How to Choose the Best Flooring for Your Home – A Room by Room Guide

Living Room Flooring

As the heart of home life, your living room flooring should be both beautiful and durable. Some key considerations:

• High traffic: Living rooms see lots of foot traffic from family and guests. Pick a tough material that can handle wear. Hardwood, tile, vinyl and laminate are great options.
• Easy maintenance: Spills and mud from kids and pets are inevitable, so opt for floors that are easy to clean like vinyl, tile or laminate. Stain-resistant carpet works too.
• Comfort: Cushy carpet or rugs over hard flooring add warm, soft comfort for lounging and playing on the floor.
• Style: Cohesive living room flooring ties the whole space together. Select a style that complements your furnishings and decor aesthetic.

If you love the rich look of wood, solid hardwood or engineered solid wood flooring beautifully elevate living rooms. Just budget for professional refinishing every 5-10 years. More affordable wood-look laminate and vinyl are great alternatives. Tile in natural stone, ceramic tile or porcelain is another classic, durable option.

For plush softness underfoot, wool or synthetic frieze carpeting wears well in high-traffic areas. Or layer carpet tiles or patterned area rugs over hard floors.

Kitchen Flooring

As one of the busiest rooms in the house, kitchen floors really take a beating. Key considerations:

• Durability: With heavy foot traffic, dropped dishes, and spills galore, kitchen flooring must be ultra-durable and easy to clean. Hard, non-porous surfaces are best.
• Water-resistance: From kids spilling juice to appliance leaks, kitchens deal with lots of moisture. Water-resistant materials like vinyl, tile or linoleum are essential.
• Slip resistance: Grease, water and socked feet can lead to slippery surfaces. Choose flooring with traction to prevent falls.
• Style: While kitchen flooring needs to be functional, today's options also offer endless style possibilities to complement your cabinets, counters and decor.

Tile and vinyl are top choices for kitchens thanks to their water-resistance, easy maintenance and durability. Stylish design schemes range from wood looks to geometric patterns.

For a softer underfoot feel, natural linoleum or marmoleum resists spills beautifully. Or try polished concrete floors for an industrial vibe.

Just avoid porous laminates and carpeting which can harbour stains, odours and moisture damage in kitchens.

Bedroom Flooring

Bedrooms have unique flooring needs centred on comfort, acoustic performance and style:

• Warm and soft: We spend many cozy hours in our bedrooms, so cushioned carpeting or rugs over hard floors provide blissful comfort.
• Noise reduction: No one wants to hear footsteps or other disturbing sounds while sleeping or relaxing. Options like carpet absorb noise.
• Low maintenance: As bedrooms see lighter traffic, you can get away with high-maintenance options like wool carpeting if desired.
• Style: Bedroom flooring should complement your furnishings and create the soothing, inviting vibe you want.

Plush wall-to-wall carpeting is the quintessential cozy bedroom flooring. Wool or soft saxony styles feel wonderful underfoot. Patterned carpet adds visual interest.

If opting for hard flooring, layer it with thick area rugs or carpet runners along main traffic paths. This still provides noise absorption.

Wood looks, vinyl, cork and bamboo are also attractive bedroom options. Just be aware they amplify footsteps and other sounds.

Bathroom Flooring

Given constant water exposure, mildew resistance and slip resistance are paramount in bathrooms:

• Waterproof: Flooring needs to stand up to water splashes from showers and tubs without warping or growing mold.
• Non-slip: Wet bathroom floors are very slippery and dangerous. Be sure to choose flooring with traction.
• Easy cleaning: Soap scum, hard water deposits and dirt will build up. Select low-maintenance floors.
• Style: From classic subway tile to fun mosaic patterns, bathrooms offer lots of stylish flooring options.

Water-resistant vinyl and tile floors are ideal for bathrooms. Grout lines provide traction, and they come in loads of styles.

Seamless epoxy coatings, poured polymer flooring, and slip-resistant polished concrete are gaining popularity as bathroom flooring too thanks to their durability, grip and moisture-resistance.

Steer clear of porous floorings like laminate, bamboo, cork, and carpet which will warp quickly with all the moisture.

Hallway and Entryway Flooring

As high-traffic transition living spaces, hallways and entryways need flooring that’s durable, easy to clean and visually appealing:

• Durability: With constant foot traffic from family and guests, flooring must stand up to heavy wear. Vinyl, tile and hardwoods work well.
• Easy maintenance: Rain, snow, mud and daily dirt make simple cleaning crucial. Opt for floors that just need a quick mop.
• Style: Make a great first impression with flooring that complements your home's architecture and interior design.
• Transitions: Ensure flooring transitions smoothly from exterior surfaces to interiors to avoid trip hazards.

