How Much Do Slat Doors Cost?
Slat doors start at $73 per square foot. Understand what changes the cost, what doesn’t, and how to estimate pricing confidently.
Finding pricing for slat cabinet doors shouldn’t feel like solving a puzzle. Yet whether you’re a homeowner, contractor, or cabinet maker, it’s tough to get straight answers. What does the price include? What drives it up? What doesn’t?
At Cutting Edge, we designed our slat doors in response to demand. For over five years, we’ve produced slat cabinet doors for homeowners, designers, and contractors across Canada. Our team understands the real cost of materials, labour, and custom options because we control the entire process. That gives us unique insight into what does and doesn’t affect the price, so we can help you make informed choices without the guesswork.
By the end of this article, you’ll understand:
Slat Doors Start at $73 Per Square Foot
The minimum cost for a slat door is $73 per square foot, based on a one-square-foot MDF door with no upgrades. This combination is the least-expensive option.
Slat doors have a ¾-inch backer panel and ¼-inch solid wood slats attached to the surface. These are precisely aligned solid wood pieces. Each door has matching edge banding, which hides the exposed edges of the plywood or MDF core. The result is a high-end look and feel, often used to create feature walls, contemporary cabinets, or accent doors.
This base cost reflects the material, construction method, and finish prep time. But most doors, especially those larger than one square foot or with upgrades, will cost more.
How Slat Door Pricing Works
Slat doors are priced by the square foot. To calculate the square footage of your door, multiply the height by the width (in inches) and divide by 144. This formula gives you the size in square feet, which you then multiply by the base price.
For example, a door that measures 15″ × 30″ would be:
- 15 × 30 = 450 square inches
- 450 ÷ 144 = 3.125 square feet
- 3.125 × $73 = $228.13 (base price)
This retail pricing applies to homeowners or small-volume orders. If you’re a contractor, we offer a trade discount that ranges from 10% to 20%, depending on your order size and frequency. That discount applies across the board.
Understanding the square foot pricing helps you estimate the cost of any door.
What Increases the Cost of Slat Doors?
Several design and functional upgrades will raise the price of your slat doors. These enhancements typically require more materials, added craftsmanship, or specialized labour, which all contribute to the final cost.
Wood Species
Choosing a different wood species instead of MDF is one of the biggest cost drivers. Some hardwoods are more expensive due to availability or demand. For example:
- Alder starts at $89 per square foot
- Cherry also starts at $73, but offers richer colour and a more premium look
- Hickory costs at least $84 and brings more grain variation
- Walnut, known for its dark tone, starts at $85
- Select grade Flat Cut White Oak costs at least $86 and offers a clean, modern appearance
Here’s a comparison table:
| Wood Species | Minimum Price Per Piece (1 sq ft) | Price Per Square Foot |
|---|---|---|
| MDF | $73 | $73 |
| Cherry | $73 | $73 |
| Alder | $89 | $89 |
| Hickory | $84 | $84 |
| Walnut | $85 | $85 |
| Select Grade Flat Cut White Oak | $86 | $86 |
Hinge Drilling
If you’d like us to pre-drill hinge holes, we charge $1 per hole. Most cabinet doors require two hinge holes, adding $2 to each door. This cost is modest but worth noting if you’re ordering many doors.
Finishing
A factory finish protects the door and enhances the natural look of the wood. The typical finishes are:
- Clear lacquer: $15 per square foot; $22 minimum per piece
- Stain + lacquer: $21 per square foot; $32 minimum per piece
You’ll notice that there is no price for painted finishes. This is because slat doors are usually intended to be feature items, and paint tends to cover the grain, defeating their purpose.
Rustic Treatments
Custom textures, such as wirebrushing or distressing, add a tactile finish to the door surface. These treatments require extra hands-on work:
- Wirebrushing: $31 per square foot; $31 minimum per piece
- Distressing: $10 per square foot; $10 minimum per piece
Sequence or Grain Matching
If you want visual flow across a bank of doors, you can add:
- Sequence matching: $10 per square foot; $10 minimum per piece
- Grain matching: $14 per square foot; $14 minimum per piece
However, only the backer panel can be grain or sequence-matched. The slats themselves won’t be grain or sequence-matched due to the challenge of aligning individual pieces.
What Doesn’t Affect the Cost of Slat Doors?
You might expect that adjusting the design of your slats would change the price, but in our case, it doesn’t. There are three features of slat doors that don’t affect the price:
- Edge Banding. All doors include edge banding by default. It’s not an upgrade; it’s required to finish the edges of the core material and deliver a polished look.
- Slat Dimensions. You can request custom slat widths, whether you prefer wide boards or narrow strips. These changes don’t affect your cost. We machine the slats in-house and customize them to your design needs.
- Slat Spacing. Just like with dimensions, you can control the spacing between each slat. Some clients prefer tighter spacing for a more solid look, while others opt for wider gaps for a more open effect. Either way, it won’t change your pricing.
What Decreases the Cost of Slat Doors?
There are several ways to reduce your total project cost, especially if you’re a contractor or buying in volume.
- Contractors can receive 10% to 20% off retail pricing. This is our way of supporting builders and professionals who order frequently or in bulk.
- Orders over $1,000 subtotal are eligible for reduced or even fully covered shipping costs. This makes a difference when you’re outfitting an entire kitchen or commercial space.
- Orders over $10,000 subtotal qualify for an additional 10% discount on the order. These savings can make slat doors more affordable, especially for high-end or multi-unit projects.
Learn How To Price Out Slat Doors Online
You came here with a lot of questions – what’s the price for slat doors, what drives that cost, and how can you budget smartly? Now you know: the base is $73 per square foot, and you’ve seen how wood species, finishing, and customization change the price point. If you’ve ever delayed a project or given an uncertain quote because pricing was murky or incomplete, you’re not alone. Lack of transparency wastes time, erodes trust, and hurts your bottom line.
We understand how frustrating it is to work with vendors that don’t provide answers. At Cutting Edge, we’ve built our business around making quality cabinet components simple, transparent, and on time. You deserve a supplier who helps you stay on budget and never misses a deadline.
So, if you’re ready to price your project with confidence, learn how to price out slat cabinet doors online. We’ll help you deliver high-quality results on time, every time.
