Varnish Vs Stain: Which Is Better?

One of the tried and tested ways to ensure the longevity of any wooden item in your home is to treat it with a protective coating. Often, this involves applying paint, varnishing, or staining and then applying a finish.

Knowing how to compare varnish vs stain can help determine what is best for your home or woodworking project.

In any case, varnishing may be better since it creates a protective barrier on the wood surface. Staining only enhances the color without offering protection against wear and tear or weather elements.

Which is Better? Varnish or Stain?

When deciding between vanish vs stain, you need to consider both their pros and cons. Their side-by-side comparison will also be of great use. Look at their ease of application, drying time, rot prevention ability, maintenance, natural appearance on wood, and finally their outdoor use and UV protection before making a decision.

What is a Varnish

Varnish is typically a clear, transparent wood finish that forms a hard top coat on the wood surface. It is pretty durable and comes in various levels of gloss. 

Varnishes are essentially like paint, except they do not have the pigment. Most varnishes are comprised of polyurethane resins and corresponding solvents.

There are also water-based varnishes that have caught on mainly due to their eco-friendliness.

Characteristic Features of Varnish

• Cures into a hard finish
• Protects the wood surface from physical damage by forming a scratch-resistant film on the wood surface. 
• Enhances the aesthetics of wood, keeping it looking great for ages. 
• The hard coating also protects the wood from the effect of elements like moisture. Occasional spills and household stains from dust, dirt, and grime simply will not reach inside a varnished wood and risk damaging it. 

What is a Wood Stain

Wood stains, on the other hand, are a group of pigmented liquid substances used to change the color of the wood. A wood stain is primarily designed to give wood a darker tint and bring out the natural wood grain.  

But, not all types of wood are best for staining. Here’s a list of Woods that Stain Well.

Characteristic Features of Stains

• Penetrate the wood grain and seal the pores, giving the wood an enhanced, natural feel. 
• Can give a certain level of protection based on its ingredients. For instance, exterior wood stains offer protection from the harmful ultraviolet sun rays. 
• Block the pores existing naturally on wood, partially sealing it from moisture that could damage it. Prevent molds and mildew from forming on wood
• Maintain the natural aesthetics of wooden furniture for a long time.

Read More: Gel Stain Vs Stain

Wood Varnish Pros and Cons 

You could probably spend a lifetime trying to figure out whether or not to varnish your woodworking projects. But, with a little bit of knowledge, you can make an informed decision about whether this finishing step is right for you.

Read on to learn the pros and cons of wood varnish, so that you can decide if it’s the right choice for your next project.

PROS

• Creates a protective, scratch-resistant film on the wood surfaces
• Preserves the natural look of wood
• Easy to apply 
• Brushstrokes are not easily visible

CON

• Can be time-consuming to apply
• Require several hours between coats 

Best Wood Varnish

Wood Stain Pros and Cons 

Staining your woodworking projects has many benefits, but there are also some drawbacks to consider before making your decision. So, what are the pros and cons of wood stain? Let’s take a look!

PROS

• Stain can enhance the color of wooden furniture and make it more appealing 
• Wood stain preserves the beauty of the wood grain 
• It is easy to apply 
• Some wood stains dry quickly 

CON

• Stained wood will only last a few years before requiring a fresh coat 
• Some woods do not work well with stains 

Best Wood Stain

Wood Stain Vs Varnish Side by Side

If you wonder whether to go with a varnish or opt instead for a water-based or oil-based stain, this part here is for you. This section looks at how varnishes and stains compare in terms of performance and features.

Read along to see where these two wood surface treatments differ and what may suit you better. 

1. Wood Varnish vs Stain – Application

Varnish needs to go on well-prepared wood surfaces. For example, if you apply it on wood surfaces with blemishes, it will highlight them.  

Water-based stains will require more surface preparation to apply. Since the water in the water-based stain tends to raise the wood grain and affect the texture, you need to wet the wood surface with water several hours ahead of time. 

It is recommended that you clean the wood several hours beforehand or a day earlier and leave it wet overnight. Then, right before applying the stain, use sandpaper to smoothen it and get rid of any surface roughness.

Verdict: It is a tie

Both varnish and stain are easy to apply on wet and dry edges, albeit with a few complexities shared between the two.

