How Long Does Kitchen Cabinet Installation Take? Real Timelines

How long does it take to install kitchen cabinets? Professional installers typically finish a kitchen cabinet installation in 1–5 days, depending on kitchen size — about 1–2 days for a small kitchen (10 cabinets or fewer), 2–3 days for an average kitchen (10–20 cabinets), and 3–5 days for a larger kitchen. DIY installation usually takes longer, around 4–7 days, since it isn't a full-time job for most homeowners. If you're installing ready-to-assemble (RTA) cabinets, add real assembly time on top — Lily Ann's own RTA cabinets assemble in about 7–10 minutes per wall cabinet and 10–15 minutes per base cabinet.

Professional install: 1–2 days (small kitchen), 2–3 days (average), 3–5 days (large) — plan on a full workweek at most, not weeks.
DIY install: typically 4–7 days total, since most homeowners can only work evenings/weekends and are learning as they go.
RTA assembly (Lily Ann's own cabinets): wall cabinets take about 7–10 minutes each, base cabinets 10–15 minutes each — that's a separate step from installation, and it's genuinely fast.
The install-day count is not the whole renovation. Ordering, measuring, and site prep can add 1–2 weeks before install day, and countertop templating/fabrication can add 1–3 weeks after.
One person can assemble and install most RTA cabinets alone — a second set of hands just speeds up the larger units (pantries, oven cabinets, lazy susans).
If old cabinets need to come out first, budget an extra day for professional removal, or more than a week if you're removing them yourself alongside everything else.
Lily Ann's RTA lines ship pre-cut, pre-drilled, and pre-finished specifically to keep both assembly and install time short compared to fully custom cabinetry.

Most kitchen cabinet installations take 1 to 5 days with a professional crew, or 4 to 7 days for a DIY install — and if you're working with ready-to-assemble (RTA) cabinets, real assembly time gets added on top of whichever installation path you choose.

This guide breaks down real timelines by kitchen size and install method, how long RTA self-assembly actually takes using Lily Ann's own published figures, what actually slows an install down, and how the install-day count compares to the full renovation timeline. Every published time range below is sourced and cited — see the brief for the full research trail.

How Long Does Professional Kitchen Cabinet Installation Take?

A professional installer typically needs 1 to 5 days, scaling almost directly with how many cabinets are going in.

Kitchen size	Cabinet count	Professional install time
Small / single-wall kitchen	10 cabinets or fewer	1–2 days
Average kitchen	10–20 cabinets	2–3 days
Large kitchen	20+ cabinets	3–5 days

Ranges reflect what multiple independent installer/contractor sources (triumphkm.com, thedesignery.com, stonemillcabinetry.com) publish for on-site install time — see brief §3 for the full breakdown of each. This is on-site install labor only, not the full renovation (see §4 below).

Day 1 is usually delivery, staging, and base cabinet layout; base cabinets get set and leveled over the next day or two; wall cabinets, trim, and hardware follow; the last day or two is adjustments and getting the kitchen ready for countertop templating. If your old cabinets need to come out first, most crews can strip a kitchen in a day or less — DIY removal alone often takes more than a week, since it competes with everything else on a homeowner's schedule.

How Long Does DIY Kitchen Cabinet Installation Take?

DIY kitchen cabinet installation typically takes 4 to 7 days total, not because the work itself is that much harder, but because most homeowners aren't installing cabinets full-time.

Block off at least a full day even for a small kitchen — this isn't a project you can rush through in an afternoon and still get level, square results. Real time investment depends heavily on your comfort with a drill, a level, and shims, and whether you've read through every step before starting rather than figuring it out cabinet by cabinet. Working with a helper — even just for lifting upper cabinets into place while you screw them in — meaningfully speeds up the process and reduces the risk of a cracked cabinet or a bad wall anchor.

If you're installing RTA cabinets yourself, remember that assembly and installation are two separate clocks — see the next section for real assembly numbers before you budget your DIY timeline.

How Long Does RTA Cabinet Assembly Take?

Lily Ann's own RTA cabinets assemble in about 7–10 minutes per wall cabinet and 10–15 minutes per base cabinet — the part almost no general installation guide actually covers.

Ready-to-assemble cabinets ship flat-packed and get built at home before installation — that's a separate step from the install times above, and it's where a lot of general "how long does installation take" guides go quiet, because they're written by installers who work with pre-assembled cabinetry. Per Lily Ann's own RTA FAQ page: "Typical wall RTA kitchen cabinets can be assembled in 7-10 minutes and base cabinets in 10-15 minutes." Larger or more complex units — pantry cabinets, oven cabinets, lazy susans — take longer than a standard box because there are more components involved.

