Sometimes I think our marketing department doesn’t want me to sleep at night! Why else would they give me an impossible task like writing a blog about who is the best hardwood floor brand? A favorite brand can change as the company size grows or shrinks, maybe Shaw decides to halt all laminate flooring one day?
I want to write on topics that have a lot of facts that I can present, which allows you, the reader, to make an educated choice about your next floor.
So what I will do here is to discuss some of the top manufacturers in the US, and what segment I feel that each is best at. No one company is the best at everything, so I will share my 40 years of experience with you in hopes you can make a more informed decision on a new hardwood floor. I want your new floor to make you happy not only today but for decades to come. Choosing the best would be difficult, but discussing the top hardwood flooring brands will be my pleasure.
Somerset Flooring
Let’s start, for no particular reason, with Somerset Hardwood Flooring, in Somerset Kentucky.
Started by the Merrick family more than 30 years ago, Somerset is very good at the higher end products. Not the really expensive exotics and handscraped floors, but the highest quality engineered floors, as well as the highest grades of Oak solids.
While most manufacturers will offer a full line of products, from the lower-end ⅜” 3 ply floors up to the better ½” floors, Somerset focuses on one quality of engineered: the best.
Best Engineered Hardwood Floors
And I do not state that flippantly. Every engineered floor that Somerset makes has a 7 ply hardwood core under a thick, locally-produced Red Oak, White Oak, Hickory, or Maple veneer. What sets their veneers apart is that every engineered SKU that they offer uses the SolidPlus face sawn veneers instead of the cheaper rotary peeled top layers used by other manufacturers to save money. No other major manufacturer in the US does this, so giving Somerset the trophy for Best Constructed Engineered Hardwood Floor is a no-brainer!
Cleanest Solid Wood Flooring
The other product line where Somerset excels is in the high-graded Oak line, Color Strip and Color Plank. Using locally grown Red and White Oak lumber Somerset is able to produce widths from 2 ¼ inches up to 5” wide planks. In these collections Somerset uses Select and Better lumber to produce what I think is the cleanest Solid Oak flooring in the industry. And somehow they do it at a fair price. At ReallyCheapFloors we not only offer the first quality selections of the collections and others, but we also offer the Cabin Grade and Builder grades as well. We are the only outlet in the US to offer all three grades, and we are proud of the fact that our relationship with one of the best flooring brands in the US allows this.
Another feature of Somerset that is important to us is the general support they offer every dealer. From installation guidance to information about current trends, Somerset gives us the tools we need to keep our customers happy..
AHF, America's Largest Manufacturer of Hardwood Floors
Next we can discuss AHF Flooring. While you may not recognize the name, you will be familiar with some of their brands. Bruce? Hartco? Robbins? Armstrong? Yep. AHF owns all of those, and more. And Specialty brands like Raintree and Hearthwood. What Is AHF good at? Almost everything!
Let me expound on that. For a company to be great at manufacturing and selling hardwood flooring they must be good at selling every part of the tree. Not just the Select and Better that everyone wants but the #2 Common, the #1 Common, the top-grade Clear, even the junky pallet wood. Would you believe AHF even sells the sawdust to make charcoal?
Having all of those different fingers in so many markets gives AHF the ability to be efficient, and lets them offer a selection of wood flooring to their dealers that is unparalleled . And that is what makes AHF one of the Best Hardwood Brands.
Through all of the different labels AHF has the ability to furnish any product to any market at any grade. No one else can do that. And while many of the same products are offered under multiple brand labels like Bruce, Hartco and Robbins, they also offer modern takes and the newest technologies on floors like the waterproof Raintree line. My favorite product from AHF is our American Home Hickory that we offer in 2 colors and 2 widths, and I consider it possibly the best value that we offer on a prefinished solid Hickory hardwood floor.
Mullican, the Wood Professionals
The next flooring company that I want to share with you is Mullican Hardwood Flooring, in Johnson City Tennessee. Started in 1985, Mullican is the biggest and best brand that most people have never heard of. That is because they quietly have become one of the largest hardwood flooring manufacturers in the US. They have done that by offering practically any hardwood flooring product that can be made, and they do it at a great price. I have personally dealt with sales reps, sales managers, even plant managers from Mullican and consider them friends as well as partners. These guys are wood professionals, and we are proud to be associated with such a great company.
Bruce Hardwood Flooring: A Familiar AHF Brand
Bruce deserves a closer look within the AHF family because it is a name many shoppers recognize. The familiar label is a useful starting point, but the collection, construction, grade, and finish still determine how a product will look and perform.
