Laminate Flooring Cost: What to Budget for Your Australian Home

Planning a flooring reno and not sure where the budget needs to stretch? Boards across my range run between $25 to $73 per square metre, with the gap coming down to range, wear rating and water resistance rather than thickness alone. Budget options like Oakstep sit at the low end for dry rooms such as bedrooms and offices, while premium picks such as Oakstep Plus and AquawoodPlus push toward the top for busier, spill-prone zones. Underlay, trims and wastage all sit outside that per-square-metre figure, so it pays to price them separately before you commit to a box count.

Understanding Laminate Flooring Cost

When customers ask about laminate flooring cost, I break out all the parts of the flooring into separate line items, rather than giving one overall price.

First is the boards. I work out how many boxes to order, including the right amount of wastage.

Second is underlay. Most laminates say "underlay required" and the underlay isn't included. Be sure to check the details on each page to confirm whether underlay is included. Where underlay doesn't also include a moisture barrier, a moisture barrier is needed. Moisture barriers come in 2m x 50 lineal metre rolls.

Scotia or skirting trim is usually supplied in 2400mm lengths.

Stair nosing is ordered to suit the range you pick.

My range of laminate flooring boards are priced between $25 to $73 per square metre. Those prices are from my catalogue, they aren't the individual prices on any one product.

Laying laminate flooring and removing your existing floor both come with their own labour costs.

I don't include a rate for removing your existing floor or the cost of laying the laminate flooring, because labour rates differ, so I can't give you an accurate picture of that part of the cost.

Why is the price per square metre different?

It's not based on the box price, as box size differs between ranges. It's based on the price per square metre shown on the product page.

In my experience, it's the range that determines the price per square metre, not the features of each individual laminate board.

Look at the wear rating, or AC class, and the water resistance claims, but higher AC classes don't always mean higher prices. For instance, the boards in our budget range, Oakstep, and the boards in our premium range, Oakstep Plus, are both AC4, yet their cost per square metre differs greatly.

The floor layout doesn't affect the cost per square metre; if you want to lay boards in a herringbone pattern, you need to buy herringbone boards, which have their own cost per square metre and are sold in their own box size.

To calculate how much laminate flooring you'll need, measure the floor area, add a wastage factor, then round up to the nearest full box. Product listings suggest allowing between 7 to 10 per cent extra for straight plank installations and 15 to 20 per cent for herringbone installations, which is a lot more than the 10 per cent added by the online calculator when its wastage box is ticked.

Budget Laminate Flooring Options

To keep your laminate flooring costs down, go with our budget laminate flooring.

These 12mm thick Oakstep boards with an AC4 wear rating, at a budget price of $25 per square metre, are ideal for dry areas including bedrooms, home offices, guest rooms and rental properties. Like all standard laminates, these floors need to be kept dry; any spills must be wiped up as soon as possible.

These boards need underlay to be purchased separately, so include that in your budget, and remember straight-plank boards still need a wastage allowance of around 7-10% when you work out how many boxes to buy.

Paying a Little More Can Be Beneficial

Paying a little more makes sense if you need a bit of water resistance for a high traffic area.

You can find Oakstep Plus, which is described as "high water resistant", and AquawoodPlus, a waterproof core laminate, in our premium laminate flooring collection, where the price sits toward the upper end of our $25 to $73 per square metre laminate range. These two laminates have a stated water-resistance claim for the plank surface and core only, meaning topical spills wiped up promptly are less likely to damage them than standard laminate — but kitchens, living areas and bedrooms remain the suited rooms, not bathrooms or laundries.

The Bass Timber warranty does not cover standing water, leaks, or water entering the floor through seams or edges. These boards are not recommended for bathrooms, ensuites, toilets or laundries. A tiled floor is more suitable for those rooms.

The herringbone AquawoodPlus boards listed in the product listing are priced separately from the straight-plank AquawoodPlus boards, so check the specific listing for the pattern you want.

Thickness, Wear Rating and Water Resistance

Comparing boards by thickness is easy, but this doesn't tell you why the price per square metre may differ. For instance, the Oakstep, Oakstep Plus and AquawoodPlus are all 12mm laminate flooring, yet despite sharing that same thickness, their prices per square metre vary because of differences in wear layer quality and water-resistance treatment, not the thickness itself.

Neither does the wear rating provide the answer; the Oakstep and Oakstep Plus are both rated AC4, but Oakstep Plus boasts a greater claim to water resistance, and longer planks (2260mm compared to 1520mm).

The AquawoodPlus is rated AC5, but the manufacturer indicates its use of the word "waterproof" refers only to surface and core moisture resistance. So consider the AC class, water resistance and the plank length, as well as the price per square metre, when comparing these products. None of these attributes alone is enough to account for the difference in price per square metre.