Best kitchen brands Best and worst kitchen brands

kitchen side board

We surveyed more than 2,000 Which? members who’d bought a new kitchen in the last five years.

Best and worst kitchen brands

Our table includes the biggest names in kitchens: Ikea, John Lewis, Moben, Magnet, B&Q, Homebase, Wickes and Howdens Joinery.

The companies are ranked according to their overall customer score, which is based on how satisfied customers were with the brand overall, and whether or not they’d recommend it to a friend.

We’ve also given individual ratings for aspects such as customer service, price and quality of products, so you can see the strengths and weaknesses of each brand.

See our to compare typical prices and services offered by different kitchen brands.

Kitchen shops reviewed
BrandCustomer ServiceQuality FinishQuality ProductVFMCustomer Score
B&QSubscriber only contentSubscriber only contentSubscriber only contentSubscriber only contentSubscriber only content
HomebaseSubscriber only contentSubscriber only contentSubscriber only contentSubscriber only contentSubscriber only content
Howdens JoinerySubscriber only contentSubscriber only contentSubscriber only contentSubscriber only contentSubscriber only content
IKEASubscriber only contentSubscriber only contentSubscriber only contentSubscriber only contentSubscriber only content
Independent DIY companySubscriber only contentSubscriber only contentSubscriber only contentSubscriber only contentSubscriber only content
Independent kitchen companySubscriber only contentSubscriber only contentSubscriber only contentSubscriber only contentSubscriber only content
John LewisSubscriber only contentSubscriber only contentSubscriber only contentSubscriber only contentSubscriber only content
MagnetSubscriber only contentSubscriber only contentSubscriber only contentSubscriber only contentSubscriber only content
MobenSubscriber only contentSubscriber only contentSubscriber only contentSubscriber only contentSubscriber only content
WickesSubscriber only contentSubscriber only contentSubscriber only contentSubscriber only contentSubscriber only content

Moben has told us that it has gone through significant changes during the five year period covered by our survey, including a change of ownership and substantial investment. Moben says it fits several thousand kitchens per year and does not accept that our survey is representative of the services it provides.

Common kitchen problems

40% of members experienced problems with their kitchen after it had been installed. The most common problems were:
• problems with sinks/taps 9%
• problems with electrical items 7%
• soft closure mechanisms on drawers not working 6%.

Best and worst installers

We asked members who had used an installation service to rate the brand’s overall service, plus the ease of arranging it and the time it took. In our table below, we’ve got ratings for three national brands plus independent kitchen and DIY (non-kitchen specialist) companies.

Independent DIY companies came top in our survey and B&Q was the worst installer – its customers were significantly more likely to have to wait three months or more to have their kitchen installed. Get customer verdicts on all brands .

Overall installation customer score is based on how satisfied customers were with the brand, and how likely they were to recommend it to a friend.

Kitchen companies on test
BrandEaseTimeCustomer score[a]
B&QSubscriber only contentSubscriber only contentSubscriber only content
Independent DIY companySubscriber only contentSubscriber only contentSubscriber only content
Independent kitchen companySubscriber only contentSubscriber only contentSubscriber only content
John LewisSubscriber only contentSubscriber only contentSubscriber only content
MagnetSubscriber only contentSubscriber only contentSubscriber only content

Table notes

Kitchen advice

It’s worth putting plenty of thought into planning your kitchen and thinking about everyday, practical needs as well as the style and design you want.

Our planning a kitchen guide has lots of advice on how to get the best layout and maximize space, plus top tips to help you make the most of your budget.

And if you’re planning to replace existing or buy new appliances, you’ll need to know much space to allow for these in your design. Our kitchen appliance size guide gives typical sizes for all the kitchen essentials and we’ve got hundreds of Best Buy cookers, cooker-hoods, hobs, ovens, dishwashers, fridge-freezers and washing machines.

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