LVT or laminate? Which is better for a whole house, and what each costs fitted

If you are flooring a whole house, we would usually fit LVT in the kitchen, hall, bathroom and utility room, and a good laminate is a sound choice in dry rooms like bedrooms. LVT starts from £70/m² supplied and fitted with us, excluding preparation.

The difference that matters most in a family home is water. Laminate is made mainly of wood fibre, and LVT is made of vinyl, so the two behave very differently when the dishwasher leaks or a dog’s water bowl tips over.

At a glance

• LVT, luxury vinyl tile, is made of PVC layers under a clear wear layer
• Laminate is made mainly of wood fibre under a printed design and a protective top layer
• Karndean describes its LVT as waterproof, but not for rooms that are wet all the time
• Traditional laminate has a wood-based core that can absorb moisture. Some newer ranges are sold as waterproof
• LVT can be glued down or clicked together. Laminate clicks together and floats
• Both can go over underfloor heating, within the manufacturer’s limits
• LVT starts from £70/m² fitted with us, excluding preparation

LVT vs laminate at a glance

Cost per m², supplied and fitted (2026)

LVT starts from £70/m² fitted with us, excluding preparation. That covers the brands most people ask for by name, including Amtico and Karndean.

Preparation is priced at survey, because it depends entirely on what is under your current floor. The quotation is fixed, and the only thing that changes it is you changing the scope.

Room by room for a whole house

Kitchen, utility and downstairs toilet. These are the rooms where water ends up on the floor, so this is where LVT earns its price. Karndean’s UK installation guidelines say its floors suit traditional residential bathrooms, kitchens and utility rooms.

Hall. The hall takes the most footfall in the house, plus wet shoes and dogs. LVT copes with both.

Bathroom. LVT handles the splashes of a family bathroom. For a walk-in shower floor or a wet room, neither is the right floor, and we fit slip-rated safety flooring instead.

Bedrooms and a living room. These are dry rooms, so laminate is a sound choice here, and so is carpet. Our residential flooring page shows the floors we fit room by room, and flooring types and services lists the fitted prices.

Subfloor preparation: the cost nobody quotes

Glue-down LVT needs the smoothest base of any floor here. It is thin and bonded down, so it shows every dip and hump underneath it. Karndean’s UK gluedown guidelines ask for a subfloor that is firm, hard, flat, level, smooth, dry and clean, to British Standard BS 8203.

Click floors are more forgiving. For its rigid core click LVT, Karndean allows unevenness of up to 5mm over 3m. Laminate also floats, so check the tolerance in the manufacturer’s guide for your range. Our guide to whether a subfloor needs levelling shows how to check yours with a straightedge and a torch.

Is LVT more expensive to fit than laminate?

Usually, yes. Glue-down LVT takes longer to lay and needs more preparation underneath. Click LVT, also called rigid core, is quicker to lay.

What is the downside of LVP flooring? And of laminate?

LVP, luxury vinyl plank, is the American name for LVT. Its downsides, honestly:

• It needs a good subfloor. Glue-down LVT shows every dip underneath, so the base has to be smoothed first
• It is not for floors that are wet all the time. Karndean says its floors are not suitable for rooms that will be continually wet
• Glued down, it is harder to take up. The planks and the adhesive both have to come off

Laminate has its own:

• Water. Quick-Step says most traditional laminate has a wood-based core that can absorb moisture and be damaged over time. Check what your range says about kitchens and bathrooms
• Repairs. A damaged click plank usually means unclicking the floor from the nearest wall
• Patterns. You are limited to the formats the range is made in

Can you mop vinyl flooring? Pets and cleaning

Yes. Karndean’s advice is to sweep with a soft broom, then mop with Karndean Clean or any pH neutral cleaner approved for vinyl. For laminate, follow the manufacturer’s care guide for your range.

If you have a dog, LVT is the floor we recommend for the hard-working family rooms. It shrugs off spills and claws.

Do high end homes use laminate flooring?

Yes. The good laminate ranges have come a long way, and they suit the dry rooms of a high-end home as well as a rental. Where something else suits a room better, we say so before you spend.

If you have chosen LVT: brand and fixing method

If you are deciding between brands, our comparison of Amtico and Karndean sets out the wear layer, warranty and price tier of each range.

If you are deciding how it is laid, our guide to glue-down or click LVT explains which suits which room, and which wear layer suits which kind of use.

Sources

All manufacturer pages read on 15 October 2026.

• Karndean Designflooring, What is LVT flooring? (construction, waterproofing, underfloor heating, cleaning): karndean.com/en-gb/floors/inspiration/discover/what-is-lvt-flooring/
• Karndean Designflooring, product pages (room suitability): karndean.com/en-gb/floors/products/
• Karndean Designflooring, Gluedown Installation Guidelines (UK), KD9497GLO, June 2026 (subfloor, suitable rooms, continually wet rooms): karndean.com/en-gb/floors/services/installation-guides/
• Karndean Designflooring, Rigid Core Installation Guidelines (UK), KD8130GLO, January 2024 (subfloor unevenness): karndean.com/en-gb/floors/services/installation-guides/
• Quick-Step, Laminate flooring and Water-resistant laminate (composition, waterproofing, underfloor heating): quick-step.co.uk/en-gb/laminate
• Guild Floors published prices and service descriptions: guildfloors.co.uk/flooring-services/ and guildfloors.co.uk/faqs/