Handles, Knobs & Pulls

Why don't the new pulls line up with the old holes? Cabinet pulls are sold by center-to-center spacing: the gap between the two screw holes. Two sizes cover most American kitchens built in the last thirty years, 3" (76 mm) and 3-3/4" (96 mm). Measure yours off the old piece and the new cabinet handles land on the holes you already have, with no filling and no re-drilling. DK carries cabinet knobs, cabinet pulls, cup pulls, wire pulls, flush pulls, drop handles and backplates from Amerock, Hafele, Deltana, IVES, Laurey, National Hardware and Pride Industrial, sold one at a time or in packs of 2, 5, 10, 25 and 50.

Knob, Pull or Handle: What Goes on What?

Cabinet knobs take one screw and go on doors; cabinet pulls and handles take two screws and go on drawers. Past that, the choice comes down to how much grip you want and how wide the front is. "Cabinet handles" is the catch-all term for the two-screw pieces, so bar pulls, cup pulls and appliance handles all sit under it.

Cabinet knobs cost the least per opening and go in with one hole; cabinet pulls give you more grip on a drawer loaded with pans. Cabinet door knobs and handles both mount on the stile — the vertical edge of the door frame — opposite the hinges, so a door that swings to the right takes its hardware on the left edge. Cabinet door handles on a tall pantry mount vertically; on a wide drawer they run horizontal. Flush cabinet pulls sit level with the face, so nothing catches in a hallway, a boat cabin or an RV galley. Shop the three by type: cabinet knobs, cabinet pulls and cabinet handles.

Drawer Pull Cabinet Sizing by Drawer Width

Size cabinet pulls at roughly one-third the width of the drawer front. A 3" pull on a 30" drawer looks lost, and it puts all the load on two screws in the middle of a wide panel.

Cabinet drawer handles longer than 8" carry real weight, so check that the drawer front is thick enough for the screws that ship with them. Bar-style cabinet drawer pull handles list their C-C measurement, not their overall length — a 5-1/16" pull is usually around 6" tip to tip, which matters when you're spacing two of them on one front. Order cabinet drawer pulls by that C-C number and they will land on your existing holes.

Where the Holes Go: Cabinet Knob Placement

Standard cabinet knob placement on a framed door is 2-1/2" to 3" up from the bottom corner on wall cabinets, the same distance down from the top corner on base cabinets, and 1" to 1-1/2" in from the door edge. On drawers, center the knob both ways up to 24" wide; above 30", use two knobs set evenly or switch to a pull. Measure kitchen cabinet knobs from the same corner on every door in a run so the line reads straight across the room. On a Shaker door, put cabinet knobs on the stile rather than the floating center panel, which can split.

Mark every centerline before you drill anything, and install one upper and one base cabinet first so you can stand back and look at the run. A drilling jig from hand tools and accessories keeps forty holes at the same offset, and it pays for itself the first time you hang cabinet door handles on a matched pair of pantry doors. For sizing charts by cabinet width, along with hinge and appliance-pull numbers, read our cabinet hardware placement and sizing guide.

Brass, Chrome, Black or Nickel: Picking a Finish

Match the new finish to whatever you are not replacing — the faucet, the hinges, the appliance trim. Between them, Amerock's Candler, Blythe and Allison lines cover polished chrome, satin nickel, oil-rubbed bronze, matte black, champagne bronze, brushed copper and burnished brass, so one look can carry across every door and drawer in the room.

• Brass cabinet handles — polished brass reads traditional, burnished and antique brass read warmer and hide fingerprints better.
• Chrome cabinet handles — polished chrome for a bright kitchen, satin or brushed chrome when you want the shine knocked back.
• Satin nickel — the safest match for stainless appliances, and the finish that shows fewest fingerprints on kitchen cabinet handles.
• Matte and flat black — pairs with Shaker fronts and black plumbing fixtures.
• Oil-rubbed bronze — dark brown with copper highlights, common on cherry and walnut cabinetry.

Buy the whole job in one order. Cabinet knobs and cabinet pulls plated in separate production runs can differ slightly in tone, and that shows up most on brass and champagne finishes.

Ordering for a bathroom vanity too? Carry the same finish through to bathroom hardware so the towel bar and the vanity pulls agree.

