Does refacing look cheaper than replacement?

Not when done with quality doors and proper veneer work, the visible surfaces are the same materials used in new cabinetry. Bad refacing (peel-and-stick veneer, painted-over damage) looks cheap, which is where the reputation comes from.

How long does refacing last?

With quality doors and proper application, refaced fronts should last as long as the sound boxes beneath them.

Can I reface now and replace later?

You can, but if replacement is already in your five-year plan, put the refacing budget toward it instead. This is exactly the tradeoff a free consultation should map out for you.

Cabinet Refacing vs Replacement: The Honest Answer

Reface when your cabinet boxes are structurally sound and your layout works, you’ll get a visually new kitchen for 40–60% less. Replace when boxes are water-damaged or sagging, when the layout fails you, or when you want features refacing can’t add, like ceiling-height uppers or a bigger island.

The five-minute inspection that settles it

Open the sink base and look at the floor of the cabinet: water staining or swelling means replacement. Press on shelves: flex means cheap boxes not worth re-skinning. Check drawer corners and slides: racked drawers on failing slides can be fixed, but crumbling particle board can’t. Sound boxes plus a workable layout = reface.

What refacing genuinely can’t do

It can’t move your sink, add an island, take uppers to the ceiling, or fix a galley kitchen you hate. If your complaints are about where things are rather than how they look, refacing polishes the wrong problem.

Why you should be suspicious of a one-answer company

A refacing-only company will tell you to reface. A cabinet dealer with no install operation will tell you to replace. We sell and install both, so the inspection has no thumb on the scale, and recommending the cheaper path costs us nothing but the difference.