Bubinga (Guibourtia spp.) 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 | Bubinga |
|---|---|
| Janka side hardness, 12% moisture | 2,690 lbf (11,966 N) |
| Janka side hardness, green | not reported |
| Hardness rank | harder than 157 of the 168 woods with a 12% hardness value in our database |
| Density at 12% moisture | 54.3 lb/ft³ (869 kg/m³)* |
| Weight per board foot (12%) | 4.52 lb* |
| Specific gravity (ovendry weight, green volume) | 0.71 |
| Specific gravity at 12% moisture | 0.78* |
| Bending strength (modulus of rupture), 12% | 22,600 psi |
| Stiffness (modulus of elasticity), 12% | 2.48 million psi |
| Crushing strength (compression parallel to grain), 12% | 10,500 psi |
| Shrinkage green to ovendry: radial / tangential / volumetric | 5.8% / 8.4% / 14.2% |
| Tangential / radial shrinkage ratio | 1.45 |
| Dimensional change per 1% moisture (radial / tangential) | not reported |
| Heartwood decay resistance | moderately 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bubinga Guibourtia spp. | 2,690 | 54.3* | 22,600 | 2.48 | 10,500 | 8.4 / 5.8 | moderately resistant |
| Benge Guibourtia arnoldiana | 1,750 | 49.6* | 21,400 | 2.04 | 11,400 | 8.6 / 5.2 | moderately resistant |
| Ovangkol Guibourtia ehie | — | 50.5* | 16,900 | 2.56 | 8,300 | 8.2 / 4.5 | not rated |
What it is
Bubinga, benge and ehie (better known as ovangkol) all belong to the West African genus Guibourtia, but they differ markedly in colour and somewhat in texture. Bubinga heartwood is pink, vivid red or red-brown with purple streaks, and on exposure to air it turns yellow or medium brown with a reddish tint. Benge is pale yellowish to medium brown with grey to almost black stripes, and ovangkol is more golden to dark brown with similar dark stripes.
Bubinga and benge have a fine to moderately fine texture; ovangkol is moderately coarse. Bubinga is often sold as figured slabs and veneer, with names such as waterfall bubinga for wavy figure.
Working properties
The Handbook calls all three moderately hard and heavy, yet workable with hand and machine tools. In its tables bubinga is much harder than the other two: 2,690 lbf of Janka hardness against 1,750 for benge (ovangkol has no hardness value). Drying can be difficult, though with care the wood dries well. Figured and interlocked boards tear out easily, so a scraper or drum sander is useful for final surfacing.
They are listed as moderately durable and resistant to preservative treatment; bubinga and benge are in the moderately resistant decay class of Table 14-1. Bubinga species have been listed in CITES Appendix II since 2017, which affects international trade in the raw wood.
Weight and density
At 12% moisture content bubinga weighs about 54.3 lb per cubic foot (estimated from its specific gravity and shrinkage), so one board foot (144 cubic inches) weighs about 4.52 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 12.4 lb; an 8 ft piece 1-1/2 × 3-1/2 in. (a 2×4 size) weighs about 15.8 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bubinga | 2,690 | 54.3* | 22,600 | 2.48 | 8.4 | moderately resistant |
| Indian rosewood | 3,170 | 55.2* | 16,900 | 1.78 | 5.8 | not rated |
| Courbaril (jatoba) | 2,350 | 53.8* | 19,400 | 2.16 | 8.5 | resistant |
| Purpleheart | 1,860 | 49.8* | 19,200 | 2.27 | 6.1 | very resistant |
| Black walnut | 1,010 | 38.5 | 14,600 | 1.68 | 7.8 | resistant |
| Sapele | 1,510 | 42.0* | 15,300 | 1.82 | 7.4 | moderately resistant |
Uses
The Handbook lists turnery, flooring, furniture components, cabinetwork and decorative veneers. Large bubinga slabs are used for table tops, and both bubinga and ovangkol are used by musical instrument makers, ovangkol especially for acoustic guitar backs and sides as a rosewood alternative.
Frequently asked questions
How hard is bubinga?
The Wood Handbook gives bubinga 2,690 lbf (11,966 N) of Janka side hardness at 12% moisture content, about 2 times that of white oak.
Is ovangkol the same as bubinga?
No. They are different species of the same genus, Guibourtia. Ovangkol (ehie) is golden to dark brown with dark stripes and has a coarser texture than bubinga.
Is bubinga heavy?
Yes. We estimate about 54.3 lb per cubic foot at 12% moisture content from its specific gravity, or 4.52 lb per board foot.
Why is bubinga expensive?
It comes from large African trees, much of it as wide figured slabs, and since 2017 international trade has needed CITES permits.
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: 24 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.