Laminate, especially in the better grades, can be an awesome floor. Like, "It still looks new after 17 years!" type of awesome.

I'm a fan of higher grade laminate because I've sold/worked with some of the best stuff out of Europe. The Swiss and German made products (and many manufacturers in Portugal who are cork companies) are top notch laminates. The cost (depending on country you are in) is between $3/sf (USA) and $7/sf (Canada). Most can be found in the $4/sf range.

Now compare to LOW LEVEL engineered hardwood. These products are almost EXCLUSIVELY made in China. The delay times can be atrocious (remember: China's production industry has been delayed by 14 months) and the quality is somewhere around the 'Buyer Beware!' level.

LVP is an option for whole home installations WHEN the kitchen AND baths and entranceways are part of the equation. You do not have that level of installation. For me, LVP is a product with a WET purpose. If you do NOT have wet, then there is no reason to work with LVP.

What I will tell you is this: If you plan on expanding this flooring to the rest of the house, then I recommend you purchase it ALL RIGHT NOW. Why, you ask? Because these 'man made' products (that includes engineered hardwood, laminate, LVP, tile, etc) are only available to purchase for 18 - 24 MONTHS. Yah. You have 1-2 years TOPS....and then after that you will NEVER see it again...ever. So purchase your square footage + 5% for the install. And then an extra box per 500sf (to a max of 100sf extra = roughly 4-5 boxes).

This will ensure you have enough to make a SIGNIFICANT repair (like half the dining room).

Thank you! I was hoping you would comment. My dining room is where the access to the yard is, and with pets and a kids, it gets heavy use. I’m in the US. The flooring company id prefer to use is quoting about $4 a square foot for laminate and between $5-$7 for engineered hardwood. My budget is limited (I’m trying to keep things under $10-$12 a square foot all in), so it sounds like laminate may be the better option. Although it’s good to know I should be asking for European based brands. I believe this flooring company sells Armstrong, Mohawk, Hallmark, DaTile, Regal, and Nova, I’d rather have something that will last and still look great in 7-8 years.

@SJ McCarthy Can you elaborate on what you mean by engineered flooring will only be available for purchase for 18-24 months? Thank you!

OK...first things first: Do NOT use engineered hardwood from Shaw brands. Just to be sure you can look up the Shaw 'umbrella' on their website. They will list how many companies they own.

Now...onto the 18-24 months to purchase: like EVERYTHING in our 'disposable' economy, interior design items are cyclical. Things that need to stay put for decades (ie. kitchens, baths, floors, etc) are on the same cycle as everything else.

Flooring is a LONG lasting product (in theory...don't get me going ;-). So the makers of floors have to CHANGE their line up every few months. So. If your 'ideal' floor hits the shelves (the display racks) in January 2021 (this is JUST an example) it will be 'finished' or 'pulled' sometime in summer 2022. They WILL NOT make another board foot of it! Ever. Everything that was manufactured was manufactured during 2021. They will have stock piles that will ship out (huge shipments) to different vendors. Those vendors will hold those shipments (many truck loads full!) in various warehouses and then will 'distribute' them to their 'stores' as the stores request more.

Notice the lag time from the time they STOP manufacturing to the time they 'sell out'. It is roughly 12 months. The last plank will roll off the machines in December 2021 (again...just an example) but it could take another 12 months for the entire N. American continent to 'empty' the HUNDREDS of warehouses of their stocks.

And THAT'S why you need to be FULLY aware of your 7 year renovation plans. Yep. I said 7 years. If you *plan on 'adding' more of the same flooring in 3 years, you will never, ever find it. The only way to find it is to purchase it all at once and put it in storage until you need it. That's the only way you can get the same 'man-made' floor (factory finished and ready for install) in 3 years time.

Remember: You need to BUDGET for subfloor preparation AND underpadding. A floor that currently has carpet (I'm assuming...you did not mention what is currently in your space) will have horrible subfloors. Why? Because carpet hides the WORST building-mistakes. I like to estimate $2-$3/sf for subfloor preparation. That's the grinding, the filling, the sanding, etc.

The underpadding (for laminate) is roughly $1/sf for material AND install. You might get $0.80/sf cork underlay (6mm cork) which the installer will charge an extra $0.50/sf = $1.20/sf. That sort of thing.

That means the subfloor prep ($2/sf) plus the underlay costs ($1.20/sf) have added $3.20/sf ... and you haven't purchased a floor yet. Your $4/sf laminate + underpad = $7.20/sf. Now you pay for the $2.50/sf labour to install the laminate. Now you are sitting at $9.70/sf.

And to be clear, you can often find 2.75" solid red oak hardwood floors (raw wood that is site finished) for a TOTAL cost of $10 - $12/sf (includes EVERYTHING...even the labour and finish).

You can ALWAYS add more of the red oak...it 'grows on trees' around here ;-P

Just a thought.

Stephanie