Hardwood · Northeastern North America

Hard Maple

Acer saccharum

Creamy white sapwood, occasionally curly or bird’s-eye figure.

Janka hardness1,450 lbf

Density (12% MC)44.0 lb/ft³

Weight per board foot3.7 lb

Rot resistanceLow

Workability3/5

Price$$

Hardness compared

White pine Yellow Poplar Black Cherry Red Oak Hard Maple Shagbark Hickory Jatoba

Burns easily on the router table — keep bits sharp and feed steadily. Blotches with stain; use a gel stain or dye.

Typical uses: Cutting boards, workbenches, butcher blocks, flooring, kitchenware.

Tangential coefficient (flatsawn)	0.00353 per 1% MC
Radial coefficient (quartersawn)	0.00165 per 1% MC
T/R ratio	2.14 (prone to cupping when flatsawn)
12" flatsawn board, 6% → 11% MC	0.212" (≈ 5.4 mm)

Finishing Intermediate

4 min readOct 17, 2026