When it comes to shopping for leather, not all choices are equal. Full grain leather stands out as the highest quality option.

But we would say that, wouldn’t we? As a company that specializes in selling full-grain leather products, it would make sense for that to be our party line. What about genuine leather or corrected grain leather? How do those terms fit into the leather shopping landscape?

Sometimes, shopping for leather — and separating facts from clever advertisements — can feel like you need to speak a whole different language. And if it feels that way to you, you’re not far off.

Think about it like this. Food companies can use certain terms, like “free range” or “natural,” in a loose way to increase their food sales , but they can’t use the term “organic” unless they’re willing to undergo regular inspections of their facilities. Outsider looking in, “natural” and “organic” sound synonymous. But in the world of food, they are very different things.

The same is true in the leather industry. The term “full-grain” is like the term “organic” — it means something very specific and indicates that you’re shopping the best of the best. But leather facilities that don’t offer full-grain leather aren’t going to come out and tell you that they’re selling you mulched scrap. Instead, they’ll use terms like “bonded leather,” which sound a lot more appealing.

The problem, of course, is that if you don’t work in the leather industry, the different terms can all sound eerily similar. Many people solve the problem by reaching for the cheapest option. And while that’s certainly a strategy, if you always reach for hot dogs, you’re never going to enjoy a filet mignon.

A better solution? Arm yourself with knowledge. When you’re familiar with the language marketers use when they talk about leather, you can’t be tricked into spending your hard-earned money on scraps. 

Before we can begin to look at why full-grain leather is truly a superior option, we have to get on the same page about what leather is and where it comes from. Leather doesn’t just appear out of nowhere. It starts with rawhides. The rigorous process that transforms these hides into leather — one that has remained relatively unchanged for thousands of years — is the key to what makes full-grain leather stand out against its competitors.

Since leather starts with rawhides, it should come as no surprise that the quality of those hides impacts the quality of the leather. For example, cowhide and horsehide, even when tanned the same, will become two very different leathers.

Note that full-grain leather can come from any hide, and it will always be the best version of that hide’s leather because of the way it’s processed. However, different hides are worth knowing about because they can further complicate the language tanneries and leather workers use when describing the leather they’re working with. 

In the United States and Canada, the majority of leather comes from cow hides. There are a few reasons for this choice. One is that cows are farmed locally and in abundance, which means they produce healthy, unblemished hides. Additionally, their size allows for relatively large hides.

Other popular choices for leather include buffalo, deer, elk, and horses. Buffalo, deer, and elk tend to be wild animals, which can lead to gouges and scars in their hides that tanners and leather workers have to work around.

Horsehide leather actually tends to be higher quality than cowhide leather. But it’s also harder to obtain, and that jacks the price of it way up. Other rawhide options have their own challenges and benefits. Alligator hides, for example, are extremely tough. This is fine if your end goal is a pair of shoes. It’s less ideal if your end goal is a supple leather belt. Goat hides, on the other hand, are extremely soft with a distinct, pebble-like pattern. As a result, goat-hide leather is often used for making things like gloves or book bindings. 

Another reason that the origin of a hide matters is that it impacts how the leather gets processed. Certain hides, including the hides of elephants and large cats like cheetahs, are illegal to process based on an international agreement called CITES (the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora).

Even if you’re willing to set your own ethics on fire, no reputable tannery will process leather from illegal sources. And just consider the implications. If those tanneries are comfortable ignoring CITES, what other corners are they cutting?

Other rawhides are just plain difficult to work with. Tanneries who aren’t experts in working with exotic hides will rarely make the attempt. The risk versus reward is too high. Exotic hides can be extremely expensive, so any waste is costly for the tanners. And many of the rarer hide sources require special tanning techniques. As a result, there are even fewer places to get these types of leather from. And the prices on exotic leathers tend to be through the roof.

All of these processing complexities play into both the quality and the cost of the final product. So when it comes to deciding on which leather to buy, you want to consider both the leather grade and the leather source. Full-grain alligator leather and full-grain cowhide leather, while both high-quality leathers, are not the same thing.

The best animal hide source will depend, in part, on what’s being produced. Alligator leather, for example, is known for being tough and durable, making it great for work boots. It’s also incredibly expensive, making it a less-ideal choice for a gift for someone you don’t know well. 

