young family of six children, so it’s a very active household and will be for years to come, I’m sure. I need to know that I’m going to get a good ten years out of cabinets. I suspect by then we’d be able to do some solid-wood, custom builds. Is it realistic to expect that kind of a life for Ikea cabinetry?
Kim Woodward says
BJ – thanks for stopping by. We actually put this kitchen in in late 2010, moved in in 2011 and it’s still going strong in 2014. Honestly, the cabinets are still like new. I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend them for longevity. Because they are laminate, they clean and hold up well (not something I can say for painted wood cabinets). I also think that the metal drawers hold up better than our cabinets in the last house, which were a much “higher-end” line from a local cabinet shop. Hope this helps and best of luck.
Jennifer says
After meeting with a few contractors for a kitchen redo we decided that IKEA would be the best fit for us. One contractor tried to sweet talk us into a $70,000 kitchen with a cabinet allowance of $12,000. Another just simply never followed up. The designer from IKEA didn’t pressure us at all. We changed our mind as we discussed options and she was fine with all of our questions. We had visited the store on a few previous occasions and just fell in love with their kitchens. I am feeling good about our choice. We will be taking advantage of their sale and hopefully starting our project May/June time frame.
Kim Woodward says
I just choked on my tea. $70K??? CRAZY!
Good luck!
Dale says
I love your kitchen! I installed an ikea kitchen in October (and only managed to convince my family it was a good idea with posts like yours – thank you!). We only did base cabinets, and we only did drawers (I hate trying to find something on a shelf) and the kitchen was less than a grand. And I love it! We did the Lixtorp fronts (stained solid oak) and we installed our own granite tile counters. The whole thing looks amazing!
Kim Woodward says
Wow! Amazing story! So glad you love your kitchen, too. And i love the idea of all drawers in the lower cabinets. SO practical.
Lori Keever says
As a very long-Time Ikea cabinet user, I thought I would let you know how my almost eight year old kitchen cabinets are holding up. We went with a modern looking white laminate. The cabinets sit about five inches off the floor on wooden legs,(beech, with stainless steel protectors on the bottom).I don’t remember the name of the cabinet style.
We love them! They look so fresh and clean, very easy to just wipe off),and really brighten up our small kitchen.The dark, worn out, built-in cabinets we had before, made the space feel claustrophobic.
As for how they have aged…they have aged amazingly well. I honestly can’t find anything bad to say about them. The drawers open and close just as smoothly as they did when they were new, the doors hang just as flush, and when I polish them up, they look almost as good as new.
Ikea has a line of cabinets for a wide range of tastes and costs. All of them seem to be made very well, but, obviously, the higher the quality, the higher the cost. We found them to be much more reasonably priced than any of the other options we researched.
Our Houston store gives you the option of having them installed. I don’t know what they charge for that, (depends on several factors), but, might be worth it if you are wary of tackling the project yourself.
As for being able to install them directly to the wall instead of to the rails…We did it that way. Hubby wanted them to be flush with the wall; so, it is doable.
Hope this info helps someone who is still trying to decide if Ikea cabinets are durable enough for their lifestyle.
Kim@NewlyWoodwards says
Thank you so much for sharing your experience! It’s always awesome to get different views and I’m thrilled to hear that you are still happy with your cabinets 8 years later. Also, great tip on installing directly on the wall. We may have to try that next time.
Tracy W says
What is the square footage of cabinet space that you bought for that price?
Kim Woodward says
The room is about 10×15, but it obviously depends on your arrangement and types of cabinets you choose.
Heather Berry says
I love your kitchen! We did a full gut of our kitchen this past fall and with the exception of the appliances and the floor it is all Ikea. I loved that I was able to get the 39 inch cabinets with all the extra storage and features plus counters and hardware and still pay half of what the box stores wanted. I did all drawers on the bottom and am so glad I did. I was the lucky one that got to put them all together while my hubby installed but it was so worth it and would definitely do it again.
Jess White says
Thank you so much for this post! We’re seriously considering going with Ikea for our kitchen renovation {we live 2 hours from the nearest one}. I had wondered how the whole process of ordering them went, now I know 🙂 Thanks!
Kim Woodward says
It’s not exactly quick or simple, but it’s worth the money-savings to me. Best of luck!
Maryam says
Kim,
I am not sure if someone asked but what paint color are your kitchen walls? It is absolutely beautiful. I’ve painted mine a similar, lighter color but I need to know what your color is because I will be repainting. Thanks!
Kim Woodward says
The color is Silver Sage by Restoration Hardware. I have the chip matched to Behr paint! Thanks for stopping by.
Furnishing Your House says
I’ve loved Ikea for lots of small items like bath towels, simple curtains….stuff like that, but I’ve been leery about trying a major renovation using them. But just the cost difference alone is enough for me to take a second look. I could install one kitchen, not like it, install a second, and still save money! (Might lose the hubbie in the process though).
