Hinges Suitable for IKEA Pax: Hole Pattern and Compatibility Explained

October 30, 2025

Hinges suitable for the IKEA Pax wardrobe carcase are based on the industrial standard for concealed cup hinges. They require a 35 mm diameter cup hole drilled into the door and a cruciform mounting plate screwed into the pre-drilled hole pattern (System 32) on the wardrobe side panel with an edge distance of 37 mm.

What Exactly Are Compatible Hinges for the Pax System?

The furniture manufacturer IKEA does not use proprietary locking or mounting mechanisms for its wardrobes; instead, it relies on established hardware standards from the furniture fittings industry. This means that defective or missing original hinges can be easily replaced with standard concealed hinges / cabinet hinges from third-party manufacturers, provided that the hole pattern and the cranking match.

The connection between the wardrobe door and the carcase consists of two main components: the hinge arm with the hinge cup, which is recessed into the door, and the cruciform mounting plate, which is secured to the interior of the carcase. Much like a standard plug fitting into a socket, the mounting plate aligns precisely with the pre-drilled row of holes in the carcase during installation.

Hole Pattern and Dimensions: What Matters for Compatibility

To ensure that an alternative hinge fits a Pax door and carcase, specific dimensions in millimetres must be observed:

Cup diameter: The circular recess in the door requires concealed hinges 35 mm. Smaller variants measuring 26 mm are not compatible with this wardrobe system.
Drilling depth: The recess in the door is generally 11.5 mm to 12.5 mm deep.
Drilling distance (cup): The two fixing screws to the left and right of the 35 mm cup usually have a spacing of 45 mm or 52 mm.
Row of holes (carcase): The Pax carcase is drilled according to System 32. The distance from the front edge of the cabinet to the centre of the first drilled hole is exactly 37 mm. The vertical distance between two drill holes is 32 mm.

Mounting Types and Opening Angles for Pax Doors

Beyond the basic drilling and routing dimensions, the position of the door relative to the carcase determines which technical hinge design is required.

Since the doors on the Pax system sit across the outer edges of the carcase when closed, covering the front edges, a full overlay (also known as straight arm) is strictly required. Corresponding concealed hinges full overlay feature a cranking of 0 mm, allowing the door to fully overlay the side panel. Other mounting types, such as concealed hinges half overlay (for twin doors sharing a single central partition) or concealed hinges inset (for doors set flush inside the carcase frame), will cause misalignment on standard Pax doors.

The standard opening angle for these wardrobes is 110°. Classic concealed hinges / cabinet hinges 110 degrees are used for this configuration. However, if internal drawers or pull-out wire baskets are installed that need to slide past the open door, wide-angle hinges are required. In this case, concealed hinges / cabinet hinges 165 degrees or 155° are used, as they swing the door completely clear of the internal opening width of the cabinet.

Variants: Soft-Close and Special Requirements

Modern fittings for large wardrobe doors frequently incorporate a damping mechanism. Concealed hinges / cabinet hinges with soft close mechanically reduce the closing speed of the door over the final centimetres. This is achieved via an integrated hydraulic cylinder within the hinge arm, which prevents the door from slamming hard against the cabinet carcase.

Installation note: For very heavy or tall doors (e.g. 236 cm Pax height), four hinges are generally installed per door to distribute the weight optimally across the carcase and prevent sagging.

Related Terms

System 32: An international standard in furniture manufacturing defining a 32 mm pitch between drilled holes.
Cranking: The bend or offset of the hinge arm that determines how far the door overlays the carcase side panel.
Cruciform mounting plate: The counterpart to the concealed hinge, which is secured to the cabinet wall using Euro screws.