Fun fact: You can’t just take an animal hide and call it leather. Turning rawhides into leather is an involved process, and one that can take a lot of time. Depending on the process the tannery is using, turning a hide into leather usually takes anywhere from several hours to over a week. And sometimes, it can take a lot longer than that.

This tanning process is the key to creating the different leather grades. Full-grain leather, as we’ve mentioned, is the crème de la crème. But the reason it’s so good comes down to how it was tanned. Full-grain leather uses the best part of the animal hide tanned with the best tanning know-how. But let’s take a deeper look into leather tanning, in general, to see how that works. 

Approximately 10-12% of leather is processed via vegetable tanning . This arduous process involves soaking hides in baths filled with higher and higher concentrations of tannins over a period of about 7 months. The tannins break down the collagen in the hides. They also add color to the leather – reds, yellows, beiges, and deep browns – that give vegetable tanned leather a uniquely beautiful appearance.

Other processes for tanning leather include tawing , chrome tanning , and synthetic tanning . Each of these processes have their own differences in techniques, their own time frames, and their own results. Tawing leather, for example, produces a leather that is white in color and extremely sensitive to water. And chrome tanned leather comes out bluish in color, though it is often dyed to give it a more “natural” appearance. 

Whether you choose synthetic tanning, vegetable tanning, or something in between, transforming rawhides into leather isn’t a one-and-done process. There are a lot of steps involved in creating leather. Each of these steps is critical for preserving the integrity and quality of leather, and tanners have to do each step correctly before they can begin to create high-quality leathers:

• Soaking: Removing excess dirt, salt, and any other materials that don’t benefit the leather-making process. 
  
• Liming: Removing unwanted hair from the rawhide. From here on out, it stops being called a “hide” and is now referred to as a “pelt.” 
  
• De-Liming: Removing the lime to minimize the naturalization process. 
  
• Bating: Softening pelts with enzymes while still retaining their firmness and flexibility. 
  
• Pickling: Slackening the pelts with acids to prepare them to receive tanning agents.
  

• Tanning: Converting pickled pelts into leather by altering its collagen structure.

The process you choose determines how much time you spend on each of these steps.

The leather tanning process hasn’t changed much in the thousands of years since it was invented. However, many countries have put regulations into place to limit the environmental impact of leather production. In an effort to keep up with these changing regulations, some innovators have created new tech to help the process go green.

Ultrasound tanning, for example, uses sound waves to tan leather, while microbial tanning breaks uses fungi to break down the proteins in animal hides. Some places are even experimenting with the concept of growing leather in labs.

Unfortunately, these more eco-friendly tanning options have yet to be widely distributed or used amongst major tanneries. As a result, if you’re trying to shop these modern options, you’re severely limited in choice of color and quality. 

Leather production doesn’t just “kind of” impact leather grading; it is the number one contributing factor. This is because leather is graded based on two things: the part of the animal hide that was used and how it was treated in the last stages of the tanning process. Full-grain leather, for example, is a term used to describe leather that uses the best part of the leather in conjunction with a superior tanning process.

Note that some important factors about your leather — including what it was treated with and which animal the hide came from — aren’t incorporated into the grading system. That’s why, when choosing your leather, it’s important to pay attention to the grading in conjunction with the animal and the tanning process. Full grain vegetable tanned cowhide leather will have a very different quality to it than full grain chromium tanned alligator leather.

Understanding the tanning process and where these different terms come from helps you assess your overall leather purchase. 

Now that you know more about the leather tanning process and where the idea of grading comes from, you may be asking yourself: Why does any of this matter?

But if you’re someone who loves leather, it absolutely matters. Close your eyes for a moment and imagine a nice leather item. Picture the smooth, buttery surface of a great leather jacket, or the rich patina on your favorite leather wallet.

Chances are, you have a pretty good idea of what “good” leather is. But not all leather feels, smells, or looks like the leather in your imagination. Full-grain leather stands out because it embodies the best qualities people think of when they think about leather. 

Think, for a moment, about what it feels like to tug on a nice pair of leather gloves. The leather you’re thinking of is probably buttery-smooth and moves easily.

Now consider a nice pair of leather shoes. Does that leather feel the same?

