What Is Bonded Leather?

If you've purchased a relatively cheap leather sofa, leather-bound books or an inexpensive belt, you might own a bonded-leather item. But what is bonded leather?

Bonded leather consists of scraps from real leather hides that are mixed with polyurethane, a type of plastic. The material should include from 60 to 100 percent real, natural leather such as cowhide, according to manufacturing standards. The actual proportion depends on the quality level maintained by the manufacturer.

The advantages of bonded leather include its lower cost and environmental friendliness, since it makes use of reclaimed or recycled materials.

Furniture, office supplies and books often use bonded leather. It can be difficult to tell a bonded-leather item apart from the real McCoy because the two materials look and smell similar. The difference usually comes in durability. Bonded-leather furniture, for example, tears more quickly. Consumer Affairs, a consumer advocacy group, reports frequent complaints about bonded-leather furniture wearing down.

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Michael Dhar is a science editor and writer based in Chicago. He has an MS in bioinformatics from NYU Tandon School of Engineering, an MA in English literature from Columbia University and a BA in English from the University of Iowa. He has written about health and science for Live Science, Scientific American, Space.com, The Fix, Earth.com and others and has edited for the American Medical Association and other organizations.