Buying Guide
How to Choose Interior Doors for Your Los Angeles Home
Replacing the interior doors in an LA home can shift the whole feel of a space — or it can be an expensive mistake if the doors fight the architecture. Mid-century homes need different doors than Spanish revivals, which need different doors than contemporary new builds. This guide walks through the practical decisions: core type, sizing, style match, finish, and how to spec a prehung. Written for LA and OC homeowners working on a remodel or new construction.
Step 1: Solid core or hollow core
This is the first decision and the one most people skip past. The two cores feel completely different in a finished home.
Solid core doors have a heavy, dense feel — they latch with a solid thunk, block sound between rooms, and feel substantially more premium. Required for any room where sound matters: primary bedroom, home office, kid's bedroom (especially next to a TV or kitchen), studio, music room.
Hollow core doors are lighter and cheaper. They make sense for closets, pantries, and low-traffic openings. Save the budget for the doors people actually interact with.
Most of our 270+ interior doors are available in either core. Confirm during ordering — some specific styles only ship one way.
Step 2: Match doors to your home's architecture
The single biggest design mistake: putting modern flat-panel doors in a craftsman bungalow, or 5-panel shaker doors in a contemporary new build. The doors fight the rest of the house and nothing reads right.
Quick architecture-to-door matchups for LA:
- Spanish revival, Mediterranean (Hancock Park, Pasadena, Santa Monica older streets) → arched-top, plank-style, hand-carved, or Mediterranean with wrought iron speakeasy windows
- Craftsman, bungalow (Pasadena, Highland Park, Eagle Rock) → arts & crafts, square-shouldered, honest joinery
- Mid-century modern (Studio City, Encino, parts of West LA) → flush, slat-style, walnut or white oak, no panels
- Contemporary, new build (Calabasas, Newport Beach, Hidden Hills) → modern interior, taller-than-standard, large flat panels
- Traditional, transitional (most LA neighborhoods) → shaker 3- or 5-panel, primed or stained
- Farmhouse (newer remodels in any neighborhood) → barn doors for select openings, plus shaker for the rest
Step 3: Pick the right size
Standard interior door sizing in the US:
- Width: 24", 28", 30", 32", 36" — most common is 30" or 32"
- Height: 80" (6-foot-8) is standard. 84" (7-foot) is increasingly common in newer LA homes for a more architectural feel. 96" (8-foot) is for high ceilings (10-foot rooms or taller).
Rules of thumb: bedrooms get 30" or 32" wide. Bathrooms get 28" or 30". Closets often go 24" or 30" depending on the closet width. Master bathroom and walk-in closets may go 32" or 36" to feel more generous. Hallways and major openings between rooms often use double doors at 60" combined.
For tall ceilings, consider going to 84" or 96" doors. The proportion change is dramatic — the room reads taller and the doors stop feeling like an afterthought. We carry 84" and 96" options across most styles.
Step 4: Choose a wood or finish
Interior doors come in three broad finish categories:
- Solid wood, unfinished or pre-stained — walnut, white oak, mahogany, alder. Premium feel, takes any finish you want, ages well. Best for solid-core construction.
- Primed MDF — flat or shaker style, ships ready to paint. Most cost-effective premium look. Common for new construction.
- White laminate — pre-finished in a clean white, no paint required. Budget-friendly, modern look, ready to install.
If you want a finish to last, get solid wood and have it factory-finished or job-site finished. Painted MDF chips at the edges over years; painted solid wood holds up. Stained wood takes the most beating gracefully — every scratch and bump just adds character.
For the LA climate (low humidity, big temperature swings between AC and outside), all three options work. Coastal homes (Manhattan Beach, Newport Beach, Malibu) should lean toward solid wood with a marine-grade finish on bathrooms and any door near outdoor airflow.
Step 5: Slab vs prehung
The other major decision. We have a full guide on this, but the short version:
- Replacing existing doors with intact jambs → slab
- New construction or new openings → prehung
- Multi-door projects (5+) → prehung saves install labor
- DIY installation → prehung, much friendlier to non-carpenters
If you go prehung, we build to your jamb width (4-9/16", 5-1/4", 6-9/16", or custom) in our LA facility. More on our prehung service.
Step 6: Order, deliver, install
Once you've decided: pick the doors from the catalog, configure prehung options if applicable, check out. Most LA orders ship within 24 hours and arrive next-day from our San Dimas warehouse. Prehung-assembled stock units take 1–3 business days to build, then ship.
For installation, we don't install ourselves but we partner with professional installers we trust across LA and Orange County. Contact us and we'll connect you with one. Most carpenters handle interior door installs at a flat rate per door.
Have measurements? Send them by email or phone and we'll spec the right doors. (424) 466-7707
Frequently asked questions
What's the cheapest premium interior door option?
White laminate or primed MDF in shaker style — typically $200–$300 per door, slab. Pre-finished, solid construction (when ordered as solid core), and ready to install. Good for low-traffic rooms and budget-conscious projects.
Are taller doors worth the extra cost?
84" doors typically add $50–$120 over 80" doors. 96" doors add $150–$300. Worth it for rooms with 10-foot or higher ceilings — the proportional improvement is significant. For 8-foot ceilings, stick with standard 80".
Can I match interior doors to my front door?
If your front door is mahogany, get mahogany interior doors with the same stain. Visual continuity from the entry through the home is one of the cleanest design moves. We can custom-finish interior doors to match a specific entry door — send a photo or a sample.
How long do interior doors last?
Solid wood interior doors easily last 30+ years. Primed MDF and white laminate last 10–20 years before edges chip or laminate peels at high-touch points. Hollow-core doors of any material are good for 5–15 years before they start to feel hollow.
Have a project to talk through?
Whatever you're working on, the fastest path is a phone call. We'll point you at the right doors — or build you something custom if nothing in the catalog fits.
(424) 466-7707 info@thedoorfather.com