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Plywood vs MDF for painted cabinets - which do you stand by?

I just finished a kitchen job where the client wanted painted cabinets and I had to pick either birch plywood or MDF for the doors. I went with MDF because it's smoother for paint, but now 3 months later one door has a tiny chip at the corner from their kid slamming it. Would you have gone with plywood for durability or stick with MDF for that perfect paint finish?

2 comments

2 Comments

maryadams17d ago

Yeah I went with MDF for my own kitchen too and so far so good, but I made sure to put a bead of wood glue on those edges before painting. That extra step helps a ton with the chipping problem you're seeing.

young.emma17d ago

... my buddy actually painted his whole laundry room with MDF cabinets and had a similar issue, a corner chipped from moving a heavy basket in and out. He ended up getting a router and putting a small roundover on all the edges before paint, and said it stopped the chipping completely cause the paint has something thicker to grip onto. So maybe that could be worth trying next time if you stick with MDF over plywood for that smooth look.