The 11 Best Garage Flooring Options

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January 8, 2023

Looking for the best garage flooring options? You’ve found the right place to start! 

After all, the best garage flooring for your house might be different than the one for your neighbors. Each family uses this bonus space differently! 

If that sounds a little overwhelming, have no fear—we’re here to help. Below, we’re going to go over all the things you need to consider when choosing your garage flooring options before jumping into our list of the 11 best garage flooring materials. 

So let’s dive in and talk about the best garage flooring for you!

Choosing a Garage Floor: 4 Things to Consider 

Durability is important in all different rooms in your home, but especially so in your garage. Even the most durable wood flooring in the world won’t be able to survive here—but you can’t just start comparing the best vinyl flooring brands, either. There are other factors that need to be considered!

So: before you start shopping for garage flooring options, it’s important to know the answers to the following questions.

What Condition is Your Garage Flooring Currently In?

First things first. Are you updating the garage flooring because there is an issue with the current flooring? Garage floors don’t have a standard subfloor, so you have to be confident that the existing floor is in good shape. Otherwise, you might have to undertake the dreadful task of repairing concrete.

Weather and Temperature Both Matter: What Conditions Does Your Garage Experience?

The garage is a transitional spot between indoors and outdoors. That means that the weather and temperature outside have an impact on the products you choose to put in that space. 

For some products, a minimum temperature is required. If you’re located in a cold-weather climate, some flooring options are eliminated right off the bat. Don’t worry though, there are plenty of great options for you—it’s just important to consider your weather conditions when deciding.

What Type of Installation and Maintenance Do You Want?

Installation methods differ by product type. Some types of floors boast quick installs—floating vinyl plank flooring, for example. Others, including virtually all types of carpet, take a lot longer. If time is of the essence, the best garage flooring options for your needs might be of the quick-install variety!

The same goes for maintenance. There are some options that require lots of time and energy to maintain, and others that you can simply put in and forget about. At the end of the day, choosing flooring for your garage is a lot like choosing the best flooring for basements or the best flooring for bedrooms—it comes down to your specific maintenance preferences.

And Most Importantly, What Do You Plan to Use Your Garage For?

This is the fun part. Garages can be utilized in a variety of ways. From a basic car-park-and-storage area to a full-fledged workroom or gym, everyone has a different vision. Maybe you want a little of both, and you need something that will be able to accommodate different activities? 

Even if you decide to keep cars out of your garage, it’s important to consider how your garage flooring affects your home’s resale value. Most people use the garage as a place to park cars, especially in climates with inclement weather. So if you choose something that can’t handle car traffic, you might be setting yourself up to lose money down the road.

The 11 Best Garage Flooring Options 

The main event! Let’s talk about the 11 best garage flooring options and what they’re best for. 

We know—you have a lot of questions. Is hemp flooring an option? What types of flooring are best to park cars on? Is there something to match your outdoor vinyl flooring? How do you choose between tile vs. laminate if you want a workroom? 

Don’t worry, you’ll get the answers you need and be ready to shop in just a few minutes!

#1. Vinyl Plank: Amazing for Low-Traffic Garages

Also known as “luxury vinyl tile” or LVT, vinyl plank flooring is quickly becoming one of the most popular floors around. 

While there are many different types of vinyl flooring, the most robust versions are known as engineered vinyl plank, or EVP flooring. These products boast specialized cores that give them extra strength or comfort. SPC and WPC flooring, for example, are two of the most popular types of EVP vinyl.

Why Vinyl Plank Might Be One of the Best Garage Flooring Options

Today’s vinyl plank floors come in all sorts styles and appearances, from products that mimic light wood flooring to ones that mimic ebony floors. Translation: you can find always find something that works with the overall style of your home. 

If you’re repurposing the garage to be a gym or a workroom, vinyl plank is easy to clean and can handle high amounts of foot traffic. Not to mention, every one of these floors is a waterproof vinyl floor, since vinyl is waterproof by default!

Plus: the cost to install a vinyl plank floor is very low.

Why Vinyl Plank Might Not Be One of the Best Garage Flooring Options

Vinyl plank flooring does require some climate and humidity controls, so if your garage floor is open to the elements, even the best vinyl plank flooring brands won’t be able to last. 

Additionally, the adhesives used in glue-down vinyl plank flooring require certain environmental elements to remain consistent. And while vinyl can handle a lot of foot traffic, it isn’t generally made to handle the weight of cars or the stains they may leave behind. 

