Probably height of hinge x width of hinge. Very basic.

Be sure to match the hinge overlay, too (if any) i.e when the door is closed, how much does the door overlap the opening, side to side? (1/2", 3/4' 1", etc?)

You might do well to buy the same brand as what you have, since the holes are more likely to match up.

Uh, height and width? No kidding ...

Height as in the height of the decorative margin, or height of the screw placement? Width as measured from where to where?

When I'm replacing hinges, it's the screw layout that counts. With two holes on one side, and two-to-four holes on the other side, two numbers don't mean that much.

My cabinets are forty five years old, so I very much doubt that the old hinges are still on the market. I guess I'll just drag them down to the hw store and line-em-up with something modern. Why do you advertise numbers in big bold font if people don't know what the numbers are supposed to mean?

Hi,I have to guess at what the numbers mean. I checked my home which is over 50 years old. My conculsion is the big number is the length of the part of the hinge that fits on the cabinet frame and the smaller number is the length of the part that fits on the door. Make sure you take a hinge with you. They make hinges with different off sets so you will want to look close. Offsets can't be enterchanged. The rest can be fudged.
Good Luck Woodbutcher

That could be. Thanks. Now, there really isn't much of a "fit" if you measure them like that. The part that mounts to the cabinet is a long piece that has a decorative bump at each end, and the whole thing just sits on a flat frame. The part that attaches to the door is roughly a rectangle that just sits on a flat surface there. So with my cabinet frame, and my cabinet door, I could handle a wide range of such part sizes.

What my hinge looks like is much like the picture attached, which is a "Gatehouse 2 3/4 x 2 1/8". The separation of the holes on the long side of my hinge is indeed 2 1/8. But the length of that part is indeed 2 3/4. So, um ...

This wil address your misconceptions about cabinet doors and hinges.

Cabinet doors are available in "3 General" configurations,
Mediterranean, "full inset", inset, (the depth of which is "generally" dictated by the door thickness) and flush overlay.
Yours are inset and to match the "inset", which can vary from 3/8 to 1", is of paramount importance, and for the aesthetics, the screw spacing of the face frame plate. As for the blade of the hinge, the existing holes can be filled if they do not match.

As for your dissatisfaction with the information on some web sites, try this, get off your A--, take a hinge off and do just like us who have been doing this for years, drive to the store and find the answers for yourself, instead of expecting everything to be done for you.

Uh, height and width? No kidding ...

Thanks for your insult, too.

Easy does it. I was just gently sarcastically pointing out "height" and "width" are words that need defining. Otherwise they're kind of useless. My apologies if that was offensive to you. I don't buy my pants by "height" and "width" because the way the manufacturers might measure those things might be different than the way I might. There are standard ways to measure length and inseam, though.

I ended up getting similar hinges, with holes in quite different places, and just redrilled. No biggie.

My frustration was that the hinges are carefully marked with a size, but I just don't know what measurements the sizes refer to. I still don't. A simple diagram showing the screw layout with dimensions would have been easy to do. As to frustration with a website, my "armchair" that I'm being told to get off of is about 30 miles from the nearest hardware store, so being able to order these online would be very helpful. Welcome to rural living in the new age. An enterprise trying to you sell things while providing numbers that are meaningless doesn't help anyone.

"My frustration was that the hinges are carefully marked with a size, but I just don't know what measurements the sizes refer to. I still don't. A simple diagram showing the screw layout with dimensions would have been easy to do."

And it would be even easier for you to pull ip the PDF from the HDW. mfg's site.

Your welcome to show me where the drawings for Gatehouse SC1920-ABZ are. Yep, those hinges are up front in the Lowes catalog. Before you expend too much energy, I'll tell you that "Gatehouse" is a Lowes product marketed under the Gatehouse brand name. You won't find a hardware manufacturer website for those.

But I would appreciate a link to make it easy, if you would be so kind.

So, instead of "Amerock", as a for-instance, you "elected" to go with a cheap guaranteed not to last product, and then complain about it.

I think we're done here. Thanks for your help.

Hi daninthe dirt . Did you ever find the right hinges or were you stuck with the old ? I have the same problem you spoke of . I have gone to Lowes and Menards and came back with hinges did not fit ( did not know it until 6 months later ) .. I am really stuck now since I threw the old ones away months ago. All that needs to be done is put out a picture wwith a drawing which shows exactly How to measure with an actual hinge , which shows exactly what the manufactuer is speaking of .. I share your frustration.

Did you ever figure out how to measure. Ive been to Lowe’s three times and bought different hinges and none are quite right. It is So frustrating.