"What do you look for in a good engineered floor?" What's the budget? We could go round and round on this without that inclusion. For instance Homerwood engineered probably retails over $ 10.00 per square foot. Higher in some areas.

I'm not a fan of click together engineered hardwood. This is not something I would recommend - especially in an uncontrolled environment like a cabin. The click edge is the part that holds everything together. It turns out a plied wood click edge doesn't have a lot of holding power. In fact it down right fails 99% of the time. This is why you are having a hard time finding a plied wood centre. The fibre board is much stronger for a click edge. That's why it has been used for decades with laminate...and some who wish to use hardwood on top. I don't recommend that one...but it's your choice. Hardwood has a very specific way it expands/contracts. It does this across the grain. This is VERY different from the fibre board. Fibre board moves in all 6 directions (yep...6). The more swings you have in humidity and temperature the greater the movement the wood is going to do. And the fibre board will also be moving but in several OTHER directions as well. Oh dear. Now imagine a home that is NOT climate controlled. A cabin for instance. Imagine the wood and fibre board are happy with each other at 20 C and 40% humidity. Now winter comes and we have -10 C and 15% humidity. And then summer comes again and now we are at 35 C and 65% humidity. It is highly possible your wood surface will have peeled off of your fibre board centre. The wood moved in a different way than the fibre board and they tore themselves apart. With your price point, you are better off getting a very narrow plank hardwood (2" or so) and have it laid and then site finished. You will still pay around $4/sf for the wood and $3.50/sf for the sanding/refinish but it will be a floor that lasts. It will still move and twist and shrink and expand. But it will do it in such a way that keeps the floor functional. Or go with an SPC/WPC vinyl core and enjoy your cabin.

OK...we have to define something here. What is 'Best' in your mind? To me, as a flooring pro, 'Best' means "Award Winning". That translates into "Money is NO OBJECT" type of cost. The BEST of all = 3/4" engineered white oak wide plank flooring (multiple widths and lengths) with 6mm wear layer, site finished with the toughest finishes in the world. That is 'Best' to me. A floor like this, with 'Special Order' costs + proper installation + proper finishing (lots and lots of labour costs) = $25/sf. Nope. Not kidding. Then there is 'Best for your budget'. For that we need your budget. There are SOO many variables that go into this, it is almost impossible to say what is a 'best brand'. If you are working with a $4.99/sf 'Home Depot Special' budget, you will be quite limited. If you are working with $7-$9/sf for materials-only (labour costs = extra...could be $3-$4/sf if you need glue). And then there is the 'best for my lifestyle/house hold' concept. We would need to know a BIT MORE about what you VALUE in a floor. Do you DEMAND Zero scratches? Then work with porcelain tile. Do you DEMAND perfection and uniformity? Then work with LVP in wood look finish. Do you DEMAND Authentic looking/feeling wood floors? Then work with site finished engineered hardwoods (the highest quality you can afford. If you accept wood as 'wood' (there is nothing you can do about it...wood does what wood does) with all it's character and it's flaws (you are OK with scratching over time, you don't mind fading, you are OK with a floor that looks tired around 20 years old) then go with a middle of the road factory finished engineered hardwood from a Ma-and-Pa operation = $6-$7/sf + install.

The thickness of the top wear layer is the most important factor. The thicker it is, the more likely you would be able to refinish it if necessary at some point down the road. Hopefully one of the pros will be along soon to give you the numbers to look for in the thickness of the wear layer