It’s not always that easy to identify the difference between a genuine leather product and a synthetic leather product. Ordinary people like us will find it hard to distinguish whether a product is made of real leather or not. What is real leather and what is synthetic leather anyway?

Real leather is the leather made of hides (skins of animals). Depending on what type of product to make, the leather could be from cow hides, ox hides, crocodile hides, ostrich feet hides, etc.

Synthetic leather is artificial (man-made) leather. Synthetic leather looks like real leather. It has a leather-like surface and is dyed and treated to make it look and feel like real leather. Synthetic leather is often used as a substitute for real leather because it is less expensive and does not require killing animal to get the hides. What are the ways to identify the difference between them anyway?

Price: Genuine leather is usually more expensive than synthetic leather. The reason is that genuine leather has to go through many processes before reaching the final product. That’s why genuine leather is more expensive.

Seeing: Genuine leather surface has a clearer pores, pattern. Some always have the hair holes or fire branch (the hide was fired so it doesn’t smell rotten and last longer).

Burning/smelling: Genuine leather has the smell of leather, synthetic leather has a smell of plastic. If you tear a bit of the product and burn it, you will know. Genuine leather smells like burning hair, because it’s made of living things, synthetic leather will smell like burning plastic.

Brand: the brand name of the product might tell you whether it’s genuine leather or synthetic leather. Try to use a search engine to know more about the product brand name.

The points above are just a guide to help you distinguishing the difference between genuine leather product and synthetic leather product. If you say leather product come in Asian countries like China is mostly artificial leather, you might be wrong. This means the products are made of genuine leather and still cheap.

In conclusion, if you really like some product, just buy it. Don’t let the materials hesitate your purchasing decision. But if you really look for genuine leather then my points above will be very helpful.