Gorgeous But Cheap Flooring Ideas

One of the most expensive things to replace in your home is flooring. Hardwood, tile, laminate hardwood…there are lots of choices, and most require a professional installer and come with a seriously hefty price tag. But there are cheap flooring ideas that can save your budget and are absolutely beautiful! These cheap flooring ideas are budget-friendly, but high on style. There are low-cost flooring solutions for updating old tile, painting floors, and even installing affordable wood floors and I'm sharing the best of the best in this post.

And there are lots of other cheap flooring ideas out there that are utterly brilliant. Check out the methods I've used and lots of other ideas below.

I tackled my first cheap flooring makeover in 2013. I gave our laundry room a complete makeover for only $71. As part of that, I painted our vinyl floors and they turned out beautifully (and held up well for years). Since then, I've painted and stenciled damaged hardwood floors, installed a floating tile floor and updated bathroom tile with tile stickers. I've been thrilled with the results of every single one of the low-cost flooring updates I've used!

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I have personally used tile stickers in Avery's bathroom makeover. Here are the tile stickers we used in Avery's bathroom.

And we also used tile stickers to update the tile floor in Attley's budget-friendly bathroom makeover! Here are the tile stickers we used in Attley's bathroom.

Below are some of other beautiful tile stickers that I've seen.

Scroll and click on any image for full product details.

Install Sheet Vinyl Over Outdated Tile

You can also install sheet vinyl over tile like my friend Lauren of Bless'er House did.

Paint and Stencil An Outdated Tile Floor

Painting and stenciling an old tile floor is always an option as well! Just make sure that you use the correct products (porch and floor paint is a must) and prep the surface correctly. As long as you do that, your paint job should last for YEARS. And no, you don't need a topcoat on the floor as long as you useporch and floor paint. Just look at the beautiful painted tile floors below!

Paint Your Damaged Hardwood Floors to Cover Scratching and More

If your hardwood floors are seriously damaged (or you just don't like them) but replacing or refinishing them is not in your budget, you still have some awesome options! Whether you like colorful decor or prefer neutrals, you should definitely consider painting your hardwoods.

I have painted and stenciled hardwood floors myself and can tell you that as long as you use porch and floor paint and prep your floors correctly, you do NOT need to worry about the paint peeling or chipping! And NO–you really, truly don't need a top coat on them.

This is the kind of paint you MUST use for durable painted hardwood floors. Paint is an excellent way to hide stains and even out imperfections in worn-out wood floors! And painted wood floors can look beautiful no matter your style.

Liz Marie painted the hardwoods in her farmhouse the perfect creamy white/cream color. Aren't they stunning with the rest of her neutral decor?

If you prefer a pop of color, then you will love these painted green floors by White Dog Vintage. They add so much depth and character to the space.

And I love how Teri Moore painted her historic hardwoods white in an otherwise colorful space!

Paint Your Concrete Floor to Add Warmth to a Space

Concrete floors are awesome, but some people find that the look is too cold and modern for them. If you don't love look of your concrete floor and want to warm up the space a bit, you can paint your concrete floors to totally transform the look of them. That's exactly what Postbox Designs did in her mudroom and it only cost her $80.

Paint Your Vinyl or Linoleum Floors

We painted our vinyl floor in our old laundry room using this porch and floor paint. Simple stripes gave it a fresh new look that we loved! Again, as long as you use porch and floor paint, they should be super durable without the need for any topcoat!

We installed a floating floor in our laundry room and it's beautiful! Best of all, it's incredibly durable and was inexpensive! This is the floating faux marble tile we used–it's gorgeous and completely waterproof (most are at least water-resistant).

Install Vinyl Tile Planks in a Herringbone Pattern

Luxury vinyl tiles also come in planks that look like hardwood. My friend Lauren installed her LVP flooring in a herringbone pattern to cover her outdated tile floor and it looks gorgeous!

Paint a Plywood Subfloor

It never would have occurred to me to just beautify a plywood subfloor (the cheap material that sits UNDER tile, hardwoods, etc.), but that's exactly what Carrie did. Talk about a cheap but stylish upgrade!

Install Peel & Stick Tiles Over Any Flat Floor

We installed peel & stick luxury vinyl tiles right over vinyl floors as part of our colorful laundry room makeover. The installation only took about an hour and it looked beautiful! This should work on any flat floors–vinyl sheet floors, linoleum floors, hardwood, even bare subfloors! But if you wanted to install this over grouted tile, you would need to fill in/level the grout lines first.

Wallpaper Your Floor

Medina updated the scratched laminate flooring in the entryway of her rental with wallpaper. How cool is that?!

Stain Your Subfloor

If you really want the look of hardwood floors without the huge price tag, consider this stained plywood subfloor by Ana White!

Create the Look of Hardwood Planks With Plywood

Or you could create your own plywood plank floors. They look beautiful stained or painted!

Make Your Own Geometric Wood Floors

And if you are feeling SUPER adventurous and are patient, then you could install these DIY geometric wood floors like Mandi at Vintage Revivals. I love, love, love these floors so much. Someday I will install them somewhere!

Cover Your Floor With Unusual Materials

Now let's look at some of the most original flooring ideas I've ever seen. Check out his incredible scrabble tile floor. I mean… it's so cool. I've never seen anything like it!

And these gorgeous green art paper floors by Lazy Cozy are like nothing I've ever seen before. So creative!

I am so impressed with all of these cheap flooring ideas! They are so pretty and don't blow your makeover budget out of the water. Which is your favorite? I am seriously in love with those green-painted floors! Also, the scrabble tile floor is insanely clever and fun. I love seeing how creative people can be with their budgeting dollars!

I hope these cheap flooring ideas have given you some ideas for updating the flooring in your own home. Sometimes all you need is a little info and inspiration!

Here are some other posts you may enjoy:

• How to Install a Floating Luxury Vinyl Tile Floor
• How to Install a Stair Runner Yourself
• The Easy Way to Update Bathroom Tile Without Replacing It!
• 15 Affordable DIY Countertops That Will Blow Your Mind
• 18+ Budget Friendly DIY Backsplash Ideas
• DIY Staircase Makeover in 2 Days: Tutorial & Reveal

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