Some vinyl plank floors may be able to do this (the glue-down products from Proximity Mills come to mind, though we’d still recommend checking with them)—but at the end of the day, it’s really on a case-by-case basis. Box store products like SmartCore flooring or LifeProof vinyl plank flooring? Forget about it.

#2. VCT: A Super Strong Garage Flooring Option

VCT, which stands for vinyl composite tile, is a more robust—if not nearly as beautiful or comfortable—version of LVT (notice how there’s no “luxury” in this product). 

This floor is made by combining vinyl chips combined with fillers like limestone to make a super-durable product. In fact, it’s probably what lined the floors of every school and hospital you’ve ever been in!

Note: VCT is not the same as linoleum or peel and stick vinyl plank flooring. All three are different types of flooring—and you can learn more about linoleum vs. laminate vs. vinyl right here, if you’re interested. 

Why VCT Might Be One of the Best Garage Flooring Options

VCT is a popular option in high-traffic locations because it’s one of the most durable types of tile around. Once it’s installed, you coat the floor with layers of wax, which helps protect it. Also, you can customize the layout to be any combination of colors you want. Make your garage look like a showroom with shiny VCT floors! 

PS: as you might imagine, most VCT tiles can stand up to cars!

Why VCT Might Not Be One of the Best Garage Flooring Options

The shiny showroom look is not the most low-maintenance flooring option. VCT requires a lot of cleaning—and occasionally, buffing and waxing. It’s oddly similar to the process required to refinish bamboo flooring or any other hardwood species—you just have to do it more often.

Additionally, this garage flooring option may get stained by tires if it’s not properly sealed, so make sure to use an installer that really knows what they’re doing.

#3. Interlocking Plastic Tiles: An Easy Option for DIYers

Interlocking tiles for the garage are usually made of plastic, though you can find some similar PVC flooring products as well. Interlocking tiles generally come in a standard size of 12” x 12”, but there are some larger options available too. 

Why Plastic Tiles Might Be One of the Best Garage Flooring Options

Interlocking plastic tiles have a reinforced grid system on the underside that helps with air and water drainage, and some are even “self-draining”. How these grids are set up determines the amount of weight they can handle, so you can choose the best garage flooring option for you. 

Most importantly, it’s easy to find heavy-duty plastic tiles just about everywhere. They even sell them at Home Depot! And as you might imagine, given that they’re specifically designed as a garage flooring option, they can stand up to cars with no problem.

Another huge perk: interlocking tiles make for a super easy DIY flooring project. The installation process involves just clicking these tiles together into place, similar to snap-together tile flooring (except without all the messy grout).  

Why Plastic Tiles Might Not Be One of the Best Garage Flooring Options

If your garage gets a lot of direct sunlight, the interlocked tiles may absorb the heat and expand—possibly causing them to buckle. Obviously, you aren’t shopping for sunroom flooring here, but if you have large windows in your garage or keep your door open often, this could be a factor. 

Plus these interlocked tiles are technically floating floors (and what is a floating floor, you ask?)—which means the obnoxious disadvantages of floating floors apply to these surfaces too. 

#4. Rubber Flooring: A Great Option for Home Gyms

Rubber is a great garage flooring option, especially if you want a home gym or play area. 

You can choose between rubber tiles and a roll of rubber cut to size—either way, it’s going to give you a lot of cushion under your feet (just like best cork flooring) but with the benefit of being water-resistant!  

Why Rubber Might Be One of the Best Garage Flooring Options

Rubber is comfortable, it provides traction (so you don’t slip and slide all over your floor), and it’s resistant to stains, mold, and mildew. 

If a gym space is what you’re looking for, rubber is a great garage floor option because it’s so forgiving under your feet when you’re moving around. Plus, it won’t get damaged if you drop weights on it. One of the big disadvantages of vinyl plank flooring (and similar rigid options) is that they can be damaged by heavy objects. Rubber can handle this abuse.

Why Rubber Might Not Be One of the Best Garage Flooring Options

It’s important to know that not all rubber is created equal. Many of the products sold in the United States are made from rebonded rubber, which is held together by glue. 

This type of product will break down over time from the weight of cars. You’ll want to look for virgin rubber or vulcanized rubber flooring if you’re planning to park in your garage. 

