Lookup

Wood Species Identification

Pick the wood. Each page gives the marks that separate it from what it is usually mistaken for (Red vs White Oak, Hard vs Soft Maple, Cherry vs stained Alder), the hardness and weight numbers, and how to photograph the end grain, which settles most cases. The app suggests a species; these pages confirm it.

Download on the App Store

How to work through an unknown board

Sand or cut a fresh face; finish and stain hide the two most useful clues, color and grain.
Look at the end grain with a hand lens: ring-porous, semi-ring-porous or diffuse-porous, ray width, and for softwoods the early-to-latewood transition and resin canals.
Weigh it: density separates woods that look alike, such as Walnut from stained Poplar.
Smell a fresh cut: cedars, sassafras and some pines are unmistakable.
Hardwood vs softwood is about the tree, not the hardness.

North American hardwoods

North American softwoods

Imported and tropical woods

FAQ

How do I tell red oak from white oak?

Look at the end grain: white oak's pores are plugged with tyloses and its rays are long (often over an inch on a flatsawn face); red oak's pores are open and its rays are short. Red oak also tends to a pinkish cast. Open either page for the sourced details.

What are the hardest woods?

Among the woods on this list, Ipe, Brazilian Cherry (Jatoba), Purpleheart, Wenge, Osage Orange, Black Locust and Hickory sit at the top of the Janka scale; Basswood, Aspen, Cottonwood and Eastern White Pine at the bottom. Each page gives the number.

Can the app identify wood from a photo?

It suggests the likely species from a clear photo of a fresh face and, ideally, the end grain. Stain and finish fool both people and software, so photograph raw wood when you can.

Sources

Browse all collector guides →