Which flooring should I choose for each room?
Match the material to what the room does to it — water, traffic and warmth decide almost everything.
- Difficulty
- beginner
- Time
- 30 min
- Read
- 2 min
Short answer
Water and traffic decide it. Bathrooms and kitchens need something waterproof; hallways need hard-wearing; bedrooms can prioritise comfort. Get that right and the aesthetics follow.
Flooring is one of the more expensive decisions in a house and one of the most disruptive to change. Choosing on appearance alone is why so much of it gets replaced early.
Step by step
- Start with water exposure.Bathrooms, kitchens and utility rooms need something genuinely waterproof — vinyl, LVT, tile. Laminate swells irreversibly at the joints when water gets in, and engineered wood is only water-resistant.
- Then consider traffic.Hallways and living rooms take the most wear. Look for a wear rating rather than a look. A cheap laminate in a hallway shows traffic paths within two years.
- Consider warmth and sound.Hard floors are colder and noisier, particularly in flats and upstairs. Carpet is warm and quiet; hard floors need rugs and good underlay to compensate.
- Understand the main options.Solid wood: beautiful, repairable by sanding, moves with humidity. Engineered wood: more stable, can be sanded once or twice. Laminate: cheap and hard-wearing, cannot be repaired. LVT and vinyl: waterproof, quiet, warm, very durable. Tile: hardest wearing, coldest. Carpet: warmest, hardest to clean.
- Check what is underneath.Solid concrete, suspended timber, or existing flooring. It affects what can be laid, whether a damp-proof membrane is needed, and whether underfloor heating is possible.
- Check compatibility with underfloor heating.Not everything is suitable, and thick carpet or underlay insulates against it. Check the tog rating if you have it or plan to.
- Factor in the height change.New flooring raises the floor. Doors may need trimming, and the transition to adjoining rooms needs a threshold strip. This catches people out repeatedly.
- Budget for underlay and fitting.Underlay affects comfort, sound and warmth more than most people expect, and it is where cheap jobs cut corners. Fitting is often a significant share of the total.
Tips
- Buy about 10% extra for cuts and future repairs, and keep the offcuts. Matching a discontinued range later is close to impossible.
- Get samples and look at them in the actual room, in daylight and in the evening. Flooring looks very different under shop lighting.
- LVT has largely replaced laminate for kitchens and bathrooms — it is waterproof, warmer underfoot and quieter, for a similar price.
Questions people ask
What is the best flooring for a kitchen?
Something genuinely waterproof — LVT, vinyl or tile. Laminate swells permanently once water reaches the joints, which in a kitchen is a matter of time.
Can I put laminate in a bathroom?
It is not advisable. Even water-resistant laminate fails at the joints eventually. Vinyl, LVT or tile are the sensible options.