Luxury-Vinyl-Tile-vs-Hardwood-Flooring

Luxury Vinyl Tile vs. Hardwood Flooring

Many people identify hardwood flooring as the standard in flooring material. However, luxury vinyl tile flooring has become the number one choice for many homeowners and designers in recent years, for a number of reasons. It is no longer a simple decision when you are presented with a floor design project, and there are a number of factors to consider when comparing luxury vinyl tile (LVT) and hardwood flooring. Aspects such as look and style, durability, and cost are all very important considerations and shouldn’t be overlooked when making your decision.

Aesthetics

As far as aesthetics are concerned, luxury vinyl tile is a strong competitor to hardwood flooring. Hardwood is timelessly beautifully, that is true. However, the look of hardwood is limited by a number of factors, such as the tree species (maple, oak, walnut, etc) as well as the stain and customization of installation design. Basically, you get what you pay for when it comes to hardwood flooring and often times that beautiful and timeless look will cost you an abundance more than the same look achieved with LVT flooring. Nowadays, luxury vinyl flooring can sometimes even be confused for natural hardwood. Not only are natural images printed on the vinyl flooring, but the individual planks are often even embossed for a more natural look and feel. When it comes down to it, it’s all a matter of personal preferences deciding between LVT and hardwood based on aesthetics alone.

Durability

Durability is an important component when deciding between luxury vinyl tile flooring and natural hardwood. As you might guess, luxury vinyl tile is definitely more durable than natural hardwood flooring, no matter what species of wood is used. Wood is a porous material, which makes it susceptible to moisture. This means that places that LVT can be installed, like bathrooms and basements, are not ideal locations for hardwood flooring. This also means that spills, drips or leaks are extremely detrimental to hardwood floors and can even cause mold and microorganism growth. LVT, however, is coated with polyurethane making it stain, moisture and microorganism resistant. Hardwood flooring can be durable if the right wood is chosen and constant upkeep is maintained. Often though, the ease of maintenance with LVT makes it the number one choice for many homes in Toronto.

Affordability

Looks and durability aside, the most important variable when it comes to choosing the right flooring for your project is probably going to be cost. You can probably guess that hardwood flooring is going to be more expensive than LVT, but just how much more depends on the exact flooring you are comparing. On average, hardwood flooring costs between $8 – $15 per square foot while luxury vinyl tile flooring costs $2-8 per square foot. What many people don’t consider, however, is the fact that there are lifetime costs associated with hardwood flooring that don’t occur when LVT is used. To properly maintain hardwood floors, they need to be treated and refinished from time to time, which can turn out to be quite costly. After considering what you want your finished floor to look like, what the space will be used for (how durable you need the flooring to be) and how much you want to spend you will find yourself in a better position to decide between hardwood and luxury vinyl tile flooring. Both are excellent options, but only one will be the right option for you. If you are having trouble choosing between hardwood and luxury vinyl flooring, the team at The Floor Shop can help you today. Give our office a call to schedule an appointment or simply stop by one of our 3 showrooms located in the Toronto, Mississauga or Etobicoke area.