Stop trying to use every inch 

I think most people would be doing this the other way- starting with 25" tall opening, subtract the 1" space times 3, subtract the 1/2" drawer guide times 3, leaves 20.5" for the total height of the 3 drawers. The bottom drawer in an office is used for files so that somwhat dictates the height of that drawer, what's left you split between the 2 upper drawers.

Explained very clearly, probably I will never gonna forget.

Truly a life saver. Out of the dozens of videos I’ve watched, this is the only one the explains the thinking behind the build, like the math that goes into it and not just doing it without explaining why or how. Thank you.

I follow most of the top woodworking content creators on RU-vid that focus on educational videos like these, and I have to say out of all of them, you’re second to none in the way you articulate and explain things in an easily digestible way that even a hobbyist woodworker such as myself can understand. Thank you for taking the time to make videos like these!

Very good video. My recommendation is to use a story pole for this type of layout. It would also help explain the process.

I'm starting to do a "custom" kitchen for myself. Building my own cabinets and layout. This video is perfect for my wife to help understand what is important in laying out the cabinet drawers. As always an excellent presentation and explanation. All your cabinet videos are the best I've seen (and that's a lot of them)!

Mr. Bent, I have been worried about making custom cabinets for our RV renovation. I have never built a box let alone a cabinet. Your channel has been one of my best sources of information. I am very very grateful for your videos on cabinetry and come away feeling confident that I can do it. I don't think it will be perfect, but it will be better than just winging it. As a seamstress I am used to measuring and building things and have very rudimentary woodworking experience with hand tools. So, we will see how it goes. Thinking of making my own channel for far away family to see. Maybe I'll tag you so you can see how well your instructions help. Sincerely, A Truely grateful beginner

You have this way of addressing the unforeseen problems that no one thinks about until it's to late and everything is cut. Thanks for that explanation.

Thank you so much for this video. This is one of the main things that has kept me from building cabinets for my shop. Drawer spacing feels like black magic and no one ever explains this. Wood is expensive and I can’t bring myself to just try it out and risk messing it up. Great explanation. Thanks again!

This video is all the weight in gold!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I have been struggling with this for a while now and could not find any videos out there showing on how to do the math for installing drawers. This video was on time!! There are tons of videos on how to make and install drawers but the videos out there that were made always skip this step which is so important for a newbie like myself. I could hug you for this video this has been my stumbling block for months and the reason I have not built any cabinets. Thank you again for explain it so well keep making good videos like this and I will watch your videos all the time!

I've seen this before. I should have watched this as a refresher before I tried to do what I just did. LOL I made two cabinet boxes to sit my laser on. I did that a while back. But I never added the drawers. Working on that tonight. I've made lots of drawers before. Some already had plans. Only one custom piece. And I don't remember having any issue with designing the drawers. This was supposed to be a quick project. LOL NOPE! It would have been. I was totally over thinking it. I want three drawers. I'm doing side mount. Still going to allow for the 1" between. And 1/8" on the bottom. So now I know exactly what size my drawers need to be. And all it took was watching those 5 minutes of the video. Doubt I'll forget it next time. But if I do... I know right where to find this video. Thanks!

That Drill Sergeant hat there, though...! Thanks for your service, and for these great videos. All TLOs achieved!!!

Thank you for this video. Exactly what I was looking for. You explained really well the principles behind building drawers. I have zero experience building drawers and a limited amount of tools, so I am looking to build very simple drawers. I don't have a table saw, nor jigs so I am looking for a very basic build to store my tools. Other "DIY Simple Drawers" videos assume you have all the tools: table saw, pocket hole jig, etc; your video is really for the rest of us. Thank you again.

Excellent explanation and advice. I've been stuck for weeks (and resisting all the while) trying to figure out how to put in three drawers of dissimilar heights in a carcass. Now I have a battle plan. Thanks!

This is good info that's rarely talked about outside of pre-prepared plans. Thanks for covering what was maybe a difficult video to create.

THANK YOU FOR THIS! I was getting so frustrated with building drawers for a cabinet, and I kept procrastinating the install when my project hit snags, and I knew it was my fit, so this helped A lot!

I have procrastinated in doing summer cabinet projects for my new home due to the subject matter you’ve addressed. This video content was all ultra informative and useful! Going to draw up my plans now.

Thank you. I have seen many videos on making cabinets, but nothing about drawer layout within that cabinet. You gave me the requirements for the layout, the spacing.

