Design: Laminate flooring provides the realistic look of all species of wood, and even stone or tile.

Lower cost: Laminate flooring has lower material and installation costs than hardwood or tile.

Longer lasting: Laminate flooring is extremely durable and harder to scratch than most other floors and is one of the best flooring options. A quality product should last 15 to 30 years.

DIY-friendly: Laminate flooring is easy for inexperienced craftsmen to install because it comes in click- together interlocking planks. Laminate flooring boards snap together without glue.

Floating installation: Laminate floors are floating floors. The boards are not attached to the floor. This means that a laminate floor can be installed over nearly any surface without a lot of preparation.

Transitions easily to other floors: Laminate floors are easy to match up to carpet, tile and other kinds of floors because of the variety of trims and moldings available.

Family flooring: Laminate floors are great for households with children and pets.

Easy care: Laminate floors are very easy to care for.

Environmentally responsible: Laminate floors release virtually no VOC emissions and contain no allergens.

Shortcomings of laminate flooring

"Hollow" sound: If laminate flooring is not installed with the correct underlayment, footsteps on the floor may create a hollow sound.

Cannot be refinished: Even though laminate floors stand up well to wear, if they do scratch they cannot be resurfaced like hardwood floors. Scratches can be concealed using special pencils made by the manufacturer.

Lower perceived value: A laminate floor does not have the same perceived value as the natural material it mimics, such as hardwood or natural stone.

Shorter life expectancy: A laminate floor is not expected to last as long as natural products like genuine hardwood or stone.