Vinyl planking is a great flooring option. You get a nice look at an affordable price, and you can install it on your own with some help. Best of all, the hardwoods, vinyl tile or planks can be removed if they are damaged and replaced with a new piece. Here is our flooring calculator for vinyl plank, vinyl tile, and hardwoods. It’s for you to use and figure out how much you will need and its cost.
Flooring Calculator (works with Vinyl Plank, Hardwood and Vinyl Tile)
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Things To Know About the Vinyl Plank Calculator and Flooring Cost Estimator
Multiple areas
If you need to install flooring across multiple areas, enter each area into the four areas provided and their unit of measure (we use square feet as default). That way you will know how much you need for the whole job, not just the one room in your house.
Units of measure
This calculator can handle different units of measure, including square feet, square yard, meters, and even centimeters and inches. While most people will use square feet in their measuring of the overall space, you may have a measurement for the luxury vinyl tile as inches, and this will handle the conversion to square feet for you.
Waste
We recommend having a minimum of 10% extra for waste (more is always better) when installing vinyl flooring. In the process of installing, you will likely make one or two (or five in my case) bad cuts. Plus, it’s good to have extra vinyl flooring on hand if you want to swap out a plank later on. It’s good for situations when you drop something sharp.
Installation
We have a place for you to enter in the cost of the installation. Installation costs will vary depending on the scale of the job. The average cost of installation is around $2000 for a job or a decent scale. Keep in mind, too, that the style of tile may require more effort, and if there is a pattern that needs to be matched up, it can take even longer, costing you more.
Square feet per box
Boxes of vinyl tile, planks, and hardwood will usually have a square footage amount that the box will cover if they are all installed. This is the total square feet you are buying, so you will need to consider waste in the calculation. Our calculator does this for you automatically, starting with a 15% waste amount.
This vinyl flooring calculator shows you how many boxes you will need (including waste) and how much you can expect to pay for it. Always remember, when you ask “how much vinyl plank flooring do I need?” it’s best to get more and return it than to run out.
Price per box of vinyl and hardwood flooring
The price of vinyl flooring can have quite a range. If you are installing luxury vinyl flooring or luxury vinyl tile, (lvt) it will be more expensive than your standard vinyl flooring planks; by entering in the price per box, you can get a cost estimate on how much you will need to buy and what it will cost you. Some places may use price per square foot, but usually, it’s by the box. On average, the price per square foot for vinyl tile is $1-$2 sq ft.
Home renovation? Use our free home renovation budget template in Excel and Google Sheets.
Vinyl Plank Flooring Sizes
Vinyl plank flooring comes in a few different sizes. The most common vinyl floorings are 36 and 48 inches in length and can range anywhere from 4 to 12 inches wide. While you may find some smaller than this, these are the most common two sizes you are likely to find.
You can also use this with vinyl tile though you may want to use our tile calculator for that, just in case you start thinking you want a tile floor instead. If you think all flooring is alike (which is what I used to think before I got into all of this), you will be shocked.
How are Vinyl Planks Sold?
Typically you will buy vinyl plank flooring in a box. The box will have multiple planks and cover a certain amount of square footage—a few things to note. You should always buy more and return the unopened boxes. From our experience, it’s always best to have more vinyl flooring and return the extra than to return to the store towards the end of your project only to find that they are sold out of your flooring and may not have it in again for months.
The cost of flooring will have a huge impact on your total cost. Luxury vinyl planks and vinyl tiles can increase the cost by the way they are installed, and that is due to the extra labor involved. It’s a rule of thumb that materials are one-third of the total cost, and labor makes up the other two-thirds, so be aware as you increase your flooring costs, other costs may rise as well.
Hardwood Flooring Sizes
Hardwood flooring planks can come in a variety of sizes. The most common hardwood flooring widths are somewhere in the range between 2 1/4 to 3 inches. There are other sizes but this range is the most common for hardwood floors. Just like buying vinyl flooring, it’s best to buy more and return the boxes that are unopened rather than run out mid jo to find out the local store has run out.
How is Hardwood Flooring Sold?
The average box of hardwood flooring will have roughly 20 square feet in it. But it’s best to check the box. Each one will have the specifics on the box.
What Should I Budget for Flooring Installation?
If you plan on hiring someone to do your flooring installation, it’s a good idea to ask how they charge first. Is it by the day, square feet, rooms? Usually, the installer will charge by square feet, and there may be extra charges on top of that for travel and materials. It’s best to ask all of these things before you commit to hiring an installer, as they can drastically increase your price.
Because flooring installation prices can vary from state to state and even from city to city, it’s best to ask the place you are buying your vinyl tile or flooring from to see what they charge for a flooring installation. That way, you can get an idea of what your labor cost will be.
What Tools Do I Need to Install Vinyl Plank Flooring?
You will need some essential tools for installing your plank flooring if you are doing it yourself. Make sure to factor in these additional costs in that you won’t be hiring a flooring installer and add them into your installation fee as a way to include these costs in your renovation budget.
- Vinyl Planks (You can get samples on Amazon)
- Square
- Chalk line
- Utility Knife
- Power Saw
Will this flooring calculator work with laminate flooring?
Yes, this will also work on laminate flooring, I would still keep the amount of waste the same, and the installation cost may change depending on what type of laminate flooring you install.
Related: Best Mops for Laminate Flooring
Will this flooring calculator work with hardwood flooring?
Yes, this will also work on hardwood flooring, You may need a few different pieces (like a nose piece for the stairs), but the square footage would be the same. There will also be a higher cost for floor vents if you want the get hardwood floor vents that match the floor.
Another thing would be the extra work that may be needed around stonework like a fireplace. With this added option, your installed would likely need to use a box-cut, unless this is a new house or a custom home where the fireplace stonework hasn’t been done yet. If that is the case, get them to stop the stone the width of the wood from the floor so the wood floor can fit nicely underneath it. It looks a lot nicer than a box cut.
Wood plank flooring against a stone fireplace.
Waste wise I would still keep the amount of waste the same, and the installation cost would likely change as hardwood installers are usually more expensive than vinyl plank installers.
Will this flooring calculator work with linoleum flooring?
This calculator can work with linoleum flooring. However, it’s important to realize a few things about installing linoleum flooring before you use this calculator. Linoleum is sold by the sheet, unlike luxury vinyl planks or high-end vinyl tiles that are sold by the box. You buy a roll of linoleum, usually in 12 to 16-foot lengths (or less depending on the area).
Linoleum has changed over the years to have grout lines, and some are indistinguishable from real tile.
Can I install linoleum flooring myself?
Yes, you can install linoleum on your own. We recently did it, but it is very finicking, and you want to make sure you are able to do everything you need at once. A poor installation can leave bubbles in the flooring, and not cutting it properly can leave unsightly gaps if you don’t make sure everything is square. This will cause you to buy another large sheet.
Whereas if you are using vinyl plank flooring, if you make a mistake, you can pop out the bad vinyl plank and put in another one. With linoleum, if you mess up, it is there permanently, or you are buying a new sheet to replace it. Not so bad if it’s a small area like a basement wet bar, but very costly if you are putting it in a large area like a kitchen, great room, or one of the other large rooms in the house. Personally, I wouldn’t do it unless I knew what I was doing, and it was very handy.