How Much Does Plywood Cost?

When it comes to wooden building materials besides raw wood (solid timber), one of the most popular options to go with is plywood. Plywood is extremely strong, has many beneficial qualities, and is used for an extremely wide array of purposes. That being said, it is of course not free.

So how much does plywood actually cost? While the answer here can be very diverse, it all depends on a variety of factors, so let’s take a look at the different factors that can affect plywood cost.

How Much Does Plywood Cost on Average?

Ok, so the price range here is quite wide, and it is all because of factors that we will discuss further in down in this article. On average, though, you can expect a 4 x 8 feet sheet of plywood to cost you anywhere from $10 to $50, depending on the type, grade, thickness, and more. That said, for special kinds, you may spend $75 or more.

Sample Plywood Prices

To provide you with a rough idea of what you are getting into in terms of plywood costs, let’s provide you with a few examples. Prices are rough estimates based on data from various sources.

What Factors Affect Plywood Cost?

As you’re about to find out, not all plywood is the same, and in fact, there are many different types, grades, sizes, and more. There are many different factors that affect how much plywood will end up costing you, so let’s take a look at the main ones right now.

#1: Size of the Plywood Sheet

One of the most basic factors that is going to affect the cost of the plywood you purchase is the size of the sheet that you want to get. Quite obviously, the larger the sheet plywood is, the more it is going to cost. A 4 x 8 feet sheet of plywood is going to cost twice as much as a sheet that is 2 x 4 feet, roughly. The more material you purchase, the more it is going to cost. This is the exact same as anything else. A two-liter bottle of soda costs more than a one-liter bottle.

#2: Thickness

Yes, the thickness of the plywood in question will make a difference too. You can find plywood sheets as thin as 11/32-inch, and as thick as 1/2-inch, and in some cases, even thicker. The thicker the plywood is, the more material there is, and yes, this automatically causes the price to increase.

Moreover, the thicker the plywood is, the stronger it is, and generally speaking, this means that thicker plywood is higher in quality than thinner plywood. The higher quality something is, the more it is going to cost.

#3: Grade

One of the biggest factors that will affect the price of your plywood is the grade of the plywood in question. Yes, there are many different grades of plywood out there, or in other words, they differ in terms of quality. One of the biggest differences between various plywood grades is how consistent they are in terms of their density.

Lower grades of plywood will have many holes and knots in them which make them structurally unsound and aesthetically unappealing. The higher grades of plywood are much more consistent in terms of density or in other words they have no knots and holes in them, thus making them more structurally sound and aesthetically appealing. Grades of plywood, ranging from lowest to highest, include D, C, B, and A, with A-grade plywood being the best and most expensive.

A-grade plywood has the fewest (or no) knots and holes, thus making it the strongest kind and therefore the best for structural applications, not to mention that it also looks the nicest and is the smoothest, so it can be used for visible applications that are meant to be seen, plus it can also be easily painted.

#4: Plywood Type

The next thing that is going to affect the cost of plywood is the type of plywood. A distinction that needs to be made here is between hardwood and softwood plywood. Of course, hardwood is much higher in quality, as it is much denser, harder, stronger, and more water-resistant. Simply put, hardwood plywood is going to cost you much more than softwood plywood.

With that being said, there are many other types of plywood out there, around 20 kinds in fact, and all of them are made out of either hardwood or softwood. For instance, the most expensive and durable kind of plywood out there is aircraft plywood. If you are going for waterproofing, such as for a dock or boat, then another high-quality type of plywood to consider is marine plywood.

Quite honestly, there are far too many types of plywood for us to list them off in terms of their qualities and costs, but rest assured that the exact type of plywood you get can have a huge impact on the final cost, so before choosing any one kind of plywood, we recommend doing a bit of additional research on this front.

#5: Supplier and Purchase Quantity

With all of the above points kept in mind, the reality here is that the cost of plywood can differ quite greatly for no other reason than the specific retailer you buy it from. For instance, a high-end home improvement store located in an affluent area is going to charge you way more than if you buy it directly from a lumber mill or plywood factory out in the countryside.

What we mean to say here is that you should not settle on the first place you find plywood for sale. Do some shopping around to see who has the best prices and see if you can get a discount for bulk orders too. Yes, buying in large quantities is usually always cheaper than buying just a little bit.

#6: Market Conditions

There are also other factors that affect plywood costs, but these really have nothing to do with the plywood itself, per se. What we are talking about here, for one, are market conditions. The laws of supply and demand, as well as how much competition there is, will always affect prices. Moreover, if there has been extreme weather that has affected wood harvesting and tree growth rates, these will also have impact on the price.

Summary

The bottom line is that plywood can vary greatly in terms of cost, and it has to do with all of those factors that we discussed today. Just make sure to get the right kind of plywood for your specific application, because it will affect the final result.