9 Essential Tips for Painting Kitchen Cabinets

You can totally paint your cabinets by yourself without hiring a professional AND get a flawless finish. But, it’s important to prep them correctly, use the best paint for kitchen cabinets, and keep in mind some tips to make the job easier and look amazing.

First things first, let’s get introductions out of the way. I’m Jenny, and I’m not a professional painter. I’ve painted over 50 pieces of furniture, and 5 sets of kitchen cabinets, but I do not do this for a living. I am a self-proclaimed DIYer who knows how to paint kitchen cabinets. There, that feels good to get that off my chest.

Because I’ve worked on a fair share of painting projects, I’ve learned quite a bit along the way about paint adhesion, paint durability, and correct prep before painting, and get asked questions about painting furniture and kitchens all the time.

My goal is to share what I’ve learned and to empower all you fellow DIYers out there with the knowledge and confidence to tackle your kitchen cabinet painting project on your own!

If you're thinking of painting your cabinets, these tricks are a must read. So many great tips on how to paint kitchen cabinets for a professional finish.

This post contains affiliate links. You can read my full disclosure policy here.

1: Don’t Skip the Prep

I know, this is the worst part of it all. All that elbow grease and little to show for it when you’re done. But, let me tell you, it will give you proper adhesion and save you chipping paint in the future.

Do not believe the posts you see floating around Pinterest that you can use certain types of paint without sanding or priming. Here’s the thing, of course you can paint your kitchen cabinets without sanding or priming, because you can do whatever you want, but I will stand up and say it’s a bad idea. (And, I have actually used one of the paints mentioned in those other posts to paint an entire kitchen. I love the paint and the cabinets turned out beautiful. But, I most certainly prepped them before painting,.)

Here’s what I do to properly prep cabinets before I paint them.

  1. Clean them well with a degreasing cleaner. My favorite is a TSP substitute cleaner.
  2. Lightly sand OR prime. Here’s the thing, at the very (very least) you need to lightly sand your cabinets with 150-220 grit sandpaper to scuff up the finish. However, I personally always recommend priming kitchen cabinets first. I actually rarely prime furniture pieces, but in such a high-use area like the kitchen, it is so worth the extra step. Let’s just say that I’ve primed some kitchens and not others, and the ones that were primed are holding up better.

This post answers the age-old question: Do I need to prime my cabinets before painting? And although I would never tell you what to do, I’d recommend reading it for detailed information on all things primer.

2: Choose the Right Paint

This tip might be the most important one. The type of paint you choose really does matter in how nice the finish looks and how durable the paint will be with lots of use.

This tip is so important, in fact, that I’ve devoted an entire post to it. I will tell you that I think the best paint for kitchen cabinets is alkyd enamel paint, and every time I paint a kitchen it’s the type of paint I now choose. It levels beautifully leaving no brush strokes, dries to a super durable and cleanable finish, and cleans up with soap and water.

Thankfully, more and more companies are making this easy to use paint and you can find it in one form or another at all major home improvement stores. You’ll find all the brands and costs in the post linked above.

3: The Best Way to Paint Cabinet Doors

Although you can definitely achieve a nice finish with a paintbrush and roller, spraying the cabinet doors and drawer fronts will give your cabinets a professional finish and save you so. much. time!

If you don’t have a paint sprayer, it is worth looking into renting one for the day. Or, if you’re a DIYer, I would recommend just buying one; I promise you’ll find ways to use it. (I basically spray everything I paint now – from furniture pieces to chairs to walls to fences and outdoor projects.) Here’s the Wagner paint sprayer I have and love.

If you prefer to use a brush and roller, be sure to first brush the edges and inside of the panels, and then use a roller to roll all the flat surfaces on the face of the cabinet door. If you use the right paint, like I mentioned above, you’ll hardly be able to see any roller or brush marks.

I tested five different rollers side by side to figure out which roller gives the smoothest finish that’s closest to a sprayed on finish. You can see which roller came out as the best roller for cabinets and furniture in this post.

4: Tape Off Walls and Ceiling

Everything you need about how to paint kitchen cabinets! So many great tips for painting kitchen cabinets like a professional.
(After putting up the painter’s tape like in the photo above, use an exacto knife to follow the curve of the trim and remove the excess tape on the cabinet.)

For perfectly clean lines between the cabinet and wall, it’s best to use painter’s tape to tape off the wall and/or ceiling that butts right up to the cabinet boxes. This is the only painter’s tape I trust for not allowing bleed through.

