Flooring Cost Calculator
Price a whole floor with this flooring cost calculator: material, install labor, subfloor prep, tear-out, trim and stairs, plus a cost per year comparison.
By CalcBuilt Editorial TeamUpdated September 9, 2026Formulas checked against manufacturer specs, see how we calculate.
Results
- Total range
- $2,975 to $7,050
- 500 sq ft of luxury vinyl plank, floating install, plus tearing out carpet and pad, 90 ft of trim
- Cost per square foot installed
- $5.95 to $14.10 per sq ft
- Everything above divided by the floor area. The covering and its labor alone are $5.00 to $11.50 per sq ft, which is the number a retailer quotes
- Material versus labor
- $1,579 to $3,689 material
- Labor $1,396 to $3,351, about 48% of the job. Floating installs carry the least labor and thin-set tile roughly three times as much
- Prep, tear-out and trim
- $475 to $1,290
- tear-out $250 to $750, trim $225 to $540. These are the lines a price per square foot leaves out
- Cost per year of service
- $119 to $470 per year
- 15 to 25 years for luxury vinyl plank in a home. Carpet is the cheapest to buy and the most expensive per year; solid hardwood is the reverse because it sands back four to six times
Flooring Cost formula
Covering = Area x (Material $/sq ft + Labor $/sq ft for the install method)
Prep and tear-out = Area x (Subfloor prep $/sq ft + Removal $/sq ft)
Trim and stairs = Trim length (ft) x $2.50 to $6.00 + Steps x the per step rate
Total = Covering + Prep and tear-out + Trim and stairs
Cost per year = Total / service life in yearsWorked example
A 900 sq ft main floor in engineered hardwood glued to a slab, with self-leveling compound first, glued vinyl coming out, 160 ft of base and 13 steps. Material is 900 x $5 to $12 = $4,500 to $10,800. Glue-down labor is 900 x $3 to $6.50 = $2,700 to $5,850, so the covering is $7,200 to $16,650.
Self-leveler adds 900 x $2 to $5 = $1,800 to $4,500. Tear-out is 900 x $1.50 to $3.50 = $1,350 to $3,150. Base is 160 x $2.50 to $6 = $400 to $960, and the stairs are 13 x $100 to $250 = $1,300 to $3,250. That is $4,850 to $11,860 of prep, tear-out and trim against a $7,200 to $16,650 covering. The job lands at $12,050 to $28,500, or $13.39 to $31.67 per square foot.
Quick reference
| Covering | Material per sq ft | Installed per sq ft | Service life | Cost per sq ft per year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Carpet with pad | $2 to $6 | $5.50 to $13.00 | 5 to 15 years | $0.37 to $2.60 |
| Sheet vinyl | $1.50 to $4 | $4.50 to $10.50 | 10 to 20 years | $0.23 to $1.05 |
| Laminate | $2 to $5 | $4.00 to $9.50 | 15 to 25 years | $0.16 to $0.63 |
| Luxury vinyl plank | $3 to $7 | $5.00 to $11.50 | 15 to 25 years | $0.20 to $0.77 |
| Polished concrete | $1 to $3 | $4.00 to $10.00 | 30 to 50 years | $0.08 to $0.33 |
| Engineered hardwood | $5 to $12 | $8.00 to $18.50 | 25 to 40 years | $0.20 to $0.74 |
| Solid hardwood | $6 to $14 | $9.50 to $21.00 | 40 to 60 years | $0.16 to $0.53 |
| Porcelain tile | $3 to $10 | $9.00 to $23.00 | 40 to 60 years | $0.15 to $0.58 |
| Natural stone | $7 to $25 | $13.00 to $38.00 | 40 to 60 years | $0.22 to $0.95 |
Four numbers, not one price per square foot
A flooring quote hides its shape behind a single rate. Break it into the covering, the prep, the tear-out and the trim, and the spread between two bids usually explains itself. The covering is material plus install labor, and it is the only part a showroom price covers. Prep is whatever the subfloor needs to hit the flatness in the instructions. That is usually 3/16 inch over 10 feet for planks and 1/8 inch over 10 feet for tile. Tear-out is priced by what is coming up, and it swings from $0.50 per square foot for carpet to $6 for tile set in mortar.
Trim is the line most homeowners forget. A floating floor needs a 1/4 inch expansion gap at every wall, and something has to cover it: new base, shoe against the old base, or a scribed reducer. Add a transition at every doorway and at any change of height. Then come the site items that never appear on a bid at all. Someone moves the furniture, pulls and resets the toilet, disconnects the gas range, and trims the doors that no longer swing. Get each of those named in writing before the deposit, because on install day they are change orders at the crew's hourly rate.
Cost per year is the comparison that settles it
Carpet is the cheapest floor to buy and the most expensive to own. At $5.50 to $13 per square foot installed over a 5 to 15 year life, it costs $0.37 to $2.60 per square foot every year. Solid hardwood installs at $9.50 to $21 and lasts 40 to 60 years because it sands back four to six times. That works out to $0.16 to $0.53 per square foot per year. Porcelain tile and polished concrete land in the same low band. Laminate and luxury vinyl plank sit in the middle: cheap to install, but neither can be refinished, so at 15 to 25 years they get replaced rather than repaired.
