What is the best grade of hardwood flooring?

Q: What hardwood flooring brand is best?

Basically, were going to help you find the best hardwood floor brand for you..

When it comes to wood flooring, the wood used is graded by the manufacturers according to its appearance. We have recently covered the topic of grades in wood flooring, but felt it deserved a further write-up. Generally speaking, the features taken into account when grading wood include (but are not limited to): the number and size of knots; the amount of sap present in the wood and its colour variations. As a rule of thumb, the smaller the knots, the lower the sap content and the more uniform the colour, the higher the grade of wood and (of course) the higher the price.

Table of Contents Show

What’s the difference among the different grades of hardwood flooring? Which is better… select grade or Number 1?
Additional articles you may find helpful:
Complementary products that will prolong the life of your hardwood floors
What is the best grade of hardwood?
What thickness hardwood floor is best?
What is the most durable solid hardwood flooring?
What hardwood flooring brand is best?

When it comes to deciding which wood grade is best for your wooden flooring, there are four grades of wood to choose from. Each grade gives a slightly different look. The grades are called:

1.    Prime or AB
2.    Select or ABC
3.    Natural or ABCD
4.    and Rustic or CD

In order to help you make the choice of wood grading for your hardwood flooring here are some of the characteristics of each grade:

Prime Grade

Prime Grade is the highest grade of wood flooring. It is also often described as AB-high grade. Cut from the centre of the log, this grade of wood is uniform in its appearance and has very few knots. If this quality of wood grade does contain knots, they tend to be small and unobtrusive. Furthermore the sap content of this wood is very low. Finally, and often one of the most important considerations for people choosing a wood grade, the colour variation is minimal, but still there, due to the fact that wood is a natural product. A Prime grade floor will have a very uniformed look.

Select Grade

Select Grade is the next grade of wood flooring. Often described as ABC grade, this wood contains some knots, but less than Natural grade, some sap and some colour variation.

Natural Grade

Natural grade comes next on the wood grading ladder. Often referred to as mill run or ABCD grade, this wood grade sports knots of bigger size than Select, further more it contains sap and has more colour variation. Certain manufacturers use a coloured wood filler to fill any holes which are naturally present in the wood, resulting in a smooth overall look.

Rustic Grade

Rustic Grade is the final grade for wood flooring. As the name suggests, it will display a larger range of colour variation, sap and will have more knots and fillers, giving it a very nice, traditional vintage look.

What’s the difference among the different grades of hardwood flooring? Which is better… select grade or Number 1?

Most customers don’t realize that there are different grades of oak flooring. They just assume all oak flooring is the same. For oak flooring, there are 3 main grades: select, Number 1 common and Number 2 common. Select grade is generally considered the highest grade as it has the least color variation. It costs the more. This is followed by No 1 which has more color variation and some occasional knots, and that is followed by No 2 which has a lot more color variation and knots. Sometimes, this is called character grade or cabin grade wood.

Please note that this article may contain affiliate links. You can read my full disclosure at the bottom of the page.

Technically, the quality of the wood (as measured by hardness/durability) is the same across all the grades. The differences between the grades are their appearances. Some people prefer the higher color consistency that you find in select grade; others prefer more color variation that you find in Number 1 oak, and still others prefer a more rustic look and feel that it adds more character. There is no right or wrong answer here; it is preference and it’s important to understand which you prefer.

Select grade (red oak)

Number 1 (No 1) Common – red oak

Number 2 (No 2) Common – red oak

The differences in the color among the boards are more obvious when the wood is natural (i.e. without a stain). The darker the stain, the less you notice the color difference in the boards.

Here is a side by side of Select grade Oak vs. Number 1 Common (No 1) Oak. These are pictures of red oak flooring (the same principle applies to white oak flooring. Check out this article for more info on Red oak vs. white oak flooring.

When you are getting estimates from flooring contractors, it’s important that they specify what grade of wood they are using. Sometimes, the main reason that one estimate differs from another is based on the hardwood being used. And, if a contractor doesn’t specify, they are probably going to use a lower grade since it costs them less (and they may think that you won’t notice or won’t know any better.

Select grade (left) vs. Number 1 Common (right) – red oak

Additional articles you may find helpful:

Tips on matching old and new hardwood floors
Red Oak vs White Oak – what’s the difference?
Best hardwood stain colors if you’re selling your home

Did you find my tips helpful? If so, feel free to buy me a coffee and support my blog

Complementary products that will prolong the life of your hardwood floors

Bona hardwood floor cleaner
Felt pads to protect floors
Office chair mat
Doggie Socks

What is the best grade of hardwood?

The highest grade boards are FAS and Select, followed by #1 Common and #2 Common. What grade you choose depends on your project. Some projects, such as tabletops and high quality furniture, may dictate the highest grade available.

What thickness hardwood floor is best?

The best and most common thickness of solid hardwood is 3/4 inch (19 mm). The thicker the board, the more it costs, but the longer it will last.

What is the most durable solid hardwood flooring?

Oak: Oak is the industry standard when it comes to hardwood flooring. With a Janka rating of approximately 1300, it is incredibly durable, available, and comes in various colors (including white and red). Ash: Ash flooring offers a light, stylish grain that is perfect for modern designs and a Janka rating of 1320.