Of everything you decide about a new kitchen — layout, hardware, countertop, appliances — the finish on the doors moves the final number most. The same seven-metre kitchen can cost R33,000 or R98,000 depending on nothing but what the fronts are made of.
This guide covers the four finishes that account for almost every kitchen built in Gauteng, what each costs per metre in 2026, and the practical differences that only show up after a year of living with them.
The four finishes, compared
| Finish | Price per linear metre (installed) | Best for | Watch out for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Standard melamine | R4,700 – R7,000 | Sculleries, rentals, utility runs, tight budgets | Flat, uniform look; limited texture |
| Wood-grain melamine | R6,500 – R9,400 | Warm, contemporary family kitchens | Grain direction must be planned across doors |
| Wrap / vinyl-wrapped | R6,500 – R9,400 | Shaker, profiled and classic door styles | Heat near ovens can lift the wrap over time |
| High-gloss & sprayed duco | R9,400 – R14,000+ | Designer, handleless and statement kitchens | Shows fingerprints and every surface imperfection |
Prices shown are estimates and starting points, not fixed quotations. The final price depends on the scope, complexity and specific requirements of each job — the size of the space, the finish and hardware you choose, the internal fittings, site conditions and access.
A firm, itemised quotation is provided free of charge once we have measured and assessed your requirements. Request a free quote and we will give you an exact figure, usually within one business day.
Installed 2026 ranges for Gauteng, excluding countertops. Consistent with our kitchen cupboard price guide.
High-gloss
High-gloss doors are what most people picture when they picture a modern kitchen: a deep, reflective, seamless surface with no visible grain. It bounces light around, which makes small and dark kitchens feel considerably bigger — a genuine advantage in a lot of South African townhouses and apartments.
It is achieved either with a high-gloss acrylic or laminate face bonded to a board, or by spraying and polishing an MDF door. Both are premium products and both land in the R9,400 to R14,000+ per metre band.
Living with it: gloss shows fingerprints, especially in dark colours. Charcoal and navy gloss look extraordinary in photographs and need wiping down constantly in a house with children. White, cream and light grey gloss are far more forgiving and are the reason those colours dominate. Gloss also shows any waviness in the substrate, so it is unforgiving of cheap board — this is not a finish to buy at the bottom of the market.
Where it earns its money: the visible run and the island. A common and sensible split is gloss on the fronts you see from the living area, with plain melamine in the scullery behind.
Matt and sprayed duco
Matt has been steadily taking share from gloss for several years, and for good practical reasons. A sprayed matt duco door gives you a solid, seamless colour with no reflection, no fingerprint problem, and a soft, expensive-looking depth that photographs poorly and looks superb in person.
Duco is a spray process: an MDF door is sealed, primed, sprayed in your colour and cured. That means the colour range is effectively unlimited — you can match a paint code, a fabric, or the rest of the house. It also means lead time is longer, because curing cannot be rushed.
Living with it: the newer anti-fingerprint matt laminates are outstanding at hiding marks. True matt duco is more delicate than a laminate face and can be scuffed, but it has one significant advantage over every other finish: it can be resprayed. A duco kitchen can be recoloured in ten years without new doors.
Wood-grain and wrap
Wood-grain melamine is the most-specified finish in South African homes right now, and it is the sensible middle of the market. Modern décor boards have textured surfaces that follow the printed grain, so they feel like timber under your hand rather than looking like a photograph of it. Oak, walnut and grey-oak tones dominate.
Wrap doors are a related option: a routed MDF blank with a vinyl foil pressed over it. Because the blank is machined first, wrap is how you get shaker profiles, beading and classic door styles at mid-range cost. Both sit in the R6,500 to R9,400 per metre band.
Living with it: wood-grain is the most forgiving finish there is — the texture hides fingerprints, dust and minor scuffs better than anything else. The one thing to insist on is that grain direction is planned across the whole run before cutting, so the pattern reads continuously rather than jumping between doors.
Wrap's one weakness is heat. Wrapped doors immediately beside an oven or a hob can lift at the edges over several years. A good installer specifies a heat-resistant panel or a different material at those positions.
Plain melamine
Plain melamine gets dismissed unfairly. A well-built melamine kitchen with 2mm matched edging, moisture-resistant board at the sink and proper soft-close hardware will outlast a badly built gloss kitchen by a decade. It is the sensible specification for sculleries, laundries, rental properties and any run nobody looks at.
It is also the finish that lets you afford a better countertop, and a countertop is more visible and more used than a cupboard door.
How to choose without regretting it
- Look at the sample in your own kitchen light. Showroom lighting flatters everything. Take a door sample home and look at it at night under your own bulbs.
- Match the finish to the household, not the trend. Dark gloss in a house with small children is a daily chore. Wood-grain or matt in the same house is invisible maintenance.
- Split your finishes deliberately. Premium on what is seen, standard on what is not. This single decision routinely saves 20–30% with no visible compromise.
- Check availability before you fall in love. Décor ranges are discontinued periodically. If you may extend the kitchen later, or you are matching to existing units, confirm the code is a current line.
- Think about the countertop together. Busy stone with busy grain fights. One of the two should be quiet.
Kitchen finish FAQs
High-gloss and sprayed duco kitchen cupboards typically cost R9,400 to R14,000+ per linear metre installed in 2026, excluding countertops. On a seven-metre kitchen that is roughly R66,000 to R98,000. Standard melamine in the same kitchen would be about R33,000 to R49,000.
Gloss reflects light and makes small or dark kitchens feel larger, but shows fingerprints, particularly in dark colours. Matt hides marks far better and can be resprayed years later if you want a colour change. For busy family kitchens, matt or a textured wood-grain is usually the easier finish to live with.
Duco is a spray-painting process applied to sealed MDF doors: primer, colour coats and a cured topcoat in matt, satin or gloss. Because it is sprayed, the colour range is unlimited and can be matched to any code. It is a premium finish with a longer lead time, and its main advantage is that it can be resprayed in future rather than replaced.
Quality wrap doors installed correctly do not peel in normal use. The exception is sustained heat — doors directly beside an oven or hob can lift at the edges over several years. A well-planned kitchen specifies a heat-resistant panel or an alternative material at those positions from the start.
Yes, and it is one of the smartest ways to control cost. A common approach is a premium finish on the island and the main visible run, with standard melamine in the scullery, laundry and behind closed doors. Done deliberately it reads as a design choice, not a compromise, and typically saves 20–30%.
Textured wood-grain melamine and quality laminate faces are the most durable day to day, because they resist scuffing and hide marks. Sprayed duco is the most repairable — it can be touched up or fully resprayed. In practice, hardware quality and edging quality determine a kitchen's lifespan more than the face finish does.
See the finishes in person
Photographs and screens misrepresent finishes badly — particularly gloss and matt, which look almost identical in a picture and nothing alike in a room. We bring physical samples to your free site measurement so you can hold them against your own light, floor and countertop before deciding.
Browse custom kitchen units, see finished work in our projects, or read what the board underneath actually costs.
