Hardwood Prices by Species

Price table (rough 4/4, #1 Common)

Species	Price ($/BF)	Weight (lb/BF)	Common use
Poplar	$3.00–$5.50	2.6	Painted furniture, drawers
White pine	$3.00–$6.00	2.4	Trim, shelving, painted work
Ash	$4.00–$7.00	3.4	Handles, bent parts, flooring
Red oak	$4.50–$8.00	3.7	Furniture, stairs, cabinets
Soft maple	$4.50–$7.50	3.3	Painted casework, drawers
Hickory	$5.00–$9.00	4.0	Tool handles, flooring
Hard maple	$5.50–$9.50	3.6	Cutting boards, workbenches
Cherry	$6.00–$12.00	2.9	Furniture, paneling
White oak	$6.00–$10.50	3.9	Outdoor furniture, barrels, floors
Black walnut	$8.00–$15.00	3.1	High-end furniture, gunstocks
Mahogany	$9.00–$18.00	3.0	Fine furniture, boat trim

Ranges reflect regional differences and width/grade variation in 2026. Wide, clear boards and matched sets cost more.

What moves the price

Grade: FAS is the top grade; #1 Common costs roughly 25–30% less, #2 Common about 45% less.
Thickness: 8/4 carries a 20–30% premium over 4/4 because it dries slower and yields less from a log.
Width: boards over 8 inches wide command a premium; narrow stock is cheaper per board foot.
Drying: kiln-dried costs more than air-dried but is more stable for interior work.
Region: species grown locally are cheaper; shipping adds 10–25% for distant mills.

Buying tips

Price by the board foot, not by the piece — mills quote differently and the board foot is the only comparable unit.
Ask whether widths are rounded up to the next inch; some yards do, which changes the total.
Buy 15% extra for a simple project, 25% when matching grain or bookmatching.
Check moisture content: 6–8% for interior furniture in most US climates.

What a grade actually guarantees

Hardwood grades are administered by the NHLA, and they do not describe how a board looks. They describe how much clear, defect-free material you can cut out of it — which is exactly the question a furniture maker is asking.

Grade	Clear face	Minimum cutting	Who buys it
FAS	83⅓%	6 in × 8 ft	Long rails, visible faces, table tops
#1 Common	66⅔%	3 in × 4 ft	Cabinet parts, chair legs, painted work
#2A Common	50%	3 in × 4 ft	Short parts, shop fixtures, utility

Read the third column carefully, because it is where the money is. FAS promises long clear lengths. If your parts are 18 inches long, you are paying for length you will cut off and throw away.

Why #1 Common is the furniture grade

Most furniture is made of short parts: rails, stiles, drawer sides, legs. #1 Common delivers 66⅔% clear in cuttings as small as 3 by 4 feet, which covers nearly all of them, at roughly 25 to 30 percent below FAS.

The exception is anything with a long uninterrupted face — a table top, a headboard, a door rail. There the clear-cutting percentage stops mattering and you need one continuous clear span, which is what FAS is selling. Buying #1 Common for a table top usually means either a glue-up you did not plan or a defect in the middle of the most visible surface in the room.

Species price tracks supply and workability, not just beauty

Poplar is inexpensive because the tree is common and grows fast, and it machines cleanly. It is also greenish to grey-brown, which is why it is the standard choice for painted work and a poor one for a clear finish. Red oak sits near the bottom of the price table for the same reason — abundant, and open-grained enough that it moves with humidity.

Black walnut sits at the top because the trees are slower, scarcer, and the sapwood has to be cut away. Hickory is priced mid-table but is harder to work than its price suggests: dense, prone to tear-out, and prone to movement after machining.

Reading a dealer's price sheet

Rough or surfaced. Rough 4/4 is the reference price. Surfacing adds a charge and removes thickness; you cannot get a full inch out of surfaced 4/4.
Random or specified width. Random width is cheaper per board foot and more expensive per usable part.
Kiln-dried or air-dried. KD costs more and is the safer choice for interior work at 6 to 8 percent moisture content.
Sold by the board or by the foot. Many yards will not break a bundle, so a 6 board foot request becomes the 9 board foot board it happens to be on.
Over/under. Mill orders commonly ship within 10 percent of the board footage ordered, in either direction. Budget for the upper end.

One note on the table above: white pine is a softwood, graded under different rules than NHLA hardwood grades, and it appears here because most yards sell it by the board foot alongside the hardwoods. Its price is comparable; its grading language is not.

Frequently asked questions

How much is walnut per board foot?

Commonly $8–$15 for rough 4/4, with wide or highly figured boards above that.

Why does 8/4 cost more?

Thicker stock needs longer drying and yields fewer boards per log; mills charge a 20–30% premium.

Is #1 Common good enough for furniture?

Yes for painted work, shop furniture, and parts where defects can be cut around. For visible faces, FAS or select grade is easier to work.

What does FAS mean?

Firsts and Seconds, the top NHLA grade: at least 83 1/3% clear on the worse face, with cuttings no smaller than 6 inches by 8 feet.

Is #1 Common good enough for a table top?

Usually not. A table top needs one long clear span, which is what FAS sells. #1 Common's clear cuttings are shorter, so defects land in the most visible surface.

Why is 8/4 so much more than 4/4?

It bills at double the board footage for the same face area, and it dries slower with more loss to checking and warp, so mills add a premium on top.

Why is white pine listed with the hardwoods?

Because yards sell it by the board foot alongside them. It is a softwood and is graded under different rules, so do not compare its grade names to NHLA hardwood grades.

Note: Prices are planning estimates from regional supplier ranges, not quotes. Confirm current pricing and grade rules with your lumber yard.

Last reviewed: October 30, 2026 · Sources: NHLA grading rules; regional hardwood dealer price sheets

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