There is slimmer, less bulky, plugmold than the angled stuff. I had and will have low-profile plugmold in the back and thin LED tape (with diffuser) towards the front tucked in behind the light rail. My kitchen cabinets have a recessed channel to accept the LED tape.

You aren't missing too much ... your electrician hasn't kept up with products available! Mine were the same way and would have installed 15 year old technology for our recessed lights!

You can even integrate your under cabinet lighting into the molding that sits below your doors - then you have the rest of the cabinet depth for the plugs…

Undercabinet lighting (UCL) must be toward the front of the upper cabinets to shed light properly onto the middle of the counter beneath it. Sounds like your electrician wants to install the UCL toward the back which all that would do would light your backsplash, not your counter where you need it.

Plugmold toward the back, UCL toward the front. I’d also install a couple outlets in the backsplash for your things kept plugged in, e.g., coffee maker and/or toaster. Otherwise you’ll have unsightly dangling cords hanging from the plugmold. Those couple bavksplash outlets should be installed horizontally and closer to the counter, typically 4” on center from the counter.

Thanks. I’m sending a link to this thread to our designer.

@theotherjaye - one thing I forgot to address in my previous post is your OP statement "lighting angled back at the front", The UCL needs to be placed toward the front of the upper cabinets, and also pointed straight down. As I said above, you want the UCL lighting to light the center of the counter beneath it. If you have the UCL "angled back at the front" you are ruining its function of lighting the middle of the counter beneath it. The lights need to point straight down.

Are you getting a light rail attached to your upper cabinets? Even the slimmest UCL benefits from a light rail. Since you need to send the designer this thread, ask about that too.

Right!