Kim Woodward says
Hahaha… I hope you don’t lose your husband.
I know what you mean about the cost. And honestly, the quality is really good. I especially love the insides of the drawers. They are metal and soft close. I don’t think I could go back to the stock quality from the hardware store.
Michelle at Faith, Trust & Pixie Dust says
Thanks so much for taking the time to write this post. I do have an Ikea nearby & I’ve often wondered about the quality of their cabinetry. It was fun to hear about your experiences. Your kitchen looks great!
Warmly, Michelle
MoniqueDC says
IKEA cabs are what they are – inexpensive, short-life cabs that look great when correctly installed.
There are other cost effective options out there depending upon where you live. Habitat for Humanity RESTORE outlets often get entire kitchens of cabinets when someone does a remodel and recycles the cabinetry. You often find sizing challenges and may wish to repaint, but for the cost (and the benefit of recycling) you can make great kitchens. Odd sizes or spaces can be handled with shelves or buying semi-custom cabs for the 1-2 spaces that are challenging.
There are also companies who specialize in selling recycled kitchens. Sometimes these include fixtures. A brief Google search will give you a number of firms.
I wanted you and your readers to know that there are alternatives. And, of course, recycling is a good Karma thing to do. Consider this the next time you want to remodel a kitchen, basement , bar or laundry room.
Cheers,
M
Kim Woodward says
Thanks so much for the comment1 We’ve actually used ReStore cabinets for past projects – like our built-ins in the living room. Unfortunately, our Restore is hit-or-miss and needing an entire kitchen makes it a bit more challenging that most people are up for. Some people can definitely make it work, but I think there’s a time and place for all types of kitchens. =)
Leigh S says
Your kitchen is gorgeous and I am so thankful that you went into so much detail. Thanks!
Melanie says
Hi Erinn, and/or anyone else who would like to share their pics :), I know I’m WAY late in seeing this conversation, but I am also considering IKEA and I love the Lidingo in white too!!! I am going to be bold and just put this out there: I am wondering if you might consider sending me some photos of how your kitchen looks all put together in real life and not just the store version?!? I am soooo curious how it could look and I’m not great at visualizing it without seeing it ,haha, so that’s the basis for my question! I’m getting excited about the potential of a kitchen redo. 🙂 Thanks for your enthusiastic reply in this thread. Everyone’s responses are giving me lots of great confidence to go with IKEA. 🙂
diane says
We completed our IKEA kitchen in September and LOVE it! If you can arrange it time-wise I thoroughly recommend watching for IKEA’S 2 or 3 times a year kitchen sales. It’s worth an additional 20% off the price and includes the appliances which are made and serviced by Whirlpool! Terrific value! We went with the Medium Brown Adel. Built them ourselves but had help with the install. Added Cesearstone counter tops & tile floors from Lowes and have had rav comments from all who see it!
Kim Woodward says
Great tip on the kitchen sales!
Alysha says
Hello, I am totally satisfy to see your creativity and this is a Brilliant and authentic design as well as information and I think this will really help people like me who don’t have enough experience on decoration. Can you provide me your Facebook page URL or Pintrest ? I want to share with my followers. Thanks for all your information.
Heather C says
Thanks for the great info. We are pricing out cabinets right now for a kitchen redo. I was floored at the price at the big box home improvement stores. We are very much considering Ikea. We are thinking about iusing the design service because we are not just replacing, we ae making changes to the kitchen and moving a dishwasher. Would you change anything if you were to do it again?
Heather C says
Just a follow up. We did end up going with Ikea Adel Med Brown and we LOVE our new kitchen. We got in on the 20% off kitchens sale and we did use the design service, we felt it was worth every penny of $200. We removed soffits and had to have some one come in for sheet rock work (and they removed the popcorn ceiling). Our project took four weeks from ordering the cabinets to the counter top install. My husband did most of the work and I asked if he would go with Ikea again at he said yes. I think the only downfall was Ikea doesn’t have wall cabinets that just hang from the ceiling, we have a peninsula and had cabinets above it before. I am fine with it because it opens the room up to the dinnette but we did loose some cabinet space however we made better use if space so we did gain way more. I wasn’t sure about Ikea but it turned out beautiful.
Kim Woodward says
Thanks for your thoughts! There are lots of good reasons to go with IKEA.
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Noelia says
Thanks for the step by step info on planning, purchasing and installing these beautiful Ikea cabinets. I will be using Ikea kitchen cabinets in my second home which needs an upgrade. Your kitchen looks beautiful.
Michelle says
Did you consider simply refacing the cabinets? Do you have any comments on that?
