Elmer’s Extra Strength Glue Stick Comparison Test

This is the perfect time of year to stock up on craft supplies. Since school has already started, most stores have their school supplies on sale. The other day, I stumbled upon a clearance pack of Elmer’s extra strength glue sticks. Glue sticks are one of our most used craft supplies. But, there been a few crafts lately that we have had to use white glue to get a strong enough hold. I hadn’t heard of an Elmer’s extra strength glue stick, but according to the package it holds 2x stronger.

So, I bought the pack and instead of waiting until I needed them like a normal person, I set up a test to see how well they work. I tested my new Elmer’s extra strength glue stick against a normal Elmer’s glue stick and Elmer’s school glue. To keep my test as accurate as possible, I made sure to use brand name on all three. I ended up doing a few different tests and here is how all three performed.

I also just want to say that I was in no way compensated for this, I came up with the idea for this test on my own.

Elmer’s Extra Strength Glue Stick vs. School Glue vs. Normal Glue Stick

Test #1 – Glue to Cardboard

My first test was pretty simple. I glued several objects to a piece of cardboard using the three different types of glue. As soon as I opened the new glue stick I could tell that it was actually different. It felt a little more sticky going on and it smelled stronger. I glued on:

• Wood Mulch
• Felt
• Buttons
• Balloon Pieces
• Rocks
• Beads
• Pipe Cleaners

After it all dried , I moved the piece of cardboard so that it was vertical. The only piece that fell off was the wood mulch glued on using the regular Elmer’s glue stick.

1st Place: Elmer’s Extra Strength Glue Stick and Elmer’s School Glue

2nd Place: Elmer’s Glue Stick

Test #2 – Objects to Objects

For my next test, I glued a second of each object on top of the first. I probably should have replaced the piece of wood mulch, but I didn’t. I once again waited about 24 hours.

After it dried, I again moved the piece of cardboard vertical. Both the beads glued on using the glue stick and the wood mulch pieces using the extra strength glue stick fell off. But, they both fell off still stuck together. A single rock glued on using the glue stick fell off as well.

1st Place: Elmer’s School Glue

2nd Place: Elmer’s Extra Strength Glue Stick

3rd Place: Elmer’s Glue Stick

Test #3 – Pulling Everything Apart

This last test was a little subjective, but I tried my best to be fair. First, I put 0 for what fell off during test #1 and 1 for what came apart during test #2. Then, I took everything that I had glued together and pulled it apart. I rated each one from 2-5 based on how hard it was to pull apart.

Felt:

• Hardest: Extra Strength Glue Stick (4)
• Middle: School Glue (3)
• Easiest: Glue stick (2)

Button:

• Hardest: Extra Strength Glue Stick (5)
• Middle: School Glue (4)
• Easiest: Glue stick (2)

Balloon:

• All tied (3)

Pipe Cleaner:

• Hardest: School Glue (5)
• Middle: Extra Strength Glue Stick (3)
• Easiest: Glue stick (2)

Beads:

• Hardest: Extra Strength Glue Stick (4)
• Middle: School Glue (3)
• Easiest: Glue stick (2)

Rocks:

• Hardest: School Glue (4)
• Middle: Extra Strength Glue Stick (2)
• Easiest: Glue stick (1)

Wood Mulch:

• Hardest: School Glue (5)
• Middle: Extra Strength Glue Stick (3)
• Easiest: Glue stick (0)

Conclusion

When I averaged out all the scores on my third test I got:

1st Place: Elmer’s School Glue (Average of 3.9)

2nd Place: Elmer’s Extra Strength Glue Stick (Average of 3.4)

3rd Place: Elmer’s Glue Stick (Average of 1.7)

I wasn’t too surprised that the school glue was still the strongest of the three glues. But, my new extra strength glue stick did really good and wasn’t far behind it. The normal glue stick did the worst by a lot. So, if you are wanting the convenience of a glue stick with almost the strength of white glue, I would definitely recommend trying an Elmer’s extra strength glue stick. Regular glue sticks are cheaper, so I will continue to buy both. I will use the stronger glue stick on what needs it and the cheaper glue sticks on everything else.

I am looking forward to trying it out with my kids in the “real world.” What is your go to glue for crafts with your children?