How Much Does Laminate Flooring Cost?

Laminate flooring prices range from $1-$5 per square foot, depending on the type and brand. Homeowners will also want to lay laminate floor underlayment under the laminate flooring. The cost of laminate floor underlayment is around $1-$5 per square foot. For both laminate flooring and underlayment homeowners will pay $2-$10 per square foot, before installation. Laminate flooring and underlayment for a 300 square foot room would cost $600-$3000 before installation. Laminate flooring cost varies depending on the brand, where it is purchased and what type it is. Its cost is also affected by whether it is installed by a professional or by the homeowner; homeowners can save as much as 30% of the total cost of laminate flooring if they install it themselves.

Laminate Flooring Installation Cost

The cost to install laminate flooring is affected by multiple factors such as the type of laminate being used, if homeowners do the job themselves or if they hire a professional, and how much work the original floor requires before the new floor can be laid. The cost to install laminate flooring is also affected by location; the cost of installation tends to be cheaper in small towns and rural communities than in large metropolitan cities. Generally, the cost of having laminate floors installed by a professional accounts for about 30% of the total cost of the flooring; if homeowners pay a contractor $2000 to install laminate floors in their kitchen, about $1400 of the cost is for material and $600 will be for labor. Some contractors will charge an hourly rate of around $20-$30 per hour to lay laminate flooring; it takes most contractors 1-2 days to lay this type of flooring in an average sized room. Homeowners can save themselves money by laying the flooring themselves; some laminate flooring is made to snap together or has double stick backs to help homeowners lay it easily. However, this type of flooring can be difficult for an inexperienced homeowners to lay smoothly and evenly.

Discount Laminate Flooring

Homeowners on a tight budget can look into purchasing wholesale laminate flooring. Wholesale prices tend to be less expensive than regular prices are; however, wholesale laminate flooring stores usually do not offer the wide selection of laminate floors that a regular store offers. The average cost of laminate flooring from a wholesale store is $1-$3 per square foot. Wholesale stores often carry lightly damaged flooring for an extremely low price. Wholesale laminate flooring can be purchased online or from a wholesale store near the homeowner.

Commercial Laminate Flooring

As commercial laminate flooring is generally for a much larger area than residential laminate flooring is, commercial prices per square foot are usually cheaper than residential prices per square foot are. However, commercial laminate flooring is extremely hard for business owners to lay themselves, so a professional must be hired to do the job; for safety reasons it is mandatory with some insurance plans to have a professional lay it. About 25%-30% of the total cost to have the flooring installed is for the labor, the other 70%-75% is for materials.

Laminate Flooring Underlayment

Laminate flooring underlayment is laid under laminate flooring to help prolong its life and give it more cushion and sound proofing. There are three different types of laminate floor underlayment: with padding, with padding and moisture shield, and with padding, moisture shield and sound barrier. Padding only underlayment is the cheapest; it costs $1-$2 per square foot. The cost of underlayment with padding and moisture shield is $2-$3 per square foot. The cost of underlayment with padding, moisture shield and sound barrier is $4-$5 per square foot. Laminate flooring underlayment with sound barrier is commonly used in apartment buildings to help decrease the sound between apartments.

Buying Laminate Flooring

Homeowners can purchase laminate flooring from a variety of places; hardware stores, building stores, some department stores, flooring stores, wholesale stores and online.

Many online flooring stores offer low laminate flooring prices; however, homeowner should check shipping costs carefully before buying. Homeowners can often save on flooring costs by buying from the same company that will be installing it. As laminate flooring differs so greatly in price customers should shop around to ensure they save as much as possible on their flooring cost.

Laminate Flooring Brands

There are numerous different brands of laminate flooring; some of the most popular are Wilsonart, Tarkett and Swiftlock. All three brands are considered premium brands and are known for offering high quality products, and offer very similar prices. Swiftlock laminate flooring is very durable and comes in 160 different styles and types. Their prices tend to be less than Wilsonart and Tarkett. Wilsonart laminate flooring is also very durable and is available in a large variety of styles and types. Their prices vary from both lower and higher than Swiftlock. Unfortunately, Wilsonart went out of business in December 2010. Tarkett laminate flooring is available in a wide assortment of trendy and traditional styles, and is able to stand up to a fair amount of wear; however, Tarkett laminate floors tends to be more expensive than Swiftlock or Wilsonart equivalent flooring types.

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