Reliable sources here and elsewhere have said that good quality MDF is just as sturdy as plywood in cabinet construction (and not all plywood is created equally) and is actually recommended for the center panels of doors because it will not warp.

There has been a lot of positive feedback for several RTA brands such as Barker and Conestoga, also Ikea. If one of those three fit your design/budget needs and you are confident with measuring and planning (you can post your plans here for help, too) they seem to be fine choices. They also have the advantage (for small kitchens IMO) of being frameless construction which allows more storage room in the same footprint. But, also, there is the disadvantage of having to be put together by you or your contractor. Some contractors don't want to do this; other posters have said that it was pretty easy to do themselves.

The brands offered at Home Depot and Lowes I have heard less about, but really haven't heard complaints. They come all ready to be installed I think.

I think you can be confident in choosing any of those, plus many others that are out there (search here for other recommended brands) -- just go with the one that best meets your design, budget, aesthetics, and ability to get them installed.

Great summary above!!

I did a budget kitchen.

Barker & Canestoga seem best quality for the price but maybe not depending on how much assembly will cost you. More than that, I needed one on one, in person help just to order cabinets (they are their own world and this was my first go) and I couldn't get that from them. I didn't get a price quote on these but from houzz it seemed like they would be slightly above my HD sale quote, without assembly.

Ikea is the cheapest but I didn't like their metal sided drawers and my granite people don't consider them sturdy enough and won't install granite on them. My handyman also says, "they're crap". Many are happy with them. They have a great warranty. Go see them for yourself and decide if you like them before figuring them into your comparisons. If you go that route, design them now but buy them during the kitchen sale, it's a huge discount.

Next in price for my same kitchen was Fabuwood. It's regarded as the best Chinese import and my friend with a $600,000 house used them in her kitchen. Local showroom had a designer. I ruled them out because the 1 year warranty made me nervous.

I went with HD's American Woodmark because the KD there is well regarded, the warranty was better and I hit one of the best sales of the year so it wasn't much more than Fabuwood's. (I had free upgrade to all plywood, free premium finish which was the white paint I wanted, the shaker style was included in the sale styles, free trash insert, free cutlery insert, free spice insert, which I couldn't find room for, AND buy more save more discount.) Plus there might have been a general sale price. I also did very few drawers to save money.

The HD designer said even though the other HD line has an example 10x10 kitchen listed for less, whenever he builds kitchens the American Woodmark comes out the least expensive.

Like you, I also was very confused and spent a lot of time figuring out the best route. The HD design help is free. Make an appointment, they should tell you what measurements you will need. It's a risk free helpful way to become familiar with the issues and world of cabinet size, options and layouts, whichever cabinets you choose. It will get the ball rolling and give you a benchmark design and price to compare against.

FYI, Ikea's cabinets are 15 inches deep vs 12 for most others so their designs won't translate well to others.

Hope that helps, I feel for you!

BTW, gorgeous floors! What are they?

I went with Northville Cabinetry, I had them professionally installed. I absolutely love them, the quality is very good. Ticked all the boxes I wanted. They do offer a white shaker. Price was fantastic and very quick delivery. Your floor looks exactly like mine, is it wood look porcelain tile from Lowe's?

Northville Cabinetry

http://www.northvillecabinetry.com/why-northville.php

Fantastic tile
Natural timber Ash porcelain tile

Thank you all for such quick and thorough responses. I met with the HD designer a few weeks ago and he has been great. I just wasn't sure about the quality of their cabinets as I had just started looking. I want to use quartzite or a "carrara marble look alike" quartz. I will check into the other manufacturers recommended above. At least I feel like I am no longer drowning;) Yes ravencajun they are! We are doing every inch of this house ourselves from 1500 miles away and we are on year two so I am spent! The floors have been in at least a year and they are indestructible! No scratches with all of the sand... I LOVE them. Looking forward to researching all of the above! Thanks again! I am honestly thinking warping is what I should focus on...or rather preventing warping!

I'm not a fan of HD. I've heard of too many horror stories including quite a few here.

Additionally the best prices aren't necessarily at HD or Lowes. Sometimes you can do just as well if not better at a local store that carries a range of brands and prices.

If I were you I'd post your layout here as the folks here are as good and probably better than any KD person at Lowes or HD.

My first choice for a budget kitchen would be to use Ikea cabinets. I don't consider them crap at all. Their boxes are terrific and all their door styles are interchangeable. And for the price they can't be beat. Plus they use quality hardware.

