The Complete Guide to Wooden iPhone Cases
UPDATED FOR 2022
Here is a comprehensive review of every legitimate wooden iPhone case from all of our competitors in N. America.
December 2021
(Mobile, Consumer, Tech)
Chloe, Senior Contributor
WUDN Customer Service, and a massive Apple geek
Let's Start Here: Do NOT Buy Your iPhone Case Where You Bought Your Phone
No matter what kind of phone case you want, can we start with one simple rule? Do NOT buy your phone case where you bought your phone. Sure, they have cases, and they also know you are in a buying mood. And as a percentage of the cost of the phone and service you just paid for, that $60 case seems reasonable, right. Wrong. $60 for a phone case is not reasonable. Unless you absolutely demand your new iPhone has only actual Apple accessories and you are in the Apple store, then fine. Otherwise, you need to find your case online. You will pay half the price and get exactly what you want.
OK, now that’s out of the way,
Why Wood for Your iPhone Case?
Why not plastic, aluminum, or leather. Some of those are great options, but wood is different, dare I say, better than the alternatives. Wood is natural, elegant, clean and gorgeous.
Beauty
Wooden phone cases are beautiful. That’s it. Plastic is ugly, wood is beautiful. It’s really that simple. From African Mahogany to American Cherry to Black Walnut; wood is just gorgeous. Wood products will age and get better looking with time. Literally the exact opposite of plastic. Plastic, even metal, glass and leather products can only get scratched, dinged and damaged; and they will NOT look better for the wear. Some leather products will improve with age, but they are also so much more prone to permanent and unattractive damage. Wood is different: every fingerprint, coffee stain or light scratch adds character like a beautiful piece of antique furniture. The more you use it, the more the wood will look authentic and vintage.
Protection
Wood phone cases offer excellent protection. Most of the cases features in this guide are made from wood, over TPU case templates. What the hell is TPU? That sounds gross. TPU or Thermoplastic Urethane – is an eco-friendly hybrid material; a mixture between hard plastic and soft silicone. A very dense and smooth rubber, TPU iPhone cases are made to slide in and out of your pocket easily, without attracting lint. TPU cases are more durable, slightly elastic and much stronger than silicone. WUDN (and most of the competitors listed in this guide, use TPU case templates which are then covered by real wood. Aside from buying an Otterbox or other specifically “HEAVY DUTY” case, this combination of TPU and real wood offer fantastic protection from drops while staying slim and light. Most other materials just can’t offer this kind of protection without serious bulk.
Functionality
Wood phone cases don't sacrifice basic functionality. Wood is an incredibly versatile material. Many phone cases will ask you to sacrifice functionality, or worse, you discover later what your phone Can’t do. With wood on the other hand, it’s perfectly possible for it to be thin enough to allow for Qi-certified wireless charging, or to allow MagSafe magnetic connectivity to occur through the case. And because of the aforementioned rigidity, it can be ultra-thin and still be ultra-protective. Wooden phone cases don’t ask you to sacrifice any of your phone’s functionality.
Sustainability?
Wooden iPhone Cases are Sustainable. There is enough plastic in the world already. Wood is a natural material, and when harvested responsibly, it’s 100% sustainable. I can’t vouch for the other competitors in this article, but for WUDN, we use only FSC Certified Sustainable wood sources.
The Comprehensive Guide to Wooden iPhone Cases
Let’s proceed. Here is a comprehensive review of every legitimate wooden iPhone case from all of our competitors in N. America. Why would we list our competitors on our website? Fair question. The truth is, we are not going to trick you into buying our case just because you’re here. This stuff is all one fast Google search away. It’s on us to demonstrate our cases have the quality, beauty, real wood, and fair prices you are looking for.
WUDN
It’s our blog post, so we get first billing. Among the real competitors we could find, WUDN offers the widest array of different wood designs, and custom laser engraved options. All WUDN iPhone cases are manufactured in Hidden Springs, Idaho from sustainable materials.
Something Different
It’s our blog post, so we get first billing.
Among the real competitors we could find, WUDN offers the widest array of different wood designs, and custom laser engraved options. All WUDN iPhone cases are manufactured in Hidden Springs, Idaho from sustainable materials.
Since the beginning, WUDN has been focused on doing something different, not just for us, but for you. I couldn’t look at another cheap plastic phone case at the mall kiosk. First, they’re trash, but more important, there are literally millions of those cases in the world, maybe thousands just in your town.
Part of our mission is making you distinctive; helping you express a little style in a world where everything is mass produced. A custom wooden phone case for your iPhone is a small thing, but for the one piece of electronics that literally never leaves your side; a bit of wooden style can’t hurt.
Wooden Phone Cases for iPhone 12 & 13 Family
All WUDN Wooden iPhone Cases are now updated to include the iPhone 13 Family including the iPhone 13 Mini, iPhone 13, iPhone 13 Pro and iPhone 13 Pro Max - and the iPhone 12 Family including iPhone 12 Mini (5.4"), iPhone 12 (6.1"), iPhone 12 Pro (6.5"), iPhone 12 Pro Max (6.7"). And All iPhone 12 & 13 Cases include MagSafe Compatibility as an Option.
