Should I paint, reface, or replace my kitchen cabinets?

Paint when the boxes and doors are sound and only the finish is dated. Reface when the boxes are sound and in a layout you want to keep but the doors are warped, damaged, or a style paint will not change. Replace when the boxes are water-damaged, out of square, or falling apart, or when the layout does not work.

What does it cost to paint, reface, or replace kitchen cabinets in 2026?

For a typical 10-by-12-foot kitchen: painting by a pro is $3,000–$8,000, refacing $5,000–$15,000, new stock cabinets $5,000–$15,000 installed, and new semi-custom cabinets $15,000–$35,000 installed, with custom cabinets well past that. New cabinet prices do not include countertops.

Do new cabinets mean new countertops?

Usually. Old countertops rarely come off intact or fit the new boxes, so budget for both. Painting and refacing leave the countertop in place.

Can you paint thermofoil or laminate cabinets?

Not well. Thermofoil is a vinyl wrap that peels at the edges, and paint does not stop it. Laminate takes paint only with special primers. Painting works best on solid wood or wood-veneer doors and boxes.

Paint, reface, or replace kitchen cabinets?

Kitchen cabinets have three parts that age differently: the boxes, the doors and drawer fronts, and the layout. Paint fixes a dated finish. Refacing fixes dated doors. Only replacing fixes boxes that have failed or a layout that does not work. Figure out which of the three is the problem and the choice usually makes itself.

Paint when the cabinets are sound and only the finish is dated

Painting works on solid wood or wood-veneer doors and boxes that are square, with doors that close and hinges that hold. It does not work well on thermofoil, the vinyl-wrapped finish that peels at the edges, or on laminate, without special primers. A pro job sands, degreases, and primes before it paints, and sprays the doors off site; most of what separates a good cabinet paint job from a bad one is the prep. New hinges and pulls at the same time finish the change for a few hundred dollars more.

Reface when the boxes are sound but the doors are the problem

Refacing puts new doors and drawer fronts on the existing boxes and covers the box faces with a matching veneer. It suits doors that are warped, damaged, or a style paint will not change, on boxes that are solid and in a layout you want to keep. It costs less than new cabinets and leaves the countertop in place.

Replace when the boxes or the layout have failed

Water damage. Particleboard sink bases and lower cabinets swell and crumble after a leak, and no finish fixes them. Fix the leak first.
Boxes that are not square, sagging shelves, and drawers that have pulled apart.
A layout that does not work: too little storage, no room for a dishwasher, or a kitchen you are already opening up.

New cabinets usually mean new countertops, because the old ones rarely come off intact or fit the new boxes. Budget for both.

If the house was built before 1978

Older painted cabinets may carry lead paint. Under the EPA's Renovation, Repair and Painting rule, anyone paid to disturb painted surfaces in a home built before 1978 must be certified and follow lead-safe work practices. The rule generally does not apply to owners working on their own home, unless they rent out all or part of it, run a child care center there, or buy, renovate, and sell homes for profit. The dust is the same hazard either way. Before anyone sands or demolishes painted cabinets, have the paint tested, or assume it contains lead and follow the EPA's lead-safe practices for do-it-yourselfers.

What it costs in 2026

For a typical 10-by-12-foot kitchen:

Painting by a pro: $3,000–$8,000.
Refacing: $5,000–$15,000.
New stock cabinets, installed: $5,000–$15,000.
New semi-custom cabinets, installed: $15,000–$35,000, with custom cabinets well past that.
New hinges and pulls: $5–$20 a piece.

See our methodology for how we build these bands. New cabinet prices do not include countertops, plumbing, or electrical changes.

If you are selling

Buyers notice worn and dated cabinets, but a full replacement before listing rarely comes back in the sale price. Painting sound cabinets and replacing the hardware is usually the better pre-listing spend. Our guide on kitchen remodel resale value covers what a remodel tends to return.

The bottom line

Paint sound cabinets with a dated finish. Reface sound boxes with doors you want gone. Replace cabinets with water-damaged or failing boxes, or a layout that does not work, and budget for new countertops with them. In a house built before 1978, have the paint tested before anyone sands it.