If you’re planning a kitchen remodel of any kind, the cabinets are probably going to be one of the most expensive and important decisions you make. Whether you’re simply refacing your cabinets, or you’re getting all new custom cabinetry,  it’s a good idea to know the basics of door styles to find the one that’s going to work best for your design preferences, the style of the rest of your kitchen, and your family.

Below is a brief description of some of the most commonly used door styles:

Shaker

Perhaps one of the most widely used door styles right now is the Shaker. Shaker cabinets are designed with a flat-panel style and a frame that surrounds the panel, which is also flat. The benefit of using this cabinet style is that it tends to work well for a variety of home styles. For example, Shaker cabinets are found in modern, transitional, and in some cases, traditional homes. This also tends to be a pretty timeless style, and one that’s versatile, which can be important for resale value. The lines are clean, and the style is simple, which gives homeowners a lot of flexibility for the rest of their kitchen design.

Flat

A flat kitchen cabinet door is one that, as the name implies, has no detailing or framing. These cabinets tend to work best in contemporary and modern designs because of the clean lines and minimalism. Flat-panel cabinet doors are available in a range of material choices, and if you really want an ultra-modern look, you can opt for flat-panel cabinets with a high-gloss finish. There are also colorful variations of these cabinets that similarly work well in a modern kitchen design.

Beadboard

Beadboard cabinet doors are the ones that have paneling similar to what you would find in wainscoting. There are thin, vertical panels on these doors, and this style often works best if you have a country or cottage-style kitchen. While beadboard can be great if you want to achieve the farmhouse style, this may not be a look that’s for everyone, which is something to keep in mind if you plan on selling your home. It can also be difficult to clean and maintain these cabinet doors, because of the grooves the vertical panels create.

Inset

Along with Shaker doors, inset cabinets are probably one of the most common cabinet door styles you’ll see when selecting your kitchen cabinetry. Inset cabinet doors are set within the frame of the cabinet itself, which is where the name comes from. The benefits of using this type of cabinet door are first that it’s going to fit with a variety of design styles pretty easily. It’s a classic, elegant style, and these cabinet doors also work well for custom cabinetry, because of the inset there’s a perfect fit within the larger frame of the cabinet. With this door style, one difference that you’ll notice as compared to other styles is that the hinge is exposed. This style of cabinet is most often seen in traditional kitchens, and sometimes transitional design concepts.

Custom

Finally, if you want something that’s like nothing on the above list, or perhaps something that combines a little bit of everything, you can customize your cabinets, although this tends to be very expensive. You may want to include elements of Shaker-style cabinets but then add customized glass panels, for example.