Trying to make the best decision on new 42” kitchen cabinets. Over the last 33 years we’ve had both stained cabinets and painted cabinets. The original cabinets were oak and we had them professionally painted a linen white about four years ago. They came out great, all the grain was sanded done and invisible.

For the remodel, we’re upgrading to 42” cabinets and initially thought we would want painted white cabinets again. But we were cautioned about the natural tendency of wood to move due to its hydroscopic nature sometimes causing visible lines to appear. This was not a concern when we painted the 33 year old dated oak cabinets a few years ago, but now even with factory painted cabinets, we understand this could be a problem in later years. Some manufacturers have a handout for clients to make them aware of this for painted cabinets.

Would love to hear your experience with painted vs stained cabinets and how they age.

We are now considering stained cabinets, but are unsure the finishes would darken the kitchen too much.

Thanks for your time.