Cabinet Design Guide: Dimensions and Rules

Standard Kitchen Cabinet Dimensions

All figures in millimetres. “Height” is measured from finished floor level unless stated otherwise.

Element	Standard (mm)	Why it is that size
Base cabinet height (floor to worktop)	850–900	900 is the most common specification. Lower it for shorter users rather than enduring a counter that sits at rib height.
Base cabinet carcass depth	560–580	Sits under a 600mm worktop with a small front overhang.
Worktop depth	600	610 if you allow an overhang. Enough for a sink cut-out and a worksurface in front of it.
Toe kick height	100–150	100 is typical. The recess is usually 50–75 behind the door face so your feet fit under while you work.
Wall cabinet depth	300–350	350 takes a dinner plate. Deeper and you walk into them and work in your own shadow.
Wall cabinet height	700–900	700–800 is the usual residential figure.
Wall cabinet underside, above worktop	450–600	450 minimum directly above a hob. 550–600 is normal on other runs.
Top of wall cabinet from floor	1,400–1,500	Or leave 350–600 clear below the ceiling, whichever suits the room.
Tall or pantry unit height	2,100–2,400	Confirm the actual ceiling height before committing — ceiling lines rarely run level across a whole room.
Tall unit depth	600	Matches the base run so the fronts align.
Worktop thickness	20 or 30	20 is common in quartz. 30 reads heavier and changes the reveal at the edge.
Standard module widths	300 / 400 / 500 / 600 / 800 / 900	Door and drawer widths that suit standard hardware and stay structurally sensible.

Clearances: The Numbers That Decide the Layout

Dimensions make a cabinet fit. Clearances make a kitchen usable. These are the figures to check a layout against before you commit to it.

Clearance	Minimum (mm)	Preferred (mm)
Aisle between facing cabinet runs	900	1,000–1,200 where two people cook together
In front of a dishwasher or oven	1,200	1,200 — the door has to open while you stand there
Worktop run between sink and hob	600	600–900 of uninterrupted surface
Any single leg of the work triangle	1,200	1,200–2,700
Total work triangle (three legs summed)	4,000	4,000–8,000
Refrigerator door swing	Model-specific. Check the appliance specification sheet before fixing the adjacent return — a fridge that cannot open fully is the most common layout regret.
Hood clearance above hob	Set by the hob and hood manufacturer, typically 650–750 for a domestic hood. Their instruction overrides any general figure.

The work triangle is the path between sink, hob and refrigerator. A layout can satisfy every individual clearance and still be exhausting to cook in if that triangle is stretched or if the preparation surface sits a long walk from the sink.

Wardrobe Dimensions

Element	Standard (mm)	Notes
Depth — hinged, hanging clothes	600	550 is the practical minimum. Below that, hangers sit against the door and clothes crease.
Depth — sliding doors	650–700	The track assembly consumes depth. A sliding wardrobe built at 600 has less usable hanging depth than a hinged one.
Depth — shelves only	300–400	For folded clothes, linen and boxes.
Depth — drawers	500–550	Clear internal depth, measured after runners.
Long hanging clear height	1,500–1,700	Dresses, coats, long garments.
Short hanging clear height (double hang)	1,000–1,100 per level	Two rods roughly 1,000 apart store about twice as much in the same footprint.
Top shelf from floor	2,000–2,200	Anything above this needs a step to reach, so put seasonal storage there.

A wardrobe planned on “how many metres of wall” rather than what you actually own usually ends up with too much shelf and not enough hanging. Count the long garments first — they are the constraint.

Design Rules for Brunei’s Climate

Brunei runs at roughly 80–90% relative humidity year-round, and the coastal belt adds salt air on top of it. These are the decisions that separate a cabinet that lasts fifteen years from one that swells in three.

• Default carcass material: ENF-grade plywood. MDF and particleboard are used only when a client asks for them by name.
• Edges or nothing: 1mm ABS edge banding bonded with EVA hot-melt adhesive at 180–190°C. Ninety percent of humidity failures in Brunei start at an unsealed or cold-pressed edge, not in the middle of the board.
• Under or beside a sink: specify moisture protection and a full edge seal. This is the single wettest cabinet in any house.
• Coastal addresses (Mentiri, Kota Batu, Muara): genuine Blum CLIP top hinges and PVC kickboards. Unbranded steel hardware in these zones typically corrodes within about 24 months.
• Countertop material: engineered quartz stone as the default, sintered stone where heat resistance matters. Granite, marble and solid surface are not used.
• Wet kitchens: single-wall or L-shape keeps cost practical for a utility space, and ventilation planning matters more than cabinet specification alone.
• Government housing (RPN, STKRJ, Lugu): custom depths integrate with the standard utility placements instead of relying on filler panels to hide the gaps.

What Each Design Decision Costs

Indicative figures from Caramella project data. They are here so design choices can be weighed against each other, not as a quote.

