How to Measure for Kitchen Cabinets

A steel tape, a level, paper for a wall-by-wall sketch and a phone for photographs. Record wall lengths at more than one height, ceiling height at several points, and every opening's width, height and distance from the corner.

Precise enough for planning — to about an eighth of an inch — and honest about what you could not reach. Ordering should still follow a professional field measure, because bowed walls, out-of-square corners and floor variation change what fits.

Manufacturer model numbers and specification sheets for the refrigerator, range or cooktop, wall oven, dishwasher, microwave and ventilation, including handle projection, hinge side, required air gaps and door swing — not just nominal width.

Yes. Ceilings vary, especially in older homes and across long runs, and that variation determines whether upper cabinets can terminate at a single height or need a scribed filler or trim to close the gap.

Trim depth around windows and doors, soffits and beams, wall thickness changes, floor register locations, light switches and outlets, radiator or duct chases, and how far a door swings into the room.

Because it verifies conditions a sketch cannot capture — wall bow, corner squareness, floor fall, framing locations — and those determine filler sizes, scribe requirements and final cabinet dimensions. Ordering from preliminary numbers risks cabinets that do not fit.