Comparisons
Interior Door Buying Guide
Updated 3 min read
The short answer
Two decisions drive an interior door project. Slab or pre-hung depends entirely on the condition of your existing jambs — reuse them if they are square and sound, replace if not. Hollow or solid core is about sound: solid core costs meaningfully more and the difference in acoustic isolation is immediately noticeable, which makes it worth it in bedrooms, bathrooms and home offices.
Slab vs pre-hung
| Factor | Slab replacement | Pre-hung unit |
|---|---|---|
| Reuses existing jamb | Yes | No — jamb is replaced |
| Existing casing preserved | Usually | No — re-casing required |
| Works with out-of-plumb openings | Poorly | Well — set plumb in the opening |
| Disruption | Low | Moderate — drywall repair likely |
| Unit cost | Lower | Higher |
| Best when | Jambs are square and sound, casing stays | Jambs are damaged or casing is being upgraded |
On a whole-house replacement where trim is also being upgraded, pre-hung is often better value despite the higher unit cost — the labour to make old jambs work well can exceed the saving.
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Where to spend the upgrade money
- Solid core in the right rooms
- Bedrooms, bathrooms and a home office where you take calls. The acoustic difference is obvious the first time you close the door. Hollow core is fine for a linen closet.
- Better hardware
- Handle sets are touched constantly and cheap ones feel cheap immediately. This is a high-return, easily-reversible upgrade.
- Casing, not the door
- A basic panelled door with substantial casing looks better than an elaborate door with thin flat casing. The frame does more visual work than the leaf.
- Consistent hinge finish
- Mismatched hinge and handle finishes are a small detail that reads as unfinished. Cheap to get right at the outset.
- Cased openings where doors are never closed
- Removing a door entirely and finishing the opening is cheaper than replacing it, and it opens up circulation.
Answers
Frequently asked questions
- Can I reuse my existing door frames?
- If they are square, undamaged and the casing is staying, yes — a slab replacement is cut to fit, mortised for hinges and bored for hardware. If the jambs are out of plumb, damaged, or you are upgrading casing anyway, a pre-hung unit gives a much better result.
- Is solid core worth the extra cost?
- In rooms where sound matters, clearly yes. The difference between a hollow-core and a solid-core door closing is immediately noticeable, and it makes a real difference to a bedroom next to a living area or a home office used for calls. In a closet, it is money better spent elsewhere.
- My doors stick and will not latch — do I need new ones?
- Usually not. Sticking is typically a hinge, strike-plate or jamb alignment issue caused by seasonal movement or settlement, and adjustment or re-shimming fixes most cases. Occasionally a door has genuinely warped and needs replacing. It is worth having it diagnosed before buying doors.
- How many doors should I replace at once?
- Doors are noticed as a set, so replacing all the doors on one floor generally looks much better than replacing a few. If the budget is limited, prioritise the doors you see from the main circulation route rather than the ones behind other doors.
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