Laminate is often recommended for a tight budget and a busy house, and most of that advice holds up. The complaints arrive later: water sitting at a seam, a room that sounds hollow underfoot, a gouge that cannot be sanded out, and a resale walkthrough where the floor is compared with a wood one. This honest look at laminate flooring pros and cons works through those four areas using the live prices, coverage figures and specs in our in-stock laminate range, so you can see what you trade away and what it costs to avoid the trade.
The short version: what laminate does well and where it hurts
Two things are true at once. Laminate is a wood-based composite pressed into a hard, printed surface: the North American Laminate Flooring Association notes that "What sets laminate apart is its wood-based construction, which adds the strength and resilience of wood fibers." It delivers a wood look at entry-level material cost, and it clicks together as a floating floor with no glue or nails. The same build creates the four complaints that matter.
| Where laminate earns its price | What you have to plan around |
|---|---|
| A material cost at the entry end of our range, with thicker and higher-rated boards costing more | Water can reach the wood-fibre core at the seams, and the joints swell |
| A click-lock install that floats over most prepared subfloors | A hollow, drum-like sound unless the subfloor and the underlay are handled properly |
| Rated surfaces, from residential classes up to boards our listings describe for commercial traffic | No sanding or refinishing, so a deep scratch becomes a board replacement |
| A finish that "doesn't require waxes or varnishes to keep it looking great" | Resale perception: a buyer reads laminate as a budget floor next to a hardwood one |
Water at the seams: where laminate gives ground
Every plank pairs a printed surface with a wood-fibre core, and the core is the part water attacks. The Association of the European Producers of Laminate Flooring describes that surface as "a printed décor which is either directly pressed or printed as such on a substrate (generally wood based materials) or bonded to a substrate", and states in the same installation bulletin that even correct fitting "does not therefore afford absolute protection against moisture ingress". A spilled glass that gets wiped up is a non-event. The same association's care guidance is blunter: because the core layer is made of wood, "water will cause unsightly swelling of the joints".
Swiss Krono, whose laminate we stock, is direct about where the material belongs. Its guidance says that "laminate is not suitable for installation in bathrooms, showers, saunas and toilets", and asks that laminate not be used anywhere water can accumulate or where humidity stays high permanently. Individual boards can still carry a rating: our Goodfellow Canyon No.019 page lists a "72-hour water resistance rating" for that board, and the same page says it is "rated for commercial heavy traffic". That is a property of that product, not a promise for every laminate we stock.
Where water resistance is the deciding factor, three of our other guides do the detailed work: drying and replacing swollen laminate boards covers the first day after a leak, how waterproof labels differ from water-resistant ones explains why the joint stays the weak point even on a plank sold as waterproof, and our steam mop guide covers what routine damp cleaning does to a laminate surface.
Why a floating laminate floor can sound hollow
Click-lock laminate is not fastened down. It rests on a thin underlay and floats, which is why a footstep can read as a drum rather than a thud. Core thickness is one lever you control at purchase: our boards are titled anywhere from 8mm to 15mm. The Swiss Krono K226 page makes the point for its own 14mm board, promising "superior sound-dampening properties that reduce noise transfer between floors".
Underlay carries part of the job as well. The North American Laminate Flooring Association states that "Underlayment is crucial for laminate flooring", because it supports the locking system and adds moisture protection. Swiss Krono's own FAQ goes further for apartments, noting that a cork underlayment "can be used to help meet the required sound standards in such homes as condominiums and apartments". Floors above another home are the ones where that line matters.
