There are so many different types of leather available for any leather worker. Knowing where to buy leather is really important.
Knowing where to buy leather will make any leather working project much easier. The best places are often online. They offer large variety, fair prices, and fast shipping. Local stores can be excellent too. You can see the leather in person, and purchase the exact piece that you hold in your hand.
It’s easy to find some great leather, even leather sales, when you know where to shop. Let’s explore more.
Where to Buy Leather
Virtually every leather working or leather craft project will involve leather. The most common places are online shops. This is mainly because they can be located anywhere around the world, and often offer a much wider selection of materials than you might find at your local shop. This is, unless of course, you live right near the huge leather store 🙂 In which case, it’s probably more exciting to go in person.
There are also local leather shops that offer basic materials, and you can just stop in whenever they’re open. This can be beneficial as you can physically hold the leather. It helps get a feel for thickness, softness, and flexibility to determine is a particular cut will work for the project you have in mind. Also, you can usually buy the exact piece you are looking at. So, you’ll know if the surface and finish will be consistent, since you’d looking right at it.
Shopping online, you might not always get the same physical piece that is in the photo. You also can’t hold the material, so you’ll have to have a little more knowledge upfront about leather types and thicknesses. Knowing where to buy leather makes it all easier.
Where Do You Get Leather? – The Stores
Here is a list of some great places where you can buy leather. Options vary based on what type of leather you’re buying, looking to get it in-person or online, and how much you’re getting.
Where to Buy Leather – Recommended Options
For most common projects and leather working needs, here’s a quick reference list of retailers that will have good quality leather at fair prices.
| Shop Name | Location | Description | Website Link |
| District Leather Supply | USA (Georgia) | Leather retailer based in Peachtree Corners, Georgia. They offer a wide range of high quality leathers along with knowledge and expertise for questions when purchasing. | Website Link |
| Springfield Leather | USA (Missouri) | Leather retailer based in Springfield, Missouri. They offer a very ride range of hides, types, qualities, and finishes. | Website Link |
| Rocky Mountain Leather Supply | USA (Utah) | Leather and tools retailer based in Salt Lake City, Utah. They offer many high quality leather types and finishes. | Website Link |
Where to Buy Leather – Online Stores
When considering where to buy leather, online leather stores often offer the best variety and prices. With a very wide selection, great pieces can often be found for leather working projects.
| Shop Name | Location | Description | Website Link |
| American Leather Direct | USA (Kentucky) | Leather retailer based in Bowling Green, Kentucky. They offer vegetable tanned leathers and rawhide, bridle, harness, and specialty leathers. | Website Link |
| Barbarossa Leather | USA (Florida) | Leather retailer based in Royal Palm Beach, Florida. They offer a wide range of upholstery leather. | Website Link |
| Brettuns Village | USA (Maine) | Leather retailer based in Lewiston, Maine. They offer a variety of leather hides and scraps. | Website Link |
| Buy Leather Online | Italy | Leather retailer based in Ponte A Egole, Italy. They have a very wide selection of leathers, focusing on a range of Italian leather. | Website Link |
| Cuoio & Pellami eShop | Italy | Leather retailer based in Ponte A Egole, Italy. They have a very wide selection of leathers, including styles, and finishes. They focus on selling leather from Italy. | Website Link |
| District Leathers | USA (New York) | Leather retailer based in New York, New York. They offer various types and qualities of hides and leathers. | Website Link |
| District Leather Supply | USA (Georgia) | Leather retailer based in Peachtree Corners, Georgia. They offer a wide range of high quality leathers along with knowledge and expertise for questions when purchasing. | Website Link |
| Frog Jelly Leather | USA (Texas) | Leather retailer based in Arlington, Texas. They offer a variety of vegetable tanned leathers. | Website Link |
