We put two new kitchens in a couple of years ago - I’ve got a thread somewhere with some photos. It was one kitchen for us and another for DM who’s in the annexe. Different styles.
I’d never planned a kitchen before.
I used DIY Kitchens and once I got over the initial panic, I found it quite easy. They check your final design to make sure you’ve got the right number of panels etc and that you haven’t made any obvious cock-ups with your layout. You can message them for advice if you get stuck during the planning process too - their job is literally to help customers who are planning their kitchen so they are really helpful.
If you’re not confident on measuring, one option is to find your kitchen fitter first and get them to measure for you. You might have to pay but it will be peanuts.
There is a DIY Kitchens FB page (which has some DIYK actual staff on it who comment as well as fitters, customers etc). I believe there might have been someone recommended in the group you could pay to design your kitchen - £500 maybe? - and it would still be thousands cheaper than elsewhere.
What sealed it for me was the quality. DIYK are cheaper but they are also better quality - there was a good video of a tradie who ordered equivalent kitchens from DIYK, Magnet, Wren, B&Q, and Wickes. He unpacks them all and puts them together in his garage and then compares the quality of each. DIYK came out on top - it was an interesting video.
We went to Wren first - and it was just very uninspiring. I’m glad we changed our mind because I later found out about all the issues with Wren. There’s a whole group dedicated to Wren Nightmare Kitchens.
I would have gone to Howden’s if DIYK wasn’t available. It’s a lot more ££ even with a builder discount- and when they offer to price match they drop the quality of the doors etc - but overall they’re pretty good and I would say the next best to DIYK.
Our carpenter and builder had never heard of DIYK (they always used Howden’s) but they were both really impressed. The builder went on to buy his new kitchen from DIYK so that said quite a lot to me!
IKEA kitchens are fitted differently and not all builders like them - so just double check if you decide to go down that route.
Designing your kitchen yourself gives you the chance to fiddle around with it until you get exactly what you want. You can try out different layouts and look at the 3D visualiser. I spent ages buggering about with the units on the island. I always find in a shop, you only have a finite amount of time so there’s a bit of pressure to go with the first good design they come up with.
We visited loads of showrooms to get ideas of the different features and possible layouts.
@Smallorveryfaraway makes really good points about things to consider. We opted for a double sink rather than a draining board and it’s been infinitely useful. I have a small pull-out rack next to the cooker where I keep my herbs, spices, seasonings etc, and it’s honestly been my favourite thing. Carousels are great for corner cupboards but they’re flimsy - I wanted to put bulky things in there so no use. We switched to induction cooking for safety reasons - but you have to be careful with the top compared to a gas cooker - so extra space around to put hot pans and/or dish up food.
Look online at dream kitchens - you might not have their budget but they may have little things you can take inspiration from. Think about the aspects of their layouts that you like - floor to ceiling cupboards were my thing.
I think I paid around £8k for the kitchen to be fitted and about £5k for DM’s to be fitted. Ours is a bit bigger than average but hers is a bit smaller. We painted it ourselves though.
I cannot tell you how inexperienced I was. I had no clue at all. And I hated the online planner at first. But I love my kitchen now and I’d definitely do it myself again next time.