Erica says
I just found you through Pinterest, and I can’t even begin to tell you how much I appreciate a step by step process through your kitchen reno–we’re thinking of going with Ikea too, and it’s nice to know all of the details that we should expect along the way. I’ll be posting our new kitchen when we get it finished on my blog as well–www.beautifullifemadeeasy.blogspot.ca. I’m excited to go shopping now!!
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Andrea says
My husband and I are looking into Ikea cabinets for our kitchen, but he doesn’t like the idea of them hanging on a rail. Can they be hung by screwing them into the studs or are there hooks on the back that would prevent that?
Jason says
A couple of things I would note…
1) I like the mounting system for the upper cabinets. I don’t notice any issues with a flush mount. In fact, I would say that is the best aspect of them (along with the fact that they rest sturdily on the mounts while tacking them to the wall).
2) you are correct…they are not heirloom quality, but if any facade gets damaged, it can be replaced fairly easily. Despite being particle board, they are very durable. In most homes, it wouldn’t be an issue.
I did a renovation in a large galley-type kitchen entirely by myself. You can too. Go for it! You will be pleased.
Erinn says
For what it’s worth, I have an IKEA kitchen that is almost 3 years old. We picked the white Lidingo style and LOOOOOOVE how it turned out. With 2 rambunctious boys at home, we needed something that could take a beating. Our cabinets wipe down easily, never have a speck of stain, never scratched, etc. The soft close feature is great and I also love the idea that if something terrible happens down the road, I can go to the store and simply replace a single door. You can’t do that with cabinets from other places. Also, my contractor has done work in the home of average Joes and in multi-million dollar pads. He said he was shocked at the thickness of the side panels and durability of the product and admitted he assumed they would be chincy. They’re not. If you are a person on the fence and are considering buying these cabinets, hesitate no more. We could not be happier with our lived in, big family kitchen that looks as great today as the day I bought it.
Kate says
I think they look amazing. I think the key to using Ikea cabinets is to know your house and your market. We are about to close on a big, very old home in a historic neighborhood. It would be a sin to do Ikea cabinets there. But I could do Ikea cabinets in our current place, which is also old, but less historically significant. I could do an Ikea laundry room. But for the vast majority of houses that us normal folk live in, Ikea is perfect! I think your kitchen is gorgeous!
jillian leigh says
So impressed! The price just made me love Ikea even more!!! I go to the Chicago one too.
Sarah says
I, too, have tackled an IKEA kitchen redo, . . .twice and have been delighted both times. One aspect that really tickles me is that if one of the basic cabinet frames is damaged for some crazy reason, it would be ridiculously easy to replace it. Your husband didn’t love the way they were hung on the metal rail, but that allows for the cabinets to be individually removed and replaced. I thought of that one day and it just made me grin. In the first kitchen I did, I had IKEA deliver them from California to Utah and it STILL was far less expensive than anything I priced out here! Hooray for IKEA!
michelle@decorandthedog says
Holy inexpensive! They look fantastic. Pondering for our basement!!!
Amanda S. says
Love it!!! (And IKEA too!!) 🙂
Gabbi @ Retro Ranch Reno says
I have been dying to read this post since you wrote about it! {For some reason, I haven’t been able to see the pictures on your blog while I’m at work…boooo our Internet connection. 🙁 } Thanks so much for doing this…great to think about for the future!!
Sarah says
Awesome post! I had no idea Ikea cabinets were that much more cost-effective. Filing this away for when we buy a house – we’re planning to get something that needs some love, so this will come in handy I’m sure. Thanks for sharing what you think of them! 🙂
Sarah :
claire says
this is a fantastic post. it’s always great to see real life people talk about stuff like this – so you really know what you’re getting into, not what the company tries to tell you. glad you like them – i don’t see us redoing our cabinets any time soon, but this is great to know for the future!
Lindsey says
I am obsessed with your kitchen. LOVE!
Holly says
I might have missed this, but how many cabinet/drawer units did you have to purchase? Our local cabinet maker quoted us $37k (white, but solid maple wood) and HD quoted us around $28k (particle board). Ikea quoted us over $9k. So either we’re getting totally ripped-possible, since we live in San Diego where it is super expensive, or we have a much larger kitchen than I seem to think we do.
Thanks in advance! And your kitchen looks great!!
Kelly @ View Along the Way says
I LOVE those cabinets. We actually bought painted maple cabinets – not cheap ones – and you know what? I wish we’d gotten ikea white laminate. I’m so mad at myself. So YAY! I’m glad you love ’em!
Trina @ Let's Just Build a House says
UM YES, I’d say saving all that money was worth it. Beautiful kitchen, and what a nice friend…all for cheesecake factory too!!
Emily @ imperfect says
This post is awesome! If I ever have to completely redo a kitchen, you just convinced me on going the IKEA route. I love your kitchen.
