Getting started

Cabinets can be your biggest expense when remodeling and may account for up to 40 percent of your budget. Not only that, they set the stage for your kitchen and you'll have them for years. That's why choosing cabinets is so daunting. White cabinets are popular again and so are cabinet styles that are less fussy, more streamlined, such as the clean lines and square corners of Shaker cabinetry. Use this buying guide to help you choose, and note that Consumer Reports does not test cabinets at this time.

It used to be that dovetail joints inside the drawers were practically all you needed to distinguish high-end cabinets. That distinction has blurred as more manufacturers offer premium features even on low-end lines. Indeed, past tests found you can have these and other once-exclusive features and still wind up with shoddy construction.

A little research beforehand can save you time at the store and money. Check manufacturers and retail sites and catalogs and then take a good look at store displays; you'll be able to tell the quality cabinets from the polished pretenders once you know where to look. And trust your taste. The kitchen should complement the rest of your home, so choose what you love.