@Bent'sWoodworking&More~. THANK YOU SO MUCH!! This is the EXACT issue I've been struggling with as I attempt to draft a plan for customizing my Master Closet. You are right about it creating anxiety! I am planning to build custom drawers units in the closet...I have debated the pros & cons of undermount vs side mount slides in my head dozens of times, but the SINGLE BIGGEST "unknown factor" that's tripped me up is determining the amount of vertical space to leave between each drawer! I swear.....I have wasted so much time worrying about this particular question. Your video was truly a game changer for me!!! THANK YOU! ~~Christy~~

FInally!!!! Thank you for explaining this process in way that a beginner woodworker like me could understand. Thank you!!!!

Great video. Just built my wife a cabinet and the size and spacing drove me crazy. This really simplified the whole process. Thank you again!

Really appreciate this video. Not as much for the math, but for the no BS about keeping it simple. I always find myself turning it into a science project trying to eak out even 16th of space when it really doesn't matter. SOmetimes I sit myself down and give myself a good talking to, but it as good to hear it from someone else now and then. Thanks!

Wow! This was super helpful. I also really appreciate how you still highlight how measurements vary when using the side mount slides. The pace you teach at and detail you provide is a testament to your skill as an educator, DI. Whenever you open your cabinet building school for noobs in small shops I’ll be first to enroll and book a flight!! Especially if Hans is a guest evaluator. ;)

Great info and perfect timing. All of the videos I've watch from your channel have been very helpful. Thank you!

I made a built-in for my daughters closet(first project ever). I did watch your videos on the cabinet which helped me get started but yes I did get stumped on the exactly what you spoke about.I ended up having to redo my drawer fronts since some had too many gaps and others were rubbing against the top or bottom. So thank you for speaking about this. Your work is greatly appreciated.

Your explanation was very clear and concise, thank you now this helped very much in the process when building a custom cabinet.

I fell into this trap building my kitchen cabinets! I since had talked myself out of ever doing a large cabinet job again because of the headache. You definitely changed my view! I’d also love to see a drawer front video for custom work!

Hi Jason. I find your content very helpful and frequently refer to your videos when I hit a stumbling block on a project. What I appreciate the most is that you comment on almost every user post, even if it's just a thank you. So thank you for thanking us!

This may be the most useful video I have ever watched. Filled in a lot of missing pieces. Thank you.

Thank you for covering this. I'm guilty of overthinking drawer spacing and I let projects go too long because I get flustered on this exact topic. Thanks again!

i'm in the middle of building my very first "cabinet"...a stand for my drill press...and already fell into the trap of trying to jam as many drawers in as i could. i've now figured out that i need to ditch one of the drawers to allow for better spacing (using side mount slides). this video definitely helps in the thought process going forward....thanks!

Thank you. I'm fairly new at this and just messed up 3 drawers on my jobsite saw stand I'm building. I guess it's best to practice on shop furniture.

Thank you, you did a great job covering everything by explaining all the risks that may be encountered. The video is appreciated.

Thank you so much for sharing such a precise and informative video. I have been looking for video with this kind of instruction for a long time. Thanks foe answering my prayer. Now. I know exactly how to space out my drawers. Keep up the good work 👏

I needed to watch this, thank you! I watched it twice and it was very helpful particularly about leaving sufficient space making me pause and give me and my workbench space!

This is good info. Would you mind doing a video though on calculating drawer face spacing while trying to achieve continuous grain?

I'm planning a cabinet for under my 3D printer and I am WAY over thinking the drawers. I needed to hear this! Thanks!

I am brand new to your channel. This is the third video I have watched and have been very impressed! Great content and techniques for building cabinets. I have been wanting to build a few for my garage / shop area, your videos will be and excellent resource. Thank you for posting !!

Wish I know this sooner, I was Learning building cabinets & drawers last year and just figuring this out . Good to know for newbies DIYer like me. Always great content/info . Thanx for sharing. 👍👏🏻

Im so grateful to have a resource that answers my questions in such a clear and concise way. You are an wxcellent teacher. Than you

I totally suffer from your diagnosis over complicating glad I found your channel you seem very informative

I usually draw everything up on sketchup and let it do the math, but I like using the under mount slides and don’t normally remember to account for that spacing on the bottom. This is good reminder and helps point out the overlooked obvious.👍

Hi Jason. Great content and even better explanation. I've just started using undermount draw slides, I thought they would be so much more difficult than side mount, how wrong I was. The simple explanation of the drawer measurements has opened my eyes to how difficult I was making it. Thank you so much for the simple lay man's terms.. Keep up with the great content

Really good step by step, cleared my mind Thanks so much👍🏻

GREAT, GREAT job explaining the drawer spacing.... I can make my custom cabinet from here!!!!!

Luckily and thankfully I watched this prior to doing any non standard cabinetry. I landed here because I’m doing a couple single drawer, single door frameless cabinets using Blume under mounts and was looking for any tips I could pick up on from your drawer construction (pocket screw joinery) and frameless drawer fronts. Thank you, all your videos have been very helpful and informative.

