Picks
The Best Dart Board Cabinets
A cabinet solves wall protection, shadow and the fact that a dart board is an ugly thing to have in a finished room.
How these picks were made: from published manufacturer specifications, governing-body standards and the room arithmetic - not from first-hand use. We have not played on these tables. Read the method.
A cabinet is the single purchase that solves the three problems a dart board creates in a house: holes in the wall, your own shadow on the board, and a games fixture in a room that has other jobs.
What to check before buying one
- Interior depth. A bristle board is about 1.5 inches thick and a surround adds more. A shallow cabinet will not close over a board with a surround fitted.
- Door coverage when open. The doors are the wall protection. A cabinet whose doors only extend 6 inches past the board catches less than a surround does.
- Board compatibility. Most cabinets take a standard 18-inch bristle board, but electronic boards are larger and usually come in their own housing.
- Mounting. A cabinet with a board inside is heavy and all of that load is on the wall. Fix into studs, not drywall anchors.
- Lighting and power. If the cabinet is lit, there must be an outlet within the cord's reach - which is often shorter than people expect.
Quick picks
| # | Product | Best for | Board type | Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Viper Metropolitan Dartboard Cabinet with LED Light | Solving shadow too | Cabinet with integrated LED | |
| 2 | Viper Metropolitan Dartboard Cabinet | A finished room | Solid wood, closing doors | |
| 3 | Winmau Xtreme 2 Dartboard Cabinet | Scoring on the doors | Built-in scoring surfaces | |
| 4 |  Winmau Pro-Line Dartboard Surround | Protection without a cabinet | Foam ring |
The picks
#1 · Solving shadow too
Viper Metropolitan Dartboard Cabinet with LED Light
A cabinet with integrated lighting, which solves the real problem: a ceiling light behind you puts your own shadow on the board.
Integrated lighting solves the problem most people do not anticipate: a ceiling light behind the thrower casts their own shadow onto the board. A lit cabinet lights the board from its own perimeter instead.
- What works
- Lighting from the board's own plane removes shadow
- Doors close over the board
- One purchase, three problems solved
- What does not
- Needs an outlet within reach
- Costs more than an unlit cabinet
#2 · A finished room
Viper Metropolitan Dartboard Cabinet
A solid-wood cabinet that closes over the board. The doors are the wall protection, and they only work as far as they reach.
Solid wood that closes over the board. In a room that is not solely a games room, that matters: a closed cabinet reads as furniture and a bare board does not.
- What works
- Looks like a cabinet when closed
- Doors double as wall protection while open
- What does not
- No lighting
- Door coverage only extends as far as the doors reach
#3 · Scoring on the doors
Winmau Xtreme 2 Dartboard Cabinet
A cabinet with built-in scoring surfaces inside the doors. Pairs with a Blade board as a single wall install.
Scoring surfaces inside the doors, which pairs naturally with a sisal board and keeps the chalk and the maths at the board rather than on a phone.
- What works
- Scoring surfaces where you need them
- Matches a Winmau board as one wall install
- What does not
- No lighting
- Scoring surfaces wear and need re-marking
#4 · Protection without a cabinet
Winmau Pro-Line Dartboard Surround
A foam ring that catches the darts that miss the board. Cheaper than filling holes, and it fits over most bristle boards.
If a cabinet is not wanted, a surround is the minimum. It catches the near misses, which are most of them - but it does nothing for a dart that goes properly wide.
- What works
- Cheap
- Fits over most bristle boards
- No wall mounting beyond the board itself
- What does not
- Only catches near misses
- Does not hide the board
Mounting a cabinet correctly
- Work out where the bullseye needs to be: 5 feet 8 inches from the finished floor.
- Measure from the board's bull to the cabinet's own mounting point - that offset is what you actually mark on the wall.
- Find the studs. A cabinet plus board is a meaningful load, and drywall anchors fail slowly rather than suddenly.
- Check the doors can open fully without hitting a corner, a window or a light switch.
- Measure the oche at 7 feet 9.25 inches from the board face, not from the cabinet's front edge - the cabinet sits proud of the board.
Cabinet or surround?
A surround is cheaper and catches near misses, which is most misses. A cabinet costs more, catches wider misses, hides the board, and can carry lighting and scoring. In a dedicated games room a surround is enough. In a living room, a den or a room anyone else has to look at, a cabinet is the answer. Full comparison of the options here.
How these were chosen
On published cabinet dimensions, door coverage, lighting and scoring features, and board compatibility. Mounting height figures come from the World Darts Federation rules. We have not installed these cabinets.