2. Varnish wood color vs Stain – Preserving the Natural Appearance of Wood

Most varnishes are transparent resins that preserve the natural wood appearance as it is, although with a beautiful hard gloss. They come in three different levels of oil based varnish which are gloss, semi-gloss and Satin finishes.

• These characteristics result from the type of resin or oil in the varnish and the resin ratio to oil in it. 
• Whether the varnish consists of Tung oil, boiled linseed oil, soybean oil, safflower oil, or walnut oil, the main ingredient is usually a synthetic or polyurethane resin.
• Consequently, the layer dries into a transparent hard finish that preserves the natural appearance of wood.  
• Some varnishes also contain color to give the wood an added effect—an aspect that wood stain is known for. 

Stains come in all kinds of shades and are also water-based, oil-based, and more.

• While the tints in stains usually alter the color of wood, they do not form a coat on the wood surface, so they only enhance the natural beauty of wood. 
• Stains will penetrate the wood and bring out its grain pattern. As a result, the appearance will be more dramatic than that of bare wood.
• Notice that you can choose to go with little to no tint on your wood stain, in which case it will be near as clear as a standard varnish.

Verdict: It is a tie

Both varnish and stain can come in tinted and clear forms, each that enhances the beauty and preserves the natural appearance of wood surfaces.

3. Stain or varnish – Outdoor Use and UV protection 

Stains have added UV protection agent added to make them suitable for the hostile outdoor environment.

Unlike paint that offers UV protection in most of its varieties, the wood stain has to be designed for outdoor use to withstand the elements. For instance, a heavily tinted stain will provide more UV protection than a clear one. 

Still, continued exposure will affect the stain if it is not primarily meant for the outside environment. 

Unlike wiping stains, interior wood stains penetrate the wood grain and do not sit on the surface. Therefore, they require a clear-colored top coat such as polyurethane covering them to offer the required protection to the wood. 

You can read the battle of stains where we compare Penetrating Stain vs Wiping Stain.

Three types of varnishes are specifically designed to offer protection against the sun’s ultraviolet rays. These are:

• Acrylic varnish
• Yacht varnish
• Exterior varnish

Varnishes are equally available for interior and exterior use. However, just like stains, using interior varnish outdoors will lead to quicker degradation compared to when using acrylic varnish.

There are marine and exterior varnishes designed for use outdoors and can withstand the harsh elements outdoors. Also known as yacht varnish.

The exterior varnish will offer excellent protection from UV light and moisture. However, ensure you recoat the furniture, deck, or fence every few years to maintain the protection. 

Even exterior-grade coating eventually wears out when left outside since the elements are bound to cause accelerated deterioration.

Verdict: It is a tie

Both outdoor varnish and wood stain require reapplying every few years to maintain their protection.

Important Read: Does Wood Stain Stay on Concrete?

3. Varnish vs Stain – Maintenance

The glossy appearance characteristic of varnished wood contributes to its easy maintenance in the following ways:

• Attracts dirt less
• Provides excellent protection against water vapor, heat, and chemicals that might spill on the wood
• Creates a hard sheen that makes them much easier to clean

Usually, wood has tiny pores on its surface where dust, dirt, and filth can hide and form stubborn stains over time.

Such can provide a foothold for molds and mildew that cause unsightly discolorations that are extremely difficult to clean.

Applying varnish to bare wood covers the openings and seals off the wood from dirt and household stains. This further increases the ease of maintaining such woods.

Stains require more effort to maintain

• Standard wood stains do not create such protective glossy layers. A high-quality stain will penetrate the wood grain and prevent moisture from soaking into the wood to risk rotting it, but that is as far as the protection goes.
• For regular maintenance, you must watch out for chemical spills, heat, and water vapor that can still damage a stained wood. Wood stains are just not resistant to these elements. This explains why you must still add a clear coat over a layer of stain to minimize maintenance of such furniture or timber surfaces.

Verdict: Varnish wins

Varnish provides better protection and ensures minimal maintenance is necessary.

4. Varnish or Stain – Rot prevention 

The three common treatments available for rotting wood are :

• Paint
• Stain
• Varnish

Both varnish and wood stain will protect your outdoor furniture and prevent rotting without altering the wood’s natural appearance. This is one area where these two forms of wood treatment are a close match.

