Kitchen fitting
Flat-pack kitchen fitting
Flat-pack kitchen fitting is assembling and then installing a kitchen whose carcasses arrive as boards and fittings in boxes. Each cabinet is built on site, checked for square and given its back panel, then fixed, levelled and secured like a rigid unit. Worktops, doors, panels, plinths and connections follow. Assembly adds time, so a flat-pack fit usually takes a day or two longer than the same kitchen in rigid units.
When do you need flat-pack kitchen fitting?
Flat-pack kitchens are a popular choice because they cost less to buy and deliver, they are easy to carry into flats and terraced houses, and many ranges use the same carcass sizes as rigid kitchens. Built carefully, a flat-pack carcass is a sound base for a kitchen. The difference is that assembly happens in your home rather than in a factory, so the care taken at that stage decides how straight and strong the finished kitchen will be.
We start with a free survey visit to check the plan, the boxes and the room, then quote in writing for assembly and fitting together. On site, carcasses are built on a clean, flat surface, measured for square and fitted with their back panels before they go anywhere near the wall. Base units are levelled on their legs, wall units are hung on rails or brackets that suit the wall, and cut edges around the sink are sealed against moisture.
What is included?
- Free survey visit to check the plan, the boxes and the room
- Carcasses assembled on site on a flat surface and checked for square
- Back panels fitted fully into their grooves or fixed as the instructions require
- Base units levelled on adjustable legs and fixed to the wall and to each other
- Wall units hung on hanging rails or brackets fixed securely into the wall
- Drawer boxes, runners and hinges assembled, fitted and adjusted to line up
- Laminate worktops cut and jointed, with cut edges sealed around the sink
- Panels, plinths, sink, tap and appliance connections to existing points
How much does flat-pack kitchen fitting cost?
These are national guide prices including VAT at 20%. Prices are higher in London and the South East and lower in much of the North, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. Choose your area below for a local range.
| Typical project | Guide price |
|---|---|
| Small flat-pack kitchen, built and fittedCarcasses assembled on site, then fitted as a rigid kitchen would be | £1,800–£3,000 |
| Medium flat-pack kitchen, built and fittedAs above | £2,800–£4,200 |
| Large flat-pack kitchen with tall units, built and fittedAs above | £4,000–£5,500 |
Flat-pack prices include assembling the carcasses on site and fitting units, doors, panels, plinths and laminate worktops with connections to existing points; stone worktops, new circuits, moved services, tiling and flooring are extra. Your price is confirmed after a free survey visit.
How long does it take?
Typical timescale: 4 to 6 days for a small kitchen; 9 to 14 days for a large one. The programme for your kitchen is set out in the quote, and depends on the size of the room, what is moving, lead times for units and worktops and, after plastering, drying time.
Do you need permission or building regulations approval?
The rules differ across the UK. Choose your nation:
Assembling and fitting a flat-pack kitchen needs no planning permission in England; if the building is listed, listed building consent may be needed where the work affects its character. Electrics must meet BS 7671: extra sockets or spurs on an existing kitchen circuit are not notifiable, but a new cooker or induction circuit is notifiable under Part P. Gas hobs are connected only by Gas Safe registered engineers, and any new cooker hood should meet Approved Document F.
In Wales, a flat-pack kitchen needs no planning permission, though a listed building may need listed building consent. Electrical rules are wider than in England, because extending an existing circuit within a kitchen is notifiable under Part P as well as new circuits and consumer unit changes. New sockets for the layout are therefore usually certified through a competent person scheme or building control. Gas work is for Gas Safe registered engineers only.
In Scotland, fitting flat-pack units is not work that needs a building warrant, and most electrical work in a house does not need one either, but it must meet the building standards and BS 7671 and be certified. A gas hob or cooker must be connected by a Gas Safe registered engineer. If a new hood or extract fan is fitted, it should provide the kitchen extract ventilation that standard 3.14 expects.
In Northern Ireland, a flat-pack kitchen fitted with the services left where they are needs no planning permission or building control application. Domestic electrical work has no notification scheme, but new sockets or circuits should be installed and tested to BS 7671 and certified. Gas hobs must be connected by a Gas Safe registered engineer, and Technical Booklet K gives the ventilation guidance for kitchens.
What should you think about before starting?
- Allow extra time on site: a small flat-pack kitchen typically takes four to six days, against three to five for rigid units.
- Keep every bag of cam fittings, dowels and screws with its own box, as parts for different units often look almost identical.
