When BM Advance is done correctly (proper prep), it has a reputation of being rock solid. Cabinet Coat is more "user friendly", without the long wait between coats Advance needs, but it is a "urethane acrylic". Some painters say any metal that touches it leaves a mark.

Aura gives a beautiful finish (I used it on a pair of nightstands), and is very easy to use, but probably the least hard wearing of these three.

Sayerlack and Milesi are higher end, pro finishes.

Look up and/or ask which of these meets NKBA standards.

Maybe ask for a sample painted door you could take home, and do some real life "wear & tear" testing.

first how big is the kitchen ?

Rockin’, it’s small - 24 doors and drawers altogether.

I looked up NKBA and also KCMA, and I see that Sayerlack meets KCMA standards but that’s all I could find.

I’ve heard Advance requires long drying times between quotes - if the pro quotes a 3 day turnaround at our kitchen size, does that sound like a rushed job where the paint doesn’t have sufficient time to dry?

I should also say we aren’t prepared to spend 6-8k, but I would like to understand the differences and know what to expect with a 2-3k job.

IMO you find a good cabinet refinisher who has references going back at least 5 yrs. I also think you will need to think a little higher for the cost. In my exprerience unless you absolutely love every inch of your kitchen and how it functions painting cabinets or replacing counters can be best done new.

Consider just changing the doors and not painting.

This article gives Advance a thumbs down.

https://www.theweathereddoor.com/2016/07/the-truth-about-benjamin-moore-advance.html

We paid 5K for a similar sized kitchen in our rental house. They used Ilva. We are very happy with that. It is the equal to the factory coating that was on them in toughness. They look brand new, and have held up 2 years to 2 different renters. We are in a lower cost area than Boston. But it was worth every penny for the increased rental appeal and durability.

I have read the article that @shirlpp posted the link too. I do NOT think it is a fair assessment of Advance. I'm not personally a fan of the product, but that has more to do with the long re-coat window. Beth H is the resident expert on Advance, so hopefully, she will offer her opinion here.

A lot will depend on your lifestyle. Is it just you, your spouse and a cat, or do you have 3 or 4 kids?

Mary, it's just my husband and myself. Kids in future hopefully, definitely no pets.

MaryKat I haven't heard of Ilva - I will check it out.

Patricia, thanks for the tip on 5+ years of reviews. The kitchen functions well and the cabinets are in good shape and a nice style, so replacing/refacing seems like overkill, especially since this is our starter home and not our forever home. Or at least, painting would buy time until we have to replace them.

I read the article about Advance, and I agree it sounds like the issues there were mostly around curing time. Happy to live without the doors for a while if that's what it takes, but given that drying/curing time I'm concerned the paint job would be rushed - I don't expect the painter to hang onto our doors for weeks.

@sl1001, I think you are doing a good job to research all this, and be aware of your expectations, as well as the pros & cons of the different finishes.

My husband & I are planning a kitchen reno starting 6-12 months from now. I have been doing a lot of reading & making notes on this subject, so I'm just sharing what I've found.

This is a 9 page discussion from a pro painter site regarding cabinet paints:

(painttalk.com) There isn't a good cabinet paint | Professional Painting Contractors Forum

It does go into very fine detail, but I find it interesting.

From one of the experienced painters & his opinion of Advance:

Advance, 2 different colors - sprayed with hvlp - results not good. Too much thinning required to push product weakening the finish.

Advance - sprayed with an Airless with 308 FF Tip. Beautiful as always. Still my favorite. Candy shell hardness by the next day - 2 months later, pretty much bomb proof. I am however still suspect of the darker colors. I find it doesn't have the same hardness."

From one of the site moderators, who is also a Benjamin Moore paint dealer:

"People say that but I've never had a single customer complain about advance yellowing, maybe on the inside faces you will see some. At a minimum it yellows less than traditional alkyds like impervo."

The 2K-3K sounds like a fair price for the size of your kitchen. Ask what type of equipment they use (the quote above says Advance applied with an airless is far superior to an HVLP). Also ask what steps they do for prep & primer.

As far as a 3 day turn around time, 1 primer coat, plus 2 coats of Advance, done in a controlled environment, with proper heat & humidity, it would be fine.

If you prefer to have them wait longer to re-install the doors, ask if they would do that. (Full cure time for Advance is 30 days.)

And as someone mentioned above, references that you can check out.

Mary Elizabeth, thank you SO much. I read the thread. Interesting to know that the right sprayer type is needed with the right paint. I haven't asked any what sprayer they use - I figure they should at least know as much to match sprayer + paint. But I'll ask the next pros we talk to. They have all described a very similar process.

