Frameless Cabinets vs. Face Frame Cabinets

People ask me all the time, “What’s the difference between face frame cabinets and frameless cabinets?” (also known as “full-access” cabinets).

The short answer is exactly what the name implies. Face frame cabinets typically have a wood frame glued to the front of the cabinet box. The strength of the box is supported by the face frame, and usually the hinges and drawer guides are mounted to it.

Frameless cabinets — also known as “full-access” cabinets — have no face frame attached to the front of the box. The strength of the box is supported by a minimum ½″ thick back that is dado’d and glued into the sides, top, and bottom. The front of the box is “edge-banded” with real wood or PVC edge-banding. The hinges and drawer guides are mounted directly to the sides of the box using the 32mm system holes, which also support the adjustable shelf clips.

Why Face Frames Are Outdated

In my opinion, there are features of the face frame method that are outdated. First, the face frame blocks access to what’s inside your cabinet and actually takes away from valuable drawer space. The face frame also takes material and labor costs to produce — costs that could instead go toward upgrading your door style or choosing soft-close hardware, which does cut down on wear and tear.

There are a few instances where a face frame cabinet is useful — a “slide-in linen” cabinet would be one suitable situation.

The Advantages of Frameless Cabinets

With frameless construction you maximize the available space in your kitchen. By eliminating the obstruction of the face frame, you gain valuable width in your cabinet openings and the height of available drawer space increases as well. All of these benefits are achieved using the same amount of floor space — while using less lumber, reducing your footprint on the Earth.

By the Numbers

• The full-access door opening is 22.8% larger than the face frame door opening for the same overall cabinet size.
• The full-access drawer has a 51.8% larger interior space than the face frame drawer — same width, height, and depth.

These advantages alone make frameless cabinets a better value. I can still build face frame cabinets if you’d like, but you’ll get more bang for your buck with full-access, frameless cabinets — and the price is comparable.

Frameless construction means you’ll never have a spatula stuck in a drawer again.