On a flooring job, the flooring itself is the easy part to price. The money is in what happens before it goes down — tear-out, subfloor prep — and the trim work after. This guide covers luxury vinyl plank (LVP), laminate and carpet.
The short version. Measure each room, add waste for your layout, and round up to full boxes (or square yards for carpet). Then price tear-out, subfloor prep, underlayment and trim as separate lines.
1. Measure each room
- Measure length × width for each room, and break odd shapes into rectangles.
- Include closets and anywhere the floor runs under appliances or into doorways.
- Measure the perimeter too — you'll need it for base and quarter round.
2. Add waste for your layout
| Layout | Waste many installers use |
|---|---|
| Straight lay, simple rooms | About 5% to 10% |
| Diagonal, many rooms or lots of cuts | About 10% to 15% |
| Herringbone or patterns | About 15% or more |
3. Count boxes or square yards
Plank and laminate are sold by the box. Divide the area with waste by the square feet per box (printed on the box), then round up.
Example (illustrative): a 15 × 18 ft room, straight lay, with boxes that cover 20 sq ft.
| Step | Math | Result |
|---|---|---|
| Floor area | 15 × 18 | 270 sq ft |
| Plus 10% waste | 270 × 1.10 | 297 sq ft |
| Boxes | 297 ÷ 20 = 14.9, round up | 15 boxes |
| Perimeter for trim | 15 + 18 + 15 + 18 | 66 linear ft, minus doorways |
Carpet is usually sold by the square yard (9 sq ft) and comes on rolls, commonly 12 ft wide. Plan the layout around the roll width: a room wider than the roll needs a seam and extra carpet, so don't just divide the square footage by 9.
4. Price the prep
This is where flooring jobs lose money if it isn't on the estimate:
- Tear-out and disposal of the old floor (carpet, tile and glued-down floors take very different time)
- Moving furniture and appliances
- Subfloor prep: patching, leveling or grinding high spots. Floating floors have a flatness spec from the manufacturer, often stated like 3/16 inch over 10 feet.
- Moisture barrier over concrete, if the product calls for it
- Underlayment or pad, unless it's attached to the plank
- Undercutting door casings and jambs
5. Price the trim and transitions
- Base or quarter round (shoe moulding), by the linear foot
- Transitions at doorways and where floors change
- Stair nosing and treads — stairs are usually priced per step, not per square foot
6. Figure the labor hours
Estimate each part of the job, not just the install. Typical hours for the 15 × 18 ft room from above, LVP over an old carpet.
| Task | Typical labor hours |
|---|---|
| Move furniture | 1 |
| Tear out carpet and pad, haul away | 2.5 |
| Subfloor prep (patching and leveling) | 2 |
| Install 270 sq ft of plank | 8 |
| Base, quarter round and transitions | 3 |
| Clean up | 0.5 |
| Total | 17 hours |
Labor cost = total hours × your hourly labor cost. Your hourly labor cost is the wage plus burden — payroll taxes, workers' comp and insurance. For example, a $28 wage plus 25% burden is $35 an hour. If you work alone, use the wage you pay yourself. The free labor rates by state tool shows typical wages for your trade and area.
17 hours × $35 = $595 in labor. Notice the install is less than half the hours.
These are typical hours for a straightforward job with an experienced crew. Specialty and custom design work adds hours — for example herringbone or chevron layouts, borders and inlays, stairs, and rooms with many angles. Price those as their own lines, so the customer sees what the extra work costs. Your own times are the best guide: write down how long each task takes on every job, and your estimates get sharper each time.
7. Add overhead and profit
Add materials, labor and prep, then apply your overhead and profit. The free markup and margin calculator does the math.
Tip: Follow the manufacturer's installation guide, including acclimation and expansion gaps. Skipping it can void the product warranty — and the customer will call you, not the manufacturer.
See also: Trades HQ for flooring installers and Estimating Basics.