12 Popular Woodworking Joints

12 Popular
Woodworking Joints
By Michael Poorman (aka Woodshop Mike)

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 12 Popular Woodworking Joints

1. BUTT JOINT

Butt joints are one of the simplest woodworking A few common uses for butt joints are picture
joints to make and are commonly used where frames, small boxes, or drawers. One of the most
much strength in the joint isn’t required. It’s usually common is edge-to-edge glue-ups to create panels.
made by gluing one end grain piece and one long
grain piece together. What this joint makes up for in Butt joints have lots of strength when used in long
simplicity, it loses in strength and durability. grain to long grain glue-ups. For instance, gluing the
edges of two boards together to make a wide panel
Since the butt joint is straightforward and easy to is a butt joint. In this scenario, the resulting joint is
create, it’s ideal for beginners or for projects where usually stronger than the surrounding wood.
simplicity is desired. Butt joints can be quickly
assembled and require fewer tools and materials
compared to more intricate joinery methods. This
makes them cost-effective and a common choice
when building inexpensive items. However, since
they lack any interlocking or alignment features,
the mating surfaces can be tricky to position, and
the joint will not survive even moderate racking or
shearing forces. If your project calls for an end grain
to long grain butt joint, consider reinforcing the
joint.

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2. POCKET-HOLE JOINERY
Pocket-hole joinery is one of the most popular
woodworking joinery methods and is well suited for
beginners and professionals alike. At the heart, this
is a butt joint that’s been reinforced with screws.
The pocket-hole joint requires forming an angled
hole/slot located close to the end of a board. This
pilot hole prevents the board from potentially
splitting as the screw joins the two pieces together.
Glue can be added to this joint to provide additional
strength.
The pocket-hole joint can be formed a few different
ways. The most common method is with the use
of a pocket-hole jig and a stepped drill bit which
counterbores the pocket and pre-drills for the screw
simultaneously. Jigs like this range in cost from
around $20 to $400+ depending on what features
you want. Pocket-holes can also be formed by
cutting an angled slot (pocket) with a router bit via a
CNC or other specialty pocket-hole machinery.
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12 Popular Woodworking Joints
This method is generally reserved for production
furniture/cabinetry shops as the equipment cost can
be in excess of $1,200.
Pocket-hole joinery shines where speed and
efficiency are paramount and is well suited for
assembling case goods (cabinets, dressers, etc.), face
frames, drawer boxes, and most other applications
where a reinforced butt joint is needed. Another
benefit of this joinery method is the ease at which
items can be disassembled (assuming you didn’t add
glue to the joint) if modifications are necessary.
In instances where the screw holes would be
unsightly if seen, plugs can be used to fill the pocket-
holes. While the pocket-hole joint is significantly
stronger than the butt joint, it’s not well suited for
joints that will see regular racking or twisting forces.
For instance, this isn’t a good joint for chair or bed
building. Face frame assembly is a very popular and
effective use of pocket-hole joinery.
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3. BISCUIT JOINT
At first the biscuit joint may seem like nothing more
than a reinforced butt joint, but biscuits can also
serve as a helpful aid when gluing up larger panels or
tabletops by providing great registration of the faces
so you do less leveling after glue-up. This joinery
method works by cutting a slot into the surface of
the two pieces that are to be joined and inserting
an oval-shaped biscuit into the slots. Biscuits are
typically made from compressed beech.
The most efficient way to create biscuit joints is
by using a biscuit joiner, sometimes called a plate
joiner. There are other ways to cut these slots, but
given that biscuit joiners typically range from $50–
$300, depending on the quality and features of the
tool, I think it’s better to simply buy the tool that’s
designed for the job. While a biscuit joiner’s primary
role is cutting slots for biscuit joints, it is a handy
tool for other applications in the shop as well, such
as cutting slots for Z-Clips that can be used to secure
tabletops.
Accurately cutting the biscuit joint is critical. While
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12 Popular Woodworking Joints
a quality biscuit joiner can make this easier, if the
slots are not cut in the proper location, to the correct
depth, or are crooked, the assembly process will
be difficult if not impossible. However, if the slots
are cut correctly, it allows for an easy assembly
sequence and produces fairly strong joints. Check
out part 1 and part 2 of our article on tips for using a
biscuit joiner.
Biscuit joints can be used in a variety of
woodworking projects, including cabinets,
tabletops, and frames. They are particularly useful
in projects that involve edge-to-edge, end-to-edge,
or even end-to-end joining and produce a stronger
joint thanks to the additional gluing area of the
biscuits. Even though these aren’t the most robust
joints possible, they are adequate for the majority
of case good projects and a less expensive option to
a Domino joiner when used as an alignment aid for
large glue-ups. The easiest way to cut biscuit joints
is with a dedicated biscuit joiner, but you can also
use a hand-held router or router table, with some
limitations.
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4. FLOATING MORTISE AND TENON
A floating mortise and tenon joint, also called a loose
tenon, simulates a mortise and tenon but is much
easier to produce, while still providing the strength
of a mortise and tenon joint.
One way to make loose tenon joints is with a Festool
Domino. Domino joinery is loved and hated for a
variety of reasons. On one hand, it’s a fast and very
strong joinery option. On the other hand, buying a
Domino joiner can be prohibitively expensive for
some.
First off, let’s discuss what a Domino joiner is and
why it’s so versatile. This tool quickly and accurately
produces a loose tenon joint by forming a mortise
with a cutter that pivots in a side-to-side motion
until the desired depth is reached. The Domino
joiner can make mortises in a range of widths and
depths to suit a large majority of joinery applications
from small to large projects.
Once the mortise is cut, you glue a Domino (the
loose tenon) into place and clamp the joint while
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12 Popular Woodworking Joints
the glue cures. Since Dominos are made from beech
and can be over a ½” thick and extend into the wood
over 2 ¾”, they are capable of producing very strong
joints.
The Domino joiner is also easy to adjust to the needs
of different joinery applications and has a few built-
in stops that can reduce the need for marking and
measuring before cutting the mortises. This form
of joinery makes it easy to dry fit an assembly prior
to gluing things together. It can be helpful to have
a set of “dry run” Dominos in the shop that have
been sanded down slightly to aid in the ease of
disassembly prior to adding glue.
The Domino DF500 and Domino 700 are expensive
machines, ranging from $1,200–$1,600. You’ll need
to make your own buying decision to determine
if they’re right for you. There are other ways to
produce floating tenons. One such tool is the Jessem
Pocket Mill Pro, which is offered at $350. Another is
the Beadlock Tenon Jig, available for about $90.
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 12 Popular Woodworking Joints

