The cost to lay laminate flooring depends less on the boards and more on what happens around them: how flat the subfloor is, which underlay is used, how many doors need trimming, how thresholds are finished, and whether the skirting comes off so the floor can go underneath it or scotia beading is used instead. A square bedroom on a flat floor is quick. A hallway with several doorways, a staircase and an uneven floor takes much longer for the same area. This guide covers those price drivers. If you are still deciding between laminate and LVT, the separate comparison guide covers that choice.
Subfloor preparation
Laminate floats on underlay rather than being glued down, so it can hide very small imperfections, but it still needs a reasonably flat surface. Humps and dips cause the boards to flex, which opens the joints and makes the floor creak or bounce.
On timber floors, loose or squeaky boards are screwed down first, and the squeaky floorboards guide explains how. On concrete, high spots may need grinding and low spots filling with levelling compound. A damp proof membrane is laid over concrete to protect the boards from rising moisture.
Underlay choice
Underlay cushions the floor, evens out minor bumps and reduces noise. Thicker or acoustic underlay costs more but makes a real difference upstairs, where footsteps carry into the room below. In flats, the lease may set out what level of sound insulation is needed under hard floors, so it is worth checking before ordering.
Skirting off or scotia beading
Laminate needs an expansion gap around the edge of the room. There are two ways to hide it, and they affect both the look and the time involved.
- Skirting removed and refitted: the neatest finish, but slower and may need new skirting if the old boards break
- Scotia or quadrant beading: quicker and cheaper, fixed to the existing skirting
- New skirting fitted after the floor: often worth it when the old skirting is tired
- Painting or matching the beading to the skirting adds a little time
Doors, thresholds and awkward rooms
Doors usually need trimming once a new floor and underlay are down, especially if the old floor was carpet or thin vinyl. Each door is taken off, cut cleanly and rehung. Door frames are undercut so the boards slide underneath for a tidy edge, rather than cutting around the moulding.
Thresholds between rooms need a strip that suits the floor heights on either side. Rooms with lots of corners, radiator pipes, bay windows or a fireplace all add cuts, and every cut takes time to get right.
Clearing the room and lifting the old floor
Furniture needs moving out of the room, and the old floor has to come up. Carpet and gripper rods are quick to lift. Old laminate, tiles or glued vinyl take longer, and tiled floors may need the subfloor making good afterwards. Disposing of the old flooring is another factor to include in the quotation.
Kitchens, hallways and rented homes
Kitchen laminate needs careful sealing around the sink run and appliances, and the boards stop short of fitted units with a neat plinth line. Hallways take the most wear, so a higher wear rating and a good door mat are worth having. In rented homes, a durable mid range board laid on good underlay usually outlasts a cheaper board that looks tired within a couple of tenancies.
Getting a clear quotation
Send the room sizes, photos of the existing floor and doorways, and say whether you want the skirting taken off or beading used. Mention any stairs, as stair nosings and treads are a separate, slower job. Laminate flooring is part of the house interiors service, and the floor laying page on this site describes how the work is carried out from start to finish.
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