Yes! Can You Replace Kitchen Floor Without Removing Cabinets?

Yes! You can put in a new kitchen floor without taking out the cabinets. This saves time and money. Many people choose to do this. It is a big job, but you can do it with careful work. You need to plan things well. This guide will show you how.

Can You Replace Kitchen Floor Without Removing Cabinets
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Why Leave the Cabinets?

Taking out kitchen cabinets is a big deal. It costs a lot. It takes much time. It makes a big mess. Here are some reasons people skip removing cabinets:

Save Money: Not hiring someone to remove and put back cabinets costs less.
Save Time: The job goes much faster when cabinets stay put.
Less Hassle: You do not need to empty everything out of all cabinets. You only need to empty the lower ones close to the floor.
No Risk to Cabinets: You avoid possibly damaging the cabinets when taking them out or putting them back.
Less Mess: There is less dust and mess than a full cabinet removal.

Leaving cabinets in place makes replacing your kitchen floor much easier to manage for most people.

Hard Parts When Cabinets Stay

Keeping cabinets where they are makes some parts of the job tricky. You must think about these things:

Cutting Around Things: You need to cut the new floor pieces exactly to fit around cabinets and other shapes. This takes care and good tools.
Getting Under the Edge: Kitchen cabinets have a base part or a toe kick. You need to slide the new floor just under this edge.
Old Floor Height: If you do not take up the old floor completely (especially under the cabinets), the new floor might be a different height.
Future Changes: If you ever change your cabinet layout, you will have missing flooring spots under where the old cabinets were.

You can deal with these issues. It needs good planning and the right steps.

What Floor Types Work Well?

Not all floors are the same when you leave cabinets in place. Some are easier than others. Here are some common choices and how they work:

Vinyl Plank (LVP)

How it Installs: Most vinyl plank clicks together. It floats over the floor below.
Why it Works: It is easy to cut. You can lay it right up to the cabinets. It is thin. This helps slide it under the toe kick. It handles water well. This is good for kitchens. Many people choose vinyl plank flooring kitchen cabinets.
Things to Note: Floating floors need a small gap around the edges to let them move. You cover this gap with trim later.

Laminate Flooring

How it Installs: Like LVP, most laminate clicks together and floats.
Why it Works: It is also easy to cut. You can also lay it close to cabinets. You can often slide laminate flooring under cabinets.
Things to Note: Laminate does not like water. Spills must be cleaned fast. It also needs a gap around edges for movement. This makes it less good than LVP for kitchens.

Tile

How it Installs: Tile is glued down with mortar. You also use grout between the tiles.
Why it Works: It is very tough. It loves water. Once set, it does not move. You can do tile floor installation kitchen cabinets. You just lay the tile right up to the cabinet base.
Things to Note: Tile is harder to cut than LVP or laminate. You need special tools (a wet saw). It takes more time and effort to do tile floor installation kitchen cabinets. You need to cut tiles to fit perfectly around cabinets.

Sheet Vinyl

How it Installs: This comes in big rolls. It is glued down, often just around the edges or fully.
Why it Works: It has no gaps for dirt or water. It is quite thin.
Things to Note: It is hard to cut exactly right. Making it fit around cabinet shapes is tricky. Wrinkles can happen if not glued well.

Wood (Engineered or Solid)

How it Installs: Can be nailed, glued, or floated (engineered).
Why it Works: Looks very nice.
Things to Note: Wood moves with heat and water. Floating wood floors need a big gap around the edges. This makes them not the best flooring to install without removing cabinets. If you nail or glue it, you still have to cut it perfectly to fit the cabinets. Water is a big problem for wood floors in kitchens.

Best Flooring for the Job

For ease and good results when keeping cabinets, vinyl plank flooring kitchen cabinets is often seen as the best flooring to install without removing cabinets. It is easy to cut, water-friendly, and works well with the needed gap and trim cover-up. Tile is very durable but much more work to install around cabinets.

Getting Ready for the New Floor

Good prep work makes the job much easier. Do these things before you start laying the new floor:

Empty the Room: Take out the fridge, stove, and other appliances. Clear off countertops if you might drop things. Empty the lower cabinets near the floor.
Remove Old Floor: You need to take up the old floor in the open areas. You do not usually need to remove the part that goes under the cabinets. This is called leaving old floor under cabinets.
Take Off Baseboards: Pull off the trim along the walls. You will put it back later over the new floor.
Remove Toe Kicks: Most base cabinets have a piece of wood at the bottom front. This is the toe kick. You must take this off. This lets you slide the new floor under the cabinet frame slightly. This step is key for kitchen floor replacement toe kick. Take them off carefully if you plan to put them back.
Clean the Floor: Clean the subfloor (the floor below). Get rid of all dirt, glue, and bits.
Check the Floor Below: The subfloor must be flat and strong. Fix any loose spots or bumps. Sand down high spots. Fill low spots with a leveling mix. A flat floor makes the new floor lay right.