Everything you need about how to paint kitchen cabinets! So many great tips for painting kitchen cabinets like a professional.
Everything you need about how to paint kitchen cabinets! So many great tips for painting kitchen cabinets like a professional.

5: Roll and Brush the Frames

One option for painting the frames of your kitchen cabinets is to spray them by taping off every other surface in your kitchen. Spraying gives a beautiful finish, but I’ve just never chosen to do it this way, so I can’t really speak to tips for that.

I have found that using a combination of brushing and rolling the cabinet frames is an easy way to get a beautiful finish.

Everything you need about how to paint kitchen cabinets! So many great tips for painting kitchen cabinets like a professional.
Everything you need about how to paint kitchen cabinets! So many great tips for painting kitchen cabinets like a professional.

First, brush the sides of the cabinet with a paintbrush. Then, while the paint is still wet, roll the side of the cabinet as close to the edge as possible (without painting the wall!).

For the front of the cabinet frames, I first use a paintbrush to paint the inside lip of the cabinet (check out my tip below to make this a super quick job!). Then, I roll the front of the cabinet frames with a roller.

6: Watch Out for Side Drips

Everything you need about how to paint kitchen cabinets! So many great tips for painting kitchen cabinets like a professional.

When you roll (or brush) the paint on the side of a cabinet, the paint can often drip around the other edge of the cabinet. After applying paint near an edge, always look to the other side to be sure the paint didn’t drip. If it did, you can easily fix it by brushing or rolling it away while it’s still wet. But if you wait too long, you won’t be able to brush it away and you’ll have to wait until it completely dries when you can sand it smooth and repaint.

7: Use Post-It Notes

If you're thinking of painting your cabinets, these tricks are a must read. So many great tips on how to paint kitchen cabinets for a professional finish.

Weird, right? Here is one of my best kept secrets when painting cabinets. Stick post-it notes on the shelves so you can paint much faster without worrying about getting paint on the shelves. Easier (and cheaper) than painter’s tape and will save you so much time.

If you're thinking of painting your cabinets, these tricks are a must read. So many great tips on how to paint kitchen cabinets for a professional finish.

8: Three Coats of Paint is the Best

How many coats of paint for kitchen cabinets? I think three coats of paint is the perfect amount for cabinets. I have gotten away with two coats of paint, but it was for my RV cabinets. Every other kitchen I’ve painted needed three coats of paint. I don’t have much more to say than that!

9: Keep the Doors Open

After painting the frames and doors, you’ll let them dry thoroughly before installing them. But even after installing, it’s important to keep the doors open for way longer than you think you should. I’d recommend at least a week.

Although paint will be dry to the touch, some types of paints can take up to 30 days to completely cure. If uncured paint sits on another uncured painted surface, it’s likely that they’ll stick and one of them will pull the paint off the other one.

To be honest, I’ve done this more times than I’d like to admit. If you watch the video at the bottom of my post where I share how my painted cabinets are holding up after a year, you’ll see where I made this mistake.

9 tips for painting kitchen cabinets collage image of how to paint kitchen cabinets

Is it weird that I only included nine tips instead of just adding one more to make it an even ten? I didn’t even think about it until now, and it’s slightly bothering me, but not enough to change up the graphic and post.

So, there are my nine tips for perfectly painted kitchen cabinets! It is entirely possible to paint your cabinets by yourself and get a professional finish.

Jenny at Refresh Living (dev.refreshliving.com)

Post by Jenny Leads

Jenny is the voice behind Refresh Living. She has a passion for helping people to create a home they love without spending a lot of money.

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17 Comments

  1. I super love you blog! I have probably read this post 10 times! I am about to paint my cabinet for the first time ever! Do you use any clear coat or sealer on your cabinets?

    1. Hi Crystal! Thanks so much for your kind words!! I have used clear coat on cabinets, but only when I use a paint that needs that extra layer of protection. I’ve done acrylic clear coat over General Finishes Milk Paint because although that paint finishes to a wipeable finish that I’m comfortable leaving as is on furniture, it’s just not enough of a finish for me to feel comfortable with on cabinets. But, when I use alkyd paint on cabinets, I’ve never used a clear coat. I’ve been really impressed with how durable that finish is. It’s been 3 years for one kitchen and 1.5 years for another and the finish is still holding up great to frequent wipe downs. I hope that helps. Good luck on your project!