How leather feels depends on a number of factors, including the thickness of the hide, how it was tanned, the finish used on it, and how it’s been treated since. Leather that is conditioned regularly, for example, tends to uphold its moisture levels, while leather that is left to bake in the sun may become dry and cracked.

Full-grain leather is soft and pliant, but it also has a texture to it. Compare that to the feel of smooth, almost sticky synthetic leathers, and the difference is obvious.

Of course, it’s not as simple as saying that soft leather is good and hard leather is bad. If you’re making a pair of shoes, for example, you want the leather to have some firmness to it. But high-quality leather should always feel like it has moisture in it. You don’t want leather that feels dry and crumbly, and you don’t want leather that feels stiff and tacky. 

One of the biggest differences you’ll notice when comparing full-grain leather to something like pleather or vegan leather is the difference in smell. Leather has a rich, earthy scent that can’t be replicated by synthetic materials.

Slip on a full-grain leather jacket, and the smell wraps around you like a blanket. If you grew up around someone who wore leather, that scent can trigger powerful memories . The fact that smell is so closely linked to memory is one of the reasons wearing real leather can make you feel nostalgic. It literally smells like a time when life was less processed and synthetic. It smells like heritage and ancestry.

Of course, even among full leather options, the smell can change. Vegetable tanned leather has that beautiful, vivid scent often sought after by leather connoisseurs. Chrome tanned leather, on the other hand, is more-or-less odorless. And leather that was tanned with chemicals often smells like chemicals, making it hard to distinguish from its wholly synthetic counterparts.

Once again, how leather is processed is as important as the portion of hide that’s being used.

There’s a reason vegan companies create synthetic leather rather than eschewing leather altogether with: the look. Leather has a classic aesthetic that hearkens back to the early days of humanity. It’s earthy and timeless in a way that jives with almost any aesthetic. Depending on the color and style, for example, can work with biker looks, punk rock looks, or professional looks. 

Similarly, quality leather wallets can look modern and unique, or they can have a vintage quality, reminiscent of the wallets our dads and grandads carried.

As with anything else leather-related, how leather looks directly corresponds to what kind of animal it’s made from and how it’s made. Corrected grain leather, for example, is designed to hide any flaws in the hide. This is great for something like a pair of shoes, where you may value sameness throughout the hide. But it can strip the beauty from objects like wallets or bags, where slight changes in color feel like an integral facet of the item’s design. 

High-quality leather is an investment. And if you’re going to invest in something, you want it to last a long time. 

Synthetic leather lasts, on average, 2-5 years. This might be fine if you’re buying a synthetic leather jacket for a child; they’re likely to outgrow that jacket in 2-5 years anyway. But if you’re looking to buy a jacket for yourself, you’re better off investing in leather that will stand the test of time.

At Popov Leather, for example, we choose to make our products with full-grain leather. Because of this, we’re able to offer our customers a lifetime warranty on all of our products : we know the leather we use was built to last. 

Leather is one of those materials that can cost anywhere from a few dollars to a few hundred dollars. The wide range of leather costs can be frustrating, especially for people new to the leather industry.

We’ve already seen a number of factors that contribute to the cost of leather, including the complexity of the tanning technique and the rareness of the hide type. The grade of the leather will also impact cost. Higher grades of leather, which come from higher-quality parts of the animal hide and also involve a more complex tanning process, cost more than leather that was made from the scraps of the animal’s hide with the simplest tanning process.

Full-grain leather is undeniably more expensive than genuine leather or bonded leather. But that expense reflects its superior quality, longevity, and the intricate processes involved in its creation. 

The final factor to consider when it comes to leather — or, more specifically, the leather production process — is how it impacts the environment.

There’s no denying that there is an innate environmental impact to leather. After all, it comes from animal hides. But while you may think that synthetic leather is better than non-synthetic leather, that’s not always the case . Faux-leather made with synthetic materials can release harmful toxins, and plastic leather can be harmful to the environment during its production and after its user is done with it, as the plastic does not biodegrade easily.

Similarly, leather made from animal hides may be more or less sustainable depending on how it’s made. If the chemical byproducts of leather production are released into the nearby rivers or streams, that’s clearly bad for the environment. But if leather is vegetable-tanned, for example, and all byproducts are disposed of safely, it may be better for the environment than your typical synthetic leather.

The key to determining what to buy to best suit the environment is to learn more about how each leather product is produced. Read up on the company you’re buying from. Check out their sustainability statements, if they have one, or learn more about where they source their leather.