| Hornween Leather Company | USA (Illinois) | Leather retailer based in Chicago, Illinois. They offer a very wide range of quality leather hides, from various tanning processes, and intended for many end uses (leather goods, shoes, bags, etc.) | Website Link |
| Kentucky Leather Hides | USA (Kentucky) | Leather retailer based in Sonora, Kentucky. They offer leather hides, lace, strips and straps. | Website Link |
| Leather Hide Store | USA (North Carolina) | Leather retailer based in Hillsborough, North Carolina, offering a range of leather hides. | Website Link |
| Leather House | Denmark | Leather retailed located in Copenhagen, Denmark. They offer leather hides and furs. | Website Link |
| Leather Unlimited | USA (Wisconsin) | Leather retailer based in Belgium, Wisconsin. They offer some raw hides and leather lace. | Website Link |
| Maverick Leather Company | USA (Oregon) | Leather retailer based in Bend, Oregon, offering a range of leather hides and types. | Website Link |
| McPherson Leather Company | USA (Washington) | Leather retailer based in Seattle, Washington. They offer some nice skirting and harness leathers. | Website Link |
| Montana Leather Company | USA (Montana) | Leather retailer based in Billings, Montana, offering a range of leather hides. | Website Link |
| Rocky Mountain Leather Supply | USA (Utah) | Leather and tools retailer based in Salt Lake City, Utah. They offer many high quality leather types and finishes. | Website Link |
| Roden Leather Company | USA (Michigan) | Leather retailer based in Royal Oak, Michigan. They offer upholstery leathers. | Website Link |
| Sedgwick and Company | England | Leather retailer based in Walsall, England. They offer extremely high-quality traditional bridle leather. | Website Link |
| Shell Cordovan Toscana Italia | Italy | Leather retailer based in Toscana, Italy. They offer some incredibly-high quality vegetable tanned leathers and shell cordovan leather. | Website Link |
| Springfield Leather | USA (Missouri) | Leather retailer based in Springfield, Missouri. They offer a very ride range of hides, types, qualities, and finishes. | Website Link |
| The Leather Guy | USA (Minnesota) | Leather retailer based in St. Charles, Minnesota, offering a range of leather hides and lacing. | Website Link |
| Universal Leather | USA (North Carolina) | Leather retailer based in High Point, North Carolina. They offer a variety of leather colors, styles, and finishes. | Website Link |
| Weaver Leathercraft | USA (Ohio) | Leather and tool retailer based in Mount Hope, Ohio. They have a rage of leather hides, strips, kits, and related materials. | Website Link |
| Wickett & Craig | USA (Pennsylvania) | Leather retailer based in Curwensville, Pennsylvania. They offer a range of english bridle and skirting leather. | Website Link |
| Zack White Leather Company | USA (North Carolina) | Leather and tools retailer based in Ramseur, North Carolina. They offer a huge range of leathers across finishes, colors, and qualities. | Website Link |
Where to Buy Leather – Online Marketplaces
Several popular online marketplaces exist where individual sellers, including some businesses, will make leather available for sale. When considering where to buy leather, here are a few of the more common ones, they’ll usually have the most options available.
| Shop Name | Location | Description | Website Link |
| Amazon | Global | Online retailer that offers a wide range of consumer goods, including leather | Website Link |
| eBay | Global | Online marketplace of independent sellers for all kinds of goods. Some sellers offer leather pieces and leather hides for sale. | Website Link |
| Etsy | Global | Online marketplace of independent sellers for crafts and materials. Some sellers offer leather pieces and leather hides for sale. | Website Link |
Where to Buy Leather – Physical and Chain Stores
Some of the shops listed under Online Stores might also have physical stores in their specific locations. In general, there are some chain hobby and craft shops in the USA that has physical stores that might be near you. They’re a worthy consideration if you need something basic, and fast, and are debating where to buy leather. Selection will likely be more limited than in the Online Stores, though they are certainly options if you need something and are nearby.
