The Difference Between Pu Leather And Genuine Leather

‌The main differences between PU leather and genuine leather are the source of materials, texture, breathability, wear resistance, price and maintenance methods‌.

‌Material source‌:

PU leather is the abbreviation of polyurethane, which is a man-made material‌.
Genuine leather comes from animal skin, such as cowhide, pig skin, etc., usually including top layer and second layer of leather‌.

‌Texture‌:

PU leather has a smooth and flat surface, a hard texture and lacks elasticity‌.
Genuine leather has natural texture and elasticity and feels soft‌.

‌Breathability‌:

Genuine leather has good breathability because it has pores on its surface‌.
PU leather is relatively less breathable‌.

‌Wear resistance‌:

Genuine leather has better wear resistance than PU leather, but genuine leather is easy to wear and difficult to repair‌.
PU leather has poor wear resistance, but it can be restored to its original state through refurbishment‌.

‌Price‌:

Genuine leather is usually more expensive than PU leather because the raw material cost of genuine leather is higher‌.

‌Maintenance‌:

Genuine leather needs regular maintenance to maintain its excellent performance and appearance‌.

The maintenance of PU leather is relatively simple‌.

In addition, there are other methods to distinguish PU leather from genuine leather, such as odor identification (genuine leather has the natural smell of leather, while PU leather has a distinct plastic smell) and burning test (genuine leather has the smell of burning hair, the flame is yellow, and the burnt yellow residue of natural leather is left after burning; while PU leather has no smell of burning hair, the flame is green, and the hard lumps of plastic are left after burning).

In summary, there are significant differences between PU leather and genuine leather in many aspects, and consumers should weigh them according to their personal needs and budget when choosing.