How to Install Soft Close Cabinet Hinges: A Step-by-Step Guide

If you've ever cringed at the sound of a cabinet door slamming shut — or watched a toddler discover that kitchen cupboards make very satisfying banging noises — then soft close hinges are about to become your new best friends.

Soft close cabinet hinges use a small built-in hydraulic damper to slow the door in the last few degrees of closing, guiding it silently and gently into the frame every single time. No slamming. No noise. No gradual damage to your cabinet doors or faces.

The good news: installing them is a straightforward DIY project that requires no special skills. If you can drill a hole and drive a screw, you can do this. This guide walks you through every step — from choosing the right hinge for your cabinet type, to drilling the cup hole, to dialing in perfect 4D alignment after installation. Watch Installation Video→

What you'll learn in this guide:

• How to identify which soft close hinge your cabinet needs
• The 5 tools required (and one optional but useful one)
• A complete step-by-step installation walkthrough
• How to use 4D adjustment to perfectly align every door
• The most common installation mistakes and how to avoid them

Understanding Soft Close Hinge Anatomy

Before you install anything, it helps to know what you're working with. A standard concealed soft close hinge (the kind used on virtually all modern American kitchen cabinets) consists of three main components:

The hinge cup

This is the round part — typically 35mm in diameter — that presses into a drilled hole on the back of the cabinet door. The cup holds the arm mechanism and is the part that requires drilling. It should sit flush with the door surface when installed correctly.

The mounting plate (base plate)

This flat bracket screws onto the inside wall of the cabinet box (or the face frame, depending on your cabinet type). The hinge cup clips onto the mounting plate, which is what allows you to remove and reinstall doors without any tools.

The arm and damper

The arm connects the cup to the mounting plate and contains the hydraulic damper — a small oil-filled cylinder that creates the signature soft close action. On Furniware's 4D adjustment hinges, the arm also contains three independent adjustment screws that let you move the door in four directions after installation.

Pro tip: Check your overlay before ordering

The most common ordering mistake is buying the wrong overlay size. Overlay refers to how much the cabinet door covers the face frame opening. Before ordering, measure the gap between the edge of your door and the edge of the cabinet opening. Not sure? Read our Overlay Size Guide.

Step 0: Choose the Right Hinge for Your Cabinet

Not all soft close hinges are interchangeable. The two most important factors are your cabinet construction type and your door overlay.

For most American kitchens and bathrooms, you'll be working with face frame cabinets. All Furniware face frame hinges require a standard 35mm cup hole — the same size used by virtually every concealed hinge on the market, so if you're replacing old hinges, the existing cup holes will work perfectly.

Tools and Materials You'll Need

Everything else — the mounting screws — is included in the box with Furniware hinges. No extra hardware needed.

The Installation: Step by Step

  STEP 1    Remove old hinges (if replacing)

If you're upgrading from older hinges, start by opening the cabinet door fully and unscrewing the mounting plate from the cabinet interior. The door should then be free to lift off. Set the door on a flat surface with the inside face up.

If the old hinges left behind cup holes, don't fill them — Furniware hinges use the same industry-standard 35mm hole size, so those holes are ready to use.

Safety note: Cabinet doors are heavier than they look, especially solid wood.

Have a second person hold the door while you remove the final screws to prevent it from dropping.

  STEP 2    Mark the hinge positions on the door

With the door lying flat (inside face up), measure from the top and bottom edges to mark where each hinge will sit:

• Standard placement: 3 to 3.5 inches from the top edge, and 3 to 3.5 inches from the bottom edge

• For doors taller than 40 inches or heavier than 15 lbs: add a third hinge at the center

• Mark the exact center of where the cup hole will be drilled — this is typically 22mm from the door edge (use a hinge jig to be precise)

Consistency is everything across multiple doors.

If you are installing hinges on several doors, use a hinge jig and mark all doors before drilling anything. A single mis-measurement gets multiplied across every door.

  STEP 3    Drill the 35mm cup holes

Install your 35mm Forstner bit. Set your drill to a slow-to-medium speed — Forstner bits work best when not rushed.

Position the bit tip on your pencil mark and drill to a depth of approximately 13mm (roughly half an inch). This is deep enough to fully seat the hinge cup without the bit breaking through the front face of the door.

• Drill straight down — any angle will cause the cup to sit unevenly

• If you don't have a depth stop collar, wrap a piece of masking tape around the bit at the 13mm mark as a visual guide

• Clean out the hole with a cloth or small brush before inserting the hinge cup

Test depth before committing to all holes.

Drill one hole, seat the hinge cup, and check the fit before drilling the rest. The cup should press in firmly and sit flush with the door surface. If it sits proud, drill a touch deeper.

  STEP 4    Attach the hinge cups to the door

Press the hinge cup firmly into each drilled hole — it should seat with a satisfying click or firm resistance. The two small wings on either side of the cup rest on the door surface.

Drive the two small screws (included) through the wings into the door to lock the cup in place. Tighten firmly but do not overtighten — you're going into wood, and stripping these holes is easy to do.

