I'm renovating my kitchen and bedroom, and I'm torn between LVT vinyl (like Tarkett or Gerflor) and traditional laminate. I've read that vinyl is more resistant to moisture and easy to clean, but it costs a bit more. Which would you choose? I have small kids so I need something practical.
LVT vinyl is better for you mainly because it's the only one that won't swell if it gets wet - laminate instead absorbs moisture from the kitchen or repeated spills over time and warps, and there's no fixing that.
With small kids, sure, cleaning is practical, but what really makes the difference is that vinyl doesn't have problem seams where water seeps in, whereas laminate can suffer after years if liquid keeps ending up between the planks.
The higher upfront cost of quality LVT vinyl pays for itself in durability and peace of mind.
With small children, LVT vinyl is definitely the smartest choice, in my opinion. Humidity isn't even the main issue - the real advantage is that it holds up incredibly well to impacts, dropped objects, and stains. Laminate, even good quality stuff, scratches easily and if water gets spilled on it (and that happens constantly with kids) it risks swelling. In my case, I went with LVT in my kitchen for exactly this reason, and after years of real wear - toys thrown around, broken glasses, everything - it still looks brand new. Cleaning is minimal, just a mop and you're done.
The higher initial cost of vinyl pays for itself because it lasts twice as long, maybe three times longer than laminate, especially if you have little ones running around. Brands like Tarkett or Gerflor are reliable, they have decent thicknesses (at least 3-4 mm) and warranties that actually hold up. Another thing: vinyl feels warmer to the touch than laminate, so if your kids walk barefoot it's more comfortable. Sure, it costs a bit more, but it's an investment that makes sense when your home needs to take a beating.
The only thing to check carefully is installation - the subfloor needs to be perfectly level and dry, otherwise the vinyl can ripple. If you have someone who knows what they're doing install it, you won't have any problems.
In my opinion, it's not as straightforward as it seems - it really depends on where you're putting it. If your kitchen actually gets a ton of traffic and spills all the time, yeah, vinyl wins hands down, but what nobody mentions is that decent quality laminate (not the cheapest stuff) holds up pretty well if you protect it even a little, whereas vinyl can get scratched up quite a bit with small kids running around everywhere. What you really should do is check the wear layer thickness and scratch resistance, not just look at the material - cheap thin vinyl can wear out faster than sturdy laminate, unfortunately. For a bedroom though, laminate works perfectly fine, humidity isn't really an issue there.
How many liquid spills are you expecting to have on average per month between the kitchen and bedrooms? I'm asking because if the kids are really little and the kitchen is where they eat, then LVT vinyl wins hands down - it doesn't swell, it doesn't get damaged by chronic moisture, and when a cup full of water spills it's not a disaster like it would be with laminate. The only thing: install it properly, because if there's a gap between the planks and moisture gets in from underneath, vinyl suffers too. But otherwise, with small kids, it's the smartest material you can choose.
Here's a thing though - LVT vinyl has a detail nobody's mentioned: if you put it in a kitchen with underfloor heating or lots of direct sunlight, certain brands tend to shrink and create small gaps over time 😅 With small kids vinyl is still the most practical choice (waterproof, easy to clean, soft if they fall), but before you buy, check carefully whether the specific product you're choosing is compatible with your space and your heating type, otherwise you risk ending up with weird gaps between the planks after a few months.
For a kitchen with small children, LVT vinyl is pretty much unavoidable, but not just because of moisture - it's that laminate really starts to suffer after a while with spills and frequent cleaning. The price difference isn't even that big if you think about it long-term, since you have to replace damaged laminate while vinyl lasts for years without issues.
Watch out for anyone who tells you that "good" laminate resists moisture like vinyl - it's not true, that's literally laminate's Achilles heel, and with small kids spilling glasses and making a mess, it's a real risk! LVT vinyl also has an advantage people don't think about: when something heavy falls (and with kids it happens!) it doesn't chip like laminate, it just stays there. Sure it costs more, but if you think about the replacement costs down the road when laminate swells up, vinyl pays for itself right away!
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