Another viable option to utilize floating mortise and tenon joinery is setting up a hand-held router with a
jig to guide the router in cutting the mortises. Some woodworkers use a horizontal router table to cut the
mortises.

Biscuit joints are also floating mortise and tenon, but because of the shallow penetration of a biscuit into
each of the mating pieces, biscuits don’t provide as strong a joint as these methods. Dowels are also floating
tenons, and are strong, but can be fussy to use.

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 12 Popular Woodworking Joints

5. RABBET JOINT

Rabbet joints are made by cutting an L-shaped notch a durable joint with ample surface area for gluing. It
or groove along an edge of the board. This is easily can be cut on a router table or produced on a table
done with a table saw or router and has a handful saw.
of practical applications in the shop. Since rabbet
joints have more surface area than butt joints, they
produce a stronger bond when gluing. Due to the
geometry of the joint, they can also make alignment
of mating pieces easier during assembly.

The basic rabbet joint is commonly used on the back

edge of cabinets to inset the back flush with the
sides, on cabinet sides to receive the top or bottom,
or in frames/doors with a glass pane. This joint can
also be used when constructing drawer boxes, but
can benefit from the addition of brad nails to help
reinforce the joint.

A variation of the basic rabbet (known as a locking

rabbet) is a great alternative joint for drawer
boxes where additional strength is desired but the
complexity/time of dovetail joinery needs to be
avoided. The locking rabbet joint takes the strength
of the basic rabbet up a couple notches and creates

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 12 Popular Woodworking Joints

6. DADO JOINT

Put simply, a dado is a groove cut into a board. If we
want to be technical, a dado is cut across the grain
while a groove is cut along the grain. Regardless of
the direction the groove is cut, this joinery technique
has a variety of applications and is relatively easy to
master.
Dadoes/grooves are commonly used for securing
shelves in a cabinet, accepting drawer bottoms, or in
jigs and fixtures for hardware such as T-track. When
the dado is cut all the way across a board, it’s known
as a through dado. This is commonly used when the
ends of the boards won’t be seen or the aesthetic
isn’t a concern.
A dado is typically cut on a table saw with a dado
stack, on a router table, or with a hand-held router.
The biggest drawback to dadoes is that they can be
time consuming to complete, dialing in the width
and depth of the slot is critical, and errors can be
difficult to correct or hide. When setting up for a
dado cut, it’s recommended to dial in the size of the
dado using scrap pieces of your project material to
minimize mistakes.

