Both look wonderful and are great choices. I don't know that either is going to make a room seem taller or larger. The inset door style is very classic and provides a furniture appearance and is generally more expensive.

I will open a can of worms here and say that I prefer a cabinet with a face frame for longevity and that, I believe, would require the inset door or a 3/4 overlay (just short of full overlay).

I don't know about taller or larger, I think that is more about ceiling height and cabinet size in general. The main difference is that full inset is a more traditional style. The face frame of wood that surrounds the door, whether beaded or plain limits, to a certain degree, access and drawer size. Full overlay is Euro style that originated in Germany post war. Basically a plywood (if you buy good cabinets) box with drawer slides and hinges attached directly to the box. Drawers will be 1 1/2" wider +/- and there is no wood on the face of the cabinet to obstruct access. The full overlay is considered a more modern or contemporary look and plywood slab doors are common (though any style of door and drawer front may be used). Full inset, as a more traditional style, will have a stile and rail door with a raised or flat panel. In thinking about your question, it occurs to me that the additional details of the full inset are more "busy" than the full overlay, and that may be the taller, larger answer.

No, no one type makes them seem taller or larger. An inset vs overlay question really depends on the design, inset tends to be a little more traditional and overlay - contemporary. In general terms. However, if your kitchen was designed as custom inset and you are switching to overlay, there may be some design changes and details you can't quite replicate in overlay.

If you want your cabinets to appear taller, and if you have the ceiling height, you can do a built up crown molding (flat molding like reversed base molding with a crown) or even a sheet rock soffit above cabinets, (it doesn't matter if it's inset or overlay, but in my personal experience, inset would look better with that kind of treatment).

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One thing that I rarely hear discussed (and I'll open a can off worms as well) is the hardware associated with each type of cabinet. Ironwood mentioned that non face frame construction allowed for an 1 1/2" wider drawer that is because the hardware for the drawer can be attached directly to the side of the box of the cabinet the same holds true for door cabinets as well.

I can not tell you how many times I have seen the "clip on" fastening method fail. Screws rip out, drawer slides rack, doors sag. One has an 18" long drawer slide. for arguments sake, that is attached to the cabinet via one screw in the front and one screw in the back. For that reason and that reason alone I always recommend non face frame construction first.

I am not sure how large your kitchen is but a while face frame cabinet choice looks elegant and timeless, it does reduce the amount of storage space you will have in your kitchen. The additional frame width can add up to a lot of lost inches.

I am debating this, also. What style of door are you thinking of?

RJ, I agree about the clips on the back of the cabinet failing, especially if the cabs are made with 1/4" backs..no meat for the screws. We actually build out the sides of the cabinet wall so that our slides mount to solid material for their entire length..have to do that anyway for roll outs in door boxes, regardless of the box construction. But...and there is always one...that is custom vs. manufactured. Not sure what you are referring to with "doors sag". There are Euro hinges to do full inset doors, butt hinges to do full inset doors, SOSS hinges to do full inset doors....the last two offer no post-fabrication adjustment, so fine cabinetmaking and installation on the square is required... Anyway...burning up scrap ply to build up the sides of a face frame cabinet for drawer slide installs is not a slam dunk, money winner...but the product is way better in the long run.

I've built kitchens using both full overlay doors and inset doors. IMO quality is not defined by the way the door is attached but by whether the cabinet and drawers are built square, solid materials and good engineering of the cabinet.

The difference is the look and amount of available space and the cost to the manufacturer--and thus you. (Some manufacturers are set up to build face frames, so if you order a frameless, it cost them more, so they will charge more and vice versa.)

We renovated a house and put in inset drawers, cabinets. I had no idea of the vast amount of cabinet space I would lose doing this. My cabinet workroom talked me into it, largely because this is what most magazines are showcasing. I was totally shocked when they were installed. While I have a lot of drawers and doors, I have to puzzle piece my cookware and containers in order for the drawer to close. I wish I had known what I was giving up. Visually, it isn't worth it. I vote for function over form in this case.

Thanks for this. If it helps, we are finished with almost everything, and at first when a new thing we installed we were always kind of shocked because we weren't used to it. There's always a trade off and nothing is perfect. I'm sure you will come to love your cabinets.

Agree with jbee8....this thread contains very helpful information.

Very useful, I'm researching this inset vs overlay right now. I currently have custom inset cabinets, and they are my first experience with such. We are going to be selling this house and building new... and I'm thinking of overlay because of the wear the face-frames have received in 4 short years.... Don't delete helpful threads!

That was really helpful thread! I am strangling with what look to go in our kitchen, we currently renovating and now I am convinced that Full overlay way to go, storage- wins! thank you!

Interesting szurav5 - I decided inset!

do inset doors get more wear and tear than overlay? we would do soft close. not sure if that makes a difference.

We've had our inset doors for 1 1/2 years and I've seen NO wear and tear at this point. Ours are soft-close, and the only thing I've noticed is that a few of them stop closing when they're about halfway there so we have to go back and push them the rest of the way closed. Small price to pay for such a beautiful look, though.

Great. Thank you!