Flooring Guide: How to Choose the Right Floor for Every Room
Volodymyr SydorenkoAugust 6, 2026
Comparing laminate, vinyl, engineered wood, parquet, tiles, linoleum and microcement: durability, water resistance, underfloor heating compatibility, emissions, sound insulation, subfloor preparation, budget and care.
Flooring Guide: How to Choose the Right Floor for Every Room
The floor is one of the largest surfaces in an apartment and the one that takes the most punishment: footsteps, furniture, pet claws, spilled water and temperature changes. The right choice affects comfort, how long the renovation lasts and even your relationship with the neighbors below. Let's look at the main types of flooring, their advantages and limitations, and where each one fits.
Selection Criteria
- Durability — how resistant the surface is to wear and scratches.
- Water resistance — critical in kitchens, bathrooms and hallways.
- Underfloor heating compatibility — not all materials allow heating.
- Feel — warm or cold to the touch, soft or hard.
- Sound insulation — impact noise for the neighbors and reflected noise in the room.
- Emissions — formaldehyde and volatile organic compounds.
- Repairability — can one board be replaced or the surface sanded?
- Price — material, underlay, installation and subfloor preparation.
Laminate
A multilayer floor based on HDF board with a decorative layer and protective overlay.
Pros: affordable, a huge choice of designs, easy click installation, good wear resistance.
Cons: doesn't tolerate prolonged contact with water (except special water-resistant collections), "loud" underfoot without a quality underlay, can't be refinished.
How to choose: wear class 32–33 for homes, 33–34 for hallways and kitchens; abrasion class AC4–AC5; thickness 8–12 mm; a low formaldehyde emission class.
Vinyl Flooring (SPC, LVT, WPC)
A modern alternative to laminate based on polyvinyl chloride with mineral fillers.
- SPC — a rigid stone-polymer composite core, fully waterproof and stable under temperature changes.
- LVT — flexible tiles or planks, glue-down or click, needs a perfectly flat subfloor.
- WPC — softer and warmer, with a foamed layer.
Pros: 100% water resistance, suits kitchens, hallways and even bathrooms, quiet, warmer to the touch than tiles, compatible with underfloor heating.
Cons: pricier than basic laminate, thin collections are sensitive to subfloor imperfections, a synthetic material — choose certified products.
Engineered Wood
A top layer of real wood (2–6 mm) over plywood or softwood layers.
Pros: the look and warmth of natural wood, more stable than solid wood under humidity changes, can be used with underfloor heating (if the manufacturer allows), the top layer can be sanded once or twice.
Cons: more expensive, sensitive to scratches and water, needs care.
Parquet and Solid Wood
A classic for living rooms.
Pros: a natural material, durable, can be sanded and refinished many times.
Cons: high price, complex installation, sensitive to air humidity (gaps in winter, swelling in summer), limited underfloor heating compatibility.
Ceramic and Porcelain Tiles
Pros: completely waterproof, the highest wear resistance, ideal for underfloor heating, hygienic.
Cons: cold and hard underfoot without heating, dropped dishes break, difficult to remove, grout needs care.
Where they fit: bathroom, toilet, kitchen, hallway, balcony. For floors, choose porcelain tiles with an anti-slip surface. More in bathroom renovation.
Linoleum and Natural Marmoleum
Linoleum (PVC) — the most budget-friendly water-resistant floor. Modern commercial collections are quite durable but look simpler.
Marmoleum — a natural material made from linseed oil, wood flour and jute. Eco-friendly and antistatic, but more expensive.
Microcement and Poured Floors
Seamless floors for modern interiors. Striking, water-resistant and compatible with underfloor heating, but they require an experienced installer and careful subfloor preparation. Installation defects — cracks and delamination — are hard to fix.
Carpet
Warm, soft and good at absorbing noise. But it collects dust and allergens and is hard to clean. Most often used locally — rugs in bedrooms and living rooms.
What to Choose for Each Room
- Living room — engineered wood, parquet, quality laminate or SPC.
- Bedroom — engineered wood, laminate, vinyl; a soft rug by the bed.
- Children's room — warm, quiet and hygienic vinyl or low-emission laminate; avoid slippery surfaces.
- Kitchen — tiles, SPC or water-resistant laminate.
- Hallway — porcelain tiles or SPC: sand and water from shoes quickly damage wood.
- Bathroom and toilet — porcelain tiles; vinyl tiles for dry areas.
- Balcony — porcelain tiles or decking for open balconies.
For rental apartments, choose the most durable and easy-care options — see renovation for rental.
