ᐅ Experiences with IKEA Kitchens – Quality, Installation, Service?

Hello everyone,

I’m currently thinking about getting a new kitchen and have come across IKEA kitchens. The price-performance ratio seems pretty good, and I like the design. However, I’ve heard mixed opinions from friends – some are very satisfied, while others have had issues with certain cabinet parts or the assembly process.

So I wanted to ask here: What experiences have you had with IKEA kitchens?

• How satisfied are you with the quality of the furniture (e.g., cabinets, countertops, drawers, appliances)?
• Did you assemble the kitchen yourself or have it assembled? Was it complicated?
• How well does the planning service in-store and online work?
• What about customer service when parts are missing or something breaks?
• Is there anything you would do differently in hindsight?

I’d love to hear about your experiences, both positive and negative – especially if you’ve been using it for a few years! Thanks in advance 🙂

Best regards,
Sandra

Sandra27 schrieb:

What experiences have you had with IKEA kitchens?

I have owned two IKEA kitchens myself. Both times, I only used the cabinet boxes and fronts, with third-party appliances and DIY installation—no IKEA countertops.

Conclusion: IKEA again and again. It’s affordable because of the straightforward self-assembly, and the materials are good. Of course, the options are somewhat limited compared to having dozens of different kitchen brands to choose from.
I planned both kitchens entirely by myself using the online planner.
I didn’t get countertops from IKEA because their selection is very limited (my countertop actually cost almost as much as all the cabinets combined, as it’s textured granite with extra depth and flush-mounted cooktop and sink).
Appliances have always been from external suppliers, so I have no experience with IKEA appliances.

Thank you very much for your detailed response and the information about the self-assembly as well as the external appliances and the countertop you used!

I have one more question:
What was your experience with the installation and the fit of the Ikea cabinets when combined with the external appliances and the non-Ikea countertop? Were there any particular challenges regarding measurements, cutouts, or adjustments? And do you have any tips on what to pay special attention to during the planning and purchase of external appliances to ensure everything fits in the end?

Thanks again and best regards!

We have moved twice already with our Ikea kitchen, and that has never been an issue.
We chose the 8cm (3-inch) thick white countertop with an aluminum edge, which is really great and hassle-free; however, I believe it is no longer available.
We purchased the appliances separately, and added a 4cm (1.5-inch) multiplex bar countertop that we planned ourselves, which was very affordable and worked perfectly.
We would definitely do it again. There are also some good installation services available through online marketplaces, although we always assembled the cabinets ourselves and only had the final installation done professionally, which is quite straightforward.
There are lots of hacks online showing how to creatively expand the system.

It depends on the expected lifespan and tolerance for signs of wear. The weak points are the quality of the particleboard/MDF panels. The hinges themselves are good, but they tend to loosen in the drilled holes over time, causing the gaps to no longer look neat. The edges are also not very high quality; even minor water damage causes the cabinet edges to swell, and the surface coatings of the cabinets scratch and discolor very easily.

After having five IKEA kitchens, we have now had a Ballerina kitchen for six years, and its cabinet boxes and drawers are noticeably better in quality.

Ikea is a good and affordable choice. However, it requires self-assembly.

Be careful, the countertop has a special depth size, but it is now available at almost every hardware store.

For the dishwasher, you need rails designed to fit it.