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Which Sandpaper Brand Wins?
2021 test11 productsBlades, Bits & Abrasives

Which Sandpaper Brand Wins?

In our test 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.

The verdict
3M Cubitron
Winner

3M Cubitron

Price shown in test: $42 for 50 sheets, 84 cents each, second most expensive brand tested

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Diablo SandNet
Runner-up

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
Budget pick

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 quick take

The short version of why each pick lands where it does, built straight from the measured results.

Winner3M Cubitron$42 for 50 sheets, 84 cents each, second most expensive brand tested

“In my opinion, if it's all about the best performing sandpaper, the 3M Cubitron is the best.”

Best in 5 of 8 measurements, including Wood Removal 5 (min), Wood Removal 25 Min Total and Paint Removal 5 (min).

Runner-upDiablo SandNet$14.97 for 10 sheets, $1.50 each, the most expensive brand tested, over 10 times the cost of the cheapest brand

Best in 2 of 8 measurements, including Wood Removal 5 (min) and Paint Removal 5 (min).

Budget pickDiablo standard sanding disc$14.97 for 10 sheets, $1.50 each, the most expensive brand tested, over 10 times the cost of the cheapest brand

Best in 2 of 8 measurements, including Wood Removal 5 (min) and Paint Removal 5 (min).

The measured results

Every number below is read straight from the test. Products are listed in the order they finished.

Wood Removal 5 (min)

  • 13M Cubitron
    12 g

    tied for the best of all brands

  • 2Diablo SandNet
    12 g

    tied for the best

  • 3Diablo standard sanding disc
    11 g

    took the lead from Makita at that point

  • 4Tiger Shark
    10 g
  • 5Mirka
    10 g
  • 6Norton
    10 g
  • 7Bosch
    10 g
  • 8DeWalt
    8 g

    the least amount of any brand at the 5 minute mark

  • 9Makita made in Italy line
    7 g

    moved into last position behind DeWalt

  • 10DuraGold
    9 g
  • 11Makitoya cheap 5 in disc, made in China
    10 g

Wood Removal 25 Min Total

  • 13M Cubitron
    53 g

    total, the best of all brands

  • 2Diablo SandNet
    51 g2nd

    total, second best, still removing 9 g even after 25 minutes

  • 3Diablo standard sanding disc
    40 g

    total, tied for third with Tiger Shark and Norton

  • 4Tiger Shark
    40 g

    total, tied for third with Diablo and Norton

  • 5Mirka
    32 g

    total, tied with DeWalt

  • 6Norton
    40 g

    total, tied for third with Diablo and Tiger Shark

  • 7Bosch
    35 g

    total

  • 8DeWalt
    32 g

    total, tied with Mirka

  • 9Makita made in Italy line
    25 g

    total, tied for last

  • 10DuraGold
    29 g

    total

  • 11Makitoya cheap 5 in disc, made in China
    26 g

    total

Paint Removal 5 (min)

  • 13M Cubitron
    20 g

    the best of all brands on painted soft material with no visible clogging

  • 2Diablo SandNet
    21 g

    the best of all brands on painted soft material

  • 3Diablo standard sanding disc
    18 g

    no visible signs of clogging, best of the standard non-SandNet, non-Cubitron brands

  • 4Tiger Shark
    14 g

    only a small amount of paint sticking to the sandpaper

  • 5Mirka
    15 g2nd

    very small amount of paint build up, second place behind Diablo at that point

  • 6Norton
    16 g

    no issues with paint sticking

  • 7Bosch
    17 g

    quite a bit of paint dust stuck but no clogging issues

  • 8DeWalt
    12 g

    struggled quite a bit with paint clogging up the sandpaper, last place

  • 9Makita made in Italy line
    16 g

    no clogging issues

  • 10DuraGold
    14 g

    seemed to collect more paint on the sandpaper than the Makitoya

  • 11Makitoya cheap 5 in disc, made in China
    16 g

    no issues with paint clogs

Post Metal Wood Removal

  • 13M Cubitron
    11 g

    after 2 minutes of sanding metal, seemed nearly unfazed, by far the best durability result

  • 2Diablo SandNet
    8 g2nd

    after 2 minutes of sanding metal, second best durability result

  • 3Diablo standard sanding disc
    6 g

    after 2 minutes of sanding metal, tied for third with Mirka

  • 4Tiger Shark
    5 g

    after 2 minutes of sanding metal, pretty much used up

  • 5Mirka
    6 g

    after 2 minutes of sanding metal, tied for third with Diablo

  • 6Norton
    5 g

    after 2 minutes of sanding metal

  • 7Bosch
    2 g

    after 2 minutes of sanding metal, one of the worst durability results

  • 8DeWalt
    3 g

    after 2 minutes of sanding metal

  • 9Makita made in Italy line
    4 g

    after 2 minutes of sanding metal

  • 10DuraGold
    5 g

    after 2 minutes of sanding metal, pretty much used up

  • 11Makitoya cheap 5 in disc, made in China
    1 g

    after 2 minutes of sanding metal, the worst durability result of all brands, just doesn't last long on hard material

Plastic Removal 5 (min)

  • 13M Cubitron
    8 g

    with a moderate amount of clogging

  • 2Diablo SandNet
    8 g
  • 3Diablo standard sanding disc
    10 g

    the best of all brands on plexiglass, only minor clogging in a couple of small areas

  • 5Mirka
    8 g

    with a moderate amount of clogging

  • 6Norton
    8 g

    with a moderate amount of clogging

  • 8DeWalt
    4 g

    really struggled with clogging, worst of all brands

  • 9Makita made in Italy line
    8 g

    with a moderate amount of clogging

  • 11Makitoya cheap 5 in disc, made in China
    8 g

    with a moderate amount of clogging

  • 4Tiger Shark
    not tested
  • 7Bosch
    not tested
  • 10DuraGold
    not tested

Wood Removal 15 (min)

  • 13M Cubitron
    11 g
  • 2Diablo SandNet
    10 g

    still very impressive

  • 3Diablo standard sanding disc
    7 g
  • 4Tiger Shark
    8 g
  • 10DuraGold
    6 g
  • 11Makitoya cheap 5 in disc, made in China
    4 g

    really struggled

  • 5Mirka
    not tested
  • 6Norton
    not tested
  • 7Bosch
    not tested
  • 8DeWalt
    not tested
  • 9Makita made in Italy line
    not tested

Wood Removal 10 (min)

  • 13M Cubitron
    12 g

    no drop off

  • 2Diablo SandNet
    11 g
  • 3Diablo standard sanding disc
    9 g
  • 4Tiger Shark
    8 g
  • 6Norton
    9 g
  • 5Mirka
    not tested
  • 7Bosch
    not tested
  • 8DeWalt
    not tested
  • 9Makita made in Italy line
    not tested
  • 10DuraGold
    not tested
  • 11Makitoya cheap 5 in disc, made in China
    not tested

Overall Average Finish

  • 13M Cubitron
    1.5

    the best of all brands across all four test categories

  • 2Diablo SandNet
    1.752nd

    second best of all brands

  • 3Diablo standard sanding disc
    2.5

    best value of all brands given its low price

  • 4Tiger Shark
    not tested
  • 5Mirka
    not tested
  • 6Norton
    not tested
  • 7Bosch
    not tested
  • 8DeWalt
    not tested
  • 9Makita made in Italy line
    not tested
  • 10DuraGold
    not tested
  • 11Makitoya cheap 5 in disc, made in China
    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.”

From the test video verdict.

Brand head-to-head scoreboards featuring this test

DeWalt vs Makita46 tests

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