The Best Wood for Kitchen Cabinets

Choosing the right wood for your kitchen depends on your budget, durability needs, and aesthetic tastes. Here’s an overview of the most popular and best wood for kitchen cabinets so you can find the best kitchen cabinets easily.

Oak

Oak is one of the most popular choices for wood cabinets simply because of its beauty an durabilty. There are over 200 species of oak which allows some variety in the hue and grain. Most oak cabinets have a natural finish, but a honey finish is common also.

Oak cabinets are extremely durable and can hold up for decades. Oak is not considered the best wood for painting, however. You will want to select a different kind of paint-grade wood if you are designing something such as a white kitchen.

Oak, because of its popularity in cabinetry, is affordable. There’s a lot of oak available in the cabinet market and that keeps the price lower.

Pine

White pine is great for staining. However, Ponderosa pine contains a resin that can be difficult to work with. Pine compliments rustic decor well, and it looks beautiful when finished.

Because pine is a soft wood, it is less durable than a hardwood. That makes it one of the cheaper options, but you will want to consider potential damage over time if you are installing it in your kitchen.

Maple

This is one of the most versatile types of wood. Maple cabinets look beautiful in their natural state. Just add a bit of finish to protect them from wear. If you do choose to stain your maple cabinets, they accept the stain well.

Maple is considered a paint-grade wood, so if you would like white kitchen cabinets to match your white kitchen, you can paint them over and get high-quality results. Most ready-to-assemble cabinets are made from maple. It is one of the best woods for kitchen cabinets

Birch

Birch, an affordable wood, can be stained to look like cherry or maple wood, more expensive woods. This gives you the option to save money while still having a high-end and modern-looking home.

Birch tends to have an irregular color, but it is also considered a paint-grade wood. If you choose to have black kitchen cabinets, birch is an inexpensive choice for painting.

Cherry

Cherry wood is absolutely beautiful. When a stain is applied, the wood will get darker over time until it ages to a reddish brown. Cherry wood is fairly strong and its dark color reduces the visibility of nicks and stains. Most people stain cherry wood to give it a uniform color.

Cherry wood is more expensive and is generally used with high-end designs. It is often thought of as the best wood for kitchen cabinets.

Mahogany

Mahogany is probably the most expensive type of wood you can buy. The dark hue is gorgeous, and it accepts stain well. However, the wood is not as strong as other types for the purpose of cabinetry in your kitchen.

Get maple RTA cabinets to paint a white kitchen. Maple is one of the best choices of wood for painting. See all of our designs in our online store.

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