Who Offers Custom Laser Engraved Wooden iPhone Cases
Of course, WUDN offers a full Custom Section under our "Design Your Own" Banner. We will indicate below which of our competitors also offer custom laser engraving.
Production Line Custom Gallery
We snap a quick potato-quality picture of everything coming off the custom production line. Take a look.
View the Production GalleryPreview the Designer
We use Custom Design Software called CORJL. You can test it out live and see how you want your text and graphics laid out on the product.
Demo the Custom DesignerCarved
Based in Elkhart, Indiana, Carved used to offer an array of more traditional wooden phone cases. Now it seems they have really found their niche. Resin and wood cases they manufacture themselves in Indiana. They really are beautiful, no question. Expensive yes, but these guys have the market in premium resin and wood cases cornered.
Visit CarvedKerf
Based in Pennsylvania, Kerf is named after the width of the saw blade, or in this case, the laser beam (pretty clever). Kerf makes a wide variety of wooden phone cases including models for iPhone (updated through iPhone 13 models), Samsung Galaxy cases, and Google Pixel series. Along with the standard wood types (Walnut Cherry and Maple), they offer a great selection of unique and interesting wood species including: Teak, Koa, Zebrawood and Ebony.
Offers Custom Laser Engraving
Kasemakers
With a really nice selection of different woods, and some cool laser engraved designs, Kasemakers stands out as one of the favorites. Running a bit expensive at $49+, and trending toward the masculine, Kasemakers iPhone cases have a variety of manly designs including traditional American Flags, laser engraved Wolfs, Deer and Gladiator designs. One of the few companies that also offer wooden iPod cases.
Visit KasemakersKeyway
Keyway Designs was formed in early 2012 in Toronto, Ontario. One of the few companies we highlight that’s not based somewhere in the US. Keyway offers a variety of wooden iPhone cases, with some vary cool designs. Resin & wood cases, detailed multi-wood inlays, and even some color and leather combinations that will set you apart from the crowd.
Visit Keyway DesignsMOUS
Best known for their facebook videos of dropping and throwing iPhones from balconies and cranes, MOUS says their cases have unique tech to protect your iPhone better than the competitors.
On the expensive side, MOUS has a line of traditional cases, and a couple of models in Bamboo and Black Walnut.
Pad & Quill
Primarily purveyors of some pretty fantastic leather products to style up your tech life, Pad & Quill still has a few select wooden iPhone cases in their inventory.
Visit Pad & QuillTMBR
TMBR offers an array of wooden iPhone cases in outdoorsy designs. Including basic engraved wooden cases like the American Flag, and Mountain River, and some more complex multiple wood designs like the Teton Inlay and Mountain Peak. TMBR extends the wooden catalog into some super cool wooden watches, and wooden sunglasses.
Visit TMBRToastmade
Toastmade is interesting. They offer, not so much a wooden phone case, as a woo phone wrapper. Wood veneer covered in somewhat removeable adhesive that you apply to your phone like a skin. Super different from the competitors on this page. Likely not offering much in the way of protection, these wraps definitely deliver some wooden style.
Visit ToastmadeWoodcessories
Earning an honorable mention due to being outside of N. America, Woodcessories based in Germany is a fantastic supplier of wooden phone cases to the Euro zone. With a strong focus on the environmental benefits of sustainable materials this team seems to really back up the low carbon footprint pledge with some great products, including, of course, real wooden phone cases.
Visit WoodcessoriesMethodology (If You Care)
First, we make no money or commissions from any entries on this page. Our purpose is to educate and inform our customers about the beauty and uniqueness of real wooden iPhone cases. That's it.
We chose suppliers of wooden phone cases (although many sell other products as well) based in the US or Canada and with their own website. We excluded suppliers that sell only on Amazon. There is nothing wrong with Amazon per se, but many of those suppliers are overseas and aside from Amazon have no N. American presence.
Thanks for reading, and please, let me know what I missed. Maybe a great competitor we should include or a small maker with great wooden cases. No matter what, let me know in the comments below.
/FIN
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Designed & Built in Hidden Springs, Idaho, USA
Since the beginning, we have been focused on doing something different, not just for us, but for you. I couldn’t look at another cheap plastic phone case at the mall kiosk. First, they’re trash, but more important, there are literally millions of those cases in the world, maybe thousands just in your town.
Part of our mission is making you distinctive; helping you express a little style in a world where everything is mass produced. A custom wooden phone case for your iPhone or Samsung Galaxy is a small thing, but for the one piece of electronics that literally never leaves your side, a bit of wooden style can’t hurt. Of course, the same philosophy extends to the rest of our product line including beautiful wood wrapped bar accessories and more.