#5. Rollout Mats: Easy to Move Around

If you’re looking for garage flooring options that are easy to move around and swap out, rollout mats are a great option. You can find rolls made of rubber and others made of vinyl. This isn’t the vinyl you’ll find in the best vinyl plank flooring, though—it’s more of a commerical-grade PVC. 

Why Rollout Mats Might Be One of the Best Garage Flooring Options

Rollout mats are great to move around within your space. They’re perfect if you want to use your garage for multiple purposes and need different setups. You can roll out a mat when you’re exercising or working on your car, and roll it away when you’re done. 

Plus, rollout mats are definitely the easiest flooring to install since you don’t even need to install them, really. 

Why Rollout Mats Might Not Be One of the Best Garage Flooring Options

It’s important to make sure that the flooring underneath a rollout mat is in decent condition. This type of flooring will provide a little extra comfort, but it isn’t a permanent fix if there are structural issues. Plus, driving a car over an unsecured mat is a recipe for…well, nothing that bad, just a bunched-up mat!

#6. Carpet Tiles: An Easy Way to Bring Warmth to Your Garage

Maybe you’ve thought about carpet or hardwood for your bedroom, but carpet may seem like a strange option for the garage. 

But: if you want to take advantage of the additional square footage your garage provides (while still making sure you’re able to park there in an emergency) carpet tiles make a great option. 

If you don’t know how to install carpet tiles, it really is as easy as it sounds. Peel and stick carpet tiles are—you guessed it—just peel and stick! 

Why Carpet Tiles Might Be One of the Best Garage Flooring Options

Carpet in the garage helps add some warmth to your space. Plus it’s soft on your feet! 

Some brands like Proximity Mills even carry machine-washable carpet tiles. These luxury carpet tiles (LCT) are like the evolution of traditional peel and stick products—they’re installed with velcro-like “FriXion Pads” that make it oh-so-easy to install, remove, wash, and repeat.

A carpet also absorbs noise, which is great news if you plan on using your garage to start America’s next great cover band. Carpet tiles are also easy enough to swap and replace if there are spills or any stains that occur, and many of the best carpet brands sell them. What’s not to like? 

Why Carpet Tiles Might Not Be One of the Best Garage Flooring Options

If you’re looking for low-VOC flooring options, carpet tiles might not be your best choice. There are many low-VOC carpet options out there, but it’s definitely easier to find them than it is to find low-VOC carpet tiles. 

Moisture (whether it’s in the air or spilled on the ground) can also be an issue. And, of course, you’re most likely going to need to use a super strong adhesive if you plan on driving your car over them (which can also lead to staining).

#7: Polished Concrete: One of the Best Garage Flooring Options for Any Home

If you’re looking for a beautiful, shiny option, polished concrete might be the best garage flooring for you. And while it’s not a great DIY project, it’s pretty easy to maintain and clean. 

Why Polished Concrete Might Be One of the Best Garage Flooring Options

In addition to the lifespan and lack of maintenance issues you get with concrete, there are a few other perks. A shiny finish reflexes light and helps brighten up a space. Additionally, you don’t need to worry about your subfloor—concrete is the subfloor!

Why Polished Concrete Might Not Be One of the Best Garage Flooring Options

Although concrete is extremely durable, the polished finish isn’t the best option for every situation. Cold weather climates often have salted roads in winter, and that salt on your tires can damage the polished finish. 

If you have a high-traffic garage with a lot of activity, you’ll need to keep the area clean and sweep up sand and rocks more often to protect that finish, too. Finally, if you’re sticking to a tight budget, you’ll probably want to explore different options—the cost to install polished concrete can exceed wood flooring costs across the board, even the cost to install engineered wood floors.

#8. Painted Concrete: Quick and Affordable

A more budget-friendly garage option is painted concrete. The paint can help protect the concrete and make the space look nicer. It’s also a possible DIY project for a weekend if you want to do the work yourself.

Why Painted Concrete Might Be One of the Best Garage Flooring Options

With painted concrete, you can get a huge variety of different looks. Choose one of the many colors of the rainbow or even paint your concrete flooring to look like wood. Whatever you choose, it’ll be an exceptionally durable garage floor.

Heavy-duty paint can also be a shield against oils and other fluids that commonly spill in the garage. 

