Houzz looked at the two big factors: material and color. Out of six options (tile, hardwood, vinyl, engineered wood, laminate, and natural stone), tile took the top spot with 24% of homeowners choosing ceramic or porcelain for their kitchen upgrade.
For 2021, tiles continue to be popular as kitchen flooring. Especially those that mimic traditional hardwood floors, with planks and “grain” finish details. Larger tile sizes remain popular, as they have in previous years. Plank tile 8” wide by 48” long is a big hit, as are 12” x 24” ceramic tiles.
Notably seen in farmhouse kitchen designs, encaustic-look tile is at the top of the trends list for not only backsplashes but also flooring. Encaustic tile is made by sealing clay and powdered glazes together via heat. Whether you choose ceramic or cement as the base of the tile, both are durable, high-style options.
1. Hardwood. One of the most traditional options, hardwood is still a popular choice for kitchen flooring today. Although not waterproof, solid hardwoods with the correct finish are water-resistant.
For kitchen flooring, durability and ease of cleaning are top criteria. Good choices are linoleum, ceramic tile--both very common--and wood. Linoleum is inexpensive and provides an easy-to-clean surface and comes in countless designs. Ceramic tiles are even better.
Matching your kitchen floor with the rest of the house can create a nice consistency, but laying a different floor can make the kitchen a unique area with better durability. You have to consider both the floor's color and the material. It is generally best to use flooring that can withstand the kitchen's environment.
It is not necessary for your kitchen floor to be darker than the base cabinets or wall cabinets. The color of your kitchen floor can actually be a little lighter or darker than the cabinets. This creates a proper balance in the room.
There is absolutely no need to change flooring from room to room. We often work with homeowners who feel the urge to pick a different flooring for every room of their home, but there is absolutely no need to do this. Your home will look best if you create one consistent look that travels from room to room.
1. Hardwood Continues to Dominate. Hardwood has remained at the top of the podium for decades now and continues to dominate the home flooring industry.
Vinyl stands up the best against excess moisture and spills, and it can be less expensive than laminate. However, laminate gives a more realistic wood look to enhance the design aesthetic in your home.
– Mullican Flooring, a leading manufacturer of quality hardwood floors, has provided flooring for three additional episodes of “Property Brothers,” a television series on the HGTV channel.
Luxury vinyl planks, or LVP, are built in layers, similar to hardwood laminate flooring planks, with a protective finish over multiple layers of pressed vinyl, sealed into a hardboard core, and finished with an underlayment backing.
When it comes down to finding the best flooring to increase home value, it all boils down to your market. Hardwood will likely give you the highest return, but laminate and luxury vinyl plank flooring also offer plenty of perks to buyers.
Hard surface flooring will give you the best return on investment, or ROI. Hardwood will be your best bet with the highest ROI since it's the long-standing preferred flooring choice. If you currently have hardwood floors, consider refinishing them if they need a little pick me up.
Gray flooring, particularly gray wood, has grown exponentially over the last decade and has quickly become the most popular trend, not just for flooring, but for homes in general. In addition to looking chic and trendy, gray floors set the tone of a cool, contemporary home.
Many home experts agree that the floor color should be darker than the walls. The rule generally applies because lighter walls and a dark floor make the room seem larger. Most homeowners prefer a spacious looking interior. However, the rule can change with low ceilings.
American maple hardwood flooring is a classic, and is a solid investment as it has great longevity – not just in actual terms because of its durability – but because it is a popular choice that is unlikely to go out of fashion.
Although it isn't necessary to match your kitchen and bathroom floors, there are plenty of advantages when you do match them. This is because both rooms will benefit from many of the same considerations for your flooring, such as: Water-resistant materials. Consistent styles.
Light-colored floors work well in a space that has dark cabinets or counters, because it offers a contrast that makes the cabinetry stand out. Lighter colors are often interpreted as calmer and more peaceful in a space. Believe it or not, lighter floors in the kitchen also hide scratches better than darker floors.
Choose a floor color based on your countertops to balance your kitchen. You can also match your flooring to your countertops instead of the cabinets. This way, the surfaces will be similar and create balance in your kitchen. Take a note of the shade of your countertops, and select a flooring option in a similar color.
If so, you might be wondering, Should wood floors be lighter or darker than cabinets? Luckily, there is no right or wrong answer here. Light-color hardwoods look excellent with dark wood cabinets, and vice versa. On the other hand, matching the colors isn't out of the question, either.
Generally speaking, your kitchen flooring and countertops should complement one another. This often means that they'll be two different colors that contrast with each other.
The Rule of Three
The flooring “Rule of Three” states that from any point in the home, you should see three different types of flooring, or less.
Put simply, the answer to the question do wood floors have to match room to room, is entirely one of personal choice. You can choose to have different flooring in each room if that works for you, but synergy and flow from selecting one central flooring material can look wonderful too.