Walnut vs Maple Wood, Which is Better?

September 22, 2023 3 min read

Maple wood vs walnut wood cutting board

Maple vs Walnut Wood

Here at Words with Boards, we offer plenty of different options of wood for our Cutting Boards. Our cutting boards (and tons of other products) come in maple and walnut woods (as well as cherry, too!)

Though the options are endless, many customers are left wondering, which wood is the best wood? Truthfully, it depends. Are your kitchen cabinets light or dark? Do you want to match them or have a contrast? Other features to consider when choosing maple or walnut wood are hardness and durability. Read along to hear all about our different woods and how to choose your favorite!


Maple Wood Cutting Board Benefits

Maple wood is known for its light, modern color which fits perfectly with any decor. Maple hardwood is also quite durable due to its dense wood grain. This makes for a great cutting surface on your cutting board.

Here at Words with Boards, we find a Maple Cutting Board doesn't dry out as fast as walnut and other woods. This makes caring for it a little easier. Maple is known as the industry standard because of how widely available and dense it is.

Maple wood starts out light but will darken a little with use.

Laser engravings will also show up very well on maple as opposed to the dark color of walnut. However, we believe laser engraving looks best on cherry wood (see the bottom of the page for more cherry benefits!)


Walnut Wood Cutting Board Benefits

Walnut wood is not as plentiful in larger sizes which is the reason for the higher price tag. It is the most expensive wood we offer.

As you can see from the picture the wood color varies a little, it's not a solid color which we feel adds to the beauty! Any Walnut Cutting Board we create is butcher block, this means 1" pieces of wood are glued together to prevent warping. And, this is why you get the color variations.

If food stains on your cutting board are a concern for you, then the dark color walnut offers may be a better choice.

Walnut wood provides good contrast to light countertops and food really pops on the dark, rich color.

Walnut may not be as hard as maple, but don't worry- it's perfectly fine to use as a cutting board.


Wooden Cutting Board Types

Looking for a little bit more of an in-depth look at our different types of cutting boards? We have put together an entire guide to navigating our three Wooden Cutting Board Types; maple, cherry, and walnut.

This guide includes features/benefits, personalization, and cutting board care for each type. Click the button below to check it out!

Additionally, all of the wood we use to make cutting boards comes from sustainable forests and for every product sold, a tree is planted in North America. Read more One Tree Planted.


Cherry Wood Cutting Board Benefits

Don't forget, we also offer cherry as another type of wood for your cutting board.

A Cherry Cutting Board has a soft reddish hue and like maple will darken with age. And, like walnut it has a medium hardness. Not as hard as maple but still a great choice for chopping!

If you already have a lot of cherry wood in your home, a cherry cutting board will fit right in with your decor. However, if looking for a harder wood - you may want to choose maple wood.

Another perk to cherry is laser engraving looks best on this wood type.


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Kim Strassner
Kim Strassner

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