Hanging a door is one of those skills that looks straightforward on YouTube and humbles new homeowners the first time they try it. Learning how to put hinges on a door the right way means cutting a clean mortise, setting hinge leaves perfectly flush, and aligning the door jamb so the slab opens and closes without binding. After hanging more than 1,000 doors over my career, I have a step-by-step process that works for everyone from a first-timer with a chisel to a contractor with a router and jig.
Part of our Windows & Doors guide — explore the full guide →
Pick the Right Hinge for the Door
Interior passage doors use 3 1/2 by 3 1/2 inch hinges with 1/4 inch radius corners, the most common residential size. Exterior doors use 4 by 4 inch hinges, often with ball bearings for smoother operation under the weight of a solid slab. A standard 1 3/8 inch interior door weighs 30 to 50 lbs and needs three hinges. A 1 3/4 inch exterior door at 60 to 90 lbs always gets three, sometimes four for very tall slabs.
Match the hinge finish to your hardware. Satin nickel, oil-rubbed bronze, and matte black are the three most-requested 2026 finishes. A 3-pack of Stanley square-corner hinges at Home Depot runs about $11 for plain steel, $16 to $22 for designer finishes.
Mark the Hinge Locations on the Door
Standard hinge spacing on a passage door is 7 inches from the top of the door to the top of the top hinge, 11 inches from the bottom of the door to the bottom of the bottom hinge, and the middle hinge centered between the two. Mark all three locations on the latch-side edge using a sharp pencil and a small square.
Lay the hinge in position, square it to the door edge, and trace around it with a sharp pencil. Score the outline with a utility knife so the chisel does not blow out the edge later. Repeat on the door jamb, using the same dimensions so the leaves line up perfectly when you hang the slab.
Cut the Mortise: Router or Chisel
A router and a hinge mortise jig like the Porter-Cable 59370 at $79 produces the cleanest, most consistent mortise. Set the bit depth to match the thickness of one hinge leaf, usually 1/8 inch, and let the jig guide the router around the hinge outline. Each mortise takes about 60 seconds and you square the corners afterward with a sharp 1/2 inch chisel.
If you do not own a router, a sharp chisel still gets the job done. Score the hinge outline 1/8 inch deep with the chisel held vertically, then make a series of parallel chisel cuts inside the outline at 1/16 inch intervals. Pare out the waste at a low angle until the mortise floor is flat and the hinge sits perfectly flush.
Test Fit and Refine
Set the hinge in the mortise without screws and check it with a straightedge across the door edge. The hinge leaf should sit dead flush. A leaf proud by 1/32 inch means the door will not close. A leaf recessed by 1/32 inch means the screws will not draw it tight and the door will sag.
Use the chisel to deepen any high spots or, if a mortise is too deep, slip a single layer of business card under the hinge leaf as a shim. Once all three mortises pass the straightedge test, you are ready to drive screws.
Drill Pilot Holes and Set the Screws
Always drill pilot holes. Skipping this step splits the door stile or twists the hinge off square. Use a 7/64 inch bit for the standard #9 screws supplied with most residential hinges, and drill 1 inch deep into the door, 1 1/4 inch deep into the jamb.
Center each pilot using a self-centering Vix bit from Snappy at $19. This little tool eliminates the rookie mistake of off-center screw holes that pull the hinge slightly out of square. Drive the screws snug with a manual screwdriver. Power drivers strip soft brass and aluminum screw heads constantly.
Hang the Door and Check the Reveal
Lift the door into position, line up the hinge knuckles, and drop the hinge pins. On exterior doors with non-removable pins, you attach all hinge leaves to the jamb first, then lift the door and slide its leaves down onto the knuckles.
Check the reveal, the gap between the door edge and the jamb. It should be 1/8 inch on the latch side and 1/16 inch on the hinge side, with the top reveal at 1/8 inch and the bottom at 1/2 inch to clear flooring. Walk to the other side of the door and verify the reveal is even all the way around.
Adjust for Binding or Sagging
If the door binds at the top latch corner, drive a 3 inch screw through one of the top hinge holes into the framing behind the jamb. That long screw pulls the jamb tight and lifts the latch corner. This trick fixes about 80 percent of binding doors I encounter on service calls.
If the door sags away from the latch, shim behind the top hinge with cardboard cut to the hinge outline. A single layer of cereal box, about 0.018 inches thick, kicks the latch corner up by 3/16 inch at the strike, often enough to fix a worn-in slab.
Self-Mortising Hinges Save Time
If you only do one door every few years, self-mortising hinges from National Hardware or Hager skip the chisel work entirely. These hinges are thinner and fit between the door and jamb without any mortise. They look slightly less polished, but a 3-pack costs $9 and installs in about 15 minutes per door.
Use them on closet doors, utility rooms, and any spot where the look matters less than the speed. For bedroom doors, front doors, or anywhere you want a clean factory-quality reveal, do the real mortise work and you will be glad every time you walk past the door.
Final Lubrication and Long-Term Care
Squirt a drop of 3-In-One Multi-Purpose Oil at $3.50 a bottle on each hinge pin once a year. That single drop prevents the squeak that drives families crazy and keeps the pin from wearing the knuckles oval over decades. If a hinge starts squeaking sooner than 12 months, dust likely worked into the knuckle, so wipe the pin clean and re-oil.
A correctly installed set of hinges should last the life of the house, 50 plus years easily. Take the extra 20 minutes per door to get the mortise right and you will never think about it again.