Tile, luxury vinyl and hardwoods check all the boxes for hallways and entryways. Seamless epoxy coatings are also ideal thanks to their waterproofing, durability and customizability.

For traditional elegance and sound dampening, wool carpet runners over hard flooring beautifully welcome guests while handling heavy traffic.

Just avoid high-maintenance carpeting which requires frequent cleaning to withstand dirt and moisture from shoes.

Home Office Flooring

To power through your daily work, a home office needs floors that are comfortable, durable, and style-enhancing:

• Comfort: Cushioning comfortable underfoot makes long hours at your desk more enjoyable. Carpet or rugs help.
• Durability: Office floors endure chair rolling, foot traffic, and occasional spills. Hardier materials recommended.
• Style: Express your professionalism or personality through your office flooring.
• Sound absorption: Reduce noise from office equipment and conversations if needed. Carpeting helps.

Solid wood flooring, tile, vinyl or laminate beautifully elevate home offices while handling wear. Add area rugs for softness and sound absorption.

Low-pile carpeting is another great option for comfort under rolling chairs. Just opt for easy-cleaning styles like olefin or polyester.

And polished concrete or cork floors offer ergonomic cushioning that stands up beautifully to office use.

Basement and Laundry Room Flooring

Prone to moisture, basements and laundry rooms require flooring that won't warp or grow mold:

• Water-resistance: Condensation, flooding, leaks and appliance overflow are common risks. Pick floors impervious to damage from water.
• Slip resistance: Ensure flooring has traction even when damp. Laundry spills are inevitable!
• Durability: Laundry appliances, storage totes and tools can ding floors. Hardier finishes recommended.
• Style: While function is key, you can still add style with fun patterns, colors and designs.

Waterproof vinyl, tile, and seamless epoxy floors are perfect for basements and laundries. New interlocking rubber floor tiles also resist moisture beautifully.

For cushioned softness that withstands moisture, try closed-cell foam mats or moisture-wicking marine carpet.

Just avoid real hardwood, laminates, and carpeting which will warp, discolor and grow moldy when wet.

Garage and Mudroom Flooring

In garages and mudrooms, flooring really takes a beating from heavy dirt, moisture, chemicals and impact:

• Durability: Toughness is key with heavy vehicle traffic, tools dropping, and constant dirt tracked in.
• Water/chemical-resistance: These spaces see snow, rain, mud, oil, gasoline stains, and more. Pick impervious floors.
• Slip-resistance: Surfaces need traction even when wet.
• Easy cleaning: From muddy boots to greasy spills, garages and mudrooms need floors you can just hose down.

Concrete floor paints and coatings are perfect for garage and mudroom durability. Some even contain traction grit.

Seamless, poured polymer floors are also ideal thanks to their thick build coating and imperviousness.

Interlocking rubber mats provide a softer surface with great traction. Or try heavy-duty sheet vinyl that takes serious abuse.

Just say no to real hardwood floors, laminate flooring, carpet or other porous flooring which will quickly degrade and stain.

Conservatory and Garden Room Flooring

Conservatory and garden room flooring must withstand temperature swings, sunlight damage, and garden soil and moisture:

• Hot Water/weather/UV-resistance: Flooring needs to stand up to rain, mud, extreme heat, freezing temps and sunlight.
• Slip resistance: Surfaces get slick when wet or dirty. Crucial to have floors with traction.
• Durability: Outdoor furniture, tools etc can scratch or ding floors. Pick a highly durable material.
• Easy cleaning: From wiped feet to dusty breezes, outdoor flooring needs simple maintenance

Exterior-grade tile is a great option for conservatory and garden room flooring, thanks to its imperviousness and style options.

Poured seamless resin also works beautifully. It comes in unlimited colors and resists moisture, weather, UV rays, and heavy impacts.

Interlocking rubber mats provide a softer, flexible surface with good traction for outdoor spaces.

Just avoid any laminate, vinyl, hardwood, carpeting, cork, bamboo etc. which will degrade rapidly in outdoor environments.

Choosing Flooring That Works Throughout Your Home

While each room has unique needs, you also want cohesive flooring flow between spaces for a polished, put-together look. Some tips:

• Use the same flooring material but vary color, patterns and finishes in different areas. For example, natural light shade and dark wood tones.
• Vary flooring materials intentionally, like wood in living areas and tile in baths. Just ensure the range of styles complement each other.
• Use area rugs to define spaces and create soft transitions between flooring types.
• Align flooring with the architecture for seamless indoors/outdoors flow. For instance, stone patios flowing into stone kitchen tiles.

The flooring experts at EasyStep Flooring are here to help you select the perfect floors for your lifestyle, tastes and home. Get in touch today to start planning your new dream floors! We can't wait to hear from you.