Except for heavily tinted options, exterior wood stains are pretty much like varnish. They form a protective film on the wood surface that seals the pores on the wood’s surface and prevents rot in the same way as a varnish.

Verdict: It is a tie

5. Varnish vs Stain – Drying time 

The average drying time for natural varnish is approximately 24 hours. However, polyurethane resin and water-based varnishes tend to dry faster, so long as the conditions are optimal.

Wood stain dries completely in about 24 to 48 hours. This is especially important if you intend to apply a polyurethane resin finish on top of the stain layer. 

Some woodworkers allow up to 72 hours of drying time for wood stain before applying the final protective finish for their projects. 

If you’re going to apply polyurethane over stained wood – knowing how long to let stain dry before poly is crucial.

Verdict: It is a tie  

Drying times between varnishes and stains are close.

How to Apply Varnish

You will need the following tool and/or materials to use for varnish application.

• Sandpaper
• Filler
• Natural bristle brush or Roller
• Varnish (Read our article on Best spar varnish for exterior door.)

Step 1: Sand the surface

Start by light sanding the surface you wish to coat with a medium- to coarse-grit sander to even it out, to apply a polyurethane varnish.

Step 2: Fill the cracks

You may want to fill any crevices and all the cracks on the wood before varnishing. This stage of application is however not entirely essential.

Step 3: Apply the varnish

Proceed and apply the polyurethane varnish with a lint-free cloth, painter’s brush, or roller. Here, the first coat of this polyurethane varnish will serve as a primer.

Interesting read: Varnish vs polyurethane.

Step 4: Let dry

Allow the first coat of varnish to dry completely for about 10 hours before applying the second film on the surface.

Step 5: Apply the final coat

Add a second varnish coat once the first coat is completely dry. Being the second coat, it becomes the finish. However, it is essential to do a quick once-over on the single-coat varnished wood before applying the final layer.

How to Apply Stain

Similar to varnish application, the tools and materials you will need are the same.

Step 1: Surface preparation

Prepare the surface by sanding with medium grit sandpaper just like for Varnish finish. You will also fill any imperfections with a suitable filler.

Step 2: Apply stain

Use a lint-free cloth to apply stains on wood. Stain offers more options for application, which may make it easier to apply because you choose the tool you are most comfortable with.

You can use a rag, synthetic brush, roller, paint pad, or spray gun to apply a water-based stain, oil-based, and any other wood stain. 

Step 3: Wipe off any excess stain

Wipe off every ounce of the excess stain before it dries. As you may notice, this is not a requirement with water-based or oil-based varnishes.

FAQS

Can I use interior stain outdoors?

No, attempting to use a paint or stain designed for indoor use outdoors will damage and fade the wooden surfaces because there will be little to no protection against the sun’s ultraviolet rays. For the outdoors, there are transparent stains designed to act as a coating covering the wood’s surface – just like clear varnish.

Do I have to sand between coats of stain?

Yes, you need to sand the wood surface between stain coats. But ensure the first layer has completely dried, and you use a 0000 steel wool or fine-grit sandpaper to rub it down to a smooth surface.

What’s the difference between stain and varnish?

The difference is that Stain penetrates into the wood, while varnish simply sits on top of the surface. Stains are typically used to change the color of wood, while varnishes are designed to protect the wood from damage. Stains can be applied to both bare and finished wood, but they will not protect the wood from scratches or fading. Varnishes, on the other hand, should only be applied to finished wood as they will not adhere properly to bare wood.

Is varnish the same as stain

No, although they are often used interchangeably, there is a big difference between stain and varnish. Stain is typically used to color wood, while varnish is transparent. This means that stains can be used to create a range of different looks, from a natural wood finish to a more colorful and vibrant design.

Related: Wood stain vs paint

Wood Stain vs Varnish Verdict?

In a nutshell, varnish and wood stain work differently, and this forms the basis of determining what will suit your project better. 

Use varnish when:

• You want to preserve the furniture or wood’s appearance and color.
• You want to stick to one varnish finish instead of using multiple products to treat your wood.

Use wood stain when:

• You wish to color your wood in a particular way without losing the natural grain the way paint does.
• You want the wood grain on your furniture to pop. 

We hope that you enjoyed this guide. Now read our article on poly vs shellac for more information on polyurethane. We will be delighted to hear your thoughts in the comments section.