Amazing how much the rage is to White Oak, specifically prefinished. It was a tough nut to find 15 years ago in a solid 3/4 inch. It is today as well except for... some stuff that comes on boats. Some may say white oak, but it could be a mix. Bigger manufacturers unless it's a natural White Oak.

Tiniest? Do you mean greige?

Are you looking for engineered flooring? I like Hallmark Alta Vista line.

Thanks! Yes, Im seeing lots of engineered white oak, but not too much solid. Right now we are considering mercier white oak in their element series. THe color just has a bit or gray in the stain which I think will look good with my white cabinets. But I haven't seen many positive reviews about Mercier!

Solid with a satin or semi gloss finish. Love matte finish, but I think it would be a pain to keep clean.

I've never had anything but solid oak (all white oak except one kitchen in an old house - we found it under 3 layers of tiles, plywood and linoleum!), and all have been site-finished. I wouldn't have any other kind. It's thicker and one can get the exact color one wants.

Since oak floors last for centuries, it's far better to use a standard mid-tone stain than a trendy one. Grey and stainless may not be popular in 40 years - who knows! If the floors are traditional, they will go with everything. BTW - my own kitchen is gray and I have stainless appliances (except my vintage stove, which is white), and the warmth of the mid-range stain keeps it from being a very cold, sterile room.

Here's a source for solid unfinished. Including rift cut and wider widths. 6" rift/quartersawn character cut is 5.15/sqft in up to 10' lengths.

Elaine K , maybe something like this?

If Mirage is double the budget you must be looking for something in the $4-6 square foot range? Then some Mirage dealers go overboard and mark the stuff up too high.

The quotes we are getting for mirage are around $13 a square foot!! Not sure if it is the product we are looking at or what, but $13 for just the product without installation is HIGH. Especially when we need 2000-2500 square feet....

I agree that $13 per square is expensive but I don’t know if that is the going rate for your specific floor choice. You can only know by calling around. The quotes I got were pretty consistent in terms of being approximately $8 per square foot so I knew that was the going rate.

I don’t think it is necessary to spend $13 per square foot for nice looking wood that is high enough quality for most people. If that’s too high for your budget, then find something else that you like almost as much within budget.
My floors can be refinished at least once and maybe twice but I don’t foresee refinishing because of the extreme hassle and I certainly don’t care if someone fifty years from now can refinish them.

We have American made to order plank flooring under $9 per SQ FT with a name brand finish.

:-D

Northeast Alabama here. I had 2.25” 3/4 thick white oak in natural satin site finished, all in was 5.60 sq ft.