Typical phase timeline
Custom cabinet lead times are often the longest variable — order early once design is final.
- Design and permits: 2–6 weeks
- Cabinet lead time: 4–12 weeks
- Demo and rough-in: 1–3 weeks
- Install and finish: 2–4 weeks
What causes delays
Plan for supply chain, inspection schedules, and hidden conditions behind walls.
- Inspection backlogs
- Surprise plumbing or electrical upgrades
- Countertop template after cabinets
- Appliance delivery gaps
Cabinets are the critical path, not demo day
Demo is loud and fast. Then the job waits on boxes. If cabinets ship in week eight, the kitchen is a microwave room until week eight plus install plus template plus stone plus backsplash. Order cabinets before you swing a hammer unless you like camping.
- Confirm shop drawings before manufacturing — changes after cut are new leads
- Appliances that miss the cabinet opening restart the clock
- Inspection of new electrical should happen before walls close, not after the backsplash
How this differs from a whole-house timeline
A kitchen can finish while you still sleep upstairs. It still shuts down cooking. Do not use a whole-house phasing guide to schedule a kitchen; the stone template after cabinet set is the kitchen-specific choke point. Bathrooms have cure time; kitchens have fabrication time.
- Temporary kitchen setup is a first-week task, not an afterthought
- Backsplash after stone is set — grout dust on new quartz is a fight
- Punch list hardware and caulk can take a quiet extra week