Some decisions have to happen before others
Several decisions in a kitchen refit only work in one order, because an earlier choice fixes the dimensions or the timing of a later one. Getting the sequence wrong is what turns a straightforward fit into extra site visits and delay.
The appliance decides the cabinet.
An oven, dishwasher or fridge has a niche size set by its own manufacturer, given as a range of millimetres in its installation instructions. The cabinet run has to be built to that niche, so the appliance model needs choosing before the cabinet widths go on an order form. Swapping an appliance once the carcasses are cut usually means a gap that a filler panel has to hide, or a cabinet that no longer fits the run at all.
First fix comes before the units go in
The plumber and electrician do their first fix work, running pipes and cables to the positions the kitchen plan calls for, while the walls are still open and before any cabinet is fixed in place. Sockets, water feeds and the extraction ducting for a cooker hood all have to be in roughly the right place at this stage, because moving a pipe once units are screwed to the wall means taking them off again. The extraction route in particular is worth settling early: duct length and the number of bends both affect how much air a hood can actually move, which is covered in the guide to cooker hood extraction rates, and the same first-fix stage is where gas and electrical work gets signed off, set out in the guide to gas, electrics and building control.
Templating happens after the carcasses.
Templating is the visit a stone worktop fabricator makes once the carcasses are installed and level, to take an exact template of the worktop opening before the stone is cut. It cannot happen earlier, because the template has to match the cabinets as actually fitted rather than as drawn, and it adds a wait between the carcasses going in and the worktop going on. Anyone planning the fit around a fixed date needs to build that wait into the programme.
Working out which of these apply to a particular kitchen is easier once quotes are in front of you, because a supplier's proposed programme should show where first fix, second fix and templating sit. The guide to getting and comparing kitchen quotes covers what to ask a supplier to put in writing before that programme is agreed.
The steps in order
Each stage answers a question the next stage depends on. A budget set before you have measured the room, or a supplier chosen before you have compared guarantees, tends to cost you time later.
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Set a budget
A kitchen budget needs to cover more than the units: the worktop, appliances, fitting labour, and any electrical or plumbing work the fit disturbs. Settling this figure before you visit a showroom stops later quotes looking cheaper or dearer than they really are, when in fact they simply include different things.
Fitting it yourselfBudget for units, worktop and appliances, and price the fitting labour, plumbing and electrical work separately with your own tradesperson.
Buying supply-and-fitAsk what the fitting price covers: removing the old kitchen, making good the walls and floor, and connecting the appliances.
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Measure the room
Record the room's width, length and height, the position of every window, door and radiator, and where the water, waste and electrical connections currently run. These are the figures a supplier will use to draw a layout, and having them yourself lets you check that layout against the room.
A supplier will remeasure before confirming your order, but your own measurements are what let you compare two suppliers' proposals against each other.
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Choose a style
This is where door finish, colour and general layout get decided, before you start comparing named ranges against each other. Fixing a style first narrows the ranges worth comparing.
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Compare ranges by specification
Once the style is settled, the ranges that fit it can differ underneath: the carcass (the structural box of the cabinet) might be 16mm or 18mm board, the hinges and drawer runners might carry different guarantee terms, and the door overlay (how far the door covers the carcass face) affects the gap you will see between doors once fitted. These are the figures worth placing side by side before you ask for a quote.
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Choose a supplier
The checks that tell suppliers apart are practical: trading status, written guarantees, trade body membership, and what happens to your deposit if the company stops trading before the kitchen is delivered.
A retailer or kitchen makerCheck what the guarantee covers on cabinets, doors, worktop and workmanship, and whether fitting is done by the retailer's own team or passed to a subcontractor.
An independent fitterCheck the fitter's own insurance and any guarantee on their labour, since the cabinet and appliance guarantees still come from the manufacturer.
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Check the quote
A quote should list every unit, appliance and worktop item by its product code, plus the fitting labour and any building work, as separate lines. A quote that bundles everything into one figure is harder to compare against a second quote, and harder to query if something goes missing at delivery.
