How Long Does it Take to Lay Laminate Flooring?

Laminate flooring is an alternative solution when you want wood floors, but you don't have the time or patience for hardwood floors. According to Mathers Flooring, it would take you one day to install laminate flooring in a room that is 500 square feet, but the amount of time it takes to install the floor varies depending on how prepared you are for the job.


Before you start installing the laminate flooring, you need to examine the room closely. Determine if there are any areas of the room in which it may be difficult to install the laminate. Decide how you can work around the difficult area before you even start laying the laminate flooring. If you plan how you will tackle the problem areas ahead of time, you won't need to stop the installation to decide what to do.

Your Experience

If you have never installed a laminate floor, it may take you a little longer to become accustom to laying the planks and locking the planks together. After you have done a few rows, you will have a better feel for how fast you can go without making any mistakes. Cutting the planks and installing the end pieces by the walls takes the most time. The complexity of the room may slow you down if you need to make a lot of cuts for end planks.

Method of Installation

Snap-and-lock laminate flooring takes less time to install than glued flooring. The laminate that snaps together goes quickly, but if you are gluing the laminate, you need to prepare the floor, apply the glue and flooring. The gluing method is messier and takes much longer to complete. It is possible that it could take you two days to complete a small room if you are using glued laminate.


Although you may want to do the work yourself, it does help if you have someone helping you. The helper can hand you pieces of laminate so you don't need to stop between each piece. The helper can help you in difficult areas that may require more than one person to complete the installation. The helper could be the one cutting the end planks if you aren't comfortable with power tools or measurements.