Comfort underfoot: what 8mm, 12mm and 14mm change
Thickness does two jobs. It stiffens the plank so it bridges small dips in the subfloor, and it softens the sound of a footstep. It does not make the floor waterproof. Here are five boards we stock today, with the thickness and rating their product titles state, plus the box price and coverage from our current data.
| Board | Thickness | AC rating | Box price | Coverage | Material per sq ft |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Goodfellow Canyon No.019 | 12mm | AC5 | $69.99 | 20.18 sq ft | $3.47 |
| Swiss Krono Lilywhite Oak K226 | 14mm | AC6 | $45.00 | 13.28 sq ft | $3.39 |
| Krono K8630 | 10mm | AC4 | $30.46 | 15.31 sq ft | $1.99 |
| Egger EM3209 | 8mm | AC3 | $40.48 | 21.42 sq ft | $1.89 |
| Sunshiny SL1052 | 12mm | AC3 | $31.40 | 19.75 sq ft | $1.59 |
Prices checked October 7, 2026. Box prices and coverage come from our current catalogue.
Read those rows together and the pricing stops being obvious. A 14mm K226 box costs less than the 12mm Canyon box, but it covers less floor, so the two land eight cents apart per square foot. The 8mm Egger board works out at $1.89 per sq ft because a box carries 21.42 sq ft, and only the narrower Sunshiny SL1052 undercuts it, at $1.59. K8630 sits just above Egger at $1.99 on a 10mm core. Thickness and price do not move together on their own.
Repairs: swapping a board instead of sanding a floor
Engineered and solid hardwood can be sanded back to fresh timber when a floor is worn or gouged. Laminate cannot, because its wear surface is that printed décor rather than a sawn wood face. As the laminate trade body NALFA puts it, laminate floors "don't require sanding or refinishing" the way hardwood does, and where "a plank becomes damaged, many systems allow for quick and easy replacement".
What you get instead is a swap. The European Producers of Laminate Flooring explain that professionals "can replace badly damaged flooring elements so well that it is not possible to tell the difference visually within the floor as a whole", with specialist suction tools to lift an individual panel and repair kits for smaller marks. On a click-lock floor, that is a board or two rather than a whole room.
Your practical limit is stock rather than labour. Keeping one spare box handles a future break; after that, matching depends on the board still being available. Our own data shows how thin that margin can get: the K8630 listing shows 11 in stock and the Canyon shows 10 in stock, so a discontinued colour is a real risk on a repair two winters from now.
Resale: what a buyer sees in a laminate floor
Resale is where a price advantage can turn into a perception problem. Flooring buyers do not price a room by the board; they react to what the floor looks like next to a wood one. The National Wood Flooring Association's consumer survey put numbers on that instinct: homeowners rated wood flooring "66%" on adding value to a home against "18%" for laminate. That is a survey of buyer perception rather than a property of any board, and it is the reason a laminate floor can be the sensible buy in one house and a talking point in another.
Two practical points help more than opinion. A stated AC rating is a durability record a buyer can check: our current laminate titles carry one on 47 boards, split across 14 AC3, 6 AC4, 23 AC5 and 4 AC6 products, with the remaining 11 listed without one. Our guide to the AC5 laminate brands we stock explains how those classes differ. Water is the second question, and it is one you can answer with the board's own rating rather than with reassurance.
What laminate costs across our current range
Across the 58 in-stock laminate boards available right now, material runs from $1.33 to $4.54 per sq ft. The spread tracks core thickness, rating and décor rather than brand name alone. Here is how those 58 boards divide by the wear class their titles state.
| Wear class in the product title | Boards in stock |
|---|---|
| AC3 | 14 |
| AC4 | 6 |
| AC5 | 23 |
| AC6 | 4 |
| No class stated in the title | 11 |
The dearest boards work out at $4.54 per sq ft and the least expensive at $1.33 per sq ft, so the top of the range costs a little over three times the bottom for the same floor area. Every one of the 58 boards lists click-lock as its installation method, so the fitting system is not the variable you are choosing between at this stage; the core and the surface are.
