Brett Field
Refacing is usually the cheaper choice if your cabinet boxes are sound. What's The Damage (Gold Coast page) puts a respray, wrap or resurface of the doors and panels at $1,950 to $9,800, against $11,750 to $34,300 for new cabinets from a cabinet maker.
Below are the costs of each refacing method, what new cabinets cost, when replacing is the better spend, and the Queensland licence and deposit rules. These are market prices from cost guides, checked on 12 October 2026. They are not a quote from us.
What is the difference between refacing and replacing kitchen cabinets?
Refacing keeps your cabinet boxes and layout and changes what you see. Replacing takes the old cabinets out and puts new ones in.
The boxes are called carcasses. They are the shells behind the doors that hold the shelves and drawers. What's The Damage lists these main ways to reface them:
- Vinyl wrap. A heat-sealed film over the existing doors.
- New doors and panels. New doors, drawer fronts and end panels fixed to the old carcasses.
- 2-pac respray. The existing doors sprayed in a durable two-pack paint. A colour change without new doors.
- Full cosmetic refresh. Refacing plus a new benchtop, splashback and paint.
Replacing means new carcasses as well as new doors. You need it to change the layout, add an island or fix boxes that have failed. It also brings demolition, and often plumbing and electrical work.
How much does it cost to reface kitchen cabinets?
About $1,950 to $9,800 for the doors and panels on the Gold Coast, typically $4,400, according to What's The Damage (October 2026).
What's The Damage has no Gold Coast page that splits refacing by method. Its Melbourne resurfacing page does, so the method prices below are Melbourne figures.
| Refacing job | Price | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Respray, wrap or resurface (doors and panels only) | $1,950-$9,800, typically $4,400 | What's The Damage (Gold Coast page, October 2026) |
| Vinyl wrap doors | $2,100-$3,500 | What's The Damage (Melbourne, October 2026) |
| New doors and panels on the old carcasses | $2,100-$6,000 | What's The Damage (Melbourne, October 2026) |
| 2-pac respray of the existing doors | $3,000-$7,000 | What's The Damage (Melbourne, October 2026) |
| Benchtop overlay | $1,500-$4,000 | What's The Damage (Melbourne, October 2026) |
All prices include GST and are for a standard kitchen. What's The Damage says a refacing quote should list exactly which surfaces are new, because the gap between doors only and doors plus drawer fronts, end panels and a benchtop can be thousands.
How much does it cost to replace kitchen cabinets?
New cabinets from a cabinet maker cost $11,750 to $34,300 on the Gold Coast, typically $18,600, according to What's The Damage (October 2026). A budget renovation built around flat pack cabinets is $11,750 to $24,500.
Then add the jobs that come with tearing a kitchen out. These are What's The Damage's Gold Coast figures:
- demolition and disposal: $980 to $3,925
- plumbing rough-in: $1,475 to $4,900
- electrical rough-in: $1,475 to $3,925
The rough-ins matter most if the sink or cooktop moves. Keeping them where they are saves a big slice of the budget.
For per-metre prices and the difference between flat pack, semi-custom and custom, see our guide to kitchen cabinet costs. Our kitchen renovation cost guide covers the whole kitchen.
Reface or replace: which is cheaper?
Refacing, by a long way, if you keep the layout. Here are What's The Damage's Gold Coast figures side by side (October 2026, GST included).
| Job (What's The Damage, Gold Coast page) | Low | Typical | High |
|---|---|---|---|
| Respray, wrap or resurface doors and panels | $1,950 | $4,400 | $9,800 |
| Cosmetic refresh (reface and paint) | $7,850 | $13,700 | $19,600 |
| Budget renovation (flat pack) | $11,750 | $17,650 | $24,500 |
| Custom cabinetry (cabinet maker) | $11,750 | $18,600 | $34,300 |
| Mid-range renovation | $24,500 | $34,300 | $44,100 |
On the typical prices, a doors-and-panels refresh ($4,400) costs about a quarter of new custom cabinets ($18,600). The gap narrows once a refresh takes in a new benchtop and splashback. At that point, What's The Damage says, you are near full-refresh money and should price a proper renovation against it.
Time differs too. What's The Damage says a refacing or respray job is typically a few days to a week, against 4 to 8 weeks for a full renovation. Sparky says custom cabinets alone have a 6 to 12 week lead time before installation starts.
When should you replace kitchen cabinets instead of refacing them?
When the carcasses are damaged or the layout does not work. What's The Damage's test: reface only if the boxes have no water swelling and no sagging shelves, and you mainly want a new look.
