What Custom Hardwood Actually Costs
No quotes-only gatekeeping: the Builder shows your exact price instantly, at any size, before you give us so much as an email address. Prices scale with the amount of wood in your piece (length × width × thickness) plus one fabrication rate that covers milling, glue-up, CNC flattening, hand sanding, and a 100% VOC-free finish. Freight with lift-gate delivery is included in the continental US. Current lead time: 10–12 weeks. Need it sooner? Talk to the shop
Typical Finished Prices (per square foot)
Real finished prices at a standard 1.5″ thickness — fabrication, VOC-free finish, and freight all included. Thicker pieces cost proportionally more, thinner less; the range runs from a straight-edge top at the low end to a live edge one at the high end. The Builder always shows your exact number.
| Species | Finished price / sq ft |
|---|---|
| Walnut | $100–$125 |
| White Oak | $95–$120 |
| Arctic Oak | $100–$125 |
| Black Oak | $90–$115 |
| Red Oak | $85–$110 |
| Mahogany | $95–$120 |
| Maple | $95–$120 |
| Cherry | $90–$115 |
| Ash | $95–$120 |
| Knotty Alder | $85–$110 |
| European Oak | $170–$175 |
| Iroko | $100–$125 |
| Padauk | $115–$120 |
| Wenge | $140–$145 |
| Macassar Ebony | $220–$225 |
| Zebrawood | $130–$150 |
Every board is solid hardwood, hand-picked for grain and color — never veneer, never MDF. Prices move with our lumber costs; the Builder always charges the live number.
Worked Examples
| Piece | Size | Board feet | Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| Walnut Kitchen countertop | 96″ × 25″ × 1.5″ | 25.0 | $1,685.75 |
| White Oak Dining table top | 72″ × 36″ × 1.5″ | 27.0 | $1,783.35 |
| Maple Floating shelf | 36″ × 10″ × 1.75″ | 4.4 | $288.97 |
| Walnut Live edge island top (live edge) | 84″ × 40″ × 1.75″ | 40.8 | $3,033.39 |
Want the full breakdown? Read how much wood countertops cost — real finished prices per square foot by species.
Oversize Pricing
Extra-long and extra-wide pieces take premium-length lumber and more hands to mill, flatten, and crate, so spans past the thresholds below add a percentage to the wood portion of the price. Length and width tier independently — a top that crosses both gets both surcharges. The Builder flags the tier the moment your dimensions cross it.
| Tier | Length | Width | Wood-price surcharge |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | over 8 ft | over 4 ft | +10% |
| 2 | over 10 ft | over 6 ft | +15% |
| 3 | over 12 ft | — | +20% |
| 4 | over 14 ft | — | +25% |
| 5 | over 16 ft | — | +30% |
Anything up to 8 ft long and 4 ft wide carries no surcharge at all. On long runs, building the top as two or more seamed sections avoids oversize pricing entirely — ask the shop and we’ll advise whether a seam or a single span makes sense for your project.