The construction of your cabinets is an important decision in the process of designing your new kitchen or bathroom.  Cabinets are typically made using either plywood or an engineered wood such as MDF, furniture board or particle board.  There are valid arguments for choosing either of these options, and you can find a lot of the arguments by searching online for “plywood or particleboard cabinets.”  The goal of this article is not to convince you that one is better than the other, but rather to present a few of the arguments for and against each of the construction options.

Particleboard, furniture board, or MDF are engineered wood products made up of wood particles that are joined together under pressure using a glue compound as a binding agent.  They are made in sheets, like plywood, and are cut to size as needed.  Because they can be manufactured efficiently (often using by-products of other wood manufacturing processes), engineered wood products are often considerably less expensive than true plywood products.

Plywood is also an engineered wood product, in which thin layers of wood are glued together, often with alternating layers of grain direction, to form a thicker sheet of several plys – hence the name, plywood.  Plywood is typically lighter than other engineered wood products, but it’s easily as strong and durable as its engineered counterparts.  Because it is layered in sheets, plywood is typically stronger than sheets of solid wood while it is also less expensive.

Most people consider plywood to be the superior choice for cabinet construction.  In fact, some manufacturers only use plywood in the construction of their cabinets.  Engineered wood products have received notoriety because they have a tendency to swell when soaked in liquid.  However, plywood is also absorbent and will soak up moisture similarly to particleboard.  In my experience, either construction option, when exposed to prolonged soaking (such as a plumbing failure or after a fire), will probably be damaged may need to be replaced.

Another difference between cabinets with plywood construction and cabinets with particleboard is the appearance of the sides.  Plywood cabinets have a veneer outer panel – that is, the outer layer of the side is made of stained, sanded and finished wood to match the face and doors of the cabinet.  Particleboard cabinets, however, have a thin vinyl laminate that matches the wood color and grain applied to the outer edges of the sides.  To achieve the same look on the sides of particleboard cabinets, plywood skins or decorative end panels can be added to the exposed ends at a very affordable price.

In the end, my recommendation would be this:

• Research the differences between particleboard and plywood so that you know and understand the differences between the two.
• Ask for a quote for your cabinets in any construction options you’re interested in.
• Compare the costs of the construction options and decide whether the more expensive plywood options are worth the difference in your cost, or if you’d be equally happy with the particleboard option and the savings it presents. 
• Finally, ask your kitchen designer any questions you have about construction (or any other aspect of your kitchen, for that matter).  As the old saying goes, the only dumb question is the one that doesn’t get asked.