Repainting Cabinets in Ottawa: Check Quotes at $50 to $135 Per Piece
Most Ottawa homeowners budget between $700 and $6,000 to have a kitchen professionally repainted, with the swing driven mainly by kitchen size and the amount of prep work needed, according to recent cabinet painting estimate data. At Ottawa Cabinet Painting, we see how per-piece pricing can turn that wide range into a number you can actually plan around.
TL;DR:
A kitchen with 25 doors and 8 drawer faces has 33 pieces, costing $1,650 to $4,455 before cabinet boxes, moulding, or hardware.
Contractors spend 60% to 80% of project time on preparation, so ask how they handle degreasing, sanding, and priming before comparing paint prices.
Request an itemized written quote covering removal, surface preparation, primer and topcoats, cabinet boxes, hardware, masking, warranty terms, and the project timeline.
DIY supplies can cost a few hundred dollars, but expect 20 to 40 hours; check for lead paint before sanding in homes built before 1991.
Repainting costs less when cabinet boxes remain sound; consider refacing or replacement if boxes are damaged, warped, or the kitchen layout no longer works.
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Budget Ranges by Ottawa Kitchen Size
The biggest factor in your final number is simply how many doors and drawers we’re painting. A small kitchen with 10 to 15 pieces costs far less to repaint than a large kitchen with 40 or more, and the per-piece pricing data bears this out consistently across job sizes.
A small kitchen typically runs on the low end of the national range, while a sprawling kitchen with an island, glass doors, and crown moulding pushes toward the top. Here’s how that breaks down:
Kitchen size | Typical piece count | Estimate range |
Small (10-15 pieces) | 10-15 doors/drawers | $700 |
Medium (20 pieces) | 20 doors/drawers | $1,650-$4,455 |
Large (40+ pieces, island) | 40+ doors/drawers | $4,455-$6,000 |
These figures line up with the overall $700 to $6,000 range reported for typical kitchens. If a quote falls well outside these bands for your piece count, it’s worth asking what’s included. A fast sanity check: multiply your door and drawer count by the per-piece rate quoted below. If the total doesn’t roughly match the line-item estimate you received, ask the contractor to walk you through the difference before you sign anything.
Per-Piece Pricing and Sample Math for Doors and Drawers
Pros rarely quote a flat “kitchen price.” They price by the piece, which is exactly why you can use the math yourself to sanity-check any estimate. According to per-piece pricing data, typical rates fall into these bands:
Slab or flat-panel doors: generally the least labor, priced at the lower end of the $50-$135 per-piece range.
Shaker-style doors: mid-range pricing due to the extra edges and corners that need attention.
Raised-panel doors: typically the most labor-intensive and priced toward the top of the band.
Drawer faces: usually priced similarly to doors of comparable size and detail.
Say a mid-size kitchen has 25 doors and 8 drawer faces, 33 pieces total. At $50 to $135 per piece, that’s $1,650 to $4,455 just for the doors and drawers, before boxes, moulding, or hardware. Glass-front doors, crown moulding, and island cabinetry typically add cost on top of this base, since they need extra masking, detail work, or disassembly.
What Drives the Price: Prep, Paint, and Application Method
Prep work is where most of your budget actually goes. Professional cabinet projects spend roughly 60% to 80% of total time on prep: cleaning, degreasing, sanding, and priming, with only 20% to 40% spent on the visible topcoat. Skipping grease removal is the single most common cause of a finish failing early.
Several factors shift your price up or down:
Paint system: mid-grade enamels cost less upfront than 2K (two-component) systems, but 2K finishes tend to hold up better against chipping and daily wear.
Application method: shop spraying in a controlled booth produces the smoothest, most durable finish; on-site spraying costs more than brush-and-roll but less than full removal and shop finishing.
Cabinet condition: water damage, old lacquer, or thermofoil peeling all add prep time and cost.
Access and layout: tight kitchens, islands, or cabinets built around appliances slow down removal and reinstallation, which adds labor hours.
Pro Tip: Ask any contractor what percentage of the job is prep versus painting. If they can’t answer in detail, that’s a sign the estimate may be light on the step that matters most.
For more on why this phase matters so much, our breakdown of detailed prep work covers the specific steps involved.
DIY vs Hiring a Cabinet Painting Specialist
DIY repainting looks cheaper on paper, and for a very small project it can be. Material costs for paint, primer, sandpaper, and brushes typically run a few hundred dollars, but the time investment is real: expect several full weekends of sanding, priming, and recoating, often stretched across two to three weeks around drying time.
DIY materials: the cost depends on the paint, primer, and supplies you choose.
DIY time: commonly 20 to 40 hours of hands-on work plus drying time between coats.
Professional quotes: $700 to $6,000 depending on kitchen size, per the per-piece pricing guide.
Finish durability: shop-sprayed professional finishes generally outlast typical brush-and-roll results, which tend to show brush marks and chip sooner.
DIY makes sense for a single small project, like repainting a powder room vanity, especially if you have space for proper ventilation. For a full kitchen, the time investment and the finish quality gap usually tip the scale toward hiring a specialist. Before sanding anything in a home built before 1991, check for lead-based paint: disturbing it without proper precautions is a health risk, so professional handling is worth considering in older homes.
