Engineered Hardwood Vs Laminate Vs Vinyl Flooring

If you have your heart set on having a wood or faux wood floor you have four choices.

Engineered hardwood vs laminate vs vinyl flooring.

Laminate vs engineered wood flooring. More rigid than luxury vinyl aka non resilient. Laminate flooring generally is less expensive than engineered hardwood. There s actually not that much between them and most of the pros and cons are the same as comparing laminate vs hardwood.

Check out the best flooring from cr s tests. Hardwood is likely to remain the most popular flooring choice. Laminate flooring is still technically a wood floor as the particle board contains wood fibers but unlike engineered hardwood laminate planks do not contain layers of plywood. Consumer reports top rated options in solid wood engineered wood laminate porcelain tile and vinyl flooring.

Vinyl is the more affordable flooring option when compared to engineered hardwood floors. Laminate flooring is a fully man made material that consists of several layers. The base is fiberboard with a photographic image layer bonded over the top. The main difference between the two floors is that engineered hardwood floors have an actual hardwood surface but structurally they are very similar to a laminate.

However there are other manufactured woods such as luxury vinyl planks that are fashioned to simulate the look and feel of hardwood. Homeowners can keep the costs even lower if they choose to complete the installation themselves. Then a transparent wear layer is applied to protect the surface. It will probably look the least natural but that is not necessarily a bad thing depending on what look you are going for.

Luxury vinyl planks when it comes to hardwood flooring many homeowners only think of solid and engineered wood. Made of synthetic layers bonded together through a lamination process. Vinyl flooring is a softer floor that allows for more falls and spills than hardwood or laminate. Cheaper versions have 1 4 inch cores and the photo reproductions may not be as realistic as more expensive versions.

For many folks that ends the laminate vs. Vinyl is a great cheap option that will hold up over time. Laminate runs 1 to 7 per square foot depending on the quality. Engineered wood flooring.

The average cost of engineered hardwood flooring is about 8 per square foot although pricing may be higher or lower depending on the flooring selected. The average cost of installing engineered hardwood is between 7 and 10 per square foot. Engineered hardwood debate right there. Laminate engineered wood solid hardwood and vinyl.

Comparing engineered wood with laminate is an interesting and worthwhile exercise and you might be surprised by the results.