I don't have alder cabs but I do have it in my bedroom furniture and its gorgeous. I also have a cherry stain. It does not have the same movement as the cherry but still very pretty. I am at work but will post pics when I get home.

I have both alder and cherry cabinets in my house. I went with alder in my laundry room, mudroom, and one bath vanity.
I have a cherry cabinets in my kitchen. The alder cabinets and the cherry cabinets are stained the same color.
From a distance they look the same. The big difference is that the alder is softer than the cherry. I am really glad I didn't use alder in my kitchen. I do have kids including a busy 2 year old so that makes a huge difference. I think our choices are always determined by kids and how careful we are. I could never have a white sofa even without kids!
I think your lifestyle should play a decision in your choice of wood species. The 15% isn't much of a discount if your cabinets are battered up after a year. Good Luck!

We just had alder cabs in a lighter stain installed. We loved the softness of Alder, we liked the grain better. Price wasn't the issue, as michellemarie said, it wasn't that big of a cost difference, we just truly liked the feel and look of the wood. Yes, we knew it was softer but are willing to allow our cabinets to show its history if we - or as we - might ding them up over the years. The pictures are poor - used my phone with marginal light, but it will be a couple of weeks before we take final pics.

Enjoy picking! I'm sure you will enjoy either way you go.

{{!gwi}}, {{!gwi}}

Doesn't red birch have a similar look to cherry?

actually I think red birch has a more lustrous look then cherry. All are beautiful woods. Cherry will change the most in color and alder will be softer. Ultimately, you have to pick the look you love most.

Our cabinets are a combination of alder and cherry - most of the cabinet is alder, but the inner panel is cherry. They are natural rather than stained.

One question is what's going to be the lead actor, so to speak, in your kitchen's appearance and what are the supporting actors.

Cherry (or that great knotty alder just above) wants to take the lead. The color and grain variation within the wood, the changes over time ... lots of drama. I've just built a kitchen with a lot of cherry, and that means the other elements are fairly muted.

The excellent alder cabinets a little farther above are a bit more like supporting actors. If something else in the kitchen, like the countertop material, or those amazing handles, is doing the aesthetic heavy lifting, then alder works very well in a background role.

If you go with cherry, you might ask if you can help pick out wood, especially for inset panels. With a little looking you can find nice figures -- a few examples here: http://www.woodenconcepts.net/Recessed_Panel_Cope_and_Stick_Doors.html

Thanks all for your input and pictures! As always I find this forum so informative and I now have some things to think about. I did not know that alder was softer than cherry.

Colin3 - you bring up a really good point about which element will be the lead actor. We are pretty sure we will be going with Kerala green/ tropical green granite which has enough movement that it may be the main actor in a alder kitchen.

AnnaA - thanks so much for the pics of your cabinets. They are beautiful and totally reassure me that I can get the look I am going for with alder. What is the name of your stain color? And what granite will you be using? I look forward to following the evolution of you kitchen.

The stain color is called Macaroon, from Thomasville. (We went with their semi custom cabinets.) We were looking for a light stain that was low on red. It does have red notes, and it's more of a medium color in the end, but it is perfect.

Tomorrow, our quartz counters are being installed. Feels like the grand finale in all of this, even though we are changing out all the window trims and have yet to install backsplash which will take a few more weeks.

Will post pics tomorrow night as I'm sure I'll be wired with excitement! :)

Docmomma, here's a link to the Janka Scale which ranks different woods by hardness.

Cherry is what I'd characterize as being 'kinda' soft'. Alder is a lot softer and, though it is pretty, it would be way too fragile for my kitchen.

Here is a link that might be useful: Janka Scale

thanks ci lantro - that is really interesting. Alder is way at the bottom of that list. I have a rough and tumble 10 yo boy (and DH) who won't be gentle on the cabs. Something to think about. We have friends who have alder cabinets from the same cabinet maker with kids about the same age as mine. I believe their kitchen was done about 3 yrs ago. I guess I will need to take a trip over to their house to check out the wear and tear on their cabinets.