How to Read and Compare a Cabinet Painting Estimate
A written estimate should break down exactly what you’re paying for, not just hand you a single number. Clear cost breakdown structures help you spot what’s missing before work starts, and the same principle applies to a home renovation quote.
Watch for these red flags: no itemized breakdown, no warranty mentioned, no stated timeline, or a request for full cash payment upfront. Hiring a reputable specialist and getting everything in writing is the most effective way to avoid the kind of contractor problems that turn a simple refresh into a costly headache.
Copy this checklist when requesting or comparing quotes:
Door and drawer removal, labeling, and reinstallation
Sanding and degreasing (degloss) of all surfaces
Primer type and number of coats
Topcoat type and number of coats
Cabinet box painting (interior frames, not just doors)
Hardware removal, storage, and reinstallation
Masking and surface protection during the job
Warranty terms and length
Typical Professional Timeline for a Repainted Kitchen
Professional kitchen repaint timelines vary, largely because prep and drying time dominate the schedule, not the painting itself. The sequence typically runs: measure and quote, then removal and labeling, then prep and primer, then topcoats with drying time between coats, then reinstallation, then a final inspection.
Look for contractors who spray in a dedicated shop or protect a sealed on-site zone. Our step-by-step process guide walks through what each day typically looks like.
Warranty and Post-Painting Maintenance Costs
A workmanship warranty is one of the clearest signals that a contractor stands behind their finish. We back our cabinet painting work with a workmanship warranty, which covers issues that show up under normal household use.
Maintenance costs after a professional repaint are generally low. A properly cured, shop-sprayed finish holds up to regular wiping with mild soap and water, and most homeowners spend little beyond the occasional touch-up near high-contact areas like handles and the edges around the sink. Avoid abrasive scrubbers and harsh solvents, since they can dull or scratch even a durable topcoat over time.
If a DIY or lower-grade finish starts failing, the practical cost isn’t just a touch-up can of paint. It’s often a full repeat of the sanding, priming, and topcoat process, which can cost close to what a professional job would have run the first time. That’s the real argument for paying attention to paint system and prep quality upfront rather than treating every quote as interchangeable.
Repainting vs Replacing or Refacing Your Cabinets
Repainting existing cabinets is almost always the lowest-cost way to change your kitchen’s look, typically landing in that $700 to $6,000 range for most kitchens. Full cabinet replacement, by contrast, means new boxes, new doors, new hardware, and often new countertops to match, which multiplies the cost well beyond a repaint and adds weeks of disruption.
Refacing sits in between: it keeps your existing cabinet boxes but replaces door and drawer fronts with new material, along with new veneer on exposed box faces. It costs more than repainting since you’re paying for new materials, not just labor and finish, but less than full replacement since the boxes and layout stay untouched.
For homeowners whose cabinet boxes are structurally sound and whose layout works, repainting delivers the biggest visual change per dollar spent. If you’re curious how painting versus replacing doors specifically compares, this comparison of painting vs replacing doors lays out the trade-offs in more detail. Replacement or refacing generally makes more sense when the boxes themselves are damaged, warped, or no longer fit the kitchen’s layout goals, not simply when the color has gone out of style.
Why a Cabinet Painting Specialist Matters
We’ve found that the biggest difference between a finish that lasts and one that chips comes down to meticulous prep and a shop-quality spray process, not the paint can alone. We focus solely on cabinetry and back every job with a workmanship warranty. Use the checklist above when you request written quotes, and compare them line by line.
— Ottawa
Get a Written Quote From Ottawa Cabinet Painting
If you’re comparing numbers from this guide against real quotes, we’re glad to give you a local reference point. We provide estimates with a workmanship warranty, so you know what you’re paying for before any cabinet comes off its hinges.
Request a virtual or on-site estimate through our cabinet painting quote page.
Compare the returned quote against the checklist above to confirm it covers prep, primer, topcoats, and warranty terms.
Ready to see your own numbers? Visit Ottawa Cabinet Painting to get started.
FAQ
How much does it cost to paint a kitchen cabinet?
A cabinet door typically costs $50 to $135 to paint professionally, depending on the style and detail level, according to per-piece pricing data. Slab doors tend to fall at the lower end, while raised-panel doors cost more due to the extra prep and masking involved.
How much to professionally spray paint kitchen cabinets?
Shop spraying a full kitchen typically falls within the broader $700 to $6,000 range reported for professional cabinet projects, with the exact number depending on piece count and paint system. Spraying in a controlled shop environment generally produces a smoother, more durable finish than on-site brush-and-roll work.
How much does it cost to paint kitchen cabinets in Ottawa?
Ottawa homeowners should expect costs in line with the national ranges reported for professional cabinet painting, generally $700 to $6,000 depending on kitchen size and piece count. We provide written, itemized quotes so you can see exactly how your specific kitchen fits into that range.
Does repainting kitchen cabinets last?
A properly prepped and professionally sprayed finish can last for years with normal use, since most finish failures trace back to skipped prep steps like degreasing and sanding rather than the paint itself. We back our work with a workmanship warranty to reflect that durability.
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