IKEA vs Howdens vs DIY Kitchens: Which Should You Choose?
IKEA, Howdens or DIY Kitchens? A Glasgow kitchen fitter compares how you buy them, flat-pack vs rigid, guarantees, fitting time and fitting cost.
DIY Kitchens Fitter in Glasgow
Kitchen Fitter Glasgow fits DIY Kitchens kitchens across Glasgow and Renfrewshire, from £795 for up to 8 units and £1,250 to £2,200 for a typical 9 to 15 unit kitchen. DIY Kitchens units arrive rigid and ready-built, so there's no assembly charge and fitting starts on day one. We check your plan and your access before you order, fit from our base in Johnstone, and back every fit with a 2-year written guarantee, with no VAT added.
- 2-year written guarantee
- Gas Safe registered engineer
- No VAT added
- DIY Kitchens fittingfrom £795
- Home surveyFree
- Workmanship guarantee2 years, in writing
- VATNone added
What do you need to know before ordering from DIY Kitchens?
DIY Kitchens sells rigid, factory-built kitchens online, and you arrange your own fitter. That model saves money, but it puts three jobs on your shoulders that a showroom would normally handle.
You need your own fitter
DIY Kitchens makes and delivers the kitchen; the fitting is up to you. Many homeowners only start looking for a fitter once the kitchen is ordered, then discover that good local fitters are booked weeks ahead, and the units arrive long before anyone can fit them.
Delivery comes in a booked slot
DIY Kitchens schedules each order into a delivery slot, and the date can vary by range. If your fitter's start date and the delivery date don't line up, the kitchen either sits in the hall for weeks or the fitter's slot is lost while you wait for it.
Rigid units have to fit through the door
Because every cabinet arrives ready-built, tall larder units and corner units arrive full size. DIY Kitchens' own advice is to check that your doorways are wide enough. In a Glasgow tenement, that check has to include the close entrance, the turns of the common stair and the landing, as well as the flat's own front door and hall.
Get any of these wrong and you could be paying for a kitchen that can't be fitted on time, or a tall unit that can't reach the kitchen at all.
How do we fit a DIY Kitchens kitchen?
We fit DIY Kitchens kitchens with checks at the start that stop the common problems, then a straightforward fit because the units are already built.
- Free home survey. We measure the room and check the walls, floors and services, and we measure every door, hall, stair and landing the units have to pass through.
- Plan and order check. Send us your DIY Kitchens plan and basket before you order. We check it against our measurements and flag missing end panels, plinths, fillers or worktop lengths, and any unit too big for your access.
- Fixed written quote. You get a fixed price for fitting, with old-kitchen removal and any gas or electrical work listed separately. A 25% deposit books your start date.
- Book the delivery around the fit. You choose a DIY Kitchens delivery slot a few days before our start date, so there's time to check the order without the boxes waiting for weeks.
- Delivery check. Check the delivery against your order the day it arrives and report any damage to DIY Kitchens straight away, following their after-sales process.
- Fitting. Because the units are rigid, we start fitting on the first day: levelling base units, hanging wall units, scribing worktops, plumbing the sink and fitting appliances, with gas and electrics by our partner Gas Safe registered engineer and certified electrician.
- Handover. A walk-through, any snags put right, a clean and your 2-year written guarantee.
Rigid or flat-pack: why DIY Kitchens are quicker to fit
DIY Kitchens units are quicker to fit than flat-pack kitchens because the cabinets are built in the factory, not in your hall. This is how the two compare for a typical kitchen.
| DIY Kitchens (rigid) | Flat-pack, such as IKEA | |
|---|---|---|
| How it arrives | Built cabinets, wrapped and ready to fit | Boxes of panels and fittings |
| Assembly charge | None | £25 per cabinet with us |
| Time on site, 12 units | 3 to 5 days | 4 to 7 days |
| Getting it into the room | Tall and corner units arrive full size, so access must be checked | Easy to carry up a narrow stair |
| Cabinet construction | Factory-built, so every cabinet is square from the start | Depends on careful assembly on site |
| Storage before fitting | Takes more floor space | Packs flat |
For most Glasgow houses, rigid units save time and money on fitting. For a top-floor tenement with a tight stair, we check the largest units at the survey before you commit.
How much does it cost to fit a DIY Kitchens kitchen in Glasgow?
Fitting a DIY Kitchens kitchen costs from £795 with us, and most cost £1,250 to £2,200 for 9 to 15 units, with no assembly charge. These are November 2026 prices with no VAT added.
| DIY Kitchens kitchen | Fitting price | Assembly | Time on site |
|---|---|---|---|
| Small, up to 8 units | £795 to £1,250 | None | 2 to 3 days |
| Standard, 9 to 15 units | £1,250 to £2,200 | None | 3 to 5 days |
| Large, 16+ units or an island | £2,200 to £3,500 | None | 5 to 7 days |
| Old kitchen removal (optional) | £195 to £395 | Half a day to 1 day |
A 12-unit DIY Kitchens kitchen with the old kitchen removed typically costs £1,445 to £2,595 to fit; our Glasgow kitchen fitting price guide works through this example for a house in Newton Mearns.
What do people forget to order from DIY Kitchens?
