Your living room is the hub of your home. It’s where your guests come together to visit. It’s where your kids play. And it’s where your pets snooze.
So what is the best living room flooring option? What flooring type can withstand kids toys, foot traffic, pet nails, and spilled drinks from family movie nights?
In this post, you’ll discover the pros and cons for the best living room flooring. Afterwards, you’ll be able to choose a flooring type that works best for your home and lifestyle!
01. Engineered Hardwood
Solid hardwood is beautiful. With its natural aesthetic and deep, rich tones, it’s a wonderful addition to any living room. But it also comes with a wide range of maintenance requirements.
That’s where engineered hardwood comes in. It’s still a natural wood, but it’s manufactured by laminating real wooden pieces together. A hardwood veneer is then placed on top and provides a durable top layer to prevent scratches and damage. It also performs better in fluctuating climates (which any Canadian location is very prone to).
Pros: It’s more durable and far easier to maintain than solid hardwood, making it the perfect option for families with young children and pets. Hardwood flooring also adds a luxurious feel to your home, and it can also improve the resale value of your home!
Cons: Engineered hardwood flooring is more expensive than its synthetic counterparts. Although it has moisture-resistant properties, it’s less water-resistant than vinyl or laminate. So any spills (or muddy footprints) that occur will need to be cleaned quickly.
Learn more about Edmonton hardwood flooring.
02. Luxury Vinyl
Luxury vinyl flooring is thicker than standard vinyl and protects against tearing and gouges. It’s typically comprised of multiple layers, including a clear, protective topcoat. It also lasts much longer (up to 25 years) and adds a more prestigious look.
Because of luxury vinyl’s high durability and scratch resistance, it’s one of the best living room flooring options. It can withstand children during playtime, pets tracking in dirty paws, and occasional spills.
Plus, it’s an affordable option. It’s installed in separate, clicking boards. So if a single board gets damaged, it’s simple and easy to swap out the damaged board with a new one.
Luxury vinyl is also the perfect flooring choice for homeowners and families with busy schedule. It’s extremely low maintenance and doesn’t require climate regulation like hardwood floors. It’s also easy to clean and water-resistant.
Pros: It’s very durable and can last quite a long time. It’s also fairly straightforward to install, making it a DIY-friendly project for more budget-conscious homeowners.
Cons: Luxury Vinyl contains a printed image that mimics the appearance of natural hardwood. Although it’s almost indistinguishable from real wood, you won’t be able to sand and stain your vinyl flooring.
We have a wide selection of vinyl plank flooring.
03. Carpet
Carpet is warm, soft, and can add a comfortable, elegant appearance to your living room. Because it’s softer, it’s also an ideal choice for families with young children who are still in the learning-to-walk stage.
Carpet also has a more unknown benefit: it has a higher insulating value. With energy bills spiking, it’s a great way to keep cold rooms warmer. It also dampens noise. So if your living room also doubles as your entertainment space, it will help reduce noise transmission to your downstairs areas and will decrease echos.
Pros: It’s much more comfortable than hard flooring. Carpet also comes in a range of textures and colors, so you have a great deal of versatility when shopping for a style.
Cons: Although most carpets now come with stain-resistant improvements, it still has a greater chance of staining than hard flooring types.
If you are looking for carpets in Edmonton, we carry a range of different carpet options.
04. Laminate
Laminate is another flooring option similar to hardwood and luxury vinyl. It comes in a wide selection of different colors and styles. Like luxury vinyl, it also offers high durability at a more affordable price tag.
Laminate consists of a printed image and layers of protective finishes. Although it’s a manufactured and synthetic product, it maintains a realistic appearance to natural wood. Laminate flooring is also water and scratch-resistant, making it one of the best living room flooring options.
Easy to clean and maintain, laminate is also perfect for any areas in your home that experience spills. If you have younger children that haven’t mastered the art of tidy eating, it’s a great flooring choice. You’ll still need to clean spills relatively quickly to prevent damage, but there’s a very low likelihood any staining will occur.
Pros: Laminate is another flooring type that’s relatively easy to install. If you undertake installing laminate flooring as a DIY project, you can save money while also getting an affordable but elegant look!
Cons: Although laminate is water-resistant, it can still incur damage if it’s exposed to moisture for long periods of time.
05. Ceramic or Porcelain Tile
Tile is one of the most durable flooring options. Typically cracking only occurs after significant impact, but damaged tiles can be replaced without having to re-tile your entire floor.
Because of its high durability and water resistance, it’s one of the best living room flooring types. It’s also non-allergenic, making it an ideal choice for homeowners that suffer from allergies. In addition, it’s easy to maintain and clean. So if you have pets or younger children in your home, it’ll prevent damage.
Pros: Tile comes in many different styles and colors, giving homeowners a great deal of versatility when choosing a design.
Cons: In most cases, tile requires professional installation to ensure proper application. It’s also considerably hard and cold. However, you can curb this by installing in-floor heating or laying down area rugs.
If you are looking for tiles in Edmonton, LCF provides the best tile flooring in Edmonton.
What is the best living room flooring option?
This largely depends on your lifestyle. For homes with pets, hard flooring options are recommended, since they’re easier to clean and resist most staining. However, homes with very young children and toddlers may benefit from carpet, since it’s softer.
When choosing your living room flooring type, consider the amount of activity currently taking place. If spills are frequent, carpet may not be your most ideal choice. Yet, if you suffer from back pain or other joint issues, carpet offers a more comfortable option to stand and walk on.
Get a free consultation
Have questions about the best flooring living room flooring options? Reach out to our team at Lidia Contract Flooring, and we’ll schedule a free consultation. We’ll happily provide answers and insights into all your questions.
Visit this page to fill out our contact form!