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Sign and pay
The contract sets out the delivery date, the deposit amount, and what happens if either side needs to cancel or if the date slips. Read this before paying anything.
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The fit itself
First fix is the plumbing and electrical work done before the units go in; second fix is what connects appliances and fits sockets once the units are standing. A stone worktop usually needs templating, a visit by the fabricator to take an exact template of the finished carcass run before the stone is cut, which adds time to the programme.
Extraction ducted outsideThe duct run needs to be short enough, with few enough bends, to reach the extraction rate the kitchen needs.
Recirculating hoodThe hood filters and returns air to the room, which changes what counts as adequate extraction for that kitchen.
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The snagging list
Snagging is the process of walking round the finished kitchen, noting anything that is not right, such as a door out of alignment or a plinth left uncut, and giving that list to the installer to put right. Doing this before final payment is what gives the list any weight.
Some of these stages overlap in practice. Many buyers measure the room and settle on a style at the same time, and a supplier will remeasure before the order is confirmed regardless of what you bring in.
What to check and decide at each stage
Some stages ask you to decide something, such as which finish or which supplier to go with. Others ask you to check something against a fixed standard, where there is a right answer whether you like it or not. Keeping the two apart saves you guessing at things that are already settled by a regulation or a maker's own specification.
Ventilation, before you order the hood
The hob and hood you choose set the extraction rate you need, and the room and ducting set how hard the hood has to work to reach it. Approved Document F gives the minimum figure, but what applies to your kitchen depends on the room's size, the hob type, and how far the ducting runs and how many bends it takes along the way. Working that out before the hood is ordered avoids buying one that cannot meet the figure on paper once it is fitted. Cooker Hoods: Extraction Rates, Noise at Every Speed and What Part F Requires sets out the calculation.
Gas, electrics and building control
Moving a gas point, adding a socket or circuit, or running a new duct through an outside wall can bring in Gas Safe registration, Part P notification or building control, depending on what is changing and where in the UK the work is happening. Deciding who carries out that work, and then checking it has been certified once it is done, sits apart from choosing the kitchen itself and is worth settling early, because it affects when the fitters can start. Gas, Electrics and Building Control in a Kitchen Refit covers what applies to a typical refit.
Quotes that actually compare
A quote only means something next to another quote if both list the same things: units by product code, hardware, worktop, appliances, delivery and fitting labour shown separately rather than folded into one figure. Deciding how many suppliers to ask, and what to send each one so the quotes line up, is worth doing before the first showroom visit. Get Kitchen Quotes sets out how to ask and what to check once the quotes are in.
The checklist for each stage of buying
Print this and tick off each item before you move to the next stage. Some checks matter earlier than a buyer usually expects them to.
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Room measured and constraints noted
Record wall lengths, door swings, window positions, and where existing pipework and cabling run, before you look at any range.
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Budget agreed before you visit a showroom
Decide what you can spend on units, worktop, appliances and fitting labour separately, so a quote can be checked against each part.
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Style and specification shortlisted
Note the carcass board thickness, door finish and hinge type of each range you're considering, so they can be compared line by line.
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Supplier's trading status and memberships checked
Confirm the company is active, what its guarantee actually covers, and whether it belongs to a trade body with a dispute-resolution scheme.
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Written quote itemises every line
Every unit, worktop run, appliance and fitting task should appear by name.
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Contract terms read before paying a deposit
Check how the deposit is protected, what happens if a delivery date slips, and your cancellation rights if you ordered at home.
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First fix and second fix dates confirmed
Know which visit connects pipes and cables before the units go in, and which one fits appliances and sockets afterwards.
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Snagging list agreed before final payment
Walk the finished kitchen with the fitter and note anything that needs correcting before you release the last payment.
A kitchen with an unusual layout, a listed building, or a shared party wall may need extra checks this list doesn't cover.
Ready to move to the next stage?
If you already know roughly what you want, go straight to choosing a supplier you can rely on.