Kitchen Plinth Calculator
How much kitchen plinth do you need? The usual sum adds up the cabinets and returns and divides by the plinth length. It is right for most kitchens, but not when no two runs fit in one length. Enter your runs and get every piece cut from a real length, with the joints, the returns and the clips counted.
Last reviewed: 30 September 2026
Plinth
Enter each run as the length its plinth covers: the cabinets, tall units and integrated appliances added up. A return is the plinth at an open end of a run, going back to the wall. Leave the extra allowance at 0%: the plan already counts every cut.
How Much Kitchen Plinth Do I Need?
The usual sum, from DIY Kitchens, is the width of every cabinet plus 600mm for each return, divided by the plinth length and rounded up. For most kitchens it is right: in the table below it matches the cutting plan in 20 of 24 cases, is short in 4.
It goes wrong when no two runs fit in one length, which is common in a U-shaped kitchen. A U of 1800, 2400 and 1800mm comes to 2 lengths of 3m by the sum, but each run needs its own length, so you need 3. An offcut is only any use if the next piece fits in it. So this calculator splits each run into pieces no longer than a length, adds the returns, and packs every piece into lengths, longest first, reusing offcuts where they fit.
How the Plan Works
- One plinth per run. A run longer than one length is split, full lengths first, with no piece under 300mm (our rule). Put the joint behind a leg so both ends are clipped (our advice).
- Returns. One piece at each open end, going back to the wall behind the front plinth, clipped to the same front leg (Howdens). The 480mm default is our estimate from Howdens' drawings (575mm from the wall to the cabinet front, less the front legs 92.5mm back). Measure yours.
- Inside corners. Howdens runs one plinth into the corner and butts the other against its back, with a spring clip. Enter each run as the length its plinth covers.
- Offcuts reused. Longest piece first, each into the length with least room left that still fits it, with 3mm lost at each cut (our working).
- Clips. Howdens clips the plinth to every adjustable leg, and its leg pack has 2 plinth clips per base cabinet. Each return needs 2 more, on the front and back legs at that end (our reading of Howdens' drawings).
What it does not do: curved plinths, plinth vents, sealer strip, or cabinets over 1000mm wide that may have more legs. The dishwasher cut-out comes out of the run's plinth, so it does not change the lengths.
Plinth Lengths, With Sources
Plinth has to match the kitchen range, so these are examples of each length, each on a merchant product page.
| Length | Size | Product page |
|---|---|---|
| 2400mm | 150mm high, 16mm thick | GoodHome Ashmead Dove Grey Straight Plinth, (L)2400mm |
| 2600mm | 140mm high, 15mm thick | Wickes Dakota White Continuous Plinth, 2.6m |
| 3000mm | 150mm high, 20mm thick | Worktop Express Oak Solid Wood Plinth, 3m x 150mm x 20mm |
The clip and corner rules are from Howdens' kitchen installation guide (plinths, cabinet legs, planning dimensions). The 600mm return allowance in the usual sum is DIY Kitchens'. The piece splitting, the saw cut and the packing are our own working.
Common Kitchens: Lengths Needed
Generated from the calculator above, with 480mm returns and nothing added. Each cell is the cutting plan, then the usual sum (which adds 600mm a return).
| Kitchen | 2400mm | 2600mm | 3000mm |
|---|---|---|---|
| Straight run, 2400mm, one return | 2 (2) | 2 (2) | 1 (1) |
| Straight run, 3000mm, both ends open | 2 (2) | 2 (2) | 2 (2) |
| L, 2400 + 1500mm, both ends open | 3 (3) | 2 (2) | 2 (2) |
| L, 3000 + 1800mm, both ends open | 3 (3) | 3 (3) | 2 (2) |
| Galley, 2400 + 2400mm | 2 (2) | 2 (2) | 2 (2) |
| U, 1400 + 1400 + 1400mm | 3 (2, short) | 3 (2, short) | 2 (2) |
| U, 1500 + 2400 + 1500mm | 3 (3) | 3 (3) | 3 (2, short) |
| U, 1800 + 2400 + 1800mm | 3 (3) | 3 (3) | 3 (2, short) |
Frequently Asked Questions
How much kitchen plinth do I need?
The usual sum, from DIY Kitchens, is the width of every cabinet plus 600mm for each return, divided by the plinth length and rounded up. For most kitchens it gives the right answer: in the table below it matches the cutting plan in 20 of 24 cases. Where it goes wrong is when no two runs fit in one length. A U of 1800, 2400 and 1800mm comes to 2 lengths of 3m by the sum, but every run needs its own length, so you need 3. This calculator cuts every piece from a length and reuses offcuts where they fit, so it shows which case you are in.
How many plinth clips do I need?
Howdens clips the plinth to every adjustable leg. Its leg pack for a base cabinet is 4 legs and 2 plinth clips, so the clips for the front plinth come with the cabinets. A return plinth clips to the side legs, with its clip under the front plinth's clip on the same front leg, so each return needs 2 more (our reading of Howdens' drawings). For an L of 2400 and 1500mm with a return at each end, that is 14 clips with the cabinets and 4 extra.
How do you join plinth at an inside corner?
Howdens runs plinth A into the corner, butts plinth B against the back of it, and joins them with a spring clip. So enter each run as the length its plinth covers, and count one spring clip for each inside corner.
What is a return?
The plinth that turns the corner at an exposed end of a run and goes back to the wall, under the end panel. Howdens clips it to the same front leg as the front plinth. The calculator starts at 480mm, our estimate from Howdens' drawings: 575mm from the wall to the front of a standard base cabinet, less the front legs sitting 92.5mm back. Measure yours from the back of the front plinth to the wall. DIY Kitchens' 600mm is an ordering allowance, not a real return, and it matters: an L of 2400 and 1500mm with a return at each end needs 2 lengths of 2.6m at 480mm returns, but 3 at 600mm.
Does the plinth length matter?
Yes. For the default U, 2400mm lengths (B&Q) need 3, 2600mm (Wickes) need 3 and 3000mm (Worktop Express) need 3. Plinth usually has to match the kitchen range, so check the colour first and the length second.
What about the dishwasher?
Howdens cuts a section out of the plinth in front of an integrated dishwasher so the door can open. It is cut from the run's plinth, so it does not change the lengths to buy. Seal the cut edges: Howdens says all raw edges exposed to moisture must be sealed with waterproof varnish or silicone.