Emissions
Wood-based boards and adhesives can emit formaldehyde, and synthetic materials volatile organic compounds. The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) explains the health effects of formaldehyde, and the World Health Organization sets indoor air quality benchmarks in its guidelines for selected pollutants. Choose products with a low emission class and certificates, and ventilate after installation.
Subfloor Preparation
Even the most expensive floor won't fix a bad subfloor.
- Flatness — most floating floors allow no more than 2–3 mm deviation over 2 m; glue-down LVT even less.
- Screed moisture — a cement screed must dry (roughly a week per centimeter of thickness in normal conditions). Check moisture with a meter.
- Strength — the screed shouldn't dust or crumble.
- Waterproofing — in wet rooms and on the ground floor above a basement.
Sound Insulation and Neighbors
Hard floors transmit impact noise to the neighbors below. Solutions:
- a quality acoustic underlay under laminate and vinyl;
- a "floating" screed with a sound-insulating layer beneath it;
- perimeter edge strip so the screed doesn't touch the walls.
Plan sound insulation during a major renovation — see our apartment renovation guide.
Underfloor Heating
Check the floor's compatibility with heating in the manufacturer's specification: maximum surface temperature and allowable thermal resistance. Tiles, porcelain, vinyl and engineered wood work best. Underfloor heating pairs perfectly with a heat pump — see heat pumps for home heating.
Installation
- Floating — the floor isn't fixed to the subfloor (click laminate, SPC, engineered wood). An 8–10 mm expansion gap at walls and thresholds is mandatory.
- Glue-down — quieter and more stable, but harder to remove.
- Acclimatization — leave the packs in the room for 24–48 hours before installation.
- Direction — lay boards along the light from the window so joints are less visible.
- Staggering — offset end joints of adjacent rows by at least 30–40 cm, otherwise the locks work worse and the floor looks artificial.
- Batch check — before installing, lay out a few boards from different packs to make sure the shade matches.
If You Have Pets
Dogs and cats are a serious test for floors. Claws scratch lacquer and decor layers, and accidents seep into laminate joints. The best options:
- SPC vinyl with a thick wear layer — waterproof and scratch-resistant;
- porcelain tiles — virtually scratch-proof and easy to clean;
- class 33–34 laminate with water-resistant joints — a compromise.
Avoid glossy surfaces that show every scratch and soft wood species. Matte textured wood-look floors hide signs of life better.
What Makes Up the Budget
When comparing quotes, count the full cost per square meter:
- the flooring — the biggest item, but not the only one;
- underlay — for laminate and SPC with acoustic properties;
- subfloor preparation — leveling the screed, priming, waterproofing;
- skirting, thresholds and profiles — often underestimated;
- installation — depends on the method and complexity (herringbone costs more);
- removing the old floor and waste disposal;
- extra material for cuts.
Sometimes a cheaper floor with expensive subfloor preparation ends up costing more than a better material that tolerates minor imperfections.
Care
- Laminate and vinyl — damp cleaning without excess water, no abrasives.
- Wood — special products and periodic re-oiling or re-lacquering.
- Tiles — clean the grout and seal it if needed.
- Felt pads on furniture legs and mats at the entrance extend the life of any floor.
Frequently Asked Questions
Laminate or vinyl? For kitchens, hallways and homes with pets — SPC vinyl for its water resistance. For living rooms both are good; laminate is cheaper.
Can laminate go over old linoleum? Not recommended: the base becomes soft and the laminate joints separate.
How much extra should I buy? 5–7% for straight installation, 10–15% for diagonal or herringbone.
Do I need thresholds between rooms? For floating floors over large areas — yes, or a special expansion profile. Threshold-free solutions are possible with glue-down floors.
Is vinyl flooring safe for a children's room? Certified vinyl with low emissions and no phthalate plasticizers is a practical choice: it's warm, quiet and easy to clean. Ask for product certificates and ventilate the room for a few days after installation.
Why does laminate creak? Usually an uneven subfloor, debris under the underlay, no expansion gap or too soft an underlay. The only fix is relaying the area.
How do I join different floors without a height difference? Plan the screed thickness for each floor in advance so hallway tiles and room laminate end up at the same level. The joint is covered with a thin profile or done threshold-free with a cork expansion strip.
Conclusion
There's no perfect floor for the whole apartment: each room has its own requirements. Combine water-resistant materials in the hallway and kitchen with warm, quiet ones in living rooms, choose certified low-emission products and prepare the subfloor carefully. Then the floor will last for years without creaks, gaps or complaints from the neighbors.
Sources
- EPA: formaldehyde.
- EPA: volatile organic compounds' impact on indoor air quality.
- WHO guidelines for indoor air quality: selected pollutants.
- Law of Ukraine on Consumer Rights Protection.