The items most often missing from an online kitchen order are the finishing pieces, not the cabinets. Check your basket for these before you order, or send it to us and we'll check it for you:
- End panels for any cabinet side that will be on show, including the ends of runs and beside tall units
- Plinths long enough for every run, plus corner and end pieces
- Fillers where units meet a wall, so doors and drawers can open past the handles
- Cornice and pelmet, if your door style uses them
- Worktop lengths that allow for joints, cut-outs and any overhang
- Appliance housings and doors that match the exact appliances you've chosen
- Handles for every door and drawer, including integrated appliance doors
- Sink, tap and waste kit, if they're not coming from another supplier
A missing plinth or filler can hold up the final day of fitting, so it's worth five minutes before you press order.
Who is a DIY Kitchens kitchen best for?
A DIY Kitchens kitchen suits homeowners who are happy to plan and order online in exchange for rigid, factory-built units at a lower price than many showrooms. It works especially well if you've already got a layout in mind, you're keeping the sink and hob roughly where they are, and you'd like a quick fit with no assembly. If you'd rather have someone plan, order and take responsibility for the whole kitchen, our supply and fit kitchens service may suit you better. Either way, the survey and advice are free.
Your DIY Kitchens fitter near you
We fit DIY Kitchens kitchens across Glasgow and Renfrewshire, working from Johnstone. If you've been searching for a "DIY Kitchens fitter near me", these are the areas we cover:
| Area | Towns and neighbourhoods |
|---|---|
| Renfrewshire | Johnstone, Paisley, Renfrew, Linwood, Erskine, Houston, Bridge of Weir |
| Glasgow | West End, Southside, City Centre, Dennistoun, Shettleston, Maryhill |
| East Renfrewshire | Newton Mearns, Giffnock, Clarkston, Barrhead |
| East Dunbartonshire | Bearsden, Milngavie, Bishopbriggs |
| South Lanarkshire | Rutherglen, Cambuslang, East Kilbride |
Fitting a rigid kitchen in a tenement flat? Read our tenement kitchen fitting page. For other brands, see fit-only kitchen fitting, or check all the areas we cover.
Guides that help you plan
Free, practical guides from James, written for Glasgow homes and checked against our current prices.
Flat-Pack vs Rigid Kitchen Units: Which Is Better?
Flat-pack or rigid kitchen units? Compare strength, cost, fitting time and access up a Glasgow stair, plus which brands sell which. Assembly £25 a cabinet.
How to Measure Your Kitchen for New Units
Measure your kitchen properly before you order: tools, a step-by-step method, what to record, and the mistakes that cause missing panels and wrong units.
Book a fitter for your DIY Kitchens order
Send us your DIY Kitchens plan or basket, and we'll check it against your room, survey your access for free and send a fixed fitting price.
DIY Kitchens fitting questions
Does DIY Kitchens fit the kitchen for you?
DIY Kitchens makes and delivers rigid kitchens, and you arrange your own fitter for the installation. That's where we come in: we check your plan before you order, time the fit around your delivery slot and fit the whole kitchen, from £795 for up to 8 units, with no VAT added.
How much does it cost to fit a DIY Kitchens kitchen?
With us, fitting a DIY Kitchens kitchen costs £795 to £1,250 for up to 8 units and £1,250 to £2,200 for 9 to 15 units. There's no assembly charge because the units arrive rigid. Removing the old kitchen costs from £195, and gas or electrical work is priced at the survey.
Can you check my DIY Kitchens plan before I order?
Yes, and we recommend it. Send us your plan or basket and we'll check it against our own measurements of your room. We look for missing end panels, plinths and fillers, worktop lengths that won't allow for joints, and tall or corner units that won't fit through your doors or up your stair.
Will rigid units fit up my tenement stair?
Usually, but tall larder units and large corner units need checking. We measure the close entrance, stair turns, landings and your flat's doors at the survey, then compare them with the sizes of your largest units. If a unit won't fit, we'll suggest an alternative before you order, not after.
How soon after delivery can you start fitting?
Ideally a few days after delivery. That gives you time to check every item against your order and report any damage before we arrive. We'll agree the start date with you first, so you can choose a DIY Kitchens delivery slot that lands just before it.
What happens if a DIY Kitchens unit arrives damaged?
Report it to DIY Kitchens straight away, with photos, following their after-sales process. We'll fit the rest of the kitchen around it where we can, and come back to fit the replacement once it arrives. Faults in the units themselves are covered by DIY Kitchens, and our guarantee covers the fitting.
Do you fit DIY Kitchens worktops?
Yes. We fit laminate and solid wood worktops, whether they come from DIY Kitchens or another supplier, and fit the cabinets ready for templating if you've chosen quartz. Make sure your order allows enough length for the joints and cut-outs, which we check at the plan stage.
Do you fit DIY Kitchens near me in Newton Mearns or Bearsden?
Yes. We fit DIY Kitchens kitchens in Newton Mearns, Giffnock and Clarkston in East Renfrewshire, and in Bearsden, Milngavie and Bishopbriggs in East Dunbartonshire, as well as across Glasgow and Renfrewshire. The home survey and plan check are free wherever you are.