All leather goods, including coats, are made from one of 4 grades of leather. These grades are full grain, top grain, split grain, and bonded. The highest quality and generally highest priced grade of leather is top grain. The bottom quality and normally the lowest priced leather is bonded grade. We will take a look at each of these grades below starting with the highest quality and working downward.

Full grain leather is the choice for the highest quality leather goods.Full grain leather is made by the outer layers of the hide and it is not processed or sanded except to remove hairs. This maintains the beauty of the natural leather and its markings. In general, full grain leather is the most sought after because of its beautiful appearance matched with its durability and strength. Full grain leather is reserved for the highest quality leather goods so unfortunately a full grain leather coats will be the most costly choice. If you can afford it, or if you get lucky and find a full grain leather coat on sale, then you will have a gorgeous premium coat you are sure to enjoy wearing.

Top grain leather is a strong leather that can be fashioned into exotic imitations. Top grain leather is less expensive that full grain and is made from the outer layer of hide. It is processed and sanded to cover up imperfection. This outer layer of the hide is durable so top grain leather is very long lasting even if the look is not as luxurious a full grain leather. Since it is processed, the leather may be fashioned during this process to imitate exotic skin such as ostrich skin or alligator. If you are seeking a leather coat made from such an exotic skin, you can save money by buying an imitation made from top grain leather.

When leather goods carry the label, 'genuine leather', it is usually an indication that the product is made from split grain leather. This type of leather comes from the inner layer of hide and is not as strong as top grain leather but it is stronger than bonded leather.

Bonded leather is the least expensive leather on the market so if you want to save money on your leather coat, this might be the choice for you. It is not the best in terms of durability however. Although the coat appears to be made from a single piece of leather, bonded leather is actually comprised of leather scraps that have been bonded together. Therefore it is the weakest leather but has the advantage of being the least expensive also.