Whilst a shelf performs an undoubtedly functional role, if it can look good whilst doing so and stand the test of time, all the better.

For this, wood is perfect. It’s timeless and able to suit any aesthetic desire or budget. Plus it allows the DIYers and woodworkers amongst us to get creative!

The best types of wood for shelves & bookshelves

Depending on your aesthetic vision, look out for quality solid hardwoods like cherry, oak, elm, walnut and maple. These provide excellent strength, density, sag-resistance, longevity and beauty. If you’re working to a slightly larger budget and want to make a statement, maybe take a look at exotic hardwoods like utile and zebrano.

In fact, many types of wood can work well — plywood is the inexpensive go-to option for many shelving projects, but it does not look particularly attractive and isn’t quite as durable. Avoid certain softwoods (like pine), MDF or particleboard, particularly for longer length shelving. These have a tendency to pick up knocks and scrapes and will start sagging.

Here’s a non-exhaustive list of just a few of our favourites for DIYers and woodworkers looking to create some incredible shelving for a living room, kitchen, bedroom, bathroom, home office or other living space.

European Oak— a timeless, versatile & rock solid golden brown timber

There’s a reason why species of oak have been timber favourites for thousands of years — it just does the job fantastically.

With a remarkable density and undeniable natural appeal, oak’s golden-to-medium brown hues are very rarely not at home. Whilst you might see it as a safe choice, there’s no chance of oak letting you down — or sagging under any weight!

These pippy French European Oak boards, available from our Hobby Centre, guarantee a lot of character and natural charm with their burl and cat’s eye figuring.

European Ash— for strength, sturdiness & an airy, lighter look

Another fabulous European species, ash’s pale grey-browns, light browns and straight grain are sure to agree with any interior, particularly those featuring a lighter colour palette — such as Scandi or minimalist styles.

Light though it may be in terms of colour, light in terms of weight ash is most certainly not, clocking in with a dry density around 680kg/m³. This European beauty goes truly toe-to-toe with oak!

American Cherry— strong, lightweight and highly workable

Would the warm, inviting reddish-browns and light pink tones of cherry suit your project? As well as being strong and relatively dense, cherry is one of the easier woods to work with. There can be a stunning variance in colour between cherry boards, but they would no doubt make for a stunning set of shelves.

American Red Elm— for country style and character

To hop across the Atlantic, North America boasts no shortage of similarly beautiful, aesthetically versatile and extremely dense woods for any shelving project.

With its medium-brown heartwood and extremely wild, interlocking grain pattern, American Red Elm is bursting with character and charm — ideal for a modern country style. Some pieces can boast shimmers of green and purple flecks.

With a density of 600kg/m³, there’s no doubting its resilience, scratch resistance and long-lived nature, either. Well up for the shelving task!

Elm boards with a waney edge, such as these character boards available at our Hobby Centre, could easily become a floating shelf for a rustic, eye-catching statement.

American Hard Maple— for a solid creamy white timber, perhaps with unique ‘figuring’, that’s easy to customise

If you’re putting together a lighter theme, maple shelving should be high up your list. Its creamy white tones, with pinkish-brown hues, slot seamlessly into airy (perhaps Scandi-inspired) spaces.

Maple is also very easy to finish, so can be adapted to fit whatever look you’re after. With a rock-hard density of 705kg/m³, say no more about maple’s strength and resistance to abrasion, knocks and scrapes.

Whilst American Hard Maple is usually straight grained with a close, fine texture, on some cuts you may observe some special, unusual markings — ‘figuring’ — a feature of a wood’s grain pattern.

The result of variations in the way the wood grows — it’s thought this is as a result of bacterial infection during the tree’s growth (not that this affects the performance of the harvested timber!). Species of maple commonly display these highly unique markings.

Examples of figuring seen in maple can include bird’s eye, burl, fiddleback and tiger stripe. When choosing some wood for your shelving, be sure to keep your eye out for these unique and distinctive features!

American Black Walnut— a sophisticated choice with an outstanding grain and colour

The creamy, chocolatey browns and purples of American Black Walnut ensure a sleek, contemporary touch.

When used for a shelf, this dramatic species provides a smart contrast with lighter coloured walls and materials within a space, but can also work as part of a darker theme.

A highly decorative wood, American Black Walnut is prized for its superb strength, grain pattern and colour. It certainly offers a luxurious feel and can be polished to a gorgeous finish.

Walnut’s a wood that you can just sit and admire. Like maple, you may spot some figuring in certain pieces of American Black Walnut — common grain pattern figuring includes burl, curl and crotch.

Thanks to a density of 610kg/m³, this hardwood certainly is hard and won’t sag even under considerable weight!

Utile— all the beauty and opulence of mahogany, at a fraction of the cost

So, we covered a few excellent shelving woods from Europe and America — now it’s Africa’s turn. The continent produces some of the most stunning, strong woods.

Aside from Utile’s reddish-brown colour and purple hues, part of the wood’s beauty is its fine, unremarkable grain and uniform texture. It’s regarded as one of the finest alternatives or substitutes to mahogany, which can be cripplingly expensive (and is often unsustainably sourced).

Utile not only guarantees a subtle statement of opulence, but at 635kg/m³, it’s completely scratch and sag-proof. A refined choice for any shelf in any part of the house, needless to say!

Wenge— for truly joining the dark side with unrivalled impact resistance

Thought that American Black Walnut was dark? Try Wenge’s dark-brown-almost-black tones and caramel streaks. For some tidy contrast, Wenge is perfect for a shelf against a lighter-coloured wall.

Pronounced when-gii or when-gay, Wenge has a straight, uniform and fairly predictable grain pattern, but a coarse texture that’s intriguing to the touch.

At a staggering 870kg/m³, this hardwood from the forests of central and west coast Africa is the densest we mention, with incredible impact resistance — able to be more than counted on as a shelving wood!

Zebrano— for a highly decorative, one-of-a-kind shelf

Also known as Zebrawood, it’s not hard to see why this beautiful, distinctive exotic species gets its name. Zebrano’s golden, creamy brown colour is punctuated by stripey darker brown and caramel streaks, giving the appearance of a zebra.

Zebrano is best used sparingly throughout a space — not just because of its relative cost, but also its highly unique, eye-catching appearance. Hailing from the forests of central Africa, it has a fascinating story and is sure to get any visitors talking. Not bad for a shelf!

Zebrano’s rock-solid 805kg/m3 density is just a bonus and guarantees decades upon decades of service life.

Whilst Utile, Wenge and Zebrano are fantastic, there are a few other eye-catching and extremely durable tropical hardwoods that you might be interested in for your shelving project — as you can discover in our African hardwood guide.

Paduak — a heavy, stiff, strong, stable with a remarkable deep orange colour

A woodworker’s favourite and another stunning African species, paduak comes in at a relatively lower price point, but is still a fantastic shelving timber. Starting life with a sought-after reddish-orange colour, this slowly deepens over time to a deep red-brown.

Looking for some superb shelving wood for your project?

Make no mistake, this is not an exhaustive list. Many types of wood will work fantastically for a shelf — we’ve just listed a few of our favourites!

At our Hobby Centre, we offer a huge range of quality sawn timber — including all those in this guide, but also many more.

Choose from our huge range, including waney and square edge pieces, in many beautiful, durable native and exotic species.

Discuss what you’re after with our team — click the ‘get in touch’ below, email sales@duffieldtimber.com or phone 01765 640 564. We’re able to deliver speedily and securely throughout the UK in one of our Duffield Timber wagons!