I vote for cabinets to the ceiling. Do all of your inspiration pictures have cabinets to the ceiling or do you love pictures where cabinets are not to the ceiling?

IMHO: not taking the cabinets to the ceiling looks more builder grade and staggering cabinet heights looks more dated.

I like that cabs to the ceiling stop dust from accumulating on top but don't think it's very functional to have cabinets so high. Have you considered a soffit or dropping the ceiling height in the kitchen? Personally I don't think the 10' ceiling adds a lot to the kitchen...

With an 8' or 9' ceiling, I would have said take the cabinets to the ceiling. But you have a 10' ceiling. In that case, I don't think it would be advantageous, and I wouldn't do it. Going to the ceiling with the cabinets could look too towering, may not be accessible with just a regular stepstool, and be very expensive as you mentioned. I do not agree with Alley2007's comment about "looking builder grade" - not with a 10' ceiling.

You mentioned adding beams to the ceiling. If you did, I dont see how you could also take the cabinets to the ceiling. I also want to add that you need to be careful about adding beams. Unless they are done with skill, and you spend a good bit of money on them, they can look "faux", and not that great. Or too heavy and coarse--or too thin, it's tough. You can't cut corners on added ceiling beams.

My cabinets don't go the ceiling, and the dust and grime is so gross, I can't clean it off anymore. However, with 10" ceilings, I find that ceiling high uppers look very much out of proportion with the lower cabinets, not to mention that they are not so functional anymore.

I like going to the ceiling because of the dust/grime/grease. It's disgusting, unhygienic and really tough to clean. It also creates a place for mold and bacteria to grow if you cook and generate a lot of grease.

At this point in my life, after decades of cleaning with a toothbrush because of design choices, I now look at everything with the thought of "how easy is it to keep clean or clean."

Beachem - the OP mentioned 10' ceilings - how is she going to reach the cabinets if they go that high? How is it unhygienic? No one is up there eating. And mold comes from moisture - if the OP has moisture at her ceiling, she has other worse problems that would be there whether the cabinets went to 10' or not.

I have 9' ceilings, and would not want to go taller. I think Caligirl5 has a good point. For me, a taller ceiling would take away from the coziness of the kitchen. Also, with my 9' ceilings, changing the smoke alarm batteries, or removing cobwebs from the ceiling corners or from the recessed lights becomes a project. Haul out the tall ladder, carry it up the stairs, and teeter on the second rung while unscrewing the smoke alarm/lightbulb. Wouldn't want to go taller than 9'.

Wow looks like opinions really vary on this! Thanks for your input. I’ve been looking at photos of my favorite kitchens and they are a mix of cabinets to ceiling and not, so I’m really torn!

The last photo below is what I’m thinking for the ceiling - a mix of beadboard and white beams...

@friedajune - on a tangent, re: ceiling beams - what do you think are a good thickness? Or what should I specify to my builder to get nice looking ones?

Consider dropping the ceiling around the perimeter of the room in a tray ceiling detail instead of the beams. That has the advantage of lowering the need for cabinets to the ceiling. You could call that a soffit, but most people bristle when that word is used. Tray ceiling sounds better!

This is why I sometimes like soffits if they are flush with the cabinets. It's "wall" then, it's just not wall in the same place as underneath the cabinets.

Soffits get a bad rap because everybody drank the koolaid that they are the most hideous horrible thing a kitchen can have. But with a tall ceiling you are either stuck with twice as many wall cabinets as you need stacked up to fill the space that you need a ladder to reach, or you have cabinets meandering around the upper third of the wall with space above and space below, and nobody can agree about the space above: put something there, leave it empty, it's gross up there, it's not. I'll tell you what to put up there...drywall.

Yes to fur-downs to the cabinet crown. I wouldn't want it open because stuff (dust, cobwebs, etc) will accumulate. 10 ft is too tall to leave open or have remotely useful cabs.

I'm with you, Pal - I prefer cabinets to the ceiling at 8 feet, probably even 9 - but 10' of cabinets doesn't really make sense. I would do a soffit.

10 foot, I would not bring to ceiling. 8 or 9 i would.

Many of the pictures with ceiling beams in the kitchen seem to have a space of about 6 inches above the cabinets to the ceiling. I wonder if the ceiling beams make it more acceptable to have that gap?Either way, it sounds like everyone mostly agrees that 18 inches above the crown is too much for a gap and I would need to consider a soffit/Tray ceiling in that case.

Honestly, I am not as concerned about the cleaning issue. Our current cabinets do not go to the ceiling so I am used to that. I just dust it, or maybe get my cleaning lady to dust it, a few times a year - is that terrible of me???

For the reasons already mentioned:

Best: Cabinets to the ceiling

Second best: Even-topped cabinets that don't reach the ceiling

Worst: Snaggle-toothed cabinets with mismatched top heights

I have never had cabinets to the ceiling and have rarely cleaned up there. actually there is really not much to clean, at least at my house. And I do have a vent but it's a down draft vented outside. I don't cook much meat and I don't fry. what is dusty is the top edge of the top full overlay cabinet door. does everyone clean those regularly?