I have a friend with this situation. I did not realize her kitchen was laminate and her living room is hardwood. They even run up against each other. The color and look is perfectly matched. If I had never seen it, I would also say no - never.

My personal preference is for hardwood throughout. Your kitchen laminate will not last as long as the hardwood will and will need to be replaced - not a forever floor and time flies - before you know it you will be replacing it and wish you had done hardwood in the first place. It is worth saving up for.

Thank you for taking the time to help me. This is very helpful!

I would also caution the use of laminate in a kitchen. It is considered an "inappropriate" installation for laminate. Laminate is a photograph over top of some sort of "board" (normally a wood based product). Spills aren't the only problem. Steam from a dishwasher has cause delamination, buckling and splitting inside of 3 years. Slow leaks from refrigerators (especially one's with icemakers/water dispensers) are common and they often lead to the death of laminate floors (can be very quick...a few weeks after the leak starts).

If you MUST put a wood look product in the kitchen/space...please look at vinyl. It is more appropriate for kitchens. It is possible to use a "stone" or "tile" look vinyl in the kitchen and then use the "near perfect wood match laminate" in the rest of the space.

I know this flies in the face of "continuous flooring". The kitchen and bathrooms are excluded from the "single flooring" throughout idea. If your laminate is a great match...you are welcome to use it elsewhere....please do not use it in the kitchen.

Some people have managed to have their HIGH END laminate ($3+/sf) last 7-10 years in a kitchen...but those stories are RARE. If you go ahead and install the laminate in the kitchen, PLEASE PURCHASE DOUBLE the kitchen square footage. Yes. Purchase enough to completely redo the kitchen. If the kitchen is 200sf...then purchase an extra 200sf.

That way, when you need to replace the kitchen floor in 7 years, you will have the ability to replace just the kitchen without worrying about finding materials that "match" what you have...you will have already purchased it. This is how you get laminate in a kitchen to last 15 years...you purchase enough to replace it when it wears out before year 10.

I've had laminate in my kitchen for almost 20 years. Still looks great. Wilsonart Brand. Not in business any more.

I also have the Wilsonart laminate in my kitchen and it's 10 years old now and still looks new. Wish they still made it, is there any laminate now that compares to the Wilsonart?

Agree with the last two comments. Laminate - especially the newer products - are very durable and WATERPROOF. I've had laminate in my kitchen now forever and wouldn't have anything else. If you put hardwood in a kitchen and get a leak, you've got a BIG problem. Buckling/warping and just a mess.

I also want to replace my kitchen floors with laminate and my living, dining and hallway with hardwood in a similar colour to the kitchen. Two doorways would transition from wood to laminate. My concern is should I gut and replace my kitchen or replace the wood flooring first? Also, I want the laminate under the cabinets, bad idea?

@Ana fitzwilliam,

You'll get better responses to your question by starting your own thread.

You will get advice to have hardwood in the kitchen rather than laminate, or to go with laminate through the whole floor.

I think I have read on this board that you don't put laminate under cabinets, but I could be wrong on that.