Sizing Guide

Sizing guide

Right-sized hardware shifts how a kitchen or bathroom feels — undersized looks fussy, oversized looks heavy. This guide covers how cabinet hardware is measured, how to read your existing holes, and how to choose the right size for a new project.

Replacing existing hardware? Jump to How to measure existing hardware, or go straight to Find Your Replacement Pull. Starting fresh? Choosing the right size gives recommendations by cabinet type.

The basics: center-to-center

Cabinet pulls and handles are sized by center-to-center — the distance between the two screw holes, not the total length of the piece.

  o------------------o
  <---- center-to-center ---->
  <-------- total length -------->

So a 128 mm pull means the screw holes sit 128 mm apart. The handle itself is usually 20–40 mm longer than the center-to-center figure to allow for the curve at each end.

Knobs and small round pulls have no center-to-center measurement — they use a single screw and are sized by head diameter.

Standard sizes (inch and mm)

Cabinet hardware uses metric (mm) sizing as the global standard, including in the United States. The table below shows the sizes carried at Archandles — each one links straight to that size's collection.

Metric (mm) Imperial Best for
96 mm 3.75″ Upper doors, small drawers
128 mm 5″ Standard kitchen drawers, vanities
160 mm 6.25″ Wider drawers, pan drawers
192 mm 7.5″ Deep drawers, islands
256 mm 10″ Large drawers, pantry doors
320 mm 12.5″ Oversized drawers, tall pantry
450 mm 18″ Refrigerator & appliance panels

Cup pulls and shorter sizes. Cup-style pulls and accent pulls often use 64 mm (2.5″) or 76 mm (3″) spacing. We do not carry these yet; email hello@archandles.com if you need a notification when they're added.

Older U.S. cabinets. Cabinets installed before about 2010 sometimes use exact inch spacings — 3″ (76 mm), 4″ (102 mm), or 6″ (152 mm) — which don't convert cleanly to standard metric sizes. Measure carefully before ordering; a metric size may sit a few millimetres off the existing holes.

Try the size calculator

The chart above is the reference. The tool below recommends a pull length for any drawer or door width — it follows the proportion our hardware is designed around, where the pull spans roughly one-third of the front.

How to measure existing hardware

If you're replacing what's already on the cabinet, this is the quickest way to get the right size:

  1. Remove one piece by unscrewing it from the inside of the door or drawer.
  2. Measure between the two screw holes — center to center.
  3. Use a metric ruler if you can. With an inch ruler, measure to the nearest sixteenth and use the conversion table above.
  4. Check more than one piece. Many kitchens mix sizes — smaller pulls on small drawers, larger on big drawers. Measure every size you plan to replace.
  5. Order the matching size. Then go to Find Your Replacement Pull and click your measurement.

Important: Ordering a different center-to-center size than your existing holes means either drilling new holes (and filling the old ones) or using back-plates that cover them. Send photos of your doors to hello@archandles.com and we'll help you think it through.

Choosing the right size (new installation)

Starting fresh — new cabinets, new construction, or replacing every piece? Here's how to think about size by cabinet type.

Kitchen drawers

The general rule: pull length is one-third to one-half of the drawer width.

Drawer width Recommended pull (center-to-center)
Up to 18″ / 45 cm 96 mm or 128 mm
18–24″ / 45–60 cm 128 mm or 160 mm
24–36″ / 60–90 cm 160 mm or 192 mm
36″+ / 90 cm+ 192 mm or 256 mm

For a statement look, go to the larger end of each range. For a restrained look, go smaller.

Kitchen base cabinets (with doors)

Base cabinets usually take a knob or a small pull near the top corner of the door:

  • Knob: 25–38 mm diameter, set roughly 75 mm from the top corner.
  • Pull: 96 mm or 128 mm center-to-center, mounted vertically.

Modern kitchens increasingly use small pulls (96 mm) on doors for consistency with the drawers; traditional kitchens use knobs.

Bathroom vanities

Vanities are usually narrower than kitchen cabinets, so smaller pulls suit them:

  • Single drawer (12–18″): 96 mm pull or 32 mm knob.
  • Double-drawer vanity: 96 mm or 128 mm pulls, matched.
  • Doors below the sink: 96 mm pull or 32 mm knob.

Pantry and tall cabinets

Tall doors (over about 30″ / 75 cm) need longer pulls for proportion:

  • 30–48″ / 75–120 cm tall: 160 mm or 192 mm.
  • 48″+ / 120 cm+ (full-height pantry): 256 mm or 320 mm.
  • Mounted vertically, roughly halfway down the door.

Wardrobe and closet cabinets

These usually take the largest pulls in the home:

  • Wardrobe doors: 160 mm or 192 mm pull, mounted vertically.
  • Sliding or bi-fold doors: flush edge pulls, or a 96 mm bar pull where there's clearance.

Appliance panels (refrigerator, dishwasher)

Appliance pulls run longer than cabinet pulls to balance a full appliance front:

Appliance pulls are sold separately in the Appliance Pulls collection.

Knob or pull?

Knobs Pulls
Best for Cabinet doors, small drawers Drawers of any size, large doors
Feel Traditional, restrained Modern, generous
Grip Single point — suits doors Full-hand — suits heavy drawers
Holes One Two

Mixing knobs and pulls in one kitchen is common and reads well: knobs on doors, pulls on drawers, one finish across both.

Door thickness and screws

Standard cabinet doors and drawer fronts are 3/4″ / 19 mm thick, and cabinet hardware is normally supplied with screws for that thickness.

Thicker doors — many solid-wood, some Shaker, and certain European fronts — need a longer screw. Common machine-screw lengths:

  • Standard: 25 mm (1″) — for 3/4″ doors.
  • Long: 32 mm (1¼″) — for 7/8″ to 1″ doors.
  • Extra long: 38 mm (1½″) — for 1″ to 1¼″ doors.

Longer 8-32 machine screws cost a few dollars at any hardware store. Not sure of your door thickness? Measure the edge of a drawer front — most are 3/4″ / 19 mm.

Common mistakes to avoid

  • Measuring total length instead of center-to-center. The screw-hole spacing is what has to match.
  • Assuming every drawer uses the same size. Many kitchens mix sizes.
  • Going smaller than the recommendation. Undersized hardware looks fussy and is harder to grip.
  • Mixing old imperial spacing with new metric. 3″ centers (76 mm) and 96 mm look alike from a distance but don't share holes.
  • Forgetting the back-plate. Old hardware with a wide decorative plate can hide nicked or oversized holes; a plate-free replacement will reveal them.

Still unsure?

Send a photo of your doors or drawers with a tape measure visible to hello@archandles.com, and we'll recommend the size and quantity. Replies usually within one business day.