How we rate installation
Why we rate installation
Flatpack can save you money, but having to outsource the build unexpectedly can throw out your budget. Every brand builds its cabinets differently. Some hang on a rail and click into place, others need you to drill, screw and line up every drawer by hand.
Our rating tells you how much DIY experience each brand really takes, to help you pick one if you plan to tackle it yourself. It's based on the brands' own instructions.
The four things we rate
We rate every kitchen, laundry and wardrobe brand on the same four parts of the job. Each one gets Easy, Medium or Hard.
| Factor | Easy | Medium | Hard |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tools needed | A screwdriver and the supplied Allen key | A drill, hammer or mallet as well | Specialist tools or cutting to build the cabinets |
| Hanging, levelling | A hanging rail plus adjustable legs | Adjustable legs, but wall cabinets are propped up and screwed to the wall | No adjustable legs or wall fixings supplied |
| Putting cabinets together | Click-together or wedge fittings | Cam locks or dowels that line the panels up for you | Panels screwed straight together, with glue recommended |
| Fitting doors, drawers | Clip-on hinges and drawers into pre-drilled holes, with adjustable fronts | Mostly pre-drilled, but you build the drawers or drill handle holes yourself | You drill extra holes for runners, or fit fronts by hand with no adjustment |
Wardrobes are built differently: they stand on the floor rather than hanging on a rail, and most use sliding doors. So for wardrobes, two of the factors are judged like this:
| Wardrobe factor | Easy | Medium | Hard |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hanging, levelling | Adjustable feet, with wall fixings supplied | No adjustable feet: you level it with wedges or foot mounts | No way to level it and no wall fixings supplied |
| Fitting doors, drawers | Doors and drawers come ready to fit, with no building | Door tracks come cut to size, but you build the doors or drawers | You drill your own holes in the door tracks and buy the screws to fix them |
How the score works
Each factor earns points: Easy = 2, Medium = 1, Hard = 0. Add up the four for a score out of 8. The more points, the easier the job.
The score sets the “How hard to build?” rating you see on the site:
| Points (out of 8) | How hard to build? |
|---|---|
| 7 to 8 | Easy |
| 6 | Fairly easy |
| 5 | Moderate |
| 4 | Tricky |
| 0 to 3 | Hard |
Good to know
- We read each brand's published assembly instructions and videos, step by step. If a step isn't published, we call this out rather than guess.
- We rate the exact cabinets, doors, hinges, drawers and handles in our price comparison, so the rating matches the price you see.
Kitchen and laundry ratings
Checked 1 November 2026, on the parts in our quotes.
Our laundry quotes use the same cabinets, doors and hardware as our kitchen quotes, so each brand gets the same rating in both.
| Brand | Tools | Hanging, levelling | Putting together | Doors, drawers | Points | How hard to build? |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| IKEA METOD | Medium | Easy | Medium | Medium | 5 | Moderate |
| Mitre 10 Principal | Medium | Medium | Medium | Medium | 4 | Tricky |
| Bunnings Flatpax | Medium | Medium | Medium | Medium | 4 | Tricky |
| Bunnings Kaboodle | Medium | Medium | Hard | Hard | 2 | Hard |
Why each brand landed where it did
- IKEA METOD: cabinets hang on a rail and sit on adjustable legs. Cam locks and dowels join the panels. Hinges clip on and drawers click together, but you drill your own handle holes.
- Mitre 10 Principal: adjustable legs, and wall cabinets sit on a temporary timber ledge while you fix them. Dowels plus screws. Hinges press in and Alto drawers clip together.
- Bunnings Flatpax: adjustable feet, no rail. Cam locks and pins. Hinges and runners go into pre-drilled holes, and you build the drawers and drill handle holes yourself.
- Bunnings Kaboodle: panels are screwed straight together, with glue recommended. You drill extra holes for the drawer runners, and drawer fronts are screwed on by hand with no adjustment.
Wardrobe ratings
Checked November 2026, on the parts in our quotes.
| Brand | Tools | Hanging, levelling | Putting together | Doors, drawers | Points | How hard to build? |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| IKEA PAX | Medium | Easy | Medium | Medium | 5 | Moderate |
| Fantastic Furniture Garde | Easy | Medium | Medium | Medium | 5 | Moderate |
| Bunnings Lugna | Medium | Medium | Medium | Hard | 3 | Hard |
Why each brand landed where it did
- IKEA PAX: adjustable feet, and wall brackets are supplied. Cam locks and dowels join the frame, and the back is nailed on. The door tracks come cut to size, but each sliding door is built from 2 panels. Drawers drop onto pre-drilled runners. 2 people needed.
- Fantastic Furniture Garde: a screwdriver is all you need. There are no adjustable feet, so you level it with the supplied wedges. Cam locks and dowels join the frame. The sliding doors come built and the tracks come cut to size, but you build the drawers. 2 people needed.
- Bunnings Lugna: there are no levelling feet. Cam locks join the shell, and the back is nailed on with 75 nails. For the sliding doors, you drill your own screw holes in the tracks and buy screws to suit your opening. 2 people recommended to stand the shell up.
Sources
- IKEA METOD (kitchen, laundry): METOD base cabinet, wall cabinet, suspension rail, legs, UTRUSTA hinge, MAXIMERA drawer
- Kaboodle (kitchen, laundry): base cabinet, wall cabinet, 3-drawer base, hinges, drawer runners, attaching doors, attaching drawer panels
- Flatpax (kitchen, laundry): 3-drawer floor cupboard, 2 door floor cupboard, 2 door wall cupboard
- Principal (kitchen, laundry): installation guide, base cabinet video, drawer cabinet video, overhead cabinet video
- IKEA PAX (wardrobe): wardrobe frame, PAX & KOMPLEMENT buying guide
- Lugna (wardrobe): cabinet shell, sliding doors
- Garde (wardrobe): large wardrobe frame