Short answer
Scratched, gouged and torn wood fronts are almost always a refinishing job, not a replacement. A finisher fills the damage, blends stain into the surrounding wood, then clears over the repair. Replace the front only when the panel is warped, the core is swollen, or the piece no longer sits flat and moves freely. Veneer over particle board is the one case where the color match is hard, so ask for a sample before anyone strips a whole door.
Tell a finish scratch from a front that needs replacing
- Wipe the mark with a damp cloth. A scratch that disappears while wet sits in the clear coat only.
- Drag a fingernail across the scratch. If the nail catches, the damage is through the finish and into the wood.
- Look at the color inside the gouge. Wood the same color all the way down means solid wood.
- Look for a chalky brown core instead. That is particle board under a thin veneer, and the repair changes.
- Press any torn veneer back down. If it lies flat it glues down, and if it crumbles that area gets patched.
- Open and close the door or drawer. Catching, rubbing, or a new gap at the top means the panel has warped.
- Run your hand along the bottom edge and the back. Swollen edges mean water reached the core.
If the marks are in the finish and the piece still moves normally, this is a fill and refinish job. If the panel is warped, swollen, or the core crumbles, that front gets replaced.
Repair or replace
| Situation | What to do |
|---|---|
| Scratch shows only in the clear coat | Repair. Scuff that face and recoat it. |
| Gouge or divot in solid wood, panel still flat | Repair. Fill, sand, stain to match, then clear coat. |
| Veneer torn off but the edge lies back down | Repair. Glue the loose veneer, patch the gap, then blend the stain. |
| Veneer over particle board, core swollen or crumbling | Replace the front. Filler needs something solid to hold. |
| Front is warped or it catches when it moves | Replace the front. Refinishing does not straighten a panel. |
| Drawer box or slides still work normally | Replace only the front. The box stays. |
| Most fronts in the run are damaged | Order new fronts for the whole run. One order keeps color and grain consistent. |
What it costs
Runhome contractor estimates for this job, including the trip and assessment.
| Option | Range |
|---|---|
| Repair two damaged cabinet fronts in place, fill, veneer patch and touch-up | $250 to $520 |
Can I do it myself?
Yes, for a shallow scratch on a stained door. A wax fill stick in a matching color, rubbed in and buffed, hides light pet scratches in minutes. A gouge is harder: filler shrinks, sands back lighter than the wood around it, and takes stain differently, so a bad fill looks worse than the scratch did.
Hire a finisher when veneer is missing, when the damage is on a kitchen you need matched, or when the piece is a factory-finished front. Matching a factory stain and sheen is the whole skill, and a finisher will test the blend on the back of the door first.
What a contractor will ask you
Have these ready and you skip the back-and-forth.
- A wide photo of the whole run or door wall, plus a close shot of each damaged spot.
- The year the kitchen or the doors were installed. Newer runs often still have a matching front available.
- The cabinet brand or the store they came from. IKEA, a home center and a custom shop all order fronts differently.
- Whether the piece still sits flat and opens and closes normally.
- How many other doors or drawers are marked, and whether they are the same size and style.
- Whether the finish is stain or paint, and whether you have the color name or a leftover can.
- Whether you want the damaged spots fixed or every front matched.
Common questions
- Can dog scratches on stained wood doors be filled in and restained?
Yes. Scratches that catch a fingernail get filled, sanded flush, then stained and cleared. Expect the finisher to blend across the whole face, because a stained patch in the middle of a door shows.
- My renter ripped the veneer off a kitchen drawer. Do I replace the drawer?
No. The drawer box and slides are separate from the front, so only the front is in question. A torn veneer that still lies flat is patched and blended for far less than a new front.
- Will the repair match the rest of my cabinets?
Close, not perfect. A good finisher mixes stain to the aged color of the wood next to the repair, not the original factory color. Ask to see the blend on a hidden edge before the work goes on the face.
- Is it cheaper to replace one drawer front than repair it?
Usually not, once you count the ordering. A single replacement front has to match the door style, the wood, and a finish that has aged for years, and it often arrives brighter than its neighbors.
- The drawer still opens and closes fine. Does that matter?
Yes, it is the main thing. A front that sits flat and moves normally is cosmetic damage, which is the cheap case. Sticking or rubbing points to a warped panel, and that gets replaced.