A 500 sq ft material example in whole boxes
Boards are sold by the box, so the per-square-foot figure is not the number you pay. Here is the arithmetic we use on 500 sq ft with the standard 5% waste allowance, run on two boards from the table above.
| Line | Egger EM3209, 8mm | Goodfellow Canyon, 12mm |
|---|---|---|
| Floor area plus 5% waste | 525 sq ft | 525 sq ft |
| Boxes needed, and coverage per box | 25 boxes at 21.42 sq ft | 27 boxes at 20.18 sq ft |
| Material | 25 x $40.48 = $1,012.00 | 27 x $69.99 = $1,889.73 |
| Underlay, 3 full rolls at $50.00 for 200 sq ft each | $150.00 | $150.00 |
| Subtotal | $1,162.00 | $2,039.73 |
| HST 13% | $151.06 | $265.16 |
| Total | $1,313.06 | $2,304.89 |
Across 500 sq ft of finished floor, that is $2.63 per sq ft for the 8mm board and $4.61 per sq ft for the 12mm one, with underlay and tax included. The gap between the two project totals is $991.83.
Both columns cover boards, underlayment and HST only. Installation, removal of the old floor, delivery and trim are not included in these totals and are confirmed at quote as separate lines on your written estimate.
When laminate is the wrong fit for the room
Laminate is a good answer in most rooms and a poor one in a few, and the differences are specific rather than general.
- Skip it for a bathroom, a laundry room or a basement that has taken on water. The manufacturer warning above applies directly, and once the core swells at a joint the damage shows at the surface.
- Look at vinyl plank where standing water is part of daily life. Our vinyl versus laminate comparison covers the water question material by material.
- Choose engineered or solid hardwood where refinishing a floor in ten years is worth the extra cost up front.
- Ask what sound requirement your building applies before you order if the room sits above another home, because that rule sits outside the board choice.
- Read thickness against price rather than assuming the two rise together. The rows above show a 14mm board costing less per square foot than a 12mm one.
Our complete laminate buying guide takes the choice further, and is thicker laminate really better digs into what the millimetres change beyond this page's scope.
Laminate flooring pros and cons: the questions buyers ask
Is laminate flooring a good option for a basement?
Only where the slab stays dry. Swiss Krono's conditions for below-grade rooms include the requirement that "The concrete-slab floor must have been poured with a poly sheet underneath it", and the same manufacturer advises against any space with permanent high humidity. Where a basement has flooded before, vinyl plank is the more forgiving floor.
Can I repair laminate if a board gets gouged?
By replacement, not by sanding. The European Producers of Laminate Flooring describe badly damaged panels being lifted out and new ones inserted, with repair kits for smaller damage. The practical limit is availability: if the colour is still in our catalogue, a repair is a small job, and if it has been discontinued, matching becomes difficult.
Why does laminate sound louder underfoot than hardwood?
Because it floats. A click-lock floor rests on underlay rather than being fastened down, so the plank and the space beneath it behave like a drum. A thicker core and a proper underlay both reduce the effect, which is the audible difference between an 8mm plank and a 14mm one.
Does a thicker board make laminate waterproof?
No. Thickness changes stiffness, comfort and sound, and leaves the core's response to water untouched. Water resistance comes from the board's own construction and locking system, which is why some listings carry a water resistance rating and others say nothing about it.
Is laminate a poor choice if I might sell in a few years?
It depends on the room. In a basement, a rental or a secondary bedroom, the price advantage is the point and buyers rarely object. In a main living area of a house you plan to list, hardwood carries more weight with buyers, and that is a market judgement rather than a property of the board.
What does laminate cost per square foot right now?
Material runs from $1.33 to $4.54 per sq ft across our 58 in-stock boards, before underlayment, installation and HST. Boxes are the real unit of purchase, so the 500 sq ft example above finished at $2.63 per sq ft with an 8mm board and $4.61 per sq ft with a 12mm board.
Get your laminate rooms priced in Toronto and the GTA
Send us your room sizes, what is on the floor now and whether the space is a house, a basement or a condo. We will run the same box arithmetic you saw above on your own measurements and the boards you are considering, and set out material, underlayment, installation and tax as separate lines. Start on our request a quote page and we will reply with a written estimate.
Top Floorings Depot
3781 Victoria Park Avenue, Unit 1, Toronto, ON M1W 3K5
www.topfloorings.com
Call: 416-499-0117
Text: 416-770-8819