| Shop Name | Location | Description | Website Link |
| AC Moore | USA | Art and craft retail chain with about 140 stores across the eastern USA. They offer smaller leather pieces, straps, and kits. | Website Link |
| Dick Blick | USA | Art materials store with about 65 stores across the USA. They offer leather sheets, remnants, trim, cord, lacing, and kits. | Website Link |
| Hobby Lobby | USA | Craft and hobby store chain with over 800 stores around the USA. They offer a variety of small leather pieces, strips, and kits. | Website Link |
| Joann | USA | Craft and fabric store chain with around 850 stores around the USA. They offer small leather pieces, strips, kits, and tools. | Website Link |
| Michaels | USA | Craft store chain with over 1,250 locations spread across the USA. They offer a variety of small leather pieces, strips, and kits. | Website Link |
| Tandy Leather | USA | Leather goods company with retail stores across the USA. They offer leather hides, sheets, trim, pieces, strips, kits, and tools. | Website Link |
Where to Buy Leather – Exotic Leathers
These sellers offer hides and skins from more rare animal types. A few include snake, alligator, camel, frog, and zebra.
| Shop Name | Location | Description | Website Link |
| Pelgio | Thailand | Leather retailer based in Chonburi, Thailand. They offer some very high-end exotic leathers. | Website Link |
| Roje Exotics American Leathers | USA (Missouri) | Leather retailer based in Branson, Missouri. They focus on selling a wide variety of exotic leathers. | Website Link |
| Sea Leather Wear | Canada | Leather retailer based in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. They offer genuine fish leather skins. | Website Link |
Where to Buy Leather – Wholesale
These dealers often sell to retailers, or in large volume to individuals, companies, or production facilities. They can be great places to buy large amounts of leather at lower cost when you’re considering where to buy leather in bulk or for large production runs of leather goods.
| Shop Name | Location | Description | Website Link |
| American Tanning & Leather | USA (Georgia) | Leather tanner and wholesaler based in Griffin, Georgia. They offer very large volume, high-quality exotic leathers. | Website Link |
| Buckskin Leather Company | Canada | Leather wholesaler based in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. They offer a huge selection of leathers from some of the top tanneries. They also sell to some of the largest retailers. | Website Link |
| Carrol Leather | USA (North Carolina) | Leather wholesaler based on Conniver, North Carolina. They offer a huge range of volume leather materials for production clients, retailers, and high-volume individual purchasers. | Website Link |
| Garrett Leather | USA (New York) | Leather wholesaler based in Buffalo, New York. They sell to large producers and transportation upholsters, as well as to other high-volume outlets. | Website Link |
| Hermann Oak Leather | USA (Missouri) | Leather tanner and wholesaler based in St. Louis, Missouri. They offer high quality harness, skirting, bridle, raw hide, and other leathers. Their wholesale purchase minimums are not very large (some just 5 sides or more). | Website Link |
| La Perla Azzurra | Italy | Leather tannery and wholesaler based in Santa Croce sull’Arno, Pisa, Italy. They offer leathers suitable for a wide variety of leather goods. | Website Link |
| Tanneries Haas | France | Leather tannery and wholesaler based in Eichhoffen, France. They offer vegetable tanned, calf, and specialty leathers. | Website Link |
| Waterhouse Leather | USA (Massachusetts) | Leather wholesaler based in Hyannis, Massachusetts. They offer a wide range of leather hides in various colors and finishes. | Website Link |
| Weinheimer Leder | Germany | Leather tanner and wholesaler based in Weinheim, Germany. They offer some very high-quality shoe, handbag, and leather goods leather. | Website Link |
Common Leather Buying Questions
Here are some insights into some common questions folks have when looking to buy leather.
Where to Find Leather Deals
Leather deals are periodically available at most any leather retailer. Some opportunities include overstock, scraps, and blemished pieces. Sometimes they will sell smaller pieces by weight (pound). Other times they might have leathers in specific colors or finishes they are looking to sell at lower prices.
A good approach is to know what you’re looking for, then keep an eye on their sale sections. Also, fi you enjoy the random surprise, maybe periodically check the sale sections and see if anything catches your eye. Potentially a leather you might have never considered might be cheap enough to give it a try. It can expand the types of materials you work with, and can be fun!
