The problem encountered when using stain is color differences.

The same stain on three different woods(example: pine trim, pine doors, and pine base molding) will look different.

Plus, woods like pine are problematic to stain evenly, since the differences in grain absorb stain differently and often look splotchy.

So, using a pretreatment is necessary to get an even color. And tinting or shading (darker---since you cannot stain lighter) often needs to be done.

Gel stain (really a transparent paint more than a stain)does not have the same difficulties, but lighter gels can still look different.

The only way to be sure is to choose a stain and test.

If you use a plain solvent Poly (like Verathane) it will age to a warm yellow in a few years, without having to stain.