It's helpful to have someone gut check me on the price range and that the 3-day turnaround can be ok. Thank you!

No problem. Like I said, we're researching this for a future project, and still have a lot to learn!

I am planning to DIY paint my cabinets and have been researching like mad so I dont make a mess of things. So from what I understand BM Advance is the best of the commonly available paints for cabinets. So best for people who don’t want to special order things and prefer to pop into their local BM store. The 1k and 2k polyurethanes (Milesi, Renner, Ilva, CIC, and other)
are the gold standard and indeed a superior coating. The 2ks have the ability to add a hardener which creates an even more durable finish. This takes special handling above and beyond what you would do for Advance which may justify the increased price. You have to either order them or get them from specialty distributors. It is better than Advanced and supposedly will provide years of additional performance. But, you have to decide if that matters. Maybe you won’t even live In The same house in 10 years or will want to renovate again by that time. In addition to materials, are there differences in prep? Are the cheaper people doing all the required pre and did they list it out in their quote specifically so you can compare properly with the more expensive people? To me, the people using the professional products shows they are up to date with the current standards which may translate to a more rigorous process and better outcome.

@Wendy Kroy, I haven't had time to check it out yet, but there is a FB page called "Kitchen Cabinet Painting Experts". IIRC, it is a group of DIY people sharing their knowledge and experience. One person on house commented that she got the proper information and technique from there to use Milesi.

@Mary Elizabeth, yes!! I have been living on that group as well as Cabinet Painting and Refinishing - DIY. The second group is fantastic. I am determined to have a good DIY outcome.

2-3 and 6-8 is quite a jump. There is not a big price difference in paint or lacquer products (certainly not enough for a $4K difference) Most of the work for painting cabinets comes in the prep stage, which is about 75% of the work.

So this 2-3K price (which is very low, btw) How are they prepping? you said they're taking them offsite. but how are they going to prep and prime?

I've used Advance on numerous wood projects. As hard as I am on my cabinets, I don't think I'd want it for those. Advance also has a cure time. As for yellowing, it's a hybrid alkaline paint, not oil base. It's acts like an oil base paint, but it isn't one. The oil is what causes white paint to amber over time.

I had my cabinets painted last year. I have a lot of cabs. (I used about 55 handles if that gives you an idea)

I specifically asked about how they prep. everything was off site. sanding, priming, fine sand again, wipe clean, spray w/paint. sand again (usually a wet sand) wipe clean, 2nd coat, then a clear coat. My painters used the conversion lacquer (not sure of the brand) .

since I had solid wood doors, I opted to get my doors refaced w/solid wood rails/stiles but an MDF panel. (less movement resulting in fine cracks of the paint)

I had a lot of modifications done (vent hood, removal of the old fluted /rope trim, new drawers made, micro moved to under the oven, euro hinges, soft close doors, removed all the original crown and took it back to paint at the shop, new toe-kick and a few other things) so my price tag came in over 12K. (The refacing of the doors and doors was only 2K more, which is a heck of a good deal. )

trying to get a good closeup so you can see the finish.

you're only seeing half of the cabinets in theses pic!

After a year, I've had a few tiny touch ups and those were all in the joint of the center MDF panel on the lower part (too much paint which resulted in some chipping) not a big deal. the painter came back and fixed it. no charge.

I've hit the edges w/pans, dishes, etc, no chipping anywhere. edges are all intact.

I scrub the paint finish w/a scrubby brush and Dawn, and wipe clean. Still looks brand new.

That's another thing you need to ask about. Guarantee. find out if they guarantee the finish, for how long, and will they do free touch-ups. What if you have huge peeling? will they redo the whole thing? it needs to be in the contract.

If you can't afford a better paint job w/the higher price tag, then save up until you can.

A 2-3K paint job isn't a bargain if it only lasts you 2yrs.

The companies you're inquiring about? check them out on Yelp. That's how I found my guys. All, and I mean every single one (and they had over 75) were 4-5 stars. mostly 5 stars. do some research and see if they have reviews online.

Advance has a beautiful final finish. Dry time in between is brutal. I wouldn't choose it for kitchen cabinets. Bathroom, maybe. So many pro level products have evolved in both availability and application since Advance was launched.

From everything I’ve learned - including one of those fb groups - Milesi is the way to go. I have only found one local pro who uses it and his quote was 7500. I’m wondering if I can DIY Milesi. It seems silly to pay any pro any amount if they aren’t using an actual cabinet coating. That’s where my head is currently at!

for best results and looks hire a pro