Thank you for making this video! It's helped settle my drawer layout anxiety!

your videos are very good and have a wide message thank you

I was actually doing that, thinking i should take all the space, but your proposal it is quite good and actually lets me relax a bit, thank you for making this video, I have subscribed now :D

I fell into the “trying maximize space” trap building some shop cabinets. Getting ready to build some drawer boxes for another project so this video is good timing. Thank You.

Thank you for this! I have struggled with that and drawers have been something I avoid. Ready to try again

Very informative videos, liked the detailed explanations you gave specially on doing custom work.

Thank you Brent! This has been very helpful and I will be using this method today.

Thanks for the video. I was wondering about this. It seems to me that what to an experienced cabinet maker seems obvious is often a confusing aspect of a build process. I am sure that doing it several times I could figure it out, but is nice to have some one demonstrate it.

Great information. Big help.

Finally!! Thank you Jason. No one even explains this part.

loved it! planning to build drawers for first time. missing piece to my puzzle thanks!

The info was very good and you explained it perfectly.

Perfect. I tried it and all is GTG now. Thank you for keeping it KISS.

Wish I had seen this before I built my FIRST cabinet. I made the "maximize space" design errors that you talked about. Thanks for the valuable advice that should SAVE" me next time.

Thank you for this Sir! I’ve been struggling for a while now on how to determine the size of the drawer box and what should be the clearances for each box.

This was very helpful to me. Just wanted to take a minute to thank you!

We sometimes get in our own heads by over analyzing the whole build. Good stuff Jason.

Man I wish this video would have came out two weeks ago lol, I just built a cabinet for underneath a down draft table that I built. I had no idea how to go about it. In the end it turned out fine for a shop project but it’s far from perfect. The draws are all the same size but beings it was my first time ever building draws, my spacing between doors is inconsistent due to the bottom cabinet being elevated because of the slide. I learned a lot doing that project but this video is going to be watched over and over before I do my next one, thank you for sharing your knowledge

I ordered the TSO parallel and squaring guides, after the holidays will order a Festool cordless track saw system with a 55" and 106" track. My current track saw limited to 48", table saw 30". Tired of cutting larger sheet goods on the floor with guides and a circular saw and ending up with either out of square or irregular cuts.

Thanks, this helped me out quite a bit.

I'm the 1000th like, yay. Thank you for the detailed video on spacing and also the one about using the Blum slides. I need to build garage cabinets soon, so they will be very helpful.

I have found that when I maximized the space that I often had things getting stuck between the drawers or would grind against the drawer above it. Having more space between drawers won't eliminate that completely but it lessens the chances of it and reduces whatever scissor action damage might occur when things get pinched

Definitely gonna do this technique. I’m always freaking about “ Wasted Space” lol. Thanks for this great information…

This was so helpful.

Very well explained

I am one of those builders that think i have to use every inch of space and i ran into problems when it comes to the drawer face becuse the space is so small you hsve to be dead on when spacing the drawer faces, but i am definitely going to use this method from now on ,thank you

Great video on how to figure spacing when you have the decided on the number of the drawers and their sizes. It would be great to show how you would go about figuring out the drawer box sizes knowing the inside dimension of the cabinet and using the LR32 system and Blum undermount slides? Thanks again for sharing your knowledge.

Nice video. Very appropriate. I’m an amateur woodworker and definitely feel I need to use every inch. It becomes quite challenging to get the drawer boxes to all fit and drawer fronts to fit with small 1/8” clearances….especially when my boxes may be slightly out of square.

Guilty of trying too hard to maximize every inch of a custom cabinet! I second the idea of giving yourself more wiggle room both in drawer height and in cabinet space use. I found it to be easier to open drawers and set things inside if they are have a better gap between them. Thanks for the content

excellent video. thanks.

Thank you for this!

Thanks a lot for this valuable information

Thanks for a very interesting video.

Your video made my day.

With custom cabinets I calculate the height of the drawer fronts first. Then I calculate the drawer box sizes using a 1" spacing and a ¼" space at the bottom. One day I'll try using undermount slides.

great info, I always struggle with that

"Space maximization" is an affliction I suffer from deeply. "Every 1/16" needs to be used--I *can* do it, so I should...." I appreciate the forgiveness you offer here!

I know how to install slides and build boxes, I need to learn the math for slide positioning on a three drawer cabinet so I don't have to reposition slides. I want to know ahead of time.

great video once again

How fast was the train going? Great stuff, BW!

Thanks for the video! It will be helpful for I have not built any cabinets like this but I am wont to build 3 cabinets with drawers and put together with one solid top for chest of drawers.