  2. If I have already painted my bathroom vanity and cabinet and want to re-paint a different color, do I completely sand the paint down? I also used a satin poly on them.

    Thank you for the post, I will use your tips! I would love to see you use your paint sprayer when spraying cabinets.

    Thank you!

    1. Hi! I would recommend just priming over what you’ve already painted, as long as the finish is still in tact. No need to sand the old paint down. I have an upcoming cabinet painting project that I plan to (finally) record. 🙂 Thanks for checking out my projects!

  3. I just want to clarify. Are you saying you just need to prime not sand your kitchen cabinets before painting? I have a builder grade island that has wood and wood veneer.
    Thank you

    1. If you prime, you shouldn’t need to sand, but just be sure to clean the surface with a TSP cleaner to remove anything on the surface before priming. I personally prefer to clean, lightly hand sand with 220 grit sandpaper to rough up the surface, prime, and then paint. It’s just the process I’ve used on furniture and a few kitchens and always had great results, so I just stick with the habit. But the light sanding isn’t really necessary.

  4. Hi there! Stumbled across your blog and it’s been great.
    I’m looking to get the HVLP sprayer but it says that it’s not suitable for the paint you recommended from Behr. Behr has warned not to thin the paint and customer service has advised that it’s not suitable for HVLP sprayers. But you didn’t seem to have any problems.
    Was there anything you did or recommend when using them together? You’re tips and links have been a life-saver!

    1. Hi Paige. Yes, you’re right that the company does say it should not be thinned. I used it in the exact paint sprayer I linked and it did work (I just needed to use a higher pressure and wider flow than some other paints.)

  5. Hi. Just found your website. I’m a Benjamin Moore fan girl. Alkyd all the way for cabinetry. I’m about to go the second time around painting cabinetry. I always brush because I can NEVER get the roller to look like I think it should. What kind of roller do you use?

    Also, if you don’t mind sharing…why do you prefer the Sherwin alkyd?

    1. Hi Dana. I totally know what you’re talking about with rollers giving a slightly different texture. I’ve found the same thing. Honestly, I think no one else notices, because I literally need to get 1″ away from my cabinets to notice, but I definitely can tell as well! I find spraying is the only way to eliminate any texture, to be honest. You probably are very experienced in brush painting to be able to get a smooth finish and that’s why it’s smoother than rolling as well. I think for beginners it’s easier to get a smooth finish with a roller. (I am actually working on a post and video right now showing how it’s totally possible to get a smooth finish on cabinets with only a brush!) I would put Sherwin ProClassic and Benjamin Moore Advance as really close in “amazingness”. It was sort of just a slight difference in brushing and leveling that I noticed, but it also could have been due to weather conditions or my brush or something like that! I wouldn’t defer from your fav brand since you know you love it!

  6. I don’t love DIY (forgive me – I do my fair share of painting though! 🙂 but I am an interior designer that recommends certain projects for my clients who love to DIY. Your website is one of the first I have come across that breaks everything down in such a helpful way (esp your post on which cabinet paint and why). And is realistic about how important prep work is! Love these posts and have sent them to my clients. Thanks for all your hard work and sharing your tips and tricks with all of us!

    1. Hi Bethany. Thank you so much for taking the time to comment. I am so appreciative of you sharing this with your clients! My main goal is to inspire people to be able to complete something like kitchen cabinet painting on their own if that’s what they want to do. No quick fixes or promotions here – just information to hopefully help people. It means a lot that you are able to see that mission through my posts. 🙂

  7. Hi Jenny, my kitchen cabinets have a vinyl covering over them that I would like to remove. How would I paint under that. I believe it is press board. Thank you, Patti

    1. Hi Patti. I’m wondering – were the cabinets vinyl wrapped at one point? I’ve never tried to remove that and paint the surface underneath, but I do know that some heavy duty glue is used to adhere it to the surface. This might be a huge hassle to remove, but you could try a small door and see how it goes. I think I would try to use heat to help loosen the glue. But then, you’ll have to use a solvent to remove the excess glue before being able to paint. If the vinyl is in fine shape and staying adhered, I think I would just paint it. Just be sure to use a shellac primer so it sticks. Sorry I’m not able to offer more specific help on this one.

  8. I’ve read through twice and I’m sure I’m missing it, but what color is this??

    1. Hi Randi. I don’t know it I actually put the color in the post. Sorry about that. It’s Caldwell Green which is a Benjamin Moore color.