Solid construction is intended for suitable dry, above-grade rooms over a wood subfloor. Bruce offers domestic species such as oak, maple, and hickory in a range of widths and colors. For long-term value, ask whether the board can be refinished and how the finish warranty applies to normal wear.
Engineered hardwood uses a real wood surface over a layered core. The added dimensional stability can expand the installation options over concrete or below grade when the product instructions approve the space. Depending on the product, the planks may be nailed, stapled, glued, or floated.
My advice: Confirm the approved subfloor, moisture limits, finish protection, and installation method instead of choosing by brand name alone. Bruce hardwood flooring belongs in the discussion because its broad selection gives shoppers several practical ways to match a traditional or updated home style.
Tennessee Artisan: Appalachian Character and American Craft
Tennessee Artisan is a collection from the Johnson City, Tennessee, manufacturer discussed above. It is described as Appalachian sourced and American made, which gives a shopper another reason to consider this line when domestic material and regional craftsmanship matter.
Natural variation is part of the design. Knots, mineral streaks, grain, and color changes can give each plank its own personality. A wider oak board can make an open room appear calmer, while a narrower format produces a busier, more traditional visual. These details should be judged against the intended grade rather than treated automatically as defects.
Review the species, surface texture, width, finish, and construction for the exact selection. When considering engineered wood flooring, check the wear layer and whether the manufacturer identifies it as refinishable. The answer can change from one collection to another.
Mannington is also worth comparing when a project calls for engineered flooring with contemporary colors or pattern options. For a character-rich result, Tennessee Artisan stands out through its visible grain and Appalachian identity rather than a perfectly uniform surface.
Compare Construction, Warranty, and Installation
No manufacturer wins every category. The strongest choice is the one that fits the room, subfloor, budget, and appearance you want. Use the specifications—not the name on the carton—to narrow the options.
A Short Brand Comparison Checklist
- Construction: Match the board structure to the grade level, subfloor, expected moisture, and approved installation method.
- Species: Compare the grain, natural color range, hardness, and amount of variation you want to see.
- Grade: First quality, builder, cabin, and other grades can differ in board length, knots, color variation, and allowable milling marks.
- Samples: View several boards in daylight and under the lighting used in your space; one small sample cannot show every natural variation.
- Warranty: Read the finish coverage, structural terms, moisture exclusions, care rules, and residential or commercial limitations.
- Installation: Confirm acclimation, moisture testing, the approved fastener or adhesive, trim, and extra material for cuts.
- Complete cost: Include freight, underlayment, labor, waste, and hardwood accessories instead of comparing the square-foot price alone.
After those questions are answered, compare our current prefinished solid selections and engineered selections by price, width, grade, color, and type. That approach makes it easier to find lasting value without paying extra simply for a name.
Great Selection
What Mullican is best at, in my opinion, is using all of the materials that they have to make a wide range of products, all at high quality and exceptional value. Offering both unfinished and prefinished solid and engineered hardwood floors for your home, it is hard to imagine a more complete brand. And that is no easy task. I am not exaggerating when I say that it takes very talented and skilled wood professionals to make a hardwood brand great.
Every employee from the wood grader that fills the boxes to the CEO that directs the company is a wood pro at Mullican. Sounds easy, huh? It’s not. Look at Shaw Industries and Mohawk Industries. They are the 2 largest flooring companies in the world. Both tried to be large players in the wood industry, and both failed miserably. They just didn’t have enough people with wood backgrounds in the positions that mattered.
One of my favorite products from Mullican is their Knob Creek Hickory. This is a handscraped solid Hickory floor that we have offered for a number of years. While we never seem to have enough of it, our customers that have been fortunate enough to get their hands on it have loved it.
Best Hardwood Flooring.....People!
Companies like Somerset, AHF, and Mullican know what they are doing. All are long time members and supporters of the wood flooring professional group, NWFA. We spend a lot of time at these factories, meeting with the men and women that make what we do possible, and it is these relationships that make ReallyCheapFloors.com the largest and best liquidator of hardwood flooring in the USA.
As you continue your research before purchasing the next floor for your home, review what your needs are, and what is important to you. With all of the options available, from the value-driven cabin to the higher-end first quality products, getting the floor installation in your home perfect is important.
In closing, I don’t think there is a Best Hardwood Brand. I think all of our partners are the best at something. Let us show you what we are the Best at…..offering the Best Value on Wood Floors. We would love to help you find the best floor for any part of your home, be it kitchen, bathroom, dining room or the whole house. Year after year, because of the partners and friends that make it possible.
