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Wood species guide for commissioning

For most furniture the honest shortlist is five species: white oak, walnut, cherry, hard maple, and ash. They cover nearly every combination of hardness, color, price, and availability an American maker will suggest. The right answer depends far more on how the piece will be used and what the room looks like than on any ranking of "best" wood.

Reviewed

If you take one thing from this page: hardness is not quality. A walnut table is not worse than a maple one. It dents more easily and it looks completely different, and those are the actual trade-offs.

The hardness numbers, and what they do and do not tell you

Janka hardness measures the force needed to embed a steel ball halfway into the wood. It predicts dent resistance and nothing else.

Species Janka (lbf) Reads as
Eastern white pine ~380 Very soft, dents from use
Poplar ~540 Soft, usually painted
Douglas fir ~510 to 710, by region Soft for furniture
Mahogany, Honduran ~800 Soft but stable and traditional
Cherry 950 Moderate
Soft maple ~950 Moderate
Black walnut 1,010 Moderate
Red oak 1,290 Hard
Ash ~1,200 to 1,320, by sub-species Hard
White oak 1,360 Hard
Hard maple 1,450 Very hard
Hickory ~1,810 to 2,140, by sub-species Hardest common domestic

Two honest caveats. Ash and hickory are groups, not single species, and published figures differ depending on which sub-species was tested, which is why those rows are ranges. And a 400-point difference on this scale is much less visible in daily life than the finish you put on top.

The five that cover most commissions

White oak. The default for a reason. Hard, dimensionally stable, and closed-pore in a way red oak is not, which makes it better around moisture. Quartersawing it produces the ray fleck that defines Mission and Arts and Crafts furniture. Takes fuming and dark finishes beautifully. Goes slightly gray-brown with age.

Choose it for: dining tables, anything Mission or Craftsman, anything that takes hard use, anything near water.

Black walnut. The one people fall in love with. Deep chocolate brown that lightens slightly with age, unlike most woods which darken. Moderate hardness, so it marks. Machines and carves well. Expensive, and wide clear boards more so.

Choose it for: pieces where appearance leads, live-edge slabs, mid-century forms, anything where the wood itself is the point.

Cherry. Starts pinkish-tan and darkens dramatically to a deep reddish brown over the first few years, especially in light. That transformation is the reason to choose it and the reason to warn people about it. Fine, even grain. Moderate hardness.

Choose it for: Shaker and Federal forms, casegoods, anything where you want the piece to visibly age.

Hard maple. Pale, tight, nearly featureless, and very hard. Blotches badly under stain, so it is usually finished clear or dyed by someone who knows what they are doing. Bright and modern in a light room.

Choose it for: kitchen work surfaces, butcher block, light and contemporary rooms, anything that takes abuse.

Ash. Strong, hard, with a bold open grain similar to oak but lighter and straighter. Bends well, which is why it turns up in chairs. Currently affected by emerald ash borer pressure on supply, so ask about availability.

Choose it for: chairs, bent forms, oak-like character in a paler tone.

The rest, briefly

Species Why you might
Red oak Cheaper and more available than white oak, more open pored, pinker. Fine indoors
Soft maple Much of the look of hard maple, cheaper, easier to work, less dent resistant
Hickory Extremely hard, dramatic color variation between heartwood and sapwood. Rustic
Mahogany Stable, traditional, easy to carve. Sourcing ethics vary enormously, ask
Poplar Cheap, stable, and takes paint well. The right answer for painted work
Beech Hard, plain, common in bent and turned work
Douglas fir Soft for furniture. Reclaimed beams have real character
Reclaimed anything Character and provenance. Expect nail holes, moisture surprises, and higher labor

How to actually choose

Answer these four and the species usually picks itself.

  1. How hard is the life? Children, homework, hot dishes, a workshop bench: go 1,300 Janka and up. A formal dining room used occasionally: anything.
  2. What color is the room? Dark floors with walnut can read heavy. Maple in a north-facing room can read cold. Bring the maker photographs.
  3. Do you want it to change? Cherry will visibly transform. Walnut lightens. Maple stays put. This is a real decision, not a detail.
  4. What is the budget? Species is 20 to 35 percent of a commission, so switching saves less than people expect, but on a large piece it is not nothing.

Cost, roughly

This is a relative ordering, not a price list. Regional supply and current market move the absolute numbers, so ask your maker what they are paying now.

Tier Species
Lower Poplar, soft maple, red oak
Middle White oak, ash, hard maple, hickory
Higher Cherry, walnut
Highest Wide or figured stock in any species, quartersawn white oak, reclaimed

Note that figure and width cost more than species. A wide clear walnut slab and narrow walnut boards are very different prices. If budget is tight, ask whether the design can use narrower stock.

Questions to ask your maker

  • What species do you recommend for this use, and why that one?
  • Is the stock kiln dried, and to what moisture content?
  • Will you show me the boards before cutting?
  • Is this species locally or regionally sourced?
  • How will it change color over five years?
  • If I damage it in year ten, can it be refinished?

Sources

Maker MarketPlace Background

Frequently asked questions

White oak for most households: hard, stable, and it handles moisture. Walnut if appearance leads and you accept that it marks more easily. Hard maple if the table will take heavy daily use in a light room.

Of the common domestic furniture woods, hickory, at roughly 1,880 to 2,140 lbf depending on sub-species, followed by hard maple at 1,450. Hardness predicts dent resistance and nothing else.

No. At about 1,010 lbf walnut is a moderate hardwood used for dining tables constantly. It will show marks sooner than oak or maple. Many people consider that patina; some do not. Decide which you are.

Cherry darkens from pinkish-tan to deep reddish brown with light exposure, most noticeably in the first few years. It is the species' defining trait. Do not judge a new cherry piece by its delivery-day color, and do not leave a placemat in one spot for a year.

White oak is harder, more dimensionally stable, and closed-pore, which makes it better around moisture. Red oak is more open-grained, pinker, cheaper, and more available. For indoor furniture both work; for anything damp, white oak.

Quartersawing cuts the log so growth rings run roughly perpendicular to the board face. It is more stable and, in white oak, exposes the ray fleck figure that defines Mission furniture. It costs more and yields less per log. For Arts and Crafts work, yes, it is worth it.

Often yes. It must be properly dried, and photographs should go to the maker before any commitment. Expect higher labor, because reclaimed and self-supplied stock carries surprises. See our piece on gifts made from meaningful wood.
    Wood species guide for commissioning | Maker Marketplace