Most importantly, focus on the quality of the leather. Companies are often willing to invest more in high-quality leather because they receive a return on that investment. As a result, higher-grades of leather are often associated with lower environmental impacts. 

There are a lot of factors to consider when distinguishing high quality leather from lower quality leather. Because of this, it should come as no surprise that defining the best leather isn’t as easy as checking boxes on a rubric. Everyone has different priorities, with some buyers focusing on cost and others focusing on durability.

Within the leather industry, manufacturers have agreed on terminology to describe the quality of leather. This is referred to as leather “grading,” but it’s not as simple as grading in schools. Instead, leather grading refers specifically to the portion of the hide leather came from and how it was treated. While leather of the same grades often looks, feels, and behaves similarly, some of the other factors we’ve looked at can impact the characteristics of leather as well. 

Technically, leather classifications have not been standardized. Specific companies may talk about their leather in different ways. Many focus on the number of blemishes the leather has. For example, Wickett & Craig refer to their leather as standard, utility, or special based on the number of marks and blemishes.

But sometimes, leather connoisseurs need to be able to speak the same language. That’s where leather grades come in. Manufacturers and retailers describe leather grades using the same language so that everyone is on the same page. These grades specifically describe which part of the hide is used and how the hide is finished.

From highest quality leather to the lowest quality leather, these grades are:

• Top Grain Leather, which includes

  • Corrected Grain Leather

  • Full Grain Leather

• Split Grain Leather (also known as “Genuine Leather”)

• Bonded Leather

The first three grades of leather, as outlined in the diagram below, describe a lot about which part of the hide the leather comes from. Top grain leathers come from the section of leather closest to the outside of the animal, while split grain leathers use hide that was originally closer to the animal’s flesh. 

As for bonded leather? That comes from something altogether — and disturbingly — different.

At Popov, we work almost exclusively with full grain leather (though we’ll occasionally roll out something with corrected grain leather). Before we do a deep dive into why we prefer full grain leather for all of our hand-sewn leather products, let’s start at the bottom and work our way up.

And when it comes to leather, there’s nothing more at the bottom than the abhorrent slushy known as “bonded leather.” 

When it comes to leather grades, bonded leather is the bottom of the barrel. You’ll see this used for kids’ clothing, cheap leather bags, office supplies, and upholstery on budget leather furniture.

Bonded leather is basically the hot dog of leathers. It only contains 20% actual leather, with the rest of the manufactured structure coming from PVC and fiber content.

Leather manufacturers start by taking their scrap leather and turning it into a slurry. This slurry gets spread on a fiber cloth using polyurethane adhesive.

Bonded leather is quick, easy, and cheap to manufacture. The result is as cheap as the process, however. Bonded leather has a manufactured look to it, with a smooth, unblemished surface, because it is manufactured. The leather hot dog has to be spray painted to achieve that look. It has none of that great leather smell, it doesn’t patina with age, and — worst of all — it breaks down quickly. While some people might argue that bonded leather is an environmental choice because it uses leather waste that would otherwise be discarded, when you consider how quickly it wears out and breaks… well, the truth is, the leather scrap is getting discarded anyway — just with more chemicals and dyes included. 

Most leather you buy from big department stores and cheap online retailers is split-grain leather. They might trick you and call it “ genuine leather ,” which makes it sound slightly better. Don’t be fooled by this misnomer. While split grain leather is, technically, real leather made from real hides, the plastic feel and lack of durability make its lack of quality immediately apparent.

Split grain leather is made from the fibrous part of leather at the bottom that are shaved off when you’re making top grain leather. You can think of it as leather’s leftovers. It doesn’t have any of the markings and whirls that give top-grain leather its distinctive appearance, and it can’t stand the test of time. Manufacturers may coat it with a polymer and emboss it to give it a more authentic look, but it's no substitute for the real thing. 

Corrected grain and full-grain leather both come from the same part of the cowhide: the top part. As a result, they can both be referred to as “top grain leather.”

The big difference between corrected-grain leather and full-grain leather is that corrected grain leather has been treated to reduce perceived imperfections. Many leather connoisseurs will argue that corrected grain leather is inferior because of this. And it’s true that if you value seeing the history of an animal in leather — in the whirls and eddies and mottled beauty of true full-grain — corrected grain leather is not the right choice for you.

