Indoor staircase in oak or ash?

[J.A]

I had been completely set on an oak staircase, but now the staircase manufacturer suggests a variant in stained ash. Could that be something?

He claims you can't see the difference (we have oak floors) and that ash is also harder than oak. I haven't received the quote yet, so I don't know if there's a big price difference either. But a stained staircase... does that mean it might need to be re-stained periodically? Could there be other potential 'risks' with buying a staircase in a different type of wood than oak...?

 

[pbengtsson]

I have treads in ash (riser) and this is because I have ash flooring. Ash is significantly lighter than oak and doesn't have the same grain, so I don't understand the trick of staining it like oak. Sure, ash is a bit harder, but oak isn't exactly soft either.
The risers in solid ash cost me as much as risers in solid oak, so it seems like the price difference wouldn't be that big.

It's not that the supplier has a ready-made ash staircase that they want to get rid of.

I think ash looks best white-oiled, with the dark grain visible, but that doesn't look like oak at all.