How To Become A Cabinet Builder: What It Is and Career Path

What is a cabinet builder and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

2 min read

There is more than meets the eye when it comes to being a cabinet builder. For example, did you know that they make an average of $16.1 an hour? That's $33,488 a year! Between 2018 and 2028, the career is expected to grow 3% and produce 8,200 job opportunities across the U.S.

ScoreCabinet BuilderUS Average

Salary

2.6

Avg. Salary $33,488

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

5.4

Growth rate 3%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

5.5

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.68%

Asian 1.89%

Black or African American 5.11%

Hispanic or Latino 19.30%

Unknown 3.78%

White 69.25%

Gender

female 9.95%

male 90.05%

Age - 47

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 47

Stress level

5.4

Stress level is manageable

7.1 - high

Complexity level

4.5

Complexity level is intermediate

7 - challenging

Work life balance

5.0

Work life balance is fair

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a cabinet builder

Explore cabinet builder education requirements

Most common cabinet builder degrees

High School Diploma

48.9 %

Associate

18.2 %

Bachelor's

15.4 %

Start to develop specific cabinet builder skills

Skills	Percentages
Table Saws	21.16%
Tape Measure	10.08%
CNC	6.98%
Custom Doors	4.97%
Assembly Line	4.93%

Complete relevant cabinet builder training and internships

Accountants spend an average of 1-3 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New cabinet builders learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a cabinet builder based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real cabinet builder resumes.

Research cabinet builder duties and responsibilities

Modify existing client websites with new HTML and CSS to achieve stakeholder requirements.
Fabricate jigs and fixtures for accurate and repeatable execution of critical fit requirements for components.
Apply Masonite, Formica, or vinyl surfacing materials.
Contribute in drafting and designing technical and advertising layout using AutoCAD and Photoshop.

Prepare your cabinet builder resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your cabinet builder resume.

You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on a cabinet builder resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

Choose from 10+ customizable cabinet builder resume templates

Build a professional cabinet builder resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your cabinet builder resume.

Apply for cabinet builder jobs

Now it's time to start searching for a cabinet builder job. Consider the tips below for a successful job search:

Browse job boards for relevant postings
Consult your professional network
Reach out to companies you're interested in working for directly
Watch out for job scams

How do cabinet builders rate their job?

-/5

5 stars

4 stars

3 stars

2 stars

1 star

Cabinet builder reviews

A zippia user wrote a review on Jun 2020

Pros

Nature of projects can vary a lot within the field. One project could be building doors, big doors, cabinet doors, etc, while other projects could be building a bench for a kitchen, for example. This makes cm an interesting industry. The range of projects is wide

Cons

Coworkers not being as passionate, supervisors with a big ego, and sometimes not being paid as ideally or as proportionate with the amount of work.