My white cabinets are 14 years old. They were installed when the house was built. We moved in seven years ago. We have two girls and a dog as well. For the most part the cabinets have held up very well. The doors under the sink and the one that houses the garbage can started to show some wear. Also, there were a few chips, here and there from chairs and kids and life. I am very complusive, so last year I had all the cabinets repainted by a cabinet painter. They look like new again. So, to answer your question, I think white cabintes wear as well as wood cabinets. They are also easy to keep clean, I just wipe them with a damp cloth and most stains disappear. I love them. Hope this helps.

I have white laminate cabinets and I hate them----not just because they're laminate either ;) They show dirt-big time. Every little smudge and speck. I can't wait to get my natural cherry cabinets installed! HTH!

Oh. We have white laminate Ikea cabs in our mudroom that DH installed for maybe $400 -- and I think they are great --very shiny and still look like new. But on the other hand, they don't get as much use as the kitchen...

It's more the painted wood that I'm am hoping is not a big concern -- for example dings that show the bare, unpainted wood underneath...

When I am at other people's houses, I just look and take mental note. I am really surprised at how differently white cabinets wear. One family has white cabinets that are chipping everywhere. The cabinets are maybe 5 to 7 years old. They have 4 kids. Another family had the kitchen done less than 1 year ago. When they were opening their drawers, I noticed the paint chipping at the top edges of drawers. When the drawers are closed, you can't see the chipping. Other families seem to have no issues with paint chipping. I would consider paint chipping to be the biggest bugaboo for me. Others just consider this as par for the course of having white painted cabinets.... Then there is the distressed finish, which would eliminate all of these issues.

My 20 year old cabinet that came out were honey stained maple. The finish was wearing hear and there but it was not as obvious as white paint chipping.

I think it is essential that you ask the rep to show you white kitchens that have been in use for a period of time and assess the level of wear and tear for yourself.

We painted our cabinets ourselves seven years ago. My husband was very meticulous about the process he followed, but they now need some TLC. The chipping bothers me (even a small chip looks like a big speck of dirt), but the staining near the garbage cabinet really bothers me (scrub as I might they are still stained). I am very particular, so this might not bother others, and I did love the way they looked.

I'm not sure that cabinets painted at home really can be compared to those purchased. At least that is what the KD says. I certainly would consider getting white cabinets again, if I weren't worried about the wear and tear.

I think you will find if you look at the sample doors in big box stores, the painted ones show the most wear. However, I did like my own painted cabs and could easily touch them up (since I did not apply any type of stain on top - i would not do a complicated finish that you can't touch up yourself), but they did show every spill.

I lived 28 years with oak cabinets. I cleaned them in the spring and when obviously soiled.
In 2008 we installed off-white cabinets. The finish remains perfect and they are easier to clean because you immediately see drips and smudges.
They are not top of the line cabinets and we are not fussy people. They have held up to dogs and parties and grandkids with riding toys and life's messes.
It's worked out well for us.

I'm going through the same thought process now. I love light cabinets - ours are currently (factory) painted a pale yellow. But we have four kids, 2 cats and a dog. They are 7 years old and overall in pretty good condition but have some chips and particularly staining near the trash and toe kick areas. We are building a home and I am now wondering if a white staining would be a better route to go...

We have had our Schuler Divinity cabinets for about 2 months and been seriously using the kitchen for a month.

Spontaneous cracks in paint, nowhere near the joint lines. Chips. Dings (my fault). They are getting pretty beat up and I am a little nervous.

But, it still looks good.

My biggest regret is not getting white but getting a cream white instead of a bright white. Looks dingy to me. I like the bright look. Hopefully when we change the light bulbs out, they will look better.

I can imagine that we will need to have them repainted in 20 years. I can live with the dings and all but it would be nice if they looked new for longer than a day.

We had our oak cabinets painted creamy white about a year ago. To me, there are two categories of wear: chipping and staining. We've had no chipping. I'd put that down to great prep (1 coat of a great primer, allowed to rest for a day, and then two coats of a quality paint). As for the staining, I have found the Mr. Clean Eraser to be my new best friend. It quickly gets off stains I would have to scrub and scrub at with a sponge. As an earlier poster mentioned, the garbage cabinet takes the biggest beating. Because my husband is the one who empties that garbage can, I did not notice some of the stains as quickly as I should. Now I get them up quickly and they are gone. But there are still remnants of some staining that I didn't get up right away, and cannot completely remove now, even with my Mr. Clean eraser. But worst case, I can easily give a few doors another coat of paint at some point.

we've had our Plain & Fancy dove white cabinets for three years. We have 3 kids who are now 4, 8, and 10. The cabinets look great - they do get a little grimy if you look closely, but they wipe off easily with water or spray cleaner. I'd get them again, even with little kids - it's worth a little cleaning to have the kitchen we really wanted! And I suppose technically, we should all be cleaning off our cabinets occasionally, right? lol.

Had Hagerstown white cabs for 15 years, installed new, 2 adults, no pets. Heavy duty baked on multi layer finish, over maple. The biggest problem is paint peel. Where any center panel meets a bottom rail, there is a little ledge. For some reason, those ledges all crack and peel. Even the upper cabinets no where near the sink. Also, white becomes more cream as it ages. Sometimes dirt cannot be cleaned off, without removing the finish. We paid $9k for a small kitchen, not including labor. we Expected better wear and tear. I would not do it again.