Breaking down the differences between unassembled and pre-assembled kitchen cabinets.
I’m breaking down the differences in quality and pricing among the four
types of cabinets available from most big box hardware stores.
I’ve used three of the four options for my DIY projects over the years and
have come up with a favorite!
After much research on what type of cabinet to use for our basement
kitchenette project, I decided to go with unassembled kitchen cabinets for
the first time ever, and I’m so glad I did! I’ll be sharing the benefits of
these easy-to-assemble cabinets, also known as RTA (or ready-to-assemble).
One thing that shocked me was the price of quality assembled cabinets. It
seemed they were increasing in price by the day! 😬 I didn’t consider custom cabinets because I can DIY so many of the
fancy details myself.
This post has been updated in September, 2026.
I’ve always used in stock unfinished cabinets for my DIY built ins, partly
because I’m usually impatient and want to go get them when I want them, but
mostly because the price is fantastic and they can easily be updated a
number of ways.
But I wanted a little higher quality for this space, so after looking at
options for our new kitchen, I decided on unassembled RTA cabinets:
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Hampton Bay Avondale shaker cabinets
from Home Depot. I found you get a lot of the bells and whistles of higher end
cabinets, but they cost way less because you’re doing most of the work.
🙂
I set up my cabinet assembly line on our long dining table in the basement (with a
big drop cloth and scrap cardboard from the cabinets on top).
The only hard part of this process was getting them down the stairs.
The boxes were HEAVY (these are made with plywood instead of the cheaper
furniture board the less expensive versions are made of).
For the larger cabinets, we opened them up and took the parts down in trips.
Once down there though, the process was pleasantly easy and quick. I’m one of
those weirdos who doesn’t mind furniture assembly, so it was almost fun for
me…like a puzzle.
with the quality — the drawers have dovetail joints:
You don’t need any fancy tools for this cabinet assembly. A mallet and
drill or screwdriver is all you’ll need.
The sides slide together and then are easily joined with the provided corner
braces and screws:
And the cabinets come with everything you’ll need — including soft close
drawer and door hardware:
When I got going, the process went quick! I assembled nine cabinets in a
couple days — the smaller ones only took about 30 minutes each. The more
complex drawer units took about 45 minutes to an hour.
Let’s look closer at the different cabinet options.
I’m breaking down the three types of cabinets I’ve used and their pricing,
plus throwing in details of more custom options as well.
(These are based on Home Depot’s pricing just because that’s where I’ve
purchased from most often.)
1. First up, the unfinished cabinets.
They come unfinished and are very basic. No frills, no soft close, no
paint:
The units are typically made of particle board, which is not the best material, but I’ve
found it holds up just fine for DIY projects like these built ins.
I like using these for bookcases like this because I don’t have to worry
about priming and painting over a paint finish. I can finish them however I
want.
2. The second option are assembled and painted in stock cabinets.
These cost more than the unfinished versions, but come assembled and
painted. And they come in a few more configurations (sizes and options) as
well.
This option doesn’t come with soft close drawers or anything like that, and
are also made with cheaper materials.
Overall I wasn’t thrilled with the quality on these and wish I would have
gone with the versions I used in the basement. The pantry cabinets are
holding up just fine, but the basement kitchen ones have all the bells and
whistles!
3. Unassembled cabinets (what I used for our kitchenette).
These are by far my favorite of the three I’ve used in our home, because
of the quality and high end details that are included.
It’s the little things — the drawers are FULLY extendable. This is a
detail on our kitchen cabinets that I love! You can access everything in
the drawer easily:
The assembly wasn’t hard at all — a beginner DIYer could easily do it. It
may take more time if you’ve never assembled furniture.
Home Depot provides great instructions and how-to videos for these as
well.
These turned out beautifully in our basement bar/kitchen:
4. Special order custom cabinets.
I’ve never used custom cabinets in our homes, so I can’t speak to them
personally. But they can be made to fit your room specifications and the
drawer and door design options are endless!
Custom cabinets can also be built with useful organizational additions
like pull out shelves, spice racks, etc.
As expected, these are usually the most expensive of the four
options.
Comparing the price of these cabinet options.
Let’s talk pricing, as it varies quite a bit depending on what you
pick!
I gathered prices for two cabinets (a base cabinet with drawers and a 36″
sink base) to compare the pricing for each. (Again, these are all Home
Depot cabinets.)
Thirty-six inch wide sink base:
- unfinished sink base/$189
- assembled in stock sink base/$200
- unassembled finished sink base/ $339
- custom sink base option/$658
Thirty-six inch drawer base cabinet:
- unfinished (largest size I could find is 24″)/$215
- assembled in stock drawer base/$462
- unassembled finished drawer base/$360
- custom drawer base/$1073
For the most part, the unassembled cabinetry goes waaaay further for
the money.
I highly recommend going with the unassembled cabinets if
you’re looking for a deal and don’t mind the extra time and work they
entail.
I made a helpful graph so you can see the pros and cons in one
spot:
I should mention, IKEA is always a great option for cabinets, but I’m
overwhelmed every time I look into them. There are so many options and
parts, it freezes my brain. 🙂
Not to mention they usually end up costing more than the hardware
store options I’ve used.
We had our cabinets installed by contractors and I’m so glad we
did. I’ve installed many cabinets, but not with the number of corners
and spacers we needed for this space.
Have you used any of these cabinet options in your home? I’d love to hear
your experience.
