The Hardest Wood Flooring Options
When purchasing hardwood flooring, you want to ensure that it will hold up over time. But with so many varieties available, figuring out what the hardest wood flooring is can be a bit of a challenge.
So, to help you out, we created a handy guide filled with the hardest wood flooring options.
We’ll also be covering
- The Janka Hardness Scale and Why It’s Important
- The Hardest Wood Flooring Options
- What These Hardwood Species Look Like
Everything You Need to Know About Janka Ratings
If you want the hardest wood then you will also want to understand the Janka Hardness Scale. This test is used to determine the estimated hardness of different wood species.
It does so by measuring the force needed to embed an 0.444-inch metal ball within a plank of hardwood.
The higher the resulting score, the harder the floor is.
However, the test is not all-inclusive and fails to account for variables that help strengthen prefinished hardwood. These include the floor’s finish, wear layer, composition, and more.
The Hardest Wood Flooring Options
Now it’s officially time to jump into the hardest common hardwood species available as well as their Janka Ratings.
- Patagonian Rosewood – 3840
- Cumaru – 3540
- Brazilian Cherry – 2820
- Santos Mahogany – 2200
- Tigerwood – 2160
- Acacia – 1750
- Hickory – 1820
- Sapele – 1500
- Maple – 1450
- European Oak – 1360
- White Oak – 1360
- Red Oak – 1290
- Birch – 1260
- Walnut – 1010
Homeowners tend to take hardness into account when determining the amount of traffic they will have in their space and for some, this is an important factor, but for many, it isn’t.
We hope you found this list helpful for figuring out which hardwood flooring option is right for you.
You may also want to check out these related blogs that will help you in your hardwood flooring journey. And don’t forget to scroll down a bit more for a handy infographic filled with the hardest common hardwood species.
