A white factory finish "paint" is very durable IME. And stain isn't all that easy to touch up--my mom just had her stained cherry cabinets touched up and it took her cabinet maker two try's to get them done to "okay but not great". If your friend wants white, I see no reason to discourage her.

When you say durable, do you mean the finish, quality of installation, what degree of wear and tear they will need to stand up to, ie; 1 kid, 4 kids, adults only? I've looked at the Ikea cabs, and there seems to be a durability to the finish, you are responsible for installation, and having seen kids playing with doors/ drawers (i'm sure 360+ days a year!), i have yet to see a door hanging by it's hinges.

They have a white(my fav!)that can also be gotten with glass doors if a little variety is wanted. Might be worth a visit to a nearby store or check out their online site. I don't think I would hesitate to have them installed in a home if i were building. Houzz may offer ideas/pictures of what they call Ikea 'cabinet hacks'.

As for paint, I see many issues posted about paint finishes cracking. If the finish could be touched up and repainted in years to come than I would think that would be OK. One issue is the cost of painted cabinets. Aren't they quite high? I think thermo would be cheaper but afraid it will yellow or peel down the road

We find stain so easy to touch up. We have lots of wood floors, natural woodwork and wood cabinets in our house and DH can easily touch them up as needed.

To go to IKEA we have to cross the border into Canada or into another state. I suppose her and I could plan a road trip.

What I mean for durable is a finish that can withstand mostly just 1 adult and occasional guests. The current cabinet did not hold up well at all but 2 others were in the house during some of that time. Ideally she would like the cabinet to last the next 40 years. We have 1 bathroom with a wood painted bathroom vanity. It is from the 50's and is in perfect shape even though it has taken lots of abuse over the years. People kicking the doors and drawers close etc. I suppose they don't make cabinets like that anymore.

Bottom line is she doesn't want to have to replace the cabinet again but would not mind having it repainted or restrained, touched up etc. over time.

I have white painted wood cabinets in my bathroom, and they have held up fine to lots of abuse. They are 15 years old, and are probably ready for some touch-up or repainting, but they look fine overall. Your friend could buy a stock unfinished vanity from a big box store and paint it herself with good cabinet paint, like Cabinet Coat. If white is what she wants, I don't see any reason not to do it. I think paint is easier to touch up than stain.

Debrak, her best bet would be to have a custom finished cabinet if she's wanting it to last for many years. Professionally finished are spray painted using a very fine mist as well as several coats, and can't be duplicated by a lay person. The paint also has an extremely hard finish that doesn't chip w/o extreme effort. Definitely would be worth the extra money.

When you purchase painted white cabinets from a company like Kraftmaid or whatever, can you get touch up paint from them?

The first priority is fix whatever is causing water damage. There should be no water damage to cabinets if plumbing and sealants are properly maintained. If the doors are Thermofoil and in good condition, the foil can be pulled off and the MDF doors can be primed and painted. If the exterior is in good condition, it can be repainted. If the inside is water damaged, fix the plumbing leak. The interior is not visible and if leak is fixed will last another 20 years or so.

The finish has started peeling off at the front of the cabinet and the exposed "wood" has gotten wet just from normal hand washing etc. It has swelled up. There is nothing leaking. She had a carpenter (and friend of ours) look at it and he said the cabinet is too bad to try to strip and repaint.

A good factory finish won't be just paint like you and I can buy at Home Depot. It will be a catalyzed finish that requires special and expensive equipment. It will also be applied in a controlled environment with no dust. If durability of the finish is the main concern, I would look for those things. Many local cabinet makers won't be able to provide this kind of finish due to the expense of the equipment. I'm going with Barker cabinets for my kitchen in part because they do provide this kind of finish in a white "paint." They are ready to assemble cabinets, but if your friend is willing to do assembly or pay someone to do it, they might work for her. But any of the big cabinet makers should offer this kind of finish. I think most provide some kind of touch up kit.

Update: Just visited the bathroom in question and I really think the problems come from humidity. The whole vanity has peeling paint with the exposed particle board (whatever it is) is swelled. Other issues as well all point to humidity. She was just told that the bathroom fan is not working well and that it doesn't vent outside, just dumps the air in the attic. She has to have her roof replaced and will have the venting fixed.

So bathroom on hold until the roof and venting are fixed. Thank you all for your help!

Oh what a pain, and expense! I'm glad she found the problem and is going to fix it though. Excess humidity is a problem.