But it’s also true that corrected grain leather is not bad leather. High-quality leather furniture, for example, is often made of corrected grain leather because customers appreciate knowing exactly what the final product will look like. But what corrected grain leather gains in uniformity comes at the cost of true beauty. 

If you’re looking for unadulterated quality, full-grain leather is the best of the best. As with corrected-grain leather, full grain leather comes from the very top portion of the animal hide. This hide is carefully treated over the course of a long period of time.

Despite the treatment, however, any blemishes in the original hide remain with full grain leather. This is why no two high-quality leather pieces look exactly the same. Each wallet or belt made with full grain leather is like its own precious snowflake. This beauty is unmatched with any other leather on the market.

But it’s not just beautiful. Full grain leather is also unmatched in terms of quality. The top part of the hide is soft and supple, and the leather that comes from this portion of the animal can turn buttery-smooth. Treat it right, and full-grain leather can last for decades. And with this longevity comes the possibility of patina — character marks that tell a story about the life the leather has lived. 

Now that you fully understand leather terminology and all the different ways that leather can be produced, it’s time to take a deep dive into full-grain leather. Learn when to choose full-grain leather and how to treat it once you’ve picked it. 

There are no hard and fast rules when it comes to anything in life. While we strongly feel that full-grain leather is usually the right choice for most needs, there are times when other choices may make sense.

If you’re looking for the right leather for office furniture, for example, you might be looking for something with the durability and longevity of full-grain leather without the interesting beauty marks that set full-grain leather apart. In this case, corrected-grain leather, with its uniform appearance, may be a better choice.

And if you’re shopping for clothing for a kid, it may not make sense to pay top dollar for clothing they will outgrow or not take care of. Synthetic leather, or even genuine leather, can make sense as long as you understand that you’re choosing to pay for only the leather look (not the feel, smell, or quality). 

Although there are arguments for choosing other leather options occasionally, most of the time, full-grain leather is going to be the superior choice.

Taken from the best part of the animal hide and treated in the best possible way, full-grain leather can last for generations . A high-quality wallet or watch can be passed from father to son; a beautiful tote bag can start as a parent’s work-bag and become a homewarming gift when their child buys their first apartment. At a time when textile waste has reached a crisis point, investing in a few quality pieces that you can keep out of the landmine is more than worth it.

Full grain leather also feels good. The pores on the outside of the hide are preserved, making this leather more breathable than suede or split grain leather. This is also why full grain leather can develop such a rich patina over time. The pores leave room for environmental factors to impact the leather. Over time, it grows increasingly beautiful, so there truly is no replacement for a well-loved leather item. 

You can’t expect a car to run if you never change the oil. In that same vein, even top-shelf leather won’t last a lifetime if you don’t know how to care for it. Full grain leather is an investment; it’s not something you want to squander by leaving it out in the rain or on the dashboard of a car on a hot day.

We’ve written guides before on how to repair cracked leather, but most of us can agree that prevention is the best treatment of all. With that in mind, it’s good to know the steps you should take to treat leather proactively, which include choosing your leather conditioning product, preparing your leather, applying the conditioner, and buffing out the finish.

Choosing the right leather conditioning product is one of the most important steps to this process. Look for a leather conditioner that has been designed by a trusted company for use on full grain leather.

Clean your leather ahead of time with a soft brush, then test a patch of the product with the conditioner. Even top conditioners don’t work on every color of leather; testing an inconspicuous patch before you condition your entire product helps you make sure you won’t change the color of your leather in a way you don’t like.

After you’ve done a patch test and you like the results, you can massage your leather conditioner into the entire product. Remember to use a gentle cloth and an even, circular motion. After waiting for a few hours, buff the leather to bring back its natural shine. 

Now that you understand the terminology used in the leather industry, you’re well-positioned to evaluate advertisements, both in-stores and online. This puts you in a much better position to compare products from different companies and make an informed decision about the best products for your needs.

Popov Leather takes pride in using full-grain leather for each of our handcrafted products. This means that you can be sure that every item you buy from Popov Leather is beautiful, heirloom-quality, and designed to develop a rich patina over time.

Ready to find your perfect piece? Try our Pocket Profile Quiz to learn which Popov Leather wallet is right for you.