  STEP 5    Install the mounting plates on the cabinet

Take your mounting plates (the flat brackets) and position them on the interior wall of the cabinet — or on the face frame, for face frame cabinets. They should align with the hinge cups you just installed on the door.

Mark and pre-drill pilot holes with a small bit (typically 2mm). This prevents wood splitting when you drive the mounting screws in. Drive the screws to seat the plates firmly.

On face frame cabinets: the plate mounts on the frame itself, not the box wall.

On frameless cabinets: the plate mounts directly to the interior side panel of the box.

Double-check that the plates are level before tightening fully — a spirit level or a hinge jig takes the guesswork out.

  STEP 6    Hang the door

Lift the door into position and align the hinge cups with the mounting plates. Each hinge has a simple snap or slide mechanism — press the arm down over the plate until you hear or feel it click into place.

Give the door a gentle tug downward after clipping each hinge to confirm it's seated. If it feels loose or pulls off easily, the clip isn't fully engaged — press again with more firm pressure.

  STEP 7    Adjust for perfect alignment (the 4D system)

This is where Furniware's 4D adjustment system makes a real difference. Even if your drilling and positioning were perfect, doors on real-world cabinets almost always need fine-tuning after hanging. The three adjustment screws on each hinge let you dial in exactly the right position:

Make adjustments in small increments — a quarter turn at a time — and test the door position after each adjustment. The goal is even gaps on all sides of the door and a soft, silent close every time.

The most important adjustment: the depth (in/out).

If the door is too far from the face frame, it looks sloppy. Too close and it rubs. Get the depth right first, then fine-tune vertical and horizontal. A 1-2mm reveal (gap) around the door perimeter looks best.

  STEP 8    Test the soft close and make final checks

Open the door to about 90 degrees and release it — do not push it shut. A correctly installed soft close hinge will:

• Allow the door to swing freely at first

• Catch and slow the door at around 15-20 degrees from closed

• Guide the door silently and completely into the closed position

• Hold the door closed without any bounce or rebound

If the door slams shut or doesn't fully close, check that the hinge cups are fully seated and the mounting plates are secure. If the door swings back open, the damper may not be engaging — check the closing angle adjustment.

Common Installation Mistakes (and How to Avoid Them)

Frequently Asked Questions

How long does it take to install soft close hinges?

For a single door with two hinges, budget 15-20 minutes the first time. Once you've done a few, you can knock out a door in under 10 minutes. A full kitchen with 20 doors typically takes 3-4 hours including adjustment time.

Do I need a 35mm Forstner bit, or can I use a regular drill bit?

You need a Forstner bit (or a hinge cup drill bit) specifically. Regular twist bits can't cut the flat-bottomed circular hole required for the hinge cup. Forstner bits are inexpensive and widely available at hardware stores.

My existing cup holes are already drilled — do they need to be the same size?

Almost certainly yes. The 35mm cup hole has been the industry standard for concealed hinges for decades. Virtually every concealed hinge ever sold uses this size. If you're replacing old concealed hinges, the existing holes are ready to go.

Can I install soft close hinges on existing cabinets without replacing the doors?

Absolutely — that's the most common scenario. If your doors already have 35mm cup holes from old hinges, you simply snap in the new Furniware hinge cups and attach new mounting plates. No new drilling required.

My door is slightly warped — will soft close hinges fix the alignment?

The 4D adjustment system can compensate for a surprising amount of variation in cabinet construction, but it can't fix a significantly warped door. If the door itself is twisted, the hinge can get the flat surfaces to close properly, but the warp will still be visible. For minor warping (under 3mm), the depth adjustment can help mask it.

How many hinges does my door need?

Most standard cabinet doors (under 30 inches tall, under 15 lbs) need two hinges. Doors between 30-45 inches or heavier doors should use three hinges. Glass-panel doors or very wide doors may need three or even four. When in doubt, add one more hinge — it won't hurt anything and improves door longevity.

Wrapping Up

Installing soft close cabinet hinges is one of the highest-impact, lowest-effort upgrades you can make to a kitchen or bathroom. In a few hours, you can transform loud, slamming cabinet doors into the kind of smooth, whisper-quiet experience that makes a home feel genuinely well-made.

The key steps are simple: measure and drill your 35mm cup holes at the correct depth and position, attach the cups and mounting plates, hang the door, and use the 4D adjustment system to dial in perfect alignment. Take your time on the measurement and drilling steps — everything downstream depends on getting those right.

If you run into any issues during installation — door won't align, hinges feel loose, soft close doesn't engage — check our adjustment guide or reach out to the Furniware team directly through the Contact page. We're always happy to help you get it right.

Ready to start your project?

Browse the full Furniware hinge collection at furniware.com/collections/hinges. All orders over $30 ship free, and every hinge includes the mounting screws. If you are not sure which overlay size you need, our size guide covers exactly how to measure.

Related Reading

• Face Frame vs Frameless Cabinets: Which Hinges Do You Need?

• Overlay vs Inset Cabinets: How Door Style Affects Hinge Choice

• Say Goodbye to Crooked Doors: How to Adjust Cabinet Hinges for Perfect Alignment

• What Makes a High-Quality Cabinet Hinge?

• Door Weight Matters More Than You Think