Worked example: for a representative 10x10 kitchen with roughly 8 wall cabinets and 6 base cabinets, that works out to about 2 to 3 hours of assembly time before installation even starts (8 × 7–10 min + 6 × 10–15 min = 116–170 minutes) — not a multi-day project on its own.

The same FAQ page confirms you can assemble and install an RTA cabinet by yourself — the process only requires one person — though a second set of hands makes larger units easier to handle. Real tools needed, per Lily Ann's own guidance: a cordless drill, wood glue, a rubber mallet, rags or paper towels, and a protective layer for your work surface. No specialty equipment required.

What Actually Affects Kitchen Cabinet Installation Time

Installation time scales with cabinet count first, then with how much prep work the space and the old cabinets need before new ones can go in.

Removing existing cabinets: adds roughly a day for a professional crew, or a week or more if you're doing it yourself around a normal schedule.
Wall condition: uneven walls or old anchors that need patching slow down leveling.
Plumbing and electrical cutouts: sink bases, range hoods, and outlet placements all need precise cutouts before a cabinet goes in, which adds time per affected cabinet.
Layout complexity: an L-shaped or U-shaped kitchen has more corner cabinets, fillers, and transitions than a single-wall galley layout of the same cabinet count.
Style and material don't meaningfully change assembly or install time on their own — a run of Shaker-style cabinets assembles and installs at the same pace as any other RTA line, and the same is true of solid wood versus other real-wood-adjacent options — the cabinet count and layout are what actually drive the clock.

Installation Days vs. the Full Kitchen Renovation Timeline

The 1–7 day figures above cover installation only — the full project, from ordering to a finished kitchen, is measured in weeks, not days.

Before install day: measuring, ordering, and site prep. RTA cabinets from Lily Ann ship within 1–21 business days of ordering (as fast as 3 business days with expedited shipping, per the same FAQ page), and general contractor-built cabinetry can add 1–2 weeks of site readiness work (demo, rough-ins) beforehand. After install day: countertop templating and fabrication commonly takes another 1–3 weeks, since countertops are typically measured against the cabinets once they're actually in place, not before. That's why the honest answer to "how long until my kitchen is done" is longer than the honest answer to "how long does installation take" — they're two different questions, and this article is answering the second one directly while flagging the first so nobody is caught off guard.

Frequently Asked Questions

How long does it take to install kitchen cabinets?

Professional installers typically take 1–2 days for a small kitchen, 2–3 days for an average kitchen, and 3–5 days for a larger kitchen. DIY installation usually takes 4–7 days.

Can you install kitchen cabinets yourself?

Yes — with the right tools, a level, shims, and a drill, DIY cabinet installation is realistic for most homeowners, especially with RTA cabinets designed for at-home assembly. Block off at least a full day even for a small kitchen, and consider a helper for lifting upper cabinets into place.

How long does RTA cabinet assembly take?

Lily Ann's own RTA cabinets assemble in about 7–10 minutes per wall cabinet and 10–15 minutes per base cabinet. For a typical 10x10 kitchen, that works out to roughly 2–3 hours of total assembly time before installation begins.

Can you install kitchen cabinets in one day?

A very small kitchen with a handful of cabinets and no cabinet removal or major prep work can sometimes be installed in a single day by an experienced crew, but most kitchens — even small ones — realistically take 1–2 days minimum once layout, leveling, and adjustments are factored in.

How long does it take to remove old kitchen cabinets?

A professional crew can typically strip an existing kitchen in a day or less. DIY removal usually takes longer — often more than a week — since it has to compete with everything else on a homeowner's schedule alongside the new installation.

Do you need a second person to assemble RTA cabinets?

No — Lily Ann's own guidance confirms one person can assemble and install an RTA cabinet alone. A second set of hands just makes larger or heavier units, like pantry cabinets and lazy susans, easier to handle.

What tools do you need to assemble RTA cabinets?

A cordless drill, wood glue, a rubber mallet, rags or paper towels, and a protective layer for your work surface — no specialty equipment required.

Is the installation timeline the same as the full kitchen renovation timeline?

No. Installation itself is typically 1–7 days depending on method and kitchen size, but the full project — ordering, site prep, installation, and countertop templating/fabrication afterward — commonly spans several weeks from start to finish.