Design decision	Cost impact (BND)
Each additional linear metre of base cabinet run	+600–1,200, depending on the door finish
Door finish — Formica (HPL), per door	80–150
Door finish — Lacquer, per door	200–400
Quartz countertop	120–350 per linear foot
Genuine Blum hardware versus economy alternatives	+15–25%, and considerably longer service life in humidity
Kitchen total — single wall (I-shape)	4,000–7,500
Kitchen total — L-shaped	7,000–13,000
Kitchen total — galley	8,000–14,000
Kitchen total — U-shaped	10,000–18,000

Two things are worth noticing. First, layout size drives cost more than finish: adding metres of cabinetry costs more than upgrading every door. Second, the levers that save money are door finish, countertop choice and island size — not carcass material or hardware, which are the parts that fail first in this climate.

Use the cost estimator to price a layout →

How to Plan a Layout Yourself, in Order

The sequence matters more than the effort. Most design mistakes come from choosing a look before the room has been measured.

• 1. Measure the room, not the cabinets. Record wall lengths at floor and at worktop height, ceiling height at several points, window sill heights, column and beam positions, and where the doors and windows swing.
• 2. Write down what has to be stored. Count the long garments, the pots, the appliances. Storage planned from a photograph rather than an inventory ends up wrong.
• 3. Fix the appliances and utilities first. Sink, hob, refrigerator, and the positions of the power points and water supply. Cabinets are designed around those, never the reverse.
• 4. Choose the layout shape. Room under 6m² suits a single wall or small L-shape; 6–10m² is the classic residential L; over 15m² or open-plan takes an L plus island.
• 5. Apply the dimensions. Worktop at 900, base carcass 560–580, wall cabinets 300–350 deep with their underside 450–600 above the counter.
• 6. Check the clearances before you fall in love with it. 900mm aisles, 1,200mm in front of the dishwasher, the work triangle between 4,000 and 8,000mm.
• 7. Price it before committing. A layout that fits and works but is 40% over budget is not a solved problem.

Caramella measures the room with a laser and produces 3D renders before anything is fabricated, at no cost. If you have already drawn a layout yourself, that is the point to bring it — it is far cheaper to correct a plan than to correct a carcass.

Final Checks Before You Commit

• Does every door and drawer open without hitting another one, a handle, or a wall?
• Is there at least 900mm of walking space wherever two people will be working?
• Is the tall unit clear of the window sill and the ceiling line?
• Are the power points reachable, and not trapped behind a cabinet back panel?
• Is the sink cabinet specified with moisture protection and a full edge seal?
• Does the refrigerator door open fully past the adjacent return?
• Has the hob and hood manufacturer’s clearance figure been checked against the wall cabinet height?
• Does the layout still work if the ceiling is 20mm lower at one end than the other?

What Caramella Does and Does Not Do

Clear scope prevents most misunderstandings, so it is stated plainly here.

In scope	Out of scope
Kitchen cabinets, built-in wardrobes, TV consoles, shoe cabinets, study desks, bathroom vanities, feature walls, commercial fit-outs	Structural work, demolition, plumbing, electrical wiring, tiling, and anything requiring ABCI approval
Design, measurement, 3D renders, CNC fabrication, edge sealing and installation	General contracting or project management across trades
Lead time 10–14 weeks standard, 14–18 weeks for a full house	Turnkey renovation
1-year warranty covering hardware and workmanship, resolved by a local team	—

Financing is available for qualifying projects through BIBD At-Tamwil Islamic financing. See financing options →

Definitions

• Carcass — the box of the cabinet: sides, base, back and shelves, without doors or drawer fronts.
• Gable end — an exposed side panel of a cabinet run, usually visible at the end of a kitchen and finished to match the doors.
• Filler panel — a narrow strip used to close the gap between a cabinet and a wall. Necessary, but a sign the room was not fitted precisely if you need many of them.
• Toe kick (also plinth) — the recessed panel at the base of a cabinet run that lets your feet sit under the worktop.
• Overhang — how far the worktop projects past the cabinet carcass in front.
• Dead corner — the unusable space where two cabinet runs meet at 90°, unless a corner unit or carousel is specified.
• Work triangle — the path connecting sink, hob and refrigerator. The classic measure of kitchen efficiency.
• Wet kitchen — a separate, enclosed space used for heavy frying and wok cooking, to keep the main house free of cooking smells. The dry kitchen is the main area for light cooking and daily living.
• ENF grade — the lowest formaldehyde emission tier in the GB/T 39600-2021 standard, at or below 0.025 mg/m³. Caramella's certified boards test below 0.010 mg/m³.

Frequently Asked Questions

Related Reading

• Kitchen Layout Types Compared
• The Realistic DIY Cabinet Guide
• Cabinet Door Finishes Compared
• Countertop Materials Compared
• Humidity in Brunei: Cabinetry Design Basics
• Kitchen Cost Data from 620+ Projects

Related Services

• Kitchen Cabinets
• Built-in Wardrobes
• Wardrobe Cost Guide
• Full Pricing Guide