However, when the ends of the boards will be seen,

a stop dado can be employed. With a stop dado,
the slot simply ends at some point before the edge
of the board and the mating piece is notched to
accommodate this.

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7. LAP JOINT
A lap joint is a staple woodworking joint that’s
formed by two pieces of wood overlapping each
other. This creates a strong connection between the
pieces and, depending on the size and orientation
of the joint, can also significantly reduce racking in
the structure. Lap joints have A LOT of glue surface
and are very strong. They can be cut in a wide range
of configurations and are utilized in everything from
delicate drawer organizers to timber framing joinery.
The half-lap is the most common variant of this joint
and, as the name implies, is where each piece has a
notch cut halfway through it so that when the two
pieces mesh they are flush with each other on both
sides. However, the lap joint can also be formed with
pieces only partially meshing together as desired for
the project’s design.
The lap joint is a fairly simple joint to create and can
be made with a variety of tools. Most commonly,
lap joints are made with a dado head on a table saw
or by using a router, but they can also successfully
be cut on the table saw with a standard blade and
simple jig, or with hand saws and chisels. If a snug fit
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12 Popular Woodworking Joints
is achieved with this joint, it will not only look great
and go together with a high level of accuracy, but
the additional surface area for gluing will produce a
robust joint.
There are two main downsides to the lap joint,
though. First is the need for precise layout and
execution of the cut. If the joint isn’t precisely cut,
the resulting fit will be sloppy. The best way to
prevent a bad fit is by sneaking up on the final size
of the notches. This can be achieved by cutting
close to the layout line and checking the fit before
continuing. By sneaking up on the final size of the
notch, you’re much more likely to achieve a great
fit. Secondly, the joint lines will be visible. While this
may be a desired aesthetic, if the joint wasn’t cut
precisely, it can make for a less than visually pleasing
joint and the errors can often be difficult to disguise.
When you’re ready to make a lap joint, it’s good to
have a handful of test pieces ready that are exactly
the same size as your project pieces. You’ll need
them for setup and test cuts.
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8. FINGER JOINT

A finger joint, also known as a box joint, is a type of
woodworking joint that is typically used to join two
pieces of wood at a right angle. They are commonly
used in a variety of woodworking applications such
as boxes, cabinets, drawers, and frames. When made
from contrasting woods, like maple and walnut, this
is a very attractive joint.
The main downside of the finger joint is the
additional time it takes to plan the cuts. However,
once that’s done, the process of actually cutting
the joint is relatively easy when a jig is utilized in
conjunction with a table saw or router.

A variation of the finger joint can also be employed

to effectively stitch two boards together at their
ends. An example of this is paint-grade millwork.

The box joint has ample surface for gluing which

makes it very strong, and thanks to the interlocking
fingers that create this joint, it’s easy to accurately
assemble. The finger joint resembles a dovetail
joint in the way that both boards mesh together and
create a visually appealing pattern when the joint is
assembled, but the finger joint is significantly easier
to master.

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9. MORTISE AND TENON JOINT
Mortise and tenon joints are widely regarded as one
of the strongest and most reliable woodworking
joints. They involve creating a mortise, or a hole,
in one piece of wood and a tenon on the end of the
other piece, which fits into the mortise. This joinery
method is frequently employed in high-end heirloom
quality furniture due to its longevity and strength.
The mortise and tenon joint is most commonly used
at 90-degree intersections and is glued together.
However, instead of using glue, pins or wedges can
be used to secure the joint. Mortise and tenon joints
can also be used where two pieces come together at
an angle, but this is much more complex to create.
Generally speaking, a tenon should be sized roughly
one-third the thickness of the piece it’s being
cut from, and a well-fitted tenon should require
moderate clamping pressure to fully close the joint.
While the mortise and tenon joint is very strong,
durable, versatile, and lends itself to be aesthetically
pleasing, it can be daunting for newer woodworkers
to attempt. The standard mortise and tenon joint
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12 Popular Woodworking Joints
(where the mortise and tenon are hidden once the
joint is complete) is a great joint to practice so you
can build your confidence. Even with a less-than-
perfectly cut joint, the results can still be strong
enough for basic woodworking projects once the
joint is glued together. Most mortise and tenon joints
can be cut with relative ease by using a router and a
couple of jigs. As mentioned with cutting lap joints,
it’s advised to sneak up on the final dimensions for
this joint as well.
The joint can be created using a hand-held router
and router table. Mortises can be created on a drill
press, on a benchtop mortiser and even on a CNC
router. In addition to the router table, tenons can be
cut on a table saw.
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10. BRIDLE JOINT

