Microsuede v. Ultrasuede or Fabric?

Hi everybody. I have a couple of questions for you. We're in the market for a new smallish sofa for our small "study." We also have two dogs (a bichon and a maltese) and a cat, all of whom love to lounge on the sofa. We let our animals on our furniture, so we need something really, really durable. The last sofa we bought for this room was a Flexsteel sleeper sofa in chenille. What a mistake: within 6 months, the chenille was pilling everywhere. It's also a tad too large for the room, so we're selling it on CL (hopefully) and replacing it with something smaller--a large loveseat or small apartment sofa. I ventured out shopping today and saw a small sleeper by American Leather. The "microsuede" option was $2,000. The "ultrasuede" option was $3600. The salesman said that they wear exactly the same, just that the ultrasuede is thicker. Is this the case?

If we opt, instead, for a "regular" fabric, I also saw a very nice Huntington House piece (ottoman sold separately), and a Clayton Marcus curved small sofa (photos attached). Are either of these brands good brands? They each cost around $1600.

I'd really appreciate any and all advice/opinions. Thanks. :)

Get leather if you want durability. Nothing else even comes close.

Microfibers CLEAN easier, but are just 100% polyester fibers that are less thick, so while you get a tad more wear than conventional polyester, its not going to be even close to that of leather. Ultrasuedes are also 100% polyester.

Hey Duane!!! Thank you. :)

The problem is--at the risk of seeming weird--that leather is out, since we're vegan and don't "do" leather. So what is the most durable type of fabric that you could recommend?

That's not unusual. I have a recliner being made for a customer right now that is made of 'pleather', as they had the same objections as you. This is a high-grade leather-like fabric that performs very well, appx. 2x that of normal fabrics in durability. (real leather is 4x). It does look and feel very much like real leather but is 100 % man made. Typically its used in medical offices, where they need high durability in non-leather products. H&M has a medical division called Cabot-Wren where we pulled this product from to make this. Its not inexpensive however, it prices out the same as a Grade 2 leather.

For fabric durability (not cleaning, but durability) the industry standard is something called a Weisenbeck rating. This is determined by placing fabric in a machine which double rubs the same area mechanically (to and from is one rub), until there is noticeable wear. Typically Heavy Duty fabrics will have a 30,000 rub rating.

Now, most furniture people in retail stores have no idea what a Wesienbeck rating is, nor will it be marked on most swatches. You will see it on the label of customer fabrics from Robert Allen, Schumacher, Brusnwich & Fie, etc. It you can track down the rating, thats your best method of determining what will stand up to heavy use. FYI the 'pleather' I mentioned above has a 60,000 Wesienbeck rating.