And they sell quartz to put on top of their cabinets so I'm sure the boxes are strong enough.

Hi neighbor! I would also encourage you to look at local cabinetmakers. I used Waltz cabinetry in Crestview, they did a beautiful job. We wound up right around $12.5k, installed. We have 14 cabinets total, finished in my choice of color (BM simply white) and with the island in oak with a custom stain. Included trash pull out and vertical dividers in the over fridge cab and 2 wide drawers. All soft close/self closing hardware. I felt like I got much more for my money. Kitchen isn't finished (still!!!) but here are some cab pics.

If it's going to be a rental, it must be indestructible. I don't know why many vacation rental tenants seem to have little respect for property, but ask anyone who rents out their condo or beach house and you will hear horror stories. I would go cheap and sturdy. When you're through renting, you can make upgrades for yourself.

Here's a picture of my floor going in with my kitchen cabinets by Northville. I highly recommend checking them out, they are very well constructed.

If definitely consider ikea for a rental. You could always swap the doors when you move in to something custom if you don't love their choices (I don't). It would be a shame to spend 10 k on cabs and get them scuffed up from renters!

IKEA can absolutely support granite or other stone countertops.

Hard to beat IKEA for price/quality, depending on door style, of course. Base cabs are 24" or 15" deep, Uppers are 15" deep. Have not heard of granite fabricator refusing to install over IKEA - maybe urban legend? For me, the most limiting thing about IKEA cabs was that uppers are basically 30" or 40" tall, making them an awkward fit in a standard 8' ceiling kitchen IFF you have a soffit. Which I do.

I'm not saying they're right, but no urban legend - my fabricators specifically asked me last month, when my granite was installed, if I had Ikea cabinets and that they would not put granite on top of them (and my installer had just installed Ikea cabinets right before mine).

It of course doesn't mean that they're right. I personally couldn't get past the drawers not really having sides, just metal bars. It looks like there are plastic inserts to give you sides but Ikea did just update their whole line about a year ago and I've been wondering if people still love them so much or if most people are recommending them based on the older line of cabinets.

For a rental, I'd probably do Ikea. It is hard to beat their price and they have a good reputation.

We used Scherr's for our RTA cabinets. They will take your drawings and translate them into a plan. You can select any material, any finish, any design. They are a custom cabinet maker that makes RTA cabinets. Made in the USA. You will get the customer service support that you need. Full directions with support. Support is only a phone call away.

We saved at least 40% by going with Scherr's. The website is clunky looking but the service is outstanding. We had the drawer's preassembled to save some time and effort. My husband and I put the cabinets together over a weekend and had our carpenter install them. It was a fun project.

The shipment came with everything you needed except the screwdriver, spray bottle and rubber mallet. The results are beautiful. We love the framless cabinet design. The quality of material was top notch.

Again thanks to all! We will rent out weekly for 2-3 years then hopefully retire here. It is not your typical rental area yet as I say that I am not naive so I know there will still be wear and tear. I will research IKEA and Scherr's as well which I would not have prior to this post. We have an IKEA here in CT. Thanks again!

Went to Lowe's and was told that Diamond Prelude series in true color white is a wonderful option as the laminate is indestructible. I called down to our Florida Lowe's and they coincidentally said the same thing. I'm trying to figure out if it is a good option of if the Lowe's salesman are told to push that line. Does anyone have any opinions on this?

I can't speak to Lowe's laminate cabinets, but one of my closest friends redid her kitchen (which is smaller than most bathrooms!) over 40 years ago and had custom to-the-ceiling cabinets build and covered them with a slightly pebble-finished laminate. This family entertains constantly and always has done so. They also had 3 children and now have grandchildren over there regularly. They are VERY hard on everything but these cabinets look as good as when they were first installed all those decades ago. Truly indestrucible.

(Don't mean to hijack) jackson2348 - I live in Baker and didn't realize Waltz was still in business. That's great news. Did you meet with any other local panhandle cabinet makers besides Waltz? Your cabinets look great.

We also used American Woodmark from Home Depot. I must have been one of the lucky ones, because we had great customer service before and after the sale. A couple of doors were scratched upon arrival--we had new ones shipped to the house 5 days later no charge. We did the free plywood upgrade and several other freebies and got a great deal on a good sized kitchen, buffet type install in the dining room, and 5 bathroom vanities for $12K. I've had them a year and have been really pleased with the quality.