Planning Your Layout

How you start laying the floor is important. This is even more true when working around cabinets.

Find Your Start Point: For click-together floors (LVP, laminate), you often start in a corner. Or you might start along the longest straight wall.
Think About Cabinets: Plan how the rows of flooring will meet the cabinets. You want cuts near cabinets to look neat. Sometimes you start near the cabinets to make sure those cuts are right.
Measure Everything: Measure the room. Measure around cabinets. Know how wide your flooring planks or tiles are. This helps you plan cuts.

Putting the New Floor In

Now you lay the floor! The steps depend on the type of floor. But the part near the cabinets is special.

Laying the Main Floor

Follow the maker’s steps for your specific floor type.
Lay the first row straight.
Click or glue pieces together as you go across the room.
Work your way towards the cabinets.

Installing Floor Up to Cabinets

When you reach the cabinets, you cannot just click planks past them or lay full tiles.
You must fit the flooring pieces right next to the cabinet base. This is install flooring up to cabinets.
For floating floors (LVP, laminate), you need to leave a small gap (about 1/4 inch) between the flooring and the cabinet base. This gap lets the floor move slightly with changes in heat and water. Do not butt floating floors tight against anything hard like cabinets or walls.
For glue-down floors (tile, sheet vinyl), you lay the floor tight against the cabinet base.

Cutting Flooring Around Cabinets

This is the part that needs care. You need to make shapes in the flooring pieces to fit around cabinet corners or other parts that stick out. This is cutting flooring around cabinets.
Use a jigsaw for wood or vinyl planks. A multi-tool or an undercut saw can help get under cabinet frames or door frames.
For tile, you need a wet saw to make straight cuts and maybe a tile nipper for small shapes.
Always measure twice and cut once.
Make a paper template if the shape is tricky. Lay paper on the floor, draw the shape needed to fit around the cabinet, cut the paper template, then trace it onto your flooring piece.
Remember the gap for floating floors when you cut near cabinets.

Dealing with the Gap Near Cabinets

For floating floors, you have a gap near the cabinets. You also have a gap where you removed the toe kick.
This gap needs to be covered.

Working with the Cabinet Bases

The toe kick area is key to a clean look when you don’t remove cabinets.

Taking Off the Toe Kick

Most toe kicks are just thin pieces of wood or material. They are usually tacked or screwed onto the cabinet base (the part holding the cabinet up).
Use a pry bar or flat tool to gently remove the old toe kicks. Start at one end and work your way across.
Keep the pieces if you plan to reuse them.
Removing the toe kick lets you see the cabinet base legs or frame. It also lets you slide the new flooring under this frame by about 1/4 to 1/2 inch. This hides the edge of the new floor and makes it look like it goes under the cabinets.

Putting Back Toe Kick or Adding Trim

After you install flooring up to cabinets and slide it under the base frame, you need to cover the gap you left (for floating floors) or just make the edge look nice.
You can put the old toe kicks back. Cut them to size if needed. Tack or screw them back onto the cabinet base, right above the new floor.
Another option is installing quarter round kitchen floor. Quarter round is a small, curved piece of trim. You can nail or glue it to the cabinet base, right on top of the new floor. It covers the gap and looks finished.
Sometimes you might use a different trim piece, like a shoe molding. This is similar to quarter round but a bit different shape.

What About the Old Floor Under Cabinets?

This is a common question. Do you need to take up the old floor that is hidden under the cabinets?

No, you usually do not. Leaving old floor under cabinets is standard practice.
Cabinets are installed first, directly onto the subfloor or sometimes on top of the first layer of finished floor.
They do not need the new floor for support.
Trying to remove the old floor from under the cabinets is very hard. It can also make the cabinets uneven or damage them.
When people talk about replacing floor under kitchen cabinets, they usually mean replacing the floor up to the cabinets, sliding the new floor just under the front edge, and covering the gap.

Table: Leaving Old Floor vs. Removing It

Action	Pros	Cons
Leaving Old Floor Under Cabinets	Much easier, saves time, less risk to cabinets	New floor height difference under cabinet edge (usually hidden)
Removing Old Floor Under Cabinets	New floor can go fully under (if subfloor is lower)	Very difficult, high risk of damaging cabinets, often not possible without cabinet removal

Almost always, leaving old floor under cabinets is the way to go when not removing the cabinets.