Ashley Eiban says
Thank you SO much for sharing all of this on your kitchen cabinets! We are about to remodel our kitchen (yikes!) and have been thinking of just painting our crappy old ones, but we know they still won’t ever look great without replacing them. I had forgotten about IKEA cabinets, and didn’t know they were that much cheaper than the other stores! Looks like I’ll have some ikea shopping to show my husband!!
carissa says
that farm sink is awesome! they don’t even look like “ikea” cabinets at all. i love it
GIa @ A Life in Progress says
I love it!! Thanks for sharing all the tips with us. I can’t wait to have an apron sink and butcher block counter someday!
Erin @ How to Nest for Less says
WOW oh WOW! Looks absolutely fabulous!! The countertops are gorgeous too. Great job!
Kelly @ Corner of Main says
Holy cannoli! I can’t believe how inexpensive that was! You really did your homework, but damn that was worth it! I am forwarding this to my husband. Thanks so much for sharing Kim!!
vks says
My inlaws did ikea caabinets in their latest house, the whole family helped and it took just a few weekends (their kitchen is a bit larger than yours). It looks awesome and we want to do ikea cabinets when we upgrade the kitchen in our next house.
Kim@NewlyWoodwards says
Can I adopt your family? We could use more help with renovations.
vel says
Oh yes indeed kim! you are a smart shopper and your creative flair just maede this kitchen all the more beautiful and personal. I am on the verge of a kitchen re model too, and they are quoting me about upwards of $22K on cabinets alone, no countertops!!!! Not happening too. I wish we live where an Ikea is close by but I definitely won’t be paying that much if I get kitchen re-done!
Kim@NewlyWoodwards says
Yeah, we aren’t close to an IKEA either. But it’s worth a roadtrip.
Christine @ Casa-de-Christine says
Your kitchen is beautiful! I work at a custom cabinetry company so I may differ of my views a little (like using a cabinetry designer and then going somewhere else… haha 😉 ) but the end result is very pretty. I love all your bright coloured accessories!
Valerie says
well, to be fair, it sounds like she was considering going with the Lowes cabinets. Lowes provided her with a footprint and so to compare apples to apples, she used the same lay out when planning the Ikea kitchen. Nothing wrong with that. Now, going into a kitchen designer that you know you have NO intention of using just to get their opinion of a good lay out would be bad karma!
Rachel says
This must have been a beast to write–but thank you! So much awesome info! We had been looking into an Ikea kitchen for our current house before deciding that our current cabinets weren’t awful enough to replace. Your entire kitchen came out beautifully, and I love the look of the cabinets. The style is perfect for your house, and they look so great!
Jess @ Little House. Big Heart. says
We have IKEA cabinets and I love them! The previous owner installed then and could have done a better job on the install, but as for the cabinets themselves, we love them!
Thanks for the great breakdown!
boswell0617 says
I have always wondered about the ikea cabinets. they look great in the showroom, but you always wonder how they will look and hold up in a real house. I love the kitchen you did a great job, and I love all of the information. It is always to know what you are getting yourself into. great job!
Lyndsay @ that 70s house says
THANK you for writing all of this up. This makes me more confident to move forward with IKEA for our kitchen reno when the time comes!
Deb says
Thank you Thank you Thank you for this post!! I’m planning our (very far away) kitchen reno and due to monetary constraints have been leaning towards IKEA but wasn’t really sure how much cheaper it would be and whether or not the quality was sufficient. This post is awesome.
Martina says
Super helpful Kim! We’ve gone back and forth over IKEA cabinets for a while simply because we don’t know anyone personally who’s lived with them. Definitely have to weigh our options again after reading this.
Kristen | Popcorn on the Stove says
I’ve always wondered about how IKEA’s kitchen cabinets so I’m glad to know that they’re awesome (which makes sense since everything at IKEA is awesome)! I’ll definitely be keeping this in mind when we get a house one day 🙂 Thanks for the review!
Kristin @ bliss-athome.com says
Kim, this is sooo helpful! We are in the middle of a kitchen remodel and were wondering about Ikea cabinets. It sounds like a lot of work, but the savings is incredible. Now you got me re-thinking some things…xo Kristin
Kim@NewlyWoodwards says
It’s hard to scoff at $4K in savings, right?
Ashley says
I imagine it was tons of work to get there, but they do look great. Def worth the savings i’d say 🙂
Paula@SweetPea says
It’s beautiful! I have friends that are considering an IKEA kitchen and I’ll be sure to pass your tips on to them.
Krista says
I think it was well worth it! Your kitchen looks incredible! I wouldn’t have made any different choices had I done it myself. And you are absolutely right! If it is good enough for Sarah Richardson…. say no more!
Krista @thehappyhousie.com