Bridle joints (also known as open mortise and
tenon) are similar to mortise and tenon joints but
differ in the fact that they have three glue surfaces
rather than four. This joint is commonly made with
a table saw, band saw, and router, but can also be
successfully cut with hand saws and chisels.
When accurately cut, this joint is not only visually
pleasing, but is also very strong and stable thanks to
the additional gluing surfaces and geometry of the
mating pieces. This joint can be used in a variety of
applications such as joining angled pieces, corner
pieces, or T-joints.
As you may expect, a well-cut bridle joint can be
more difficult to achieve than a standard mortise
and tenon joint due to the fact that the joint is more
visible than a standard mortise and tenon. The
bridle joint and its variants not only require accurate
layout, but also demand care to be taken while being
cut. A poorly cut bridle joint will not be visually
appealing or have near the strength and resistance
to racking that can be achieved when this joint is cut
accurately. But when made well, the bridle joint is
incredibly strong.

Another variation of the bridle joint is the castle

joint. An example of the castle joint is at the corner
of a four-leg table base where the aprons meet
the leg. The top of the leg has two mortises cut
perpendicularly into it, and the end of each apron
has a half-lap cut into them. To further secure the
joint, a screw can be driven through the half-lapped
portion of the apron into the leg.

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 12 Popular Woodworking Joints

11. TONGUE AND GROOVE JOINTS

Tongue and groove joints are a staple in products setting up the tools, it is one of the faster “advanced”
we enjoy every day. This joinery technique is very woodworking joints to utilize.
similar to the mortise and tenon joint, with the
difference being that the groove runs the entire
length/width of the edge it’s created on. The tongue
is analogous to the tenon and the groove is similar to
the mortise. This joint is commonly used in flooring,
paneling, and various styles of frame and panel
assemblies.

This joinery technique provides exceptional strength

and stability thanks to its interlocking design. It can
also make accurate assembly easier and faster since
the mating pieces naturally align with one another.

Setting up to cut tongue and groove joints can

be time consuming, especially if you’ve never
attempted this joint before. While the joint can be
successfully cut using only a table saw, it’s usually
much faster to mill this joint using a router table/
shaper with a tongue and groove cutter set. Even
though tongue and groove joinery requires a bit
more attention to detail and a few test cuts while

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12. DOVETAIL JOINT
Dovetail joints are known for their strength,
durability, and decorative appeal in woodworking.
They are a union of interlocking wedge-shaped
projections (pins and tails) that create a secure and
aesthetically pleasing joint. Once glued, the dovetail
joint is incredibly robust and does not require any
additional reinforcement.
This joint is commonly cut with a router and
template, but is traditionally cut using a dovetail saw
and chisels. Through dovetails can even be cut with
a bandsaw. The sockets of a through dovetail can
be cut on a table saw using a dado head. It’s hard to
beat the ease of creating great half-blind dovetails or
through dovetails using a router jig.
Dovetail joints are most commonly used to create
drawer boxes and are typically reserved for higher
end projects. It’s common for half-blind dovetails
to be used for drawers and through dovetails to
be used for boxes and cases. Thanks to this joint’s
design, it resists pulling apart, which makes it a great
option for drawer box construction with pins and
sockets being cut into the drawer sides.
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12 Popular Woodworking Joints
A variation of this joint is the sliding dovetail. This is
essentially a dado that has had the sides of the slot
angled while the mating piece also has a matching
angle along its edge.
The dovetail joint is regarded as one of the more
advanced joinery methods in woodworking and
well-executed hand-cut dovetails will all but
enshrine your name in woodworking lore. Be sure
you understand dovetail slope before hand-cutting
dovetails. While those bragging rights are nice, they
don’t come without the complexity that’s associated
with mastering this joinery technique. Careful
layout, an extra dose of patience, and sharp tools are
all essential to successfully creating dovetail joints
you can be proud of.
The endless variety of joinery means there are
so many different ways to accomplish the same
goal, which is one of the most fun aspects of
woodworking. There are MANY more woodworking
joints out there that we haven’t even touched on in
this article, but this list is a good place to get started.
Understanding these 12 essential joints will give you
a great start on your woodworking joinery journey.
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My Notes

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