- Clear a space next to the kitchen for assembly; carcasses need a flat floor and room to be checked for square before fitting.
- Look at the back panels supplied; thin backs rely on being fitted correctly into their grooves to keep each carcass square and rigid.
- Wall unit fixings need to suit your walls, because plasterboard, old lime plaster and solid brick each call for a different approach.
- Ask whether a sink base mat is included, and make sure every cut edge around the sink, waste and pipe holes is sealed.
How does the project run?
- Guide price. Use the online guide-price tool or call us for a realistic range for your area
- Free survey visit. We measure the room, check walls, floors and service positions, and look at the plan or delivery
- Itemised written quote. Broken down by stage and trade, with any worktop templating, engineer or approval costs listed
- Fitting in the right order. Strip-out, first fix, units, worktops, second fix and finishing, with the trades booked in sequence
- Final check and handover. A walk-round together, certificates for electrics and gas, and the manufacturers' documents
Questions about flat-pack kitchen fitting
Is it more expensive to fit a flat-pack kitchen?
Yes, a little, because each carcass is assembled on site before it is fitted. Guide prices are £1,800 to £3,000 including VAT for a small flat-pack kitchen, £2,800 to £4,200 for a medium one and £4,000 to £5,500 for a large kitchen with tall units. The lower price of flat-pack units often balances out the extra fitting time. Your price is confirmed after a survey visit.
What is the difference between flat-pack and rigid kitchen units?
Rigid units arrive factory-assembled, usually glued and dowelled, so they are ready to fix. Flat-pack units arrive as boards and fittings in a box and are built on site. Both can make a good kitchen. Flat-pack is cheaper to buy and easier to carry into tight spaces, while rigid units save assembly time and come square from the factory, which is why the fitting labour is a little lower.
How do you make sure flat-pack cabinets are square?
Each carcass is built on a flat surface and measured corner to corner before its back panel goes in; equal diagonals mean it is square. The back panel then holds that shape. Units are checked again once they stand on their legs and are fixed together, because a carcass that is even slightly out of square shows up later as doors that never quite line up.
Can you fit a flat-pack kitchen I have already started building?
Yes, usually. We check any carcasses you have assembled for square, tight joints and properly fitted back panels before they are used, and rebuild any that are not right. Units built in another room are moved carefully, as a carcass without its worktop and wall fixings is easy to twist out of shape. We look at them on the survey and price the work accordingly.
Are flat-pack wall units strong enough once they are hung?
Yes, when they are assembled and hung correctly. Wall units carry their load through the back panel and the hanging fixings, so the back must be fully fitted and the rail or brackets fixed into the wall with fixings that suit its construction. Plasterboard walls may need timber noggins or specialist fixings behind the board. We check the wall types at the survey and plan the fixings before the fit.
How do you protect a flat-pack sink unit from water?
Mainly by sealing. Cut edges of board near the sink, including the holes for pipes and the waste, are sealed before the unit is fitted, and the worktop cut-out is sealed before the sink goes in. A sink base mat adds a second layer of protection against drips. Isolation valves on the supplies also mean that a later leak can be shut off quickly.
Related guides
- Fit only or supply and fit: which is better value for a kitchen?
- Flat-pack or rigid kitchen: what is the difference?
- Buying a kitchen yourself: what should you check before ordering?
Related kitchen services
Where do we carry out flat-pack kitchen fitting?
We take on flat-pack kitchen fitting across England, Wales, mainland Scotland and Northern Ireland. Choose your area for local guide prices and the rules that apply there.
England
- Bedfordshire
- Berkshire
- Bristol
- Buckinghamshire
- Cambridgeshire
- Cheshire
- Cornwall
- Cumbria
- Derbyshire
- Devon
- Dorset
- County Durham
- the East Riding of Yorkshire
- East Sussex
- Essex
- Gloucestershire
- Greater London
- Greater Manchester
- Hampshire
- Herefordshire
- Hertfordshire
- the Isle of Wight
- Kent
- Lancashire
- Leicestershire
- Lincolnshire
- Merseyside
- Norfolk
- North Yorkshire
- Northamptonshire
- Northumberland
- Nottinghamshire
- Oxfordshire
- Rutland
- Shropshire
- Somerset
- South Yorkshire
- Staffordshire
- Suffolk
- Surrey
- Tyne and Wear
- Warwickshire
- the West Midlands
- West Sussex
- West Yorkshire
- Wiltshire
- Worcestershire