Whether you’re looking for kitchen flooring or something to lay down in the garage, here’s what you need to know about commonly used materials, including the average price per square foot, how labor-intensive they are to install, and how long you can expect them to last.
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8 Affordable Flooring Options
1. Vinyl
Vinyl flooring comes in sheets, tiles, and planks and is predominately manufactured with PVC, resulting in durable, waterproof flooring that can be installed anywhere in your home. It requires little maintenance, just regular vacuuming or sweeping and the occasional mopping, and is one of the least expensive flooring options on the market. If installed correctly, you can expect it to last as long as 25 years.
2. Sheet Vinyl
This cut-to-length option has seen major advancements when it comes to design, texture, and quality. Sheet vinyl typically comes in 6′ and 12′ widths, making it heavy and cumbersome to handle, and is best left to the professionals to install.
Cost: The average cost is $1.25 per square foot (not including installation), with luxury brands priced at over $5 per square foot.
3. Plank Vinyl
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If you’re looking for a realistic hardwood or stone alternative, plank vinyl is the cheapest choice for rivaling the look of pricier flooring. And unlike sheet vinyl, planks come in small sizes, making the entire installation process easier. Vinyl planks can be glued down or installed with a peel-and-stick, or click-and-lock system. Installation is generally easy to tackle, even for those who may be new to home improvement projects.
Cost: Prices vary and will depend on whether you choose an engineered vinyl plank (EVP), luxury vinyl plank (LVP), waterproof vinyl plank (WVP), or rigid core vinyl plank (SVP), which is a stone composite version—ideal for high-traffic areas. Price, on average, not including installation, starts at $1.39 per square foot and increases from there depending on thickness, quality, and manufacturer guarantees.
4. Laminate
Laminate is made up of a composite of materials and mimics the look of hardwood or stone, thanks to a photographic image that’s embossed on its surface. While laminate is comparable to vinyl sheets in terms of cost, it’s is not as durable as vinyl, shouldn’t be exposed to heat, is not waterproof, and lasts only 10 years. Avoid installing laminate in high-moisture or water-prone areas like basements, kitchens, or bathrooms.
Laminate is installed as a floating floor, which means the pieces click and lock together rather than being glued directly to the subfloor. It will take time to properly prepare the area, but installation is fairly quick once you start fitting the pieces together.
Cost: The average cost of laminate flooring is $2.50 per square foot (not including installation), but will increase depending on the materials and guarantees provided by the manufacturer.
5. Cork
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Cork is a soft, eco-friendly alternative to composite flooring and is easier to install than hardwood.
Cost: Made from the cork oak tree, this renewable resource is used to make floor tiles, planks, and sheets, and starts around $2 per square foot—increasing in cost based on thickness, quality, and finish.
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While one of the positives about cork is that it tends to be softer than other moderately priced flooring options, its softness can also be its downfall since it can scratch and dent easily. It also doesn’t fare well in rooms like bathrooms, where high humidity levels (anything above 60%) will cause the material to crack and break.
6. Carpet
From wall-to-wall to peel-and-stick, carpeting’s another cheap flooring option available to homeowners. The choices are vast, thanks to a wide range of materials, and quality levels, and no matter the carpet, you can expect it to last 10 years—longer if you vacuum regularly and immediately treat stains.
And while it’s soft to walk on and great at dampening sound, carpet does show wear and tear much faster than other kinds of flooring. It shouldn’t be used in bathrooms or other places where the presence of moisture can lead to mold.
Wall-to-Wall Carpeting: While purchasing wall-to-wall carpeting can be a cheap flooring option (it can be found for less than $1 per square foot), installing wall-to-wall is not for the faint of heart. It’s usually a multi-person, multi-tool job that requires accuracy—otherwise, wrinkles, bumps, and weak seams will ruin the result. Because there is little room for error when installing wall-to-wall consider hiring a professional.
Peel-and-Stick Carpet Tiles: An easier way to install carpeting is by using peel-and-stick carpet tiles. As with vinyl planks, the smaller pieces make installation relatively quick and easy. Carpet tiles come with their own adhesive backing, so all you have to do is make sure the floor is clean, peel off the stickers, and affix the tiles to the floor. Plus, you can use a box cutter to trim pieces as needed. Carpet tiles can be found at big-box retailers like Home Depot for less than $1 per square foot.