Why Painted Concrete Might Not Be One of the Best Garage Flooring Options

Many homeowners make the mistake of using cheaper materials when painting their garage flooring. Even with the best paints, there is always the risk of chipping, staining, and scuffing. If you’re anticipating high foot traffic in the garage (or a lot of driving in and out), painting may not be the best option.

#9. Epoxy Flooring: Long-Lasting with Great Value

Epoxy is one of the best garage flooring choices for garages that need a strong floor. Epoxy generally comes in 2 parts that mix together, forming an extremely hard, transparent material. You can add colors or materials in to achieve texturing, or simply leave it as-is. Either way, it looks (and performs) great in most garages.

Why Epoxy Flooring Might Be One of the Best Garage Flooring Options

Epoxy is so strong, it’s often used as an outdoor flooring option—seriously, epoxy floors are resistant to oil, gasoline, bleach, and most other substances. 

In addition to durability, price is a huge benefit of epoxy flooring. Since it can can go right on top of existing surfaces, it’s typically going to cost less than most other garage flooring options. You’re not looking into the cost to replace carpet with hardwood here—for an epoxy floor, you can expect to pay between $4 and $8 per square foot including labor. 

Why Epoxy Flooring Might Not Be One of the Best Garage Flooring Options

One of the only cons of the epoxy flooring is the installation process. It isn’t that it takes a lot of time and labor, like installing parquet flooring. Rather, the work comes in the preparation of the floor. You need to make sure the surface is clean and prepped appropriately or the epoxy won’t bond properly.
You’ll also have a strong odor from the materials if they’re not water-based—so if indoor air quality is important to you, you’d be better off going with something like low-VOC vinyl flooring or even a non-toxic laminate.

#10. Laminate: Great for Everything Except Cars

And speaking of: what is laminate flooring, exactly? Simply put, it’s the original composite fake wood flooring option. The material’s dense core layer (similar to the one found in the best engineered wood flooring), its high-resolution image layer, and its super-hard protective wear layer make it an extremely beautiful and scratch-resistant flooring choice.

Laminate can look like anything, but it most often comes in wood floor colors and wood flooring patterns—so if that’s a look you want for your garage, laminate is an option to consider. 

Plus, with so many famous brands to choose from—Mohawk laminate flooring (also known as RevWood), Shaw laminate flooring, AquaGuard laminate flooring, Newton laminate flooring—you have plenty of different options to consider.

Why Laminate Might Be One of the Best Garage Flooring Options

Laminate is an excellent garage flooring options if you plan on using your garage for non-car-related tasks. It’s beautiful, it’s robust, and it’s cheap to install—the average cost to install laminate flooring is lower than many of the other options on this list. 

Plus, it’s most commonly installed as click-together flooring, so you can remove it with ease if need be. 

Overall, laminate is a great way to make your garage feel like an extension of your living space. It’s beautiful, clean looking and pretty durable—what’s not to love? 

Why Laminate Might Not Be One of the Best Garage Flooring Options

While some laminate brands may be able to handle cars, they’re not common. It’s just important to check the specifications of the product you are going to purchase to verify as not all laminate is created equal. Check out our Costco laminate flooring piece or Armstong laminate flooring piece to understand more about the variation in quality.

Moisture is also an enemy of laminate. Waterproof laminate flooring does exist, but if you live in a very humid environment, you might think about going with waterproof hardwood flooring instead. Many waterproof hardwoods use a non-expanding SPC core layer.

And again—because it has to be said—laminate is great for garages that don’t see cars or typical garage-y activities. Many people say that non-waterproof laminates shouldn’t even be used as a kitchen flooring option!

#11. Porcelain Tile: For an Elevated Showroom Feel

Porcelain tile is made by baking clay in extremely hot temperatures, usually around 2,300 degrees Fahrenheit. Because of this heat, it’s stronger than ceramic and can handle more elements—it’s material is hard like stone, but not as porous.

Why Porcelain Tile Might Be One of the Best Garage Flooring Options

By choosing to put porcelain tile in your garage, you’re making a choice that will last for decades. Unlike loose lay vinyl plank flooring or even the very best hardwood floor brands, porcelain can essentially last forever. 

Porcelain tile is also stain-resistant. Because of how it’s made, the material is non-porous and will not allow any liquid or substance to penetrate it. It has an extremely dense composition and can stand up to anything you might expose it to.

Why Porcelain Tile Might Not Be One of the Best Garage Flooring Options

One of the biggest disadvantages of porcelain for many buyers looking for new garage flooring options is the cost. 