What is the best leather?
The best leather is generally an opinion, based on preferences and needs. For example, a great leather for evening wear gloves would not make the best leather for a heavy-duty belt. That said, based on it’s performance qualities and durability, top grain, vegetable tanned leather is often considered a best leather.
The top grain retains the strength of the outer skin of the hide, while the thickness adds durability. It develops a visually pleasing patina with use, and generally gets better with time.
To learn more about all popular types of leather, click here for a guide that I wrote.
Where to buy leather for crafts?
Leather for crafts can be purchased at local craft shops, or via online leather retailers. Choice will initially depend on the use for the leather. Basic crafts made for fun might benefit from lower cost leathers if price is a consideration. Finer leather pieces that will be used daily might benefit from higher-quality leather that will last a long time.
Local chain craft stores such as Michaels, Joann, Hobby Lobby, and Tandy leather usually have small natural leather pieces, and faux leathers (vinyl). If you’re looking for more natural leather options, online stores such as Springfield Leather and District Leather Supply have a good variety of leathers available.
Where to buy leather near me?
The best best for finding leather near where you live is to look it up online. Local shops will often be listed in search results, and you’ll be able to see their distance and open hours. You can also call ahead to see what they have available and if it will be what you need.
You also might live near tanneries, or local leather processors that could have hides available to purchase. Also, other leather worker friends might live nearby and be open to selling or trading leather.
How Leather is Shipped
Large leathers pieces are usually shipped rolled in tubes or boxes. This is efficient and easy. Smaller pieces or scraps are often packed securely in boxes. The key is that the hides surface arrives safely after being in transit. Scratched surfaces might make some leathers unusable for their intended purpose, so proper packing is a must.
Usually, limiting the ability for the leather to shift helps prevent scratching and abrasion to the surfaces. Also, covering the surfaces with a protective material or paper also helps limit the potential for scratching or rubbing to occur. All the time, though, leather packed well ships and arrives securely and in great shape.
Leather Buying Tips
Order Samples
Some shops will let you order samples, so you can see a little piece before buying a larger one. This is important as you can confirm the look, feel, thickness, color, and surface texture before committing to bigger amounts. If you’re planning to do a large, expensive, or production-level project, it is recommended to order samples if possible.
Get a Leather Swatch Ring
It can be a huge help to physically hold and feel the different thicknesses and weights of leather. A really handy thing to have is a leather swatch ring. A swatch ring is a group of small leather swatches (around 3” x 2”), attached by a metal ring. Each is a different thickness, and is marked with the leather thickness and weight.
Generally available at most leather retailers, these are a relatively inexpensive and great way to really get a feel for the different weights. One can feel, bend, and see which leather thickness might work best for their next project.
Working with leather can be an incredible experience. Knowing where to buy leather is a first step to creating some really great leather work.
Related Questions
Where can I buy leather strips?
Leather strips can often be purchased from retailers that sell leather hides and pieces. A few popular locations include Springfield Leather (click here to visit their site), Tandy (click here to visit their site), and Zack White (click here to visit their site).
What is the cheapest leather?
The cheapest leather is often remnant or scrap vegetable tanned leather. They can sometimes be found for a few dollars. They are also real leather than can be tooled and worked into a finished piece. Faux and vinyl leathers are far less expensive, though are just plastic, and not real leather.
Other Resources:
- Leather Buying Guide – How to Find What You Want
- Leather Strips – Options, Thicknesses, and How To Use Them
- A Handy Guide to Leather Thickness & Weight – With a Chart
- Leather Thickness Gauge and Measuring Tools – Measuring Up
- Leather Material – Options and Choices for Great Projects
- Leather Patina – How It’s Formed and Gets Better with Time
- Grades Of Leather – A Crafter’s Guide to Quality and Uses
- Leather Kits – Choosing the Right One for Your Project
- The 25 Impressive Steps in How to Make Leather
- Leather Hides – Types and Options for Quality Projects