Wood Specific Gravity (WSG) and carbon content (CC) holds great significance in the C-storage estimation. However, relying on generic numbers for WSG and CC (50%) in biomass assessments can result in significant over- or underestimation of carbon stocks. Thus, there is a critical need for data on WSG and CC to better understand their contribution to carbon cycling however, data on WSG and CC for tree and shrub species in Indian cold arid remains limited, often causing the use of global dataset or generic number for estimation. Hence, this study was carried out to assess WSG and CC variation in various 30 forestry and agroforestry trees species of Indian cold desert. WSG (branch and stem) was estimated by water displacement method while CC (wood and bark) was measured by combustion method in muffle furnace. The results showed substantial variation in Stem WSG (SWSG) across species, with values ranging from 0.40 to 0.80. Out of 30 species examined, four were categorized as light wood (WSG < 0.5), 18 as moderately heavy wood (0.5-0.7), and eight as heavy wood (> 0.7). Wood CC ranged from 42.15 (Populus balsemifera) to 46.10 (Betula utilis) and all the species have shown a CC less than 50%. SWSG and bark WSG were strongly corelated. These findings fill a significant gap in knowledge, as no earlier examinations have considered estimating the specific gravity of trees in Indian cold arid regions.