Finishing Steps

After the main floor is down and trimmed near the cabinets:

Install Baseboards: Put the baseboards back along the walls. Nail them into the wall studs, not the floor. This is very important for floating floors. The baseboard covers the gap left along the walls.
Install Toe Kicks or Trim: Put back the toe kicks or add new installing quarter round kitchen floor along the cabinet bases.
Clean Up: Remove all dust and scrap pieces.
Put Things Back: Move appliances and other items back into the kitchen.

Problems You Might Face

Even with careful work, things can go wrong. Here are some issues and how to avoid them:

Bad Cuts: Cuts around cabinets must be exact. If you cut too small, you have a gap that might show. If you cut too big, the piece won’t fit. Measure carefully. Make templates for hard shapes. Take your time cutting flooring around cabinets.
No Gap for Floating Floors: If you butt LVP or laminate tight against cabinets or walls, the floor cannot expand. It might buckle or lift later. Always leave the small gap (1/4 inch) for floating floors. This is part of install flooring up to cabinets correctly.
Uneven Floor Below: If the subfloor is not flat, the new floor (especially floating types) might have bouncy spots or gaps. Fix the subfloor before laying the new floor.
Wrong Flooring Type: Trying to float a wood floor without enough gap, or using laminate where spills are likely, can cause problems later. Choose the best flooring to install without removing cabinets based on your kitchen’s needs and your skill level. Vinyl plank is often the safest bet.
Not Removing Toe Kicks: If you don’t remove the old kitchen floor replacement toe kick, you cannot slide the new floor under the cabinet edge. The cut edge will show, or you’ll have a big gap that is hard to hide. Always remove the toe kicks first.

FAQ

Q: How far should the new floor go under the cabinets?

A: You usually only need to slide the new floor about 1/4 to 1/2 inch under the front edge of the cabinet base (after removing the toe kick). This is just enough to hide the edge of the new floor. The rest of the floor under the cabinet stays as it was.

Q: Do I need special tools to cut around cabinets?

A: Yes, a jigsaw is very helpful for cutting curves and shapes in LVP, laminate, or wood. An oscillating multi-tool with a flush cut blade is great for cutting door frames or cabinet bases if needed. A wet saw is necessary for cutting tile. Measuring tapes, pencils, and maybe a paper template are also key for cutting flooring around cabinets.

Q: Can I leave the old toe kicks on?

A: No, you must remove the old kitchen floor replacement toe kick. This lets you fit the new floor under the cabinet frame slightly. You can then put the old toe kick back or use new trim like installing quarter round kitchen floor.

Q: What is quarter round used for near cabinets?

A: Quarter round is a small trim piece used to cover the small gap left between a new floating floor and the cabinet base. It gives a finished look and hides the expansion gap. It is an option instead of putting the toe kick back on.

Q: Is it okay that the old floor is still under the cabinets?

A: Yes, it is perfectly fine and normal when you are not removing the cabinets. Leaving old floor under cabinets does not cause problems because the cabinets sit on the structure below, not on the finished floor.

Q: Which is the best flooring to install without removing cabinets for a DIY person?

A: Vinyl plank flooring (LVP) is often the easiest for do-it-yourselfers. It clicks together, is easy to cut with basic tools, and handles moisture well, which is important in a kitchen. Vinyl plank flooring kitchen cabinets projects are very common.

Q: Should I remove the old floor under the dishwasher or stove?

A: It is best to remove the old floor where appliances like the dishwasher and stove sit. These appliances need to slide in and out. A change in floor height can make this hard. You usually only need to remove the old floor just where the appliance sits, not under the cabinets on either side. Make sure the new floor height works for your appliances.

To Sum It Up

Replacing your kitchen floor without taking out cabinets is a real choice. It saves time, money, and mess. You need to pick the right floor type, like vinyl plank, which is often the best flooring to install without removing cabinets. You must plan carefully, especially for cutting flooring around cabinets and dealing with the area where the cabinet meets the floor.

Remember to take off the old kitchen floor replacement toe kick. Lay your new floor up to the cabinet base, sliding it slightly underneath. Cover the edge or the gap with the toe kick or by installing quarter round kitchen floor. Leaving old floor under cabinets is okay and normal. With careful steps and the right tools, you can give your kitchen a fresh new look without the huge job of cabinet removal.