Kitchen cabinet painting in Dublin is the cheapest way to make a tired kitchen look brand new. If the carcasses and layout are sound but the doors are dated, scratched or a colour you’ve grown out of, you don’t need to rip the whole thing out. We strip them back, prep them properly and respray them in the colour you want — usually for a fraction of what a new kitchen costs.
Dublin Deco Painting has been doing this since 2017. We’re a family-run, fully insured Dublin painting and decorating company, and a sprayed kitchen is one of the most popular jobs we do. Every quote is free, and we reply within one working hour.
What we paint
A kitchen respray covers everything that gets a fresh face:
- Cabinet doors and drawer fronts — the parts people actually see and touch.
- End panels, plinths and cornices — so nothing is left looking old next to the new finish.
- Carcasses and shelving where they’re on show (open units, glazed doors).
- Islands and freestanding units in the same or a contrasting colour.
We work on timber, MDF, melamine and laminate doors. Shiny laminate and melamine need the right bonding primer to hold paint long-term — getting that wrong is the usual reason a DIY cabinet job peels within a year.
Spray vs brush and roller
You can paint cabinets by hand, but brush marks and roller texture show badly on a flat door under kitchen lighting. Spraying lays down a thin, even, factory-smooth coat with no brush lines — the same finish you’d get on a brand-new fitted kitchen. It’s the finish we recommend and use on almost every job.
| Method | Finish | Best for |
|---|---|---|
| Spray | Smooth, even, no brush marks | Doors and drawer fronts — the standard for a kitchen respray |
| Brush & roller | Slight texture, visible up close | Tight spots, touch-ups, or a deliberately hand-painted look |
We mask and protect worktops, walls, floors, appliances and tiling, and we set up extraction so there’s no overspray drifting through the house.
The respray process
A durable kitchen finish is mostly prep. Skip it and the paint chips off handles and edges within months. Our process:
- Label and remove — doors, drawers and hardware come off and are numbered so everything goes back exactly where it was.
- Clean and degrease — kitchens carry years of cooking grease; paint won’t bond over it, so we cut it all back.
- Sand and fill — we key every surface, fill chips and dings, and create a sound base for adhesion.
- Prime — the correct bonding primer for your door material (this is the make-or-break step on laminate and melamine).
- Spray — multiple thin coats of hard-wearing cabinet paint for even coverage and depth of colour.
- Cure and reassemble — we let the finish harden, then rehang everything, fit any new handles and check alignment.
Durable finishes
Kitchens are wet, greasy and high-traffic, so we use professional cabinet and trim paints built to take it — moisture-resistant, washable and tough around handles, edges and the area near the hob and sink. Matt, satin/eggshell and gloss sheens are all available; satin and eggshell are the most popular for hiding fingerprints and wiping clean.
Turnaround
Most kitchens are done in 2 to 4 days depending on the number of doors and how much prep they need. You keep using the kitchen for the most part — we work around you and clean up every evening. We’ll give you a realistic, fixed timeline before we start, not a vague guess.
Popular cabinet and kitchen-press colours
Irish kitchens are leaning two ways at the moment — bright timeless neutrals and deep statement tones:
- Whites, creams and off-whites for a bright, open kitchen.
- Light and warm greys — still the safe, sellable choice.
- Navy, charcoal and deep green on islands or lower presses, often with a neutral on top.
- Sage, muted blue and soft taupe for a softer, more natural feel.
A two-tone kitchen — darker base presses, lighter wall units — is one of the most requested looks. For a full rundown of shades that work in Irish kitchens, see our guide to the 7 finest kitchen cabinet paint colours.
Best paint for kitchen cabinets in Ireland
There is no single “best” tin — the right paint depends on your door material and the finish you want — but a kitchen is the wrong place to cut corners on coatings. We use professional-grade cabinet and trim systems built for kitchens: a bonding primer matched to the surface (timber, MDF, laminate or melamine), then a hard-wearing, washable topcoat that stands up to grease, steam and daily wiping.
Irish homeowners often ask for specific ranges, and we’re happy to work with them. Colourtrend and Fleetwood are the Irish brands we’re asked for most, and we can also spray Dulux, Farrow & Ball and RAL-matched colours. What matters far more than the label on the tin is the prep and the primer underneath — that’s what stops a sprayed kitchen chipping around the handles a year later.
Is it worth painting kitchen cabinets?
For most Dublin kitchens, yes. If the carcasses, hinges and layout are sound and it’s only the look you’ve grown tired of, a respray gives you a near-new kitchen for a fraction of a replacement, with a fraction of the mess and no ripping out of worktops or tiling. A sprayed finish done with proper prep typically holds up for years of normal family use.
The times it isn’t worth it: if the units are water-damaged, swollen or falling apart, or the layout genuinely doesn’t work for you. We’ll tell you honestly which camp your kitchen is in when we quote — we’re not going to talk you into painting a kitchen that should be replaced.
Cost to paint kitchen cabinets in Dublin
Repainting is dramatically cheaper than replacing. A respray typically runs €500–€1,800 versus €5,000–€15,000+ for new units. For how this sits against other jobs, see our Dublin painting & decorating price guide. Guide prices for a professional, sprayed job:
| Kitchen size | Cabinet doors | Guide price |
|---|---|---|
| Small | 10–15 doors | €500–€800 |
| Medium | 15–25 doors | €800–€1,200 |
| Large | 25+ doors | €1,200–€1,800 |
What moves the price within those ranges:
| Factor | Effect on price |
|---|---|
| Premium, high-durability paint | +€100–€300 |
| Big colour change (dark to light) — extra coats | +€150–€250 |
| Heavy prep — filling, sanding, repairs | +€200–€400 |
| New handles, knobs and hinges | +€100–€500 |
| Specialty finishes (glazing, two-tone) | +€300–€600 |
Every kitchen is different, so the only accurate figure is one we quote against your actual doors. Send us a few photos and we’ll come back with a fixed price — no obligation.
Why Dublin Deco Painting
- Sprayed, not brushed — a smooth factory-grade finish, not a DIY look.
- Proper prep and the right primer for your door material, so it lasts.
- Tidy and respectful — dust sheets down, masked off, cleaned up daily.
- Fully insured, family-run, since 2017 — Google 4.9★ from Dublin homeowners.
- Free quotes, reply within one working hour.
We cover Dublin city and county and the commuter belt into Kildare, Meath and Wicklow — from Dublin city centre apartments to family homes across South County Dublin and North County Dublin. A resprayed kitchen also pairs well with a wider refresh — see our interior painting and furniture painting services.
Thinking about updating your kitchen? Get a free, no-obligation quote or call 085 178 2117 — we’ll tell you honestly whether a respray is the right call for your cabinets.