Genuine mahogany (Honduran / big-leaf) (Swietenia macrophylla) in numbers: hardness, weight, strength, shrinkage, movement and decay resistance, taken from the tables of the USDA Forest Products Laboratory’s Wood Handbook, followed by what the wood is like to work and what it is used for. The values are averages from small, clear, straight-grained test specimens; real boards with knots, sloping grain or a different moisture content will differ.
| Property | Genuine mahogany (Honduran / big-leaf) |
|---|---|
| Janka side hardness, 12% moisture | 800 lbf (3,559 N) |
| Janka side hardness, green | 740 lbf |
| Hardness rank | harder than 69 of the 168 woods with a 12% hardness value in our database |
| Density at 12% moisture | 33.0 lb/ft³ (529 kg/m³)* |
| Weight per board foot (12%) | 2.75 lb* |
| Specific gravity (ovendry weight, green volume) | 0.45 |
| Specific gravity at 12% moisture | 0.47* |
| Bending strength (modulus of rupture), 12% | 11,500 psi |
| Stiffness (modulus of elasticity), 12% | 1.5 million psi |
| Crushing strength (compression parallel to grain), 12% | 6,780 psi |
| Shrinkage green to ovendry: radial / tangential / volumetric | 3.0% / 4.1% / 7.8% |
| Tangential / radial shrinkage ratio | 1.37 |
| Dimensional change per 1% moisture (radial / tangential) | not reported |
| Heartwood decay resistance | resistant |
The species in this group
Lumber is often sold under a group name. These are the species the Wood Handbook reports for this group, with the same properties side by side.
| Species | Janka (lbf) | Density (lb/ft³) | Bending (psi) | Stiffness (Mpsi) | Crushing (psi) | Shrink T/R (%) | Decay resistance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Genuine mahogany (Honduran / big-leaf) Swietenia macrophylla | 800 | 33.0* | 11,500 | 1.5 | 6,780 | 4.1 / 3.0 | resistant |
| African mahogany (khaya) Khaya spp. | 830 | 31.0* | 10,700 | 1.4 | 6,460 | 4.5 / 2.5 | moderately resistant |
| Sapele Entandrophragma cylindricum | 1,510 | 42.0* | 15,300 | 1.82 | 8,160 | 7.4 / 4.6 | moderately resistant |
| Light red meranti | 460 | 26.0* | 9,500 | 1.23 | 5,920 | 8.5 / 4.6 | slightly or nonresistant |
| Spanish-cedar Cedrela spp. | 600 | 30.6* | 11,500 | 1.44 | 6,210 | 6.3 / 4.2 | resistant |
What it is
The name mahogany covers several different woods. The original mahogany came from the West Indies (Swietenia mahagoni); today American, Honduras or “true” mahogany is Swietenia macrophylla, which ranges from southern Mexico through Central America into South America as far as Bolivia and is also grown in plantations. “African mahogany” is Khaya, mostly K. ivorensis from west-central Africa, used for much the same purposes. “Philippine mahogany” is not mahogany at all: it is the lauan and meranti group (Shorea), shown in the table as light red meranti. Sapele (Entandrophragma cylindricum), a large African tree, is related to the mahoganies and often sold alongside them.
Working properties
Genuine mahogany heartwood varies from pale pink or salmon to dark reddish brown. It air- or kiln-dries easily without appreciable warping or checking, has excellent dimensional stability (4.1% tangential shrinkage from green to oven-dry) and is very easy to work, slice into veneer, finish and polish. The Handbook rates it durable against decay fungi. Its air-dried strength is similar to American elm, and its density varies widely, from about 30 to 52 lb/ft³ air-dried. African mahogany is similar in use but with more interlocked grain, and sapele is harder and heavier than both.
Weight and density
At 12% moisture content genuine mahogany (honduran / big-leaf) weighs about 33.0 lb per cubic foot (estimated from its specific gravity and shrinkage), so one board foot (144 cubic inches) weighs about 2.75 lb. An 8 ft board of actual size 3/4 × 5-1/2 in. (a 1×6) holds 0.229 cubic feet and weighs about 7.6 lb; an 8 ft piece 1-1/2 × 3-1/2 in. (a 2×4 size) weighs about 9.6 lb. Green wood is much heavier because of the water it holds.
Density here is ovendry weight plus 12% water, divided by volume at 12% moisture content (Wood Handbook Eq. 4-12: density = specific gravity at 12% × 62.43 lb/ft³ × 1.12).
How it compares
| Species | Janka (lbf) | Density (lb/ft³) | Bending (psi) | Stiffness (Mpsi) | Tangential shrink (%) | Decay resistance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Genuine mahogany (Honduran / big-leaf) | 800 | 33.0* | 11,500 | 1.5 | 4.1 | resistant |
| Black cherry | 950 | 35.0 | 12,300 | 1.49 | 7.1 | moderately resistant |
| Black walnut | 1,010 | 38.5 | 14,600 | 1.68 | 7.8 | resistant |
| Teak | 1,000 | 40.1* | 14,600 | 1.55 | 5.8 | very resistant (old growth); moderately resistant (young growth) |
| Yellow-poplar | 540 | 29.4 | 10,100 | 1.58 | 8.2 | slightly or nonresistant |
| Red maple | 950 | 37.8 | 13,400 | 1.64 | 8.2 | slightly or nonresistant |
Uses
Fine furniture and cabinets, interior woodwork, pattern making, boat construction, fancy veneers, musical and precision instruments, paneling, turnery and carving.
Frequently asked questions
How hard is mahogany?
Genuine (Honduras) mahogany averages 800 lbf on the Janka test at 12% moisture content, African mahogany 830 lbf and sapele 1,510 lbf.
Is Philippine mahogany real mahogany?
No. It is the trade name for the lauan and meranti woods (Shorea), a different family. Light red meranti averages 460 lbf against 800 lbf for genuine mahogany.
Is mahogany good for outdoor use?
Genuine mahogany heartwood is in the resistant decay class and African mahogany and sapele in the moderately resistant class, so they do well above ground with a finish. They are not ground-contact woods.
Sources
- USDA Forest Products Laboratory. Wood Handbook: Wood as an Engineering Material. General Technical Report FPL-GTR-190, 2010. Chapter 2 (species descriptions), Chapter 4 (Tables 4-3, 4-4 shrinkage; Eq. 4-7, 4-9, 4-12 density), Chapter 5 (Tables 5-3b, 5-5b strength and hardness), Chapter 13 (Table 13-5 dimensional change coefficients), Chapter 14 (Table 14-1 decay resistance)
- USDA Forest Products Laboratory. Wood Handbook, 2021 edition (FPL-GTR-282)
Last reviewed: 22 October 2026. Numbers are generated from our parsed copy of the Handbook tables, so every page uses the same data. Values marked * are estimates computed with the Handbook’s own equations. Spotted an error? Please let us know.