7. Tile
Ceramic Tile: At less than $1 per square foot, durable ceramic tile makes an excellent inexpensive flooring option. Look for manufactured tile that’s rated at least a 3 on the PEI scale—the industry standard set by the Porcelain Enamel Institute. Tile rated less than a 3 will be too thin and brittle to sustain floor traffic. As far as installation goes, if you aren’t comfortable handling a wet saw or tile cutter, leave the job to the professionals.
Porcelain Tile: Consider using porcelain tiles when installing floors in damp areas such as bathrooms and kitchens. Due to its manufacturing, porcelain is denser and better at repelling water than ceramic, and though it costs slightly more per square foot, it wears better than conventional ceramic tile.
8. Refinish Your Floors
If replacing your existing floor isn’t an option, you can always refresh it inexpensively. Wood floors will transform with just a little paint or varnish; concrete can look fresh and new with specialized paint and sealant, and even tile can be improved by refreshing the grout. Whatever your budget, you can certainly get an updated look without spending a ton of cash.
Where Will the Flooring Be Installed?
The type of flooring you choose will be determined in part by where you plan to install it, and over what type of surface. Solid wood flooring, for example, cannot be installed directly over concrete and is a poor choice for humid areas such as basements and baths. Ceramic or porcelain tile requires a stiff, flat surface underneath to prevent cracking.
How Will the Floor Be Installed?
Different types of flooring are installed in different ways, some of which are DIY-friendly. For example, “floating” floors—typically laminate—consist of interlocking floorboards that use no adhesives; this easy-to-install design is popular with DIYers. But ceramic or porcelain tile is bound to the subfloor with thinset, and the gaps between the tiles are filled with grout. Solid wood flooring is typically nailed down or glued. Installation of either is better left to professionals. Consumer Reports flooring ratings show which installation options are available for each rated product.
Will the Flooring I Choose Need an Underlayment?
Underlayment materials include foam, cork, rubber, felt, and specialized soundproofing mats. The different function that each type performs will affect your choice—as will the type of flooring you’ve chosen and the existing subfloor. “If you’re installing hardwood flooring over a concrete subfloor, use an underlayment that offers moisture protection,” says Stefan Bucur, founder of Rhythm of the Home, a website specializing in home improvement. “Similarly, if you’re installing laminate or engineered flooring over an uneven subfloor, consider an underlayment that provides additional cushioning and helps to even out the surface.” Some luxury vinyl floors in CR’s ratings have thin foam pads attached to their bottom surfaces, replacing the underlayment. Thicker underlayments generally are more expensive, Bucur says.
How Important Is a Flooring Material’s Thickness?
Thin vinyl flooring is more likely to split or break during installation. That could mean you’ll have to buy more flooring to cover those accidents. Focus on vinyl flooring with a thickness of 7 mm or more; you can find thickness information on the product’s label or online product page. Thickness can be a factor in the durability of other flooring materials—and for solid wood, its ability to be refinished. (New solid wood planks are typically ¾ inch thick, enough to withstand multiple refinishes.) Check Consumer Reports’ flooring ratings for our test-based durability judgments of dozens of flooring models.
Does the Thickness of a Floor’s Wear Layer Matter?
The wear layer is the clear protective coating applied to the top surface of a manufactured floorboard. Home Depot lets you search flooring by wear-layer thickness, shown in mil (thousandths of an inch). A thick wear layer sounds like it would protect better against foot traffic. But in Consumer Reports’ tests, we found that wasn’t necessarily so. For instance, between two vinyl flooring products with 20-mil wear layers, one earned an excellent score for foot traffic resistance while the other ranked below the middle. Bottom line: Don’t depend on the reported thickness of the wear layer alone. Consult reviews and Consumer Reports’ flooring ratings for the full picture on wear resistance.
What Should I Know About Surface Textures and Edge Styles?
The type of edge on the tile or planks you choose will have a bearing on how your floor looks—and how easy it is to clean. Prefinished wood and some laminate planks have beveled edges, which makes for a more forgiving installation but can trap dirt and grit later. Tile edges may be pressed (traditional) or rectified—meaning they’re mechanically cut to fit precisely together, which allows for thinner grout lines and an appearance that’s almost seamless, and a floor that’s easier to clean. Flooring with a textured surface can also trap dirt over time, but some texture is advisable in bathrooms and other wet areas to prevent slips and falls. Consumer Reports’ flooring ratings indicate which products are smooth, very textured, and in-between. Both texture and edge styles can influence floor care.
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