Teak Grading Explained: What Grade A, B and C Mean for Hotel and Villa Furniture

Teak grading tells you which part of the log a piece of furniture was cut from. That one detail decides how long it lasts in sun and rain. Grade A is mature heartwood, dense and full of natural oil. Grade B is younger or outer heartwood with less oil. Grade C is sapwood, and it does not belong on a pool deck.

For a hotel or villa buying forty sun loungers at once, the grade matters more than the design. A weak grade looks fine on delivery day. The difference shows after a couple of rainy seasons, when the cheaper pieces crack at the joints and need replacing while good teak is still in service.

What Is Teak Grading?

A teak log has two zones. In the centre sits the heartwood, the mature core where the tree builds up oils and minerals over decades. Around it runs a band of sapwood, pale and soft, which still carried water while the tree was alive. Only heartwood gives teak its reputation. Sapwood has almost none of the oil, so it rots and attracts insects much like an ordinary softwood.

Grades describe how much of each zone ends up in your furniture. There is no international standard behind the letters, though. A, B and C are a trade convention, and two suppliers can mean slightly different things by "Grade A". That is why the description on a quote matters more than the letter.

Grade A, B and C Side by Side

• Grade A: Heartwood from the centre of a mature log. Even golden-brown colour and noticeably heavy in the hand. This is the grade for anything that lives fully outdoors.

• Grade B: Outer heartwood, or heartwood from younger trees. Lighter in colour and less oily than Grade A. It works for covered and indoor pieces and costs less than Grade A.

• Grade C: Sapwood from the outer ring of the log. Pale and soft. It depends on coatings to survive and wears quickly under heavy daily use, even indoors.

Why Plantation Age Matters in Indonesia

Almost all teak used for furniture today grows on plantations, and Indonesia has a lot of them. Some are managed on long rotations, so trees reach real maturity before they are felled. Others, often small community plantations, harvest trees in under fifteen years to keep up with demand.

Young trees carry a much larger share of sapwood and juvenile wood. A log like that simply cannot produce much Grade A timber. So when two chairs are both sold as "solid teak" but one costs half as much, plantation age is often the explanation. Neither seller is necessarily lying. They are selling different wood.

Recycled teak is a separate case. It comes from old buildings and was usually cut from trees that grew for a long time, so a good share of it is mature heartwood. Nail holes and colour changes come with it. For indoor dining tables and consoles that character is often the point.

How to Check Teak Grading Before You Order

You cannot see the grade in a photo. Ask for samples or finished pieces before a large order, and work through these points with your supplier:

• Ask for the grade in writing on the quote, per item. One line saying "teak" for the whole order tells you nothing.

• Look at edges and end grain. Pale yellowish bands along the edge of a board are sapwood.

• Check the colour inside one plank. Grade A is fairly even. A strong light and dark patchwork within a single board points to mixed or lower grade wood.

• Compare weight. Mature heartwood is heavier, and two chairs of the same design can differ noticeably in weight.

• Turn the piece over. Undersides and inner rails are where sapwood gets used when nobody is expected to look.

• Ask how the wood was dried. Furniture headed for air-conditioned rooms needs properly kiln-dried timber, otherwise it keeps drying after delivery and can crack.

Which Grade Does Each Part of a Hotel or Villa Need?

Exposure decides the grade, not the price list. Pool decks and gardens get full sun and monsoon rain, so use Grade A only. Covered terraces and restaurant verandas are easier on the wood: Grade A is still the safer choice, while good Grade B can hold up if it is oiled or sealed on a regular schedule.

Indoors the picture changes. Guest rooms and lobbies do well with Grade B or recycled teak, and Grade A becomes a question of look and lifespan rather than necessity. Grade C has no place in a hotel at all, inside or out. Furniture there gets used every day by people who do not treat it gently.

If you are still choosing between materials, our comparison of teak vs. rattan for tropical climates explains where each one works best. Our list of common mistakes when furnishing a villa in Lombok covers the rest of the buying process.

Planning Furniture for a Project in Lombok or Sumbawa?

Send us your furniture list through our Hotels & Villas page and ask which teak grade each piece is made from. You can also browse the catalogue first and mark the pieces you have in mind.