Eastern white pine (Pinus strobus) 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 | Eastern white pine |
|---|---|
| Janka side hardness, 12% moisture | 380 lbf (1,690 N) |
| Janka side hardness, green | 290 lbf |
| Hardness rank | harder than 7 of the 168 woods with a 12% hardness value in our database |
| Density at 12% moisture | 24.5 lb/ft³ (392 kg/m³) |
| Weight per board foot (12%) | 2.04 lb |
| Specific gravity (ovendry weight, green volume) | 0.34 |
| Specific gravity at 12% moisture | 0.35 |
| Bending strength (modulus of rupture), 12% | 8,600 psi |
| Stiffness (modulus of elasticity), 12% | 1.24 million psi |
| Crushing strength (compression parallel to grain), 12% | 4,800 psi |
| Shrinkage green to ovendry: radial / tangential / volumetric | 2.1% / 6.1% / 8.2% |
| Tangential / radial shrinkage ratio | 2.9 |
| Dimensional change per 1% moisture (radial / tangential) | 0.00071 / 0.00212 |
| Impact bending (drop height to failure), 12% | 18 in. |
| Heartwood decay resistance | moderately resistant (old growth only); otherwise slightly or nonresistant |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Eastern white pine Pinus strobus | 380 | 24.5 | 8,600 | 1.24 | 4,800 | 6.1 / 2.1 | moderately resistant (old growth only); otherwise slightly or nonresistant |
| Western white pine Pinus monticola | 420 | 26.6 | 9,700 | 1.46 | 5,040 | 7.4 / 4.1 | slightly or nonresistant |
| Sugar pine Pinus lambertiana | 380 | 25.2 | 8,200 | 1.19 | 4,460 | 5.6 / 2.9 | slightly or nonresistant |
| Ponderosa pine Pinus ponderosa | 460 | 28.0 | 9,400 | 1.29 | 5,320 | 6.2 / 3.9 | slightly or nonresistant |
What it is
Eastern white pine (Pinus strobus) grows from Maine to northern Georgia and in the Great Lake States. About half of the lumber comes from New England and a third from the Great Lake States. The heartwood is light brown, often with a reddish tinge, and darkens on exposure to air.
Working properties
White pine has a comparatively uniform texture and straight grain. It kiln-dries easily, has low shrinkage, ranks high in stability, works easily and glues readily. It is lightweight, moderately soft, moderately low in strength and low in stiffness and shock resistance. The table compares it with the other soft pines, western white, sugar and ponderosa pine, which are used in similar ways.
Weight and density
At 12% moisture content eastern white pine weighs about 24.5 lb per cubic foot, so one board foot (144 cubic inches) weighs about 2.04 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 5.6 lb; an 8 ft piece 1-1/2 × 3-1/2 in. (a 2×4 size) weighs about 7.1 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).
Wood movement
The Wood Handbook gives dimensional change coefficients for each species: the fraction of its width a board gains or loses for every 1% change in moisture content, between about 6% and 14%. For eastern white pine they are 0.00212 across a flatsawn face (tangential) and 0.00071 across a quartersawn face (radial).
Worked example: a flatsawn board 7-1/4 in. wide (a nominal 1×8) that goes from 6% moisture content in a heated winter house to 12% in a humid summer changes width by 7.25 × 0.00212 × 6 = 0.092 in. (about 3/32 in.). The same board quartersawn moves 0.031 in. (about 1/32 in.). Allow for this in panels, tabletops and floors; the wood movement calculator works it out for any size and moisture range.
How it compares
| Species | Janka (lbf) | Density (lb/ft³) | Bending (psi) | Stiffness (Mpsi) | Tangential shrink (%) | Decay resistance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Eastern white pine | 380 | 24.5 | 8,600 | 1.24 | 6.1 | moderately resistant (old growth only); otherwise slightly or nonresistant |
| Loblolly pine | 690 | 35.7 | 12,800 | 1.79 | 7.4 | slightly or nonresistant |
| Douglas-fir (Coast) | 710 | 33.6 | 12,400 | 1.95 | 7.6 | moderately resistant |
| Yellow-poplar | 540 | 29.4 | 10,100 | 1.58 | 8.2 | slightly or nonresistant |
| Western redcedar | 350 | 22.4 | 7,500 | 1.11 | 5.0 | resistant |
| American basswood | 410 | 25.9 | 8,700 | 1.46 | 9.3 | slightly or nonresistant |
Uses
Structural lumber from second-growth and lower grades; high grades for patterns, sashes, doors, furniture, interior woodwork, knotty paneling and toys.
Frequently asked questions
How soft is white pine?
Eastern white pine averages 380 lbf (1,690 N) on the Janka test at 12% moisture content, among the softest commercial woods.
Is white pine stable?
Yes. Its tangential shrinkage from green to ovendry is 6.1% and its tangential movement coefficient is 0.00212 per 1% moisture change, both low for a softwood.
Is white pine the same as southern yellow pine?
No. Southern pines (longleaf, shortleaf, loblolly, slash) are much denser and harder: loblolly averages 690 lbf and 35.7 lb/ft³.
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.