How Much Does It Cost to Install New Flooring in the UK?

Flooring installation cost varies more by material than almost any other home renovation decision — the gap between a budget laminate and a premium engineered wood floor, installed, can be several times over for the same room. Subfloor preparation and removal of the old flooring are the other major cost factors that a per-pack material price doesn't capture.

Typical UK flooring installation costs

These are general, indicative supply-and-fit ranges per square metre — actual cost depends on subfloor condition, room shape and exact product chosen.

• Laminate: roughly £25–£45 per m²
• LVT (luxury vinyl tile): roughly £35–£65 per m²
• Engineered wood: roughly £50–£100 per m²
• Solid wood: roughly £70–£130 per m²
• Carpet (mid-range, supply and fit): roughly £25–£50 per m² — see our dedicated carpet fitting cost guide for more detail.

Use our flooring calculator to work out exactly how much material your room needs, including a sensible wastage allowance.

Two worked scenarios

• A 14m² living room (laminate, sound existing subfloor, old carpet lifted and removed): at £25-£45 per m² supply-and-fit, that's roughly £350-£630 — toward the lower end if the subfloor needs no extra prep, higher if levelling is needed.
• The same 14m² room in engineered wood, with some subfloor levelling required: at £50-£100 per m² plus levelling work, this comfortably moves into the £900-£1,600+ range — a substantial jump driven by both the material and the extra prep labour.

What adds to the cost beyond the material

• Removing old flooring — particularly glued-down carpet, old tile, or anything needing genuine effort to lift and dispose of.
• Subfloor preparation — levelling compound or plywood overlay where the existing subfloor isn't flat or sound enough for the new flooring to perform properly.
• Expansion gaps and finishing — trims, thresholds between rooms, and correct expansion allowances for floating floors.
• Underfloor heating compatibility — not every flooring type suits underfloor heating equally well, and this can affect both product choice and installation method.

DIY vs professional installation

Labour typically makes up a meaningful share of the total cost, and how much varies a lot by flooring type: click-fit laminate and LVT are designed for relatively fast installation, which is why confident DIYers often take this on themselves in a straightforward rectangular room. Solid wood (nailed or glued down), engineered wood requiring adhesive, and any tiled floor are considerably more labour-intensive and mistake-prone — this is where professional fitting is most likely to be worth the cost, particularly if the subfloor needs proper preparation first.

How long does flooring installation take?

A single room with a sound subfloor is typically a one-day job for laminate or LVT. Engineered or solid wood, or any room needing subfloor levelling first, commonly takes 2-3 days. A whole downstairs (hallway, kitchen, living room) with mixed flooring types and some subfloor prep can run 3-5 days or more.

Choosing between flooring types: a quick checklist

• Budget is the main constraint: laminate offers the lowest supply-and-fit cost.
• Room gets wet (kitchen, bathroom, utility): LVT's water resistance is a genuine practical advantage over laminate or wood.
• Want a real wood surface without solid wood's price and stability concerns: engineered wood is the middle ground.
• Underfloor heating is installed or planned: confirm compatibility before choosing — not every flooring type performs equally well over it.

Tiled flooring as an alternative

If you're considering tile rather than a floating or engineered floor, see our full tiling cost guide — tiled floors have a different cost structure, driven more by preparation and labour than material.

Getting an accurate quote

Because subfloor condition varies so much between properties, the only reliable way to get an accurate flooring quote is a proper look at the existing floor — a per-square-metre estimate alone can't account for whether levelling work is needed first.

Once you know which flooring type you're leaning toward, see our guide on working out exactly how much flooring to buy for the material quantity itself.