How to Use Wood Putty: Finish First, Then Fill Nail Holes

Wood putty is for filling small holes after the wood is finished, not before. It stays soft permanently, so you stain and topcoat the piece first, press the putty into nail holes and minor scratches, and wipe off the excess. Used in the wrong order, it leaves a patch the stain cannot color.

Minwax, the best-known brand, says exactly this on its product page: “Stain and topcoat before applying putty,” and the product “will not harden to a sandable surface.” That is the opposite of how wood filler works, which is why mixing the two up is the most common putty mistake. Below is the right order of work, what putty can and cannot fix, and a side-by-side with a hardening filler.

What Wood Putty Is (and Why It Never Hardens)

Wood putty is a pre-mixed paste that does not set. Minwax lists its Wood Putty as a non-hardening, ready-to-use putty for interior use that “repairs minor scratches, gouges and nail holes,” in colors matched to its Wood Finish stains. The label on the jar pictured above says the same thing in short form: it never hardens and fills tiny flaws and nail holes in finished wood.

Because it never cures, putty behaves like a soft plug. That is a feature when you are fixing a nail hole in trim that is already finished: nothing to sand, no dust, and no risk of scratching the topcoat around the hole. It is a drawback anywhere you need a fill that holds an edge, takes stain, or survives wear.

How to Use Wood Putty in 5 Steps

1. Finish the wood first. Stain and topcoat the piece and let the finish dry. Minwax lists this as the first preparation step, along with a clean, dry surface.
2. Pick the closest color. Choose a putty color close to your finished wood. Since you are matching a finished surface, you can hold the jar next to the wood and judge it right away.
3. Press it in. Take a small amount on a fingertip or a flexible putty knife and press it into the nail hole or scratch so it fills the hole completely. Pack it in rather than smearing it across the surface.
4. Wipe off the excess. Minwax directs you to wipe the excess from the surrounding area with a damp cloth. Wipe lightly so you do not pull putty back out of the hole.
5. Check it in daylight. Look at the repair from a low angle. If it sits slightly low or high, add or wipe a little more. There is no cure time to wait out, which is the main reason people choose putty for quick touch-ups.

Putty cannot be sanded, so if the repair needs a perfectly flat, hard surface, switch to a filler. Our guide to using wood filler covers fill depth, drying times and sanding.

Wood Putty vs Stainable Wood Filler

Both Minwax products below fill nail holes, but they behave in opposite ways. The figures come from each product’s own Minwax page:

Spec	Minwax Wood Putty	Minwax Stainable Wood Filler
Hardens?	No, “will not harden to a sandable surface”	Yes, dries hard
Dry time	None needed	2 to 6 hours depending on fill depth
Sand it?	No	Yes, sand smooth and flush after it dries
Stain over it?	No, apply it after the finish	Yes, made to accept Minwax stains
Where to use	Interior only	Interior and exterior
Size limit	Minor scratches, gouges and nail holes	Not for holes larger than 3/4 inch

The order of work is the whole difference. With filler you fill, sand, then stain. With putty you stain, topcoat, then fill. If you filled first and want to stain afterward, you wanted filler. For a repair that needs to be as strong as the wood itself, a homemade sawdust and glue fill is another hardening option, and our guide to filling holes in wood compares the choices by hole size.

What Putty Is Good For, and What It Is Not

• Good for: nail holes in finished baseboards, crown and casing; small dings and scratches on a finished tabletop or cabinet; hiding a pin-nail head after the topcoat is on.
• Not for: anything outdoors, since Minwax lists its putty for interior use only; large holes, cracks or gaps that need a fill with strength; and any repair you plan to stain, because the putty will not take it.
• Not for sanded surfaces: a soft patch will not sand flush with the wood, so putty is the wrong choice on a floor or any high-wear surface that you plan to refinish.

Painted trim is a different case again. For nail holes before paint, a paintable filler is the normal choice, and our guide to filling nail holes in trim covers the paint-matching step.

Putty or Filler: Pick by Situation

Your situation	Use	Why
Nail holes in already finished trim or furniture	Putty	Goes in after the topcoat, no sanding, no dry time
Holes in raw wood you are about to stain	Stainable filler	Putty will not take stain; filler is made to
Hole that needs to be sanded flush	Filler	Putty never hardens to a sandable surface
Outdoor railing, siding or door	Exterior-rated filler	Minwax putty is listed for interior use only
Deep hole or gap over 3/4 inch	Neither: plug or repair the wood	Filler has a stated size limit; putty is for minor flaws
Painted trim	Paintable filler	Fill and sand before the paint goes on

Already Puttied Before Staining? How to Fix It

This happens often, and the fix is to start the repair over. Because putty stays soft, you can lift it back out. Scrape it out of the hole with a thin putty knife or a pick and wipe the hole clean, so no oily residue stays on the wood. Then fill with a stainable wood filler, let it dry as long as the label says, sand it flush, and stain. Test the stain on a scrap piece first; Minwax recommends testing stain on scrap with its filler before filling.

If the piece is already stained and topcoated and the putty patch simply looks the wrong color, you can usually pull the putty out and press in a closer shade. That is one real advantage of a putty that never sets: the repair is reversible.

Common Mistakes With Wood Putty

• Puttying before staining. Putty does not absorb stain the way bare wood does, so the patch stays the color it came in while the wood around it darkens.
• Choosing a color before the finish is on. Stain and topcoat change the shade of the wood. Match the putty to the finished color, not to bare wood.
• Leaving a ring of excess. A smear left around the hole shows as a halo. Wipe it away with a damp cloth as the directions say.
• Using it for a hole that needs strength. Putty only plugs a hole. It does not rebuild the wood around a screw or hinge.

Keep reading

• Natural Wood Trim Repair: An Easy Guide to Filling Nail Holes
• Wood Filler vs. Wood Putty: The Real Difference
• How to Cover Nails in Wood So the Repair Actually Disappears

Frequently Asked Questions

Do you put wood putty on before or after staining?

After. Minwax’s directions for its Wood Putty say to stain and topcoat before applying putty, because the putty does not harden and does not take stain.

Does wood putty harden?

No. Minwax Wood Putty is a non-hardening putty and, in the company’s words, will not harden to a sandable surface. If you need a fill that dries hard, use a wood filler.

Can you sand wood putty?

No, not in any useful way, since it stays soft. Wipe the excess off with a damp cloth instead. Use a hardening wood filler if you need to sand the repair flush.

Can you use wood putty outside?

Minwax lists its Wood Putty for interior use only. For outdoor holes, use a filler made for exterior wood, such as one rated for both interior and exterior use.

What is the difference between wood putty and wood filler?

Putty stays soft and goes into finished wood after stain and topcoat. Filler hardens, is sanded flush, and can be stained, so it goes in before the finish.

Sources

• Minwax Wood Putty product page: non-hardening, interior use, preparation and application steps
• Minwax Stainable Wood Filler product page: dry time, sanding, stain and size limit