Carpet vs. hardwood flooring
Whether for new construction or a home improvement project, flooring transforms any space. Carpet and hardwood are two of the most popular options, but figuring out when to choose carpet vs. hardwood for your home can be a challenge. Both offer real benefits, and most homes include both, depending on the space. In the end, the decision comes down to a balance of aesthetics, function and budget.
Carpet vs. hardwood considerations
When choosing between carpet and hardwood, start with how you live and how you will use the space. Do you prefer rooms with a stately elegance, or is your home a barely controlled mix of active adults, children and pets? Does everyone sit on furniture, or do you play games on the floor? Is the household calm and quiet, or noisy with voices echoing from room to room?
Also consider how you want people to feel in the space: casual and relaxed, sophisticated and serene, or energized and inspired. Think about your furnishings and your aesthetic preference, whether modern, transitional, traditional, rustic or eclectic.
Once those questions are answered, you can focus on the more technical side of carpet and hardwood to make sure whatever you choose suits the function of the room. Budget matters too, both material and installation costs.
There is no right or wrong answer between carpet and hardwood. This guide walks through the choice in more detail, to help you find flooring that fits both your style and your life.
Carpet in interior design
Carpet softens a space, literally and figuratively. It is a fit for bedrooms, dens or any living area where you want people to feel comfortable and cozy.
Installing carpet is a good way to introduce texture to a room, and since textured carpets are trending, there are more options available now than ever. Any carpet provides texture, but look for fibers of varied heights and thicknesses, or carved piles, for more tactile and visual interest.
Carpet also offers a wide range of color. Go neutral or dark to quiet a space like a bedroom or library. Deeper colors can ground a room with light walls and upholstery. Brighter or bolder colors add energy to an entertaining space, and pastels lighten a nursery or sitting room. See our post Top bedroom carpet trends for more on carpet color and style.
Benefits of carpet
Although hardwood continues to be desirable, carpet is making a comeback due to its benefits. Homeowners appreciate the comfort, sound reduction and insulation that carpet provides better than any other flooring, and it tends to cost less to purchase and install.
Carpet performance has improved over the years as well. Fibers like triexta in premium products make carpet easy to keep clean and fresh, with some brands offering warranties against pet stains.
Premium carpet fibers can hold up well in high-traffic areas like main living spaces. For durability, look for triexta or nylon.
Advanced cushions extend the life of carpet and keep spills and accidents from soaking in, and products like enzyme cleaners can stop carpet odors before they start.
Softness. Homeowners overwhelmingly choose carpet for its comfort underfoot. Today's yarns add real softness, and a high-quality cushion adds even more padding. Carpet is returning to bedrooms, dens and other living areas where people relax, and it is a more comfortable surface for children, and their parents, who often play on the floor.
Noise reduction. With that softness comes sound reduction. In a lively household, installing carpet can lower the decibel level, quieting heavy footfalls or the click of pet nails, and it can minimize noise from upper floors in multistory homes.
Thermal properties. Carpet feels warmer underfoot than any other flooring type, which is welcome on cold winter mornings. Carpet can also save money over time through its insulating properties, lowering the heating or cooling needed to keep a room comfortable.
Hardwood in interior design
An aspirational flooring category, hardwood is one of the easiest options to work into a room's design. The natural grain provides organic character with subtle or dramatic contrast for more or less visual texture. Colors range from white to black, though natural tones and browns remain the most common.
Hardwood styles are available to coordinate with the latest trends, but one of its best qualities is how it fits into any design scheme, whether modern, transitional, traditional or rustic, especially in medium tones and natural hues. That versatility allows you to redecorate over time without the cost and mess of ripping out the floor.
Benefits of hardwood floors
Although carpet wins on comfort, hardwood remains the most popular aesthetic for flooring in the country. Even when homeowners choose vinyl, tile or laminate, they tend to choose hardwood looks over any other.
With new technologies and a range of price points, it is more feasible than ever to bring hardwood into virtually any room of the house.
Durability. With proper installation and care, hardwood floors can last for generations. Some prefinished hardwood comes with tough finishes to help resist scratches and scuffs from everyday use, including wear from pet claws. Engineered hardwood adds dimensional stability to resist humidity and temperature swings, and hardwood can stand up to years, even decades, of use in high-traffic areas like main living spaces and hallways, a major benefit for active families.
Maintenance. Premium products with stain and soil resistance, and even waterproofing, make hardwood floors easier to clean and maintain than ever, including waterproof hardwood. Premium waterproof engineered hardwood uses specialized joint technology that keeps spills on the surface, and perimeter sealing tape or waterproof quarter round protects along the edges of the room. One of the best benefits of solid wood floors is that they can be sanded down multiple times to buff out scratches and scuffs, revealing a like-new floor. Some engineered flooring offers a hardwood layer thick enough to be sanded once or twice, though not as many times as a solid hardwood floor.
Timeless aesthetic. Design preferences come and go, but hardwood carries a classic beauty that does not go out of style. The trendiest hardwood looks may eventually date a room, but most hardwood flooring offers timeless appeal. Hardwood floors have been a preferred flooring choice for decades, not exactly a fad.
Carpet and hardwood flooring options
Once you make the choice between carpet and hardwood, next comes the fun part: shopping. If you need flooring for a new house or a home improvement project, look at high-performance products like Mohawk's triexta carpet or waterproof hardwood, and ask about performance accessories to coordinate with waterproof flooring.
If you are shopping for new hardwood or carpet for your home, visit our showroom to see the latest options. Our team will help you decide which flooring works best for you and your family.