Two conditions decide whether any of that holds. On a slab, test moisture before anything is ordered. ASTM F2170 puts probes 40 percent of the way into the slab and reports relative humidity. ASTM F1869 tapes a dish of anhydrous calcium chloride down for 72 hours and reports pounds of vapor per 1,000 square feet per 24 hours. Manufacturers make one or both a warranty condition, usually 75 to 85 percent RH or 3 to 5 pounds. A test costs $150 to $300 and a failed floor costs the whole job. The second condition is acclimation. NWFA guidelines want solid and engineered wood metered within 2 to 4 points of the subfloor after days in the room. Laminate and vinyl plank want about 48 hours. That time is dead space in an installer's schedule, which is why it gets skipped.
What this calculator leaves out
Permits where a structural subfloor is replaced. Asbestos testing on sheet vinyl or 9 x 9 inch tile in a house built before 1980 is typically $300 to $600. A positive result turns tear-out into abatement. Also outside it: moving furniture, appliance disconnect and reconnect, pulling and resetting toilets, door trimming and new thresholds, a slab moisture test, and radiant heat mats under tile. Underlayment is only in the number when the material carries it, so foam, cork, cement board and uncoupling membrane are separate. Stair nosings, closet flanges, floor vents cut to match, and the spare box you keep for repairs are not counted either.
Mistakes that cost money
- A price per square foot covers the material and its install labor only; prep, tear-out, trim and stairs are typically another 20 to 40 percent.
- Appliance disconnects are not in a flooring bid. A gas range or a plumbed refrigerator needs a licensed trade, typically $150 to $350 each.
- Doors stop clearing the floor once it gets thicker. Ask in writing who trims them, usually $25 to $50 a door plus a new threshold.
- Furniture moving is billed by the room or refused. A piano, a gun safe or a slate pool table needs its own mover booked separately.
- Skipping a $150 to $300 slab moisture test voids the warranty on every floating and glue-down product sold for concrete.
- Acclimation is unpaid days on a crew's schedule, so a booked-back-to-back installer lays it early and you own the gaps next winter.
Key facts
- ASTM F2170 reads relative humidity inside a slab with probes set 40 percent of the way down, and flooring warranties usually cap it at 75 to 85 percent.
- ASTM F1869 measures moisture vapor with anhydrous calcium chloride, and resilient and laminate warranties commonly cap it at 3 to 5 lb per 1,000 sq ft in 24 hours.
- Subfloor prep typically runs $2 to $5 per sq ft for self-leveling compound and $6 to $12 per sq ft for full subfloor replacement, at 2026 US rates.
- Removing ceramic tile and its mortar bed typically costs $2.50 to $6 per sq ft, four to five times the cost of pulling carpet and pad.
- Solid 3/4 in hardwood carries about 1/4 in of wear layer above the tongue, enough for four to six sandings across a 40 to 60 year life.
Frequently asked questions
How much does it cost to install 500 square feet of flooring?
In luxury vinyl plank floated over a sound subfloor, with the old carpet removed and 90 ft of new shoe, typically $2,975 to $7,050, which is $5.95 to $14.10 per square foot. The same room in porcelain tile runs $4,975 to $12,800, because thin-set labor is $6 to $13 per square foot.
Does a flooring quote include removing the old floor?
Usually not. Tear-out and disposal are a separate line, typically $0.50 to $1.50 per square foot for carpet and pad and $2.50 to $6 for tile set in mortar. Ask whether the dump fee, the dumpster and the haul-away are inside that number.
Do I need a moisture test before flooring goes over concrete?
Yes, if you want the warranty. Manufacturers set a limit by ASTM F2170 in-slab relative humidity, commonly 75 to 85 percent, or ASTM F1869 calcium chloride at 3 to 5 lb per 1,000 square feet in 24 hours. A test runs $150 to $300 and a failed slab needs a moisture barrier or a mitigation coating before anything goes down.
Which flooring is cheapest over twenty years?
Solid hardwood, porcelain tile and polished concrete, at $0.08 to $0.58 per square foot per year, because they outlast several cycles of anything else. Carpet is the most expensive at $0.37 to $2.60 per square foot per year despite the lowest install price.
Sources and references
- ASTM F2170, relative humidity in concrete floor slabs using in situ probes (ASTM International)
- ASTM F1869, moisture vapor emission rate of a concrete subfloor using anhydrous calcium chloride (ASTM International)
- NWFA technical guidelines for subfloor flatness, moisture and acclimation (National Wood Flooring Association)
- LevelQuik RS self-leveling underlayment product data (Custom Building Products)
Next steps for this project
The usual order for a flooring & tile project. See all flooring & tile calculators.
Results are estimates based on standard formulas and typical product specifications. Confirm quantities with your supplier and local code before ordering.