Which Sandpaper Brand Wins?
We compared 11 sandpaper options head to head. 3M Cubitron came out on top. See the measured results, the runner-up, the budget pick, and a link to the full test video. Shoppers cross-shopping sandpaper grit chart, aluminum oxide sandpaper, sand paper and wet sandpaper land here for the head to head that settles it.
3M Cubitron
Price shown in test: $42 for 50 sheets, 84 cents each, second most expensive brand tested
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Diablo SandNet
Price shown in test: $14.97 for 10 sheets, $1.50 each, the most expensive brand tested, over 10 times the cost of the cheapest brand
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Diablo standard sanding disc
Price shown in test: $14.97 for 10 sheets, $1.50 each, the most expensive brand tested, over 10 times the cost of the cheapest brand
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The measured results
Every number below is read straight from the test. Scroll sideways to see all measurements. Products are listed in the order they finished.
| Product | Wood Removal 5min | Wood Removal 10min | Wood Removal 15min | Wood Removal 25min Total | Paint Removal 5min | Plastic Removal 5min | Post Metal Wood Removal | Overall Average Finish |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 13M Cubitron$42 for 50 sheets, 84 cents each, second most expensive brand tested | 12 g, tied for the best of all brands | 12 g, no drop off | 11 g | 53 g total, the best of all brands | 20 g, the best of all brands on painted soft material with no visible clogging | 8 g with a moderate amount of clogging | 11 g after 2 minutes of sanding metal, seemed nearly unfazed, by far the best durability result | 1.5, the best of all brands across all four test categories |
| 2Diablo SandNet$14.97 for 10 sheets, $1.50 each, the most expensive brand tested, over 10 times the cost of the cheapest brand | 12 g, tied for the best | 11 g | 10 g, still very impressive | 51 g total, second best, still removing 9 g even after 25 minutes | 21 g, the best of all brands on painted soft material | 8 g | 8 g after 2 minutes of sanding metal, second best durability result | 1.75, second best of all brands |
| 3Diablo standard sanding disc$17.90 for 50 pieces, 36 cents each | 11 g, took the lead from Makita at that point | 9 g | 7 g | 40 g total, tied for third with Tiger Shark and Norton | 18 g, no visible signs of clogging, best of the standard non-SandNet, non-Cubitron brands | 10 g, the best of all brands on plexiglass, only minor clogging in a couple of small areas | 6 g after 2 minutes of sanding metal, tied for third with Mirka | 2.5, best value of all brands given its low price |
| 4Tiger Shark$19.59 for 50 pieces, 39 cents each | 10 g | 8 g | 8 g | 40 g total, tied for third with Diablo and Norton | 14 g, only a small amount of paint sticking to the sandpaper | not tested | 5 g after 2 minutes of sanding metal, pretty much used up | not tested |
| 5Mirka$21.96 for 50 pieces, 44 cents each | 10 g | not tested | not tested | 32 g total, tied with DeWalt | 15 g, very small amount of paint build up, second place behind Diablo at that point | 8 g with a moderate amount of clogging | 6 g after 2 minutes of sanding metal, tied for third with Diablo | not tested |
| 6Norton$13.31 for 25 sheets, 53 cents each | 10 g | 9 g | not tested | 40 g total, tied for third with Diablo and Tiger Shark | 16 g, no issues with paint sticking | 8 g with a moderate amount of clogging | 5 g after 2 minutes of sanding metal | not tested |
| 7Bosch$2.99 for 5 sheets, 50 cents each (5x the cost of the cheapest brand) | 10 g | not tested | not tested | 35 g total | 17 g, quite a bit of paint dust stuck but no clogging issues | not tested | 2 g after 2 minutes of sanding metal, one of the worst durability results | not tested |
| 8DeWalt$16.95 for 25 pieces, 65 cents each | 8 g, the least amount of any brand at the 5 minute mark | not tested | not tested | 32 g total, tied with Mirka | 12 g, struggled quite a bit with paint clogging up the sandpaper, last place | 4 g, really struggled with clogging, worst of all brands | 3 g after 2 minutes of sanding metal | not tested |
| 9Makita made in Italy line$33.13 for 50 sheets, 66 cents each, third most expensive brand tested | 7 g, moved into last position behind DeWalt | not tested | not tested | 25 g total, tied for last | 16 g, no clogging issues | 8 g with a moderate amount of clogging | 4 g after 2 minutes of sanding metal | not tested |
| 10DuraGold$16.96 for 50 pieces, 34 cents each | 9 g | not tested | 6 g | 29 g total | 14 g, seemed to collect more paint on the sandpaper than the Makitoya | not tested | 5 g after 2 minutes of sanding metal, pretty much used up | not tested |
| 11Makitoya cheap 5 in disc, made in China$13.97 for 105 pieces, 13 cents each, the least expensive brand tested | 10 g | not tested | 4 g, really struggled | 26 g total | 16 g, no issues with paint clogs | 8 g with a moderate amount of clogging | 1 g after 2 minutes of sanding metal, the worst durability result of all brands, just doesn't last long on hard material | not tested |
How it was tested
- material removal by weight sanding oak wood at 5, 10, 15, and 25 minute intervals with the same piece of sandpaper, 7.5 lb of pressure
- material removal and clogging resistance sanding painted particle board
- material removal and clogging resistance sanding plexiglass
- durability test sanding metal for 2 minutes, then re-testing removal rate on the original wood sample
- overall average finish ranking across all four test categories
“In my opinion, if it's all about the best performing sandpaper, the 3M Cubitron is the best.”