What is the difference between plywood and melamine?
They aren't directly comparable. Plywood is a panel construction made from cross-banded wood veneer layers. Melamine is a thermoset resin used as a decorative laminate face. The real comparison most buyers mean is plywood-core panels (with whatever face veneer) versus melamine-faced particleboard or MDF — a homogenous wood-particle core finished with melamine-resin paper.
Is plywood or melamine better for kitchen cabinets?
Plywood is the standard for kitchen and bath cabinet carcasses in most North American specs because it tolerates moisture exposure, holds fasteners better under load, and resists swelling at exposed edges. Melamine-faced particleboard is often used for cabinet interior shelves where the surface is dry and a pre-finished face speeds the build. Many kitchens use both: plywood for the box, melamine for the dry interior shelves.
Is melamine cheaper than plywood?
Sheet-for-sheet, melamine-faced particleboard is meaningfully cheaper than hardwood plywood at the same thickness. The cost gap narrows after edge banding labor, screw-holding hardware, and longer cabinet service life are factored in. For a precise project quote, a local cabinet shop is the only reliable source.
Does melamine swell when it gets wet?
The melamine face seals the surface, but any cut edge exposes the particleboard core. Bare cut edges wick moisture into the core, and the core swells. Edge banding addresses visible edges; the inside of a cabinet does not get banded, which is where water damage typically begins. Plywood, especially WBP-grade, handles intermittent moisture far better.
Does melamine plywood exist?
Yes — melamine plywood is a real product. It's a plywood core (rather than particleboard) with the same melamine-resin decorative paper laminated to one or both faces. It offers the easy-clean melamine surface with the structural and moisture behavior of plywood. Vinawood manufactures melamine-faced plywood as a middle option between melamine-faced particleboard and premium hardwood-faced plywood with separate finishing.
Which holds screws better, plywood or melamine?
Plywood. Cabinet screws bite into the wood veneer fiber that runs across the layered structure, giving a mechanical grip. Particleboard relies on resin holding wood particles, and the resin gives way before the screw does, especially under repeated load like cup-hinge cycles. Cabinet shops working in melamine-faced particleboard usually compensate with confirmat-style screws, dowels, or threaded inserts.
