This is the most fundamental cabinetry decision and the one clients know least about walking in. Both constructions are sound, both are available across the lines we carry, and the right answer depends on what you want the kitchen to look like and how much you care about the last inch of storage.
Framed construction
A face frame is fixed to the front of the cabinet box, and the doors mount to that frame. It is the traditional American approach. The frame adds rigidity, it supports inset doors, and it gives you the classic look with a visible reveal between doors. The cost is access: the frame narrows the opening slightly, so drawers are a little narrower than the box.
Frameless construction
Frameless, sometimes called full-access or European, has no face frame. Doors mount directly to the box sides and cover the whole front. You gain usable interior width and full access to the opening, and you get the tight, continuous door lines that contemporary kitchens depend on.
How to choose
If you want inset doors, a traditional or transitional look, or the detailing that goes with a classic American kitchen, framed is the natural fit. If you want a contemporary kitchen, handleless or slab doors, maximum storage in a smaller room, or those very tight reveals, frameless is the better base. In a large kitchen the storage difference is marginal. In a condo galley it is not.
See both with the doors closed
The difference is most obvious with everything shut, which is how you see your kitchen most of the time. We have both constructions on display, and five minutes opening and closing them usually settles the question faster than any explanation.