I love how the thumbnail has Euler's Identity!

Nice video for determining cabinet drawer spacing with under mount slides. Not as clear for side mount slides.... especially if you don't want an inch clearing at the bottom.

I want to thank you for posting this video. I’ve worked in mostly new constructs plus existing homes (not sticks & bricks but from the drywall in). QUESTION: What would you recommend I do at this point? I haven’t paid the balance of $9000 BUT I’m concerned that he could put a lien on my home or worse, we go to court. To add to this problem, I’m disabled I’m basically home bound. Thank you for your time if you happen to see this post and reply. BACKGROUND: I’m at the homestretch of install of my custom cabs for a 10x16 galley kitchen. No appliances, sink or plumbing has been done. It’s just plywood tops waiting for countertops/backsplash, uppers/lower boxes installed. The cabinets are frameless, slab, full overlay. Since it was a full tear out we agreed the the ends would be flush with 1/8” space between doors and drawers. He said “no problem”. We did go and see one of the jobs he had just finished and it was exactly what we were looking for. Unfortunately he “forgot” or mismeasured and some ends were flush where the boxes terminate and the others show the boxes visible and uneven. Also all joints at the ceiling trim and boxes are clearly visible and pretty big especially being “custom”. He said that it was “impossible” to fill in the gaps with anything and we would have to accept the visible gaps at the places where frames meet to each other, at trim and boxes, at the ceiling because we live in an earthquake area. Before any work was started I did exactly what you show in this video BUT I’m guessing my custom cabinet guy didn’t agree with my numbers and built by his numbers which was not apparent until now that he installed the cab doors and drawer fronts. Now I’m stuck with drawers that are too short to store the items I planned to use the drawers for. No matter what I say to my cab guy refuses to admit that I gave him my numbers and says I agreed with his numbers. He has no drawings or any agreement that I approved. Although I have drawings that were sent to him via email which he approved via email and now said he never received. So I’m having to live with lots of gaps, cabs that are not covering boxes and I’m not sure what I can do if anything. I can accept the short drawers BUT not the spaces that the naked eye is able to clearly see is NOT something I can live with. I wish he had told me that he wouldn’t or couldn’t build to the specs that were agreed upon. I have worked with clients that had unrealistic expectations I am NOT one of those people. Although for the price I am charged, this kitchen it should be spot on without any issues. Especially since he had an empty room to work with. I also understand that working with an older home in an earthquake area it’s hard to have no gaps at the ceilings and walls but they are very big and I know there must be a way to fill in those gaps so they are not so noticeable…as they were to a neighbor I invited in to look at the kitchen without telling them what my issues were. They pointed out the same issues that I have.

I generally just add .5 to the drawer, or factor it in. For a 10" drawer I'm burning 10.5 to get there inclusive of the slides, and so forth. I find - for me - accounting for that 1/2" as part of the overall drawer assembly (box + undermount slide) makes all the factoring easier. $.02

Outstanding instructional video, thank you. The only part I did not fully understand was (at the 9:59 mark) when you said, “that 1 inch (unaccounted for) is basically dead”. Can you please elaborate on what you mean? (Let me guess, and you can correct me if I get it wrong: on each drawer, there is 1/2” between the bottom of the drawer slide and the bottom of that drawer? If so, then that would add up to the “dead” one inch.) This brings up two more questions: 1) Does this suggest that if using side mounts, each of the top two drawers could be 5.5” tall? 2) What are the virtues of under mounts vs side mounts? Do they support more weight? Thanks again.

exactly what i need thankyou.

I haven’t built any cabinets yet. I always wondered how to determine the spacing. You’re right, I haven’t done it because I couldn’t find a standard or rule of thumb to figure that spacing. I better understanding of side mount slides. Plus I think those less expensive lol. Thanks for the confidence to go for it

I keep trying different pens but the Zebras are just the best.

Thanks!

Great tips! Unless I missed it, what’s the proper spacing on the sides of the drawers?

This is certainly a way to do it. There are too many ways and too many approaches that I always get stuck: Golden ratio. Fibonacci. Specific items (eg. pots and pans, files, utensils, tools). Or just different sizes so unknown items that are too big will fit in the next drawer up or down. Or maybe size according to what material is available. Salvaged material always makes it that much more challenging.

I don't want to be picking my nose trying to figure this out, want to know exactly where they are going to go before I drive that first screw.

I built a bunch of shop cabinets 9 years ago and I tried to maximize the space. I'm talking about apprx 1/8" between all the drawers. Since I also like to overfill the drawers I constantly run into things rubbing on the drawer above or below when operated and things getting wedged between the drawers. I repeated this mistake on 3 different projects... and it happens on each one. 😅😅😅