Read this forum. That's it.

One fun way to go about locating nearby cabinet makers and installers is to find the local Corian distribution center and ask them for a referral to companies that works with Corian.

The same can be done with granite companies and other distributors/installers of counters. You'd then want to do research and find reliable references on the cabinet firms uncovered by this process.

On a less than $15,000 budget, you'll be hard-pressed to go custom unless you have a very small kitchen and are willing to save on the counter material.

Look up kitchen cabinets in the phone book (online) and go visit some of the showrooms. See what you like in terms of framed vs. frameless, modern vs. traditional vs. transitional, wood vs. laminate vs. painted etc. Then come back here and ask questions.

I am going to suggest an alternative approach that worked for me in both building a custom home and remodeling a kitchen in a historic house find the GC/builder first. I found that having a person who you can work with and whose work you admire makes the entire process easier. Then pick their brains on quality cabinet makers and suppliers that will keep you within your budget. I still had a lot of say in who I worked with but in this approach the GC handled all problems that came up. I did not use a kitchen designer but rather used both this message board and one on AOL back in 1994.

In addition to the other great suggestions, for finding a local cabinetmaker, do a post here with your general location in the title. If you're in a semi-populated area, you'll probably get some suggestions (and maybe a few warnings). I got my cabinet guy as a reference from friends and neighbors, but my architect came from a reference here.

I think my cabinet guy would be able to tell you over the phone if he was in your price range or not. It's worth calling before bothering to visit a show room.

"On a less than $15,000 budget, you'll be hard-pressed to go custom
unless you have a very small kitchen and are willing to save on the
counter material."

Don't know where you live, but custom cabinets in a kitchen that small would average $12,000 where I live, installed.

If you have plans and elevations for your kitchen showing the cabinets, e-mail them around to various custom shops to get approximate prices. You will probably be surprised.

Search "custom cabinets" in your city to get a list of cabianetmakers. Then check bona fides with the BBB or NKBA or both. Members of the BBB and NKBA usually indicate membership on their web site.

If you don't have a plan and elevations, then you are not ready to buy cabinets yet. You will need both before asking for estimates.

Midwest. But I have a tendency to include counters as part of the cost of cabinets and around here, that's going to start around $3,000 (undermount sink included) for solid surface or stone.

Too many people hear the cabinet quote then get shocked when the counter quote is added on top along with sales tax.

OK, so we are in the same ballpark.

As someone who is just finishing a DIY remodel that spans beyond the kitchen, I recommend Barker if you want quality cabinets, want to save a bundle, and if you are at all handy. Watch Chad Barker's videos to see if you are comfortable with the process (even this grandma could do it). Barker cabinets are pretty much completely customizable, quality USA components, all Blum blumotion soft-close hardware. The boxes are 3/4" USA plywood, beautiful finished dovetail drawers.

Once you know know cabinets sizes, go to Barker, add them to a shopping cart to see what the total cost would be -- there’s no mystery. ALSO, be sure to check on his Shipping page to read about where discounts kick in (we made out big on discounts).

In the end, we bought Barker, however before we bought we got three bids locally for enough cabinets to do our kitchen including a 4’ x 8’ island, one wall from floor to ceiling, cabinets for our butler's pantry including one a tall pantry, and cabinets for our mud room. All of the local bids came in about $30,000 for, as I recall, 24 cabinets. Some bids included installation, others did not.

Our Barker order included six additional cabinets that were not included in the bids above. The six extra cabinets allowed us to fill in a 13' span of entertainment center in our family room -- a bonus! Our order included all the various parts and pieces needed to finish: crown molding, fillers, etc. The false fronts, for ends of cabinet runs were ordered as doors rather than slabs. We had them do the conversion varnish finish on everything. Our total was $15K delivered, 30 or 31 cabinets (lots of drawers)

We could have paid 30k locally, instead we chose to spend a couple of days screwing Barker cabinets together, which was sort of fun, and then had a really good time spending the amount saved (earned) on a 42" Sub Zero french door refrigerator and a 36” Thermador freedom induction cooktop. We installed the cabinets ourselves, however if we had hired a carpenter for the installation, we still would have saved many thousand, certainly enough for at least the refrigerator. (;

Good luck with your remodel.

I've done Ikea so had a base for that. I went to our local lumber/hardware store. I found they carried Bertch cabinetry and got a quote. It was over my budget however I did order my bath vanity from them (that fell within my budget). That gave me a baseline. I drove by another home store randomly, and stopped in, they do cabinetry (Waypoint living, or Amish custom build). I'll be pricing that probably. I'm pricing some bar cabinetry through them as we are trying to match something and may need custom. Through this forum I've learned of some other brands. One is Shiloh, I used their website to find a local dealer. Then (through GW) I found some good recommendations on RTA companies which I'll price. I'm probably mid to low range with my budget. I was initially planning Ikea but found some great alternatives through the forum.