Replace instead if:
- the board under the sink is swollen or mouldy (What's The Damage says to check there first, because "a fresh finish will not fix a damp carcass")
- there is too little bench space, or the layout fights the way you cook
- you want to move the sink or cooktop, or add an island
- shelves sag or the boxes are falling apart
Humidity is the local catch. Sparky's Brisbane guide says that in Brisbane's humidity, standard particleboard "will swell at joins and around the sink within 2-3 years". It says HMR (high moisture resistant) board is the minimum for carcasses. If your old boxes are standard particleboard and already swelling, new doors on top will not last. If you replace, What's The Damage's Gold Coast page says to ask for moisture-resistant carcasses and sealed edges near the sink.
Respray, vinyl wrap or new doors: which refacing method should you choose?
Choose by whether you want a new colour or a new look. What's The Damage says a respray changes the colour of your existing doors, while new doors let you change the style and profile too.
| Method | What it changes | Watch out for |
|---|---|---|
| Vinyl wrap | Colour and finish, cheapest | Least hard-wearing (What's The Damage). Can lift near ovens and in heat and humidity (Sparky) |
| 2-pac respray | Colour, with a durable factory-style finish | A chip means respraying the whole door (Sparky) |
| New doors and panels | Colour, style and profile, such as Shaker | Check the quote also lists drawer fronts and end panels (What's The Damage) |
Check what your doors are made of first. Sparky says melamine doors "cannot be repainted", so ask the painter how they would handle yours before you pay for a respray. Sparky prices new doors at about $150 to $400 per m2 for melamine, $350 to $700 for 2-pac and $400 to $900 for solid timber or Shaker (September 2026).
How much does a full cosmetic kitchen refresh cost?
About $7,850 to $19,600 on the Gold Coast, typically $13,700, according to What's The Damage. That covers refacing and paint.
| Cosmetic refresh | Price | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Reface and paint | $7,850-$19,600 | What's The Damage (Gold Coast page, October 2026) |
| New doors, benchtop, splashback and hardware, same layout | $8,000-$15,000, about 1 to 2 weeks | What's The Damage (Gold Coast page, scope list, October 2026) |
| Reface, benchtop, splashback and paint | $8,400-$21,000 | What's The Damage (Melbourne, October 2026) |
| Budget or cosmetic kitchen renovation | $15,000-$30,000 | Three Birds Renovations (July 2026) |
What's The Damage's Gold Coast page gives two ranges for this scope, so we show both. Three Birds' cosmetic tier can include painting the existing cabinets, new handles, a new sink and tapware, and a laminate or budget benchtop. If you are keeping the cabinets but changing the top, our guide to kitchen benchtop replacement costs has prices by material.
Do you need a licence to reface kitchen cabinets in Queensland?
Yes, if the job is worth more than $3,300. In Queensland, building work over $3,300 must be done by a contractor with a QBCC licence, and plumbing, drainage and gas fitting need a licence at any value.
The QBCC's cabinet making licence covers installing, refurbishing, restoring and repairing kitchen cabinets on-site. Its painting and decorating licence covers applying paint. Ask which class your contractor holds. The QBCC has the final word on which class fits your job.
The QBCC also caps deposits:
- 20% for work of $3,300 or less
- 10% for work of $3,301 to $19,999
- 5% for work over $20,000
There is one exception that matters for new cabinets. In limited cases, a deposit of up to 20% is allowed when custom work made away from the site is more than half the contract price. The QBCC page has the full rule.
How do I compare reface and replace quotes?
Get one quote for each option, written the same way. Check that each one says:
- which surfaces are new: doors only, or drawer fronts, end panels and benchtop too
- the method and finish by name: vinyl wrap, 2-pac respray or new doors
- what board new carcasses are made from (HMR or better)
- whether demolition, plumbing and electrical work are in the price
- how many days the kitchen is out of use
- the QBCC licence class, and a deposit within the limits above
We do full kitchen renovations and partial refits across the Gold Coast, from new doors and cupboards to benchtops and island benches. We book the licensed trades and give you a timeline with the proposal. See our kitchen renovations page for the kitchens we have done.
Where do these prices come from?
Checked on 12 October 2026: What's The Damage (kitchen renovation cost Gold Coast, and kitchen resurfacing cost Melbourne, both verified October 2026), Sparky (kitchen cabinetry, Australia and Brisbane pages, updated September 2026) and Three Birds Renovations (kitchen renovation cost, 16 July 2026). Rules from the QBCC (when you need a licence, cabinet making and painting and decorating licence scopes, deposits and progress payments). We will check the prices again every three months.
See our kitchen renovations work, or check what your job will cost.