Which Material Holds Up Where?

Zinc-alloy cabinet pulls and cabinet knobs under a dollar apiece keep a rental turn cheap; solid brass costs more and holds its plating far longer. Amerock, Hafele and Laurey all build cabinet hardware knobs in the same finishes as their cabinet pulls, so a mushroom knob on the uppers can sit beside a bar pull on the drawers without a mismatch. For accent strapping, mouldings and cup pulls, see decorative hardware — that's also where the more ornate decorative cabinet handles live.

Replacing Old Handles Without Re-Drilling New Holes

Old cabinet knobs leave one hole and old pulls leave two, so what you can reuse depends on what came off. Three fixes cover almost every "the new ones don't line up" problem:

• Old holes too far apart or too close. A round backplate, like Brixwell's 2-3/4" satin nickel one in packs of 2, 5 or 50, sits under a knob and covers the old bore.
• Going from a knob to a pull. Two-hole cabinet pulls need a second hole drilled; measure the existing hole, add your C-C spacing, and mark from the same edge on every door.
• Screws too short. Cabinet hardware ships with 8-32 machine screws around 1" long. Thick or applied-moulding fronts want 1-1/4" to 1-1/2"; appliance pulls usually take #10 screws through the panel. Longer sizes are in screws.

Long cabinet drawer pulls do not cause sag. If a drawer drops once the new handle is on, the slide is the culprit — check drawer components for slides and runners.

Cabinet Handles Hardware in Bulk: Packs, Volume Pricing and Net 30

Count before you order: a standard set of kitchen cabinet handles for 10 wall doors, 12 base doors and 9 drawers comes to 22 knobs and 9 pulls, plus two or three spares for the ones that get dropped behind the dishwasher. Amerock ships plenty of its cabinet drawer pulls in 10-packs and 25-packs; Brixwell backplates come in 50-packs. Multi-unit jobs usually go out as cabinet knobs by the 25-pack and cabinet pulls by the 10-pack, all in one finish.

Buying kitchen cabinet drawer pulls and knobs for more than one unit? Send the quantities through the volume discount and quote form and DK will price the run, hold finishes consistent across the order, and set up Net 30 and tax-exempt terms for contractor and property-management accounts. Cabinet handles for a full build ship together from US warehouses, and the lowest-price guarantee applies — call 877-509-8040 or use live chat and we'll match a lower price you've found.

Frequently Asked Questions

Should you use knobs or pulls on kitchen cabinets?

Most kitchens use both: cabinet knobs on the wall and base doors, cabinet pulls on the drawers. Cabinet knobs and pulls from the same collection are built to match, so mixing the two is the standard look, not a compromise.

What size cabinet knob is standard?

Cabinet knobs at 1-1/4" diameter are the workhorse, and most kitchen cabinet knobs sold are that size. Go 1" on doors under 12" wide and 1-3/8" to 1-1/2" on wide drawers and pantry doors.

Can I put a pull where a knob used to be?

Yes — drill one new hole at your pull's C-C spacing from the existing hole. If you'd rather not drill, a knob with a backplate covers the old bore and keeps the single screw.

Do cabinet door knobs have to match the hinges?

No. Plenty of kitchens run concealed hinges you never see with brass or black hardware on the face. If your hinges are exposed, matching the two finishes is the tidier choice.

How do I keep matte black and brass looking new?

Wipe with a damp cloth and dry it. Skip abrasive cleaners and ammonia sprays on plated and lacquered finishes — they cut through the coating, not the fingerprints.

Are cabinet handles and cabinet pulls the same thing?

The words get used interchangeably. Here, cabinet pulls cover the shorter two-screw pieces and cabinet handles cover the longer bar and appliance sizes — both mount the same way, both are measured center to center.

Can I order a single piece to test the finish first?

Yes. Most cabinet handles, knobs and pulls sell individually as well as in packs, so buy one, hold it against your cabinet door, then come back for the full count.

Ready to Order?

Start with the type you need — cabinet knobs, cabinet pulls or cabinet handles — or see what else fits the job in cabinet and furniture hardware and the Amerock line. Not sure of your center-to-center measurement? Call 877-509-8040 any hour, tell us what came off the door, and we'll match your old cabinet knobs and pulls to something in stock.

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