Every hardwood board absorbs moisture from the air and releases it back. When humidity is high, boards expand slightly. When humidity is low, they contract. This movement is measured as “dimensional change coefficient” — a species-specific number that predicts how much a board will move across a full range of humidity conditions.

Species with low dimensional change (white oak, hickory) move less through the season. Species with high dimensional change (Brazilian cherry, some maples) move more. In climates with modest humidity swings (Seattle, the Southeast), high-movement species work fine. In Sioux Falls, they’re a slow-motion disaster — gaps between boards in winter, tight seams and occasional cupping in summer.

White oak is the most-installed hardwood species in Sioux Falls, and for genuine reasons. It has low dimensional change, is dense enough to resist denting, takes stain beautifully, and matches the neighborhood aesthetic of most local architectural styles from ranch homes to Craftsman remodels.

Real-world performance: white oak installed with proper acclimation and expansion gaps handles the SD humidity swing with essentially no visible movement. You may see hairline seams appear in the driest winter weeks and disappear in humid summer — but no cupping, no gapping wide enough to catch dirt, no permanent damage.

The one caveat: modern white oak sold as “European white oak” (often wire-brushed, wide-plank formats) sometimes has different milling standards than traditional American white oak. Both work, but ask your installer which mill and which grade — the choice matters for premium wide-plank installations.

Hickory is denser and harder than white oak — the hardest common domestic hardwood by Janka rating. It resists dents from dropped items, handles pet claws better than most alternatives, and has dramatic color variation that gives floors a distinctive character.

For Sioux Falls specifically, hickory’s low dimensional change makes it as stable as white oak through humidity swings. The tradeoff is aesthetic — hickory grain is busy and varied, which some homeowners love and others find visually chaotic. Not a species you commit to based on a small sample; ask to see a full room installation before deciding.

Cost-wise, hickory typically runs 10-20% more than white oak installed. Worth it for households with large dogs or high-traffic entry points where dent resistance matters.

Maple’s a classic hardwood choice with a light, clean appearance and smooth grain. Sugar maple and hard maple are both used residentially in Sioux Falls. But there’s a nuance most buyers don’t know: maple has moderate dimensional change — more than white oak or hickory — meaning it moves more visibly through humidity swings.

This isn’t a dealbreaker, but it changes what installation quality is required. Maple flooring in Sioux Falls needs strict acclimation (at least 14 days in the home before install), proper expansion gaps, and ideally a humidification system in winter to reduce dryness. Skimp on any of these and you’ll see gapping in January.

Some hardwood species are dimensionally unstable enough that they should be avoided for full-home installations in this climate. That doesn’t mean you’ll never see them locally — they show up in premium installations, but usually with significant humidity control investments.

Brazilian Cherry (Jatoba): High dimensional change, beautiful appearance, but consistently problematic in Sioux Falls. Homeowners who install it typically report seasonal gapping despite best-practice installation.

Wide-plank American Cherry: Domestic cherry is beautiful and traditional, but wide-plank formats (5″+) move meaningfully with humidity. Narrower planks are fine; wide-plank cherry in Sioux Falls needs excellent humidity control.

Some exotic species (Cumaru, Ipe): Beautiful, dense, incredibly hard — but very high dimensional change and rarely installed successfully in South Dakota climate.