5 Best Stains for Oak Wood

Seth Carter 26/04/2024

Oak seems to be the wood type most synonymous with Amish furniture. Is oak the most popular wood type for Amish furniture?

DutchCrafters has been in business for over 20 years, and we have processed tens of thousands of orders just in the past few years. We reviewed over 25,000 orders to determine Amish furniture’s most popular wood type.

What is the Most Popular Wood Type for Amish Furniture?

Oak was the runaway winner as the most popular wood type. Of the 25,148 products included in the study, 31.9% of the orders were oak. The next most popular option was brown maple at 21.2% of the orders. A resounding victory for oak! This comes as little surprise as most people relate Amish furniture to that old country feel you get from the wavy grain patterns of the oak tree.

How We Determined 5 Best Stains for Oak Wood

Many people speculate and guess about the best stains for oak furniture. Today, we use real data to show you which stains are the best (or most popular) for oak wood, according to our customers. These stain selections represent a very large sample size of orders. Our customers meticulously and carefully matched a wood species to a finish with the help of our trained Amish Furniture Specialists. These decisions are based on ordering samples and a lot of research.

We are pleased to present our definitive list of the most popular stains for oak wood, based on real data from our real customers.

Top 5 Stains for Oak Furniture

5. Best Oak Stain: Michael’s Cherry

A few of us around the DutchCrafters office were surprised to see Michael’s Cherry all the way down at number five on this list. Michael’s Cherry is heavily featured on images throughout our website and showrooms. It looks great on several wood types, but you can’t go wrong with the oak/Michael’s Cherry combo! It may be number five on our list, but it’s number one in our hearts. Below, you can check out our best-selling bed (pictured in oak with Michael’s Cherry stain).

4. Best Oak Stain: Harvest

Harvest is lighter on the spectrum and suits the oak wood perfectly! Below is our Amish Paradise Mission TV Stand in oak with Harvest stain.

3. Best Oak Stain: Vintage Antique

This is a similar look to the second-most popular stain. Vintage Antique gives the oak a mid-to-darker coloring but preserves the gorgeous wood grain patterns. See it in action below on our Amish Wood Grove Mission End Table.

2. Best Oak Stain: Golden Pecan

Golden Pecan is a rich stain on the mid-to-dark side of the spectrum. The finish isn’t dark enough to hide the grain patterns. If anything, it enhances the grain, giving it a mature look. It’s easy to see why this is our second most popular oak stain. Below is an example of oak wood with a Golden Pecan stain on our Amish Siloam Bookcase.

1. Best Oak Stain: Natural Oak Finish

What can I say? Our customers love oak. Not only is oak wood the most popular wood type, but people can’t get enough of its natural beauty. Natural finish preserves and celebrates the natural look of the wood.

So, if anyone ever asks, you’ll know the answer.

What is the best stain for oak?

Natural finish is the best and most popular stain for oak wood. Oak is so stunning you don’t need to change the hue. The consensus is that oak is perfect the way nature made it.

Here’s a look at our popular Bent Oak Porch Swing in a natural oak finish.

What a fitting end to a post celebrating the organic elegance of the oak tree.

Check out the following resources for more information on choosing a finish for your solid wood furniture.

Talk to an Oak Stain Specialist

Reach out to one of our furniture specialists to order samples, ask questions, or to get advice on which stain will fit your decor the best!

Oak Wood Information Center

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by Seth Carter (12 Posts)

Seth Carter has been with DutchCrafters since 2020. Seth has won multiple awards for his work in Amish furniture while with DutchCrafters. He has advised and partnered with more than 150 Amish wood shops on furniture presentation, features, industry trends, product options, and development of exclusive products. He contributes to the Timber to Table Blog and has written content throughout the DutchCrafters website. Seth has a B.S. in Business Administration from IU-East and has owned Carter Family Insurance, LLC. since 2014.


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