Just as importantly: porcelain is brittle. Some types may be able to handle the rolling load of a car, but some may not. We’d highly recommend chatting with your local flooring specialist about this one.

The Best Garage Flooring: FAQs

Before we wrap up, let’s go over some of the most commonly asked questions about choosing the best garage flooring.

What is the Most Durable Garage Floor?

That’s a great question, and one with no hard-and-fast answer. Obviously, the best flooring for any garage has to be super durable. Overall, we’d say that concrete and epoxy take the cake here.

What is the Longest-Lasting Garage Flooring?

Porcelain and concrete are the longest-lasting garage flooring options. With proper maintenance, these two materials will last decades and be able to stand up to all kinds of different activities including parking cars, working with tools, and storing different seasonal items.

When Painting Garage Floors, What Kind of Paint Should I Use?

We recommend using epoxy—it lasts the longest and is extremely durable. If you want to just use paint, you can choose from acrylic or latex for an easier project that is good for DIYers. It’s important to powerwash, degrease, fill any cracks, and sweep before you begin to make sure to remove any dust and dirt first.

Can You Put Wood Flooring in a Garage?

If you’ve fallen in love with one of the many types of wood flooring on the market and you’re hoping you can use it in your garage space, we’ve got bad news for you. Hardwood is not a good option for this space, unless your garage will see zero car traffic or exposure to the elements. And even then, we’d most likely recommend a waterproof hardwood or laminate product (as we mentioned above). 

Your only option would be to completely enclose the garage, make sure it’s climate-controlled, and no moisture will come up through the floor, and then you might be able to add some hardwood floors. But your best bet is to decide between vinyl plank vs. laminate because they both have the look of hardwood without all the requirements for installation and maintenance.

What Are the Best Colors for Garage Floors?

When deciding on the color you want to use for your garage floor, it’s a good idea to first define how you plan to use the space. If you use the garage often, a neutral color like grey or tan will be easier to clean and maintain. You can also select a cool, darker tone like blue or green to make the space feel more relaxing. 

How Much Does It Cost to Do a Garage Floor?

This question is tough to answer because the range is big. You can find some options for as cheap as $2 per square foot and others that will be five or six times more than that. 

Remember that you should also figure in how long you’re going to stay in your home and how quickly you will need to replace the flooring again. You might want to spend a little more now to avoid having to do this again in a few years.

Conclusion

So: what’s the best garage flooring for you? It depends on your needs!

Whatever the case, planning an update for your garage floor will bring up a lot of questions about how you want to use your space. Luckily, there are tons of flooring ideas regardless of what direction you decide to go. 

Have fun with the process, consider all the great options and think outside the box. And of course, don’t be afraid to ask the experts at a top-rated flooring store near you!

For more flooring inspiration, check out our other incredible resources:

Hardwood

• The 10 Best Types of Wood Flooring For Dogs
• Water-Resistant Wood Flooring 101
• Advantages & Disadvantages of Hickory vs. Oak Flooring
• Engineered Hardwood vs. Laminate: Side-by-Side Comparison
• Oak Flooring Cost Calculator: The 2022 Guide

Vinyl

• COREtec Flooring Reviews: Plus, Pro Plus, & More
• Flexible vs. Rigid Core Luxury Vinyl Flooring
• Underlayment for Vinyl Flooring: Your Total Guide
• Vinyl Plank Flooring on Stairs: Your Total Guide
• Mannington Vinyl Flooring Reviews 2022: Adura Max, Rigid, & More
• Shaw Vinyl Plank Flooring Reviews 2022

Laminate

• TrafficMaster Laminate Flooring Reviews: Is it Worth It?
• Pergo TimberCraft Reviews: Is Lowe’s Pergo Laminate Worth Buying?
• Laminate Flooring Pros and Cons: The 2022 Guide
• Pergo Outlast Reviews: Is Home Depot’s Pergo Any Good?
• The Best Flooring for Every Room & Situation: Your Guide

Carpet

• Lees Carpet Reviews: Is It Worth Buying?
• Yes, You Can Layer A Rug On Carpet! Here’s How!
• Cut Pile vs. Loop Pile Carpet: Side-by-Side Comparison
• What’s the Best Carpet for Stairs?
• The Best Carpet for Pets: Brands and Advice
• The Best Flooring for Dogs & Other Pets: 7 Great Options