Vinyl Flooring Thickness: 2.5mm or 4.5mm, Which Should You Buy?
Vinyl flooring thickness changes how a floor feels, not how long it lasts. At Hybrid Floors Australia, our 2.5mm vinyl planks ($22 a m²) and 4.5mm vinyl planks ($35 a m²) have the same 0.5mm wear layer, slip rating and warranty. Buy 4.5mm for a family home or an apartment. Buy 2.5mm for a rental, a shop, a laundry or a floor over old tiles.
Both are glue-down planks from our Timberland range, so the choice comes down to feel, plank length, colour and price.
Which vinyl thickness for your room?
Pick 4.5mm where you live every day, and 2.5mm where price or height matters most. Here's the pick for each job:
| Your floor | Buy | Why |
|---|---|---|
| A family home | 4.5mm | More body underfoot and longer planks. |
| An apartment or unit | 4.5mm | It has an acoustic engineer's report for your strata. |
| A kitchen open to the living room | 4.5mm | One floor through both. See our vinyl kitchen flooring guide. |
| A rental | 2.5mm | The same wear layer and warranty, $13 a m² less. |
| A shop or office | 2.5mm | The same commercial warranty, the lowest price for big areas. |
| Over old tiles | 2.5mm | It adds the least height at doors. |
| A laundry on its own | 2.5mm | A small room: the lowest price and the least height. |
| Timber floorboards | Either, on plywood | The installation manual doesn't allow the planks straight onto boards. Screw down approved plywood first. |
| Thicker than 4.5mm | Hybrid | It clicks together and floats on its own underlay. Ours is 6.5mm or 9.5mm. |
Doing the whole home? Keep one thickness everywhere, so there's no step at the doorways.
Is thicker vinyl flooring better?
Thicker vinyl feels better underfoot, but it doesn't last longer. The clear wear layer on top takes the traffic, and ours is 0.5mm on both thicknesses. The extra 2mm is all vinyl core:
- 0.5mm wear layer on top.
- About 2mm of vinyl core.
- The floor ends up 2.5mm higher, plus the adhesive.
- The same 0.5mm wear layer.
- About 4mm of vinyl core: more body underfoot.
- The floor ends up 4.5mm higher, plus the adhesive.
What the extra 2mm gets you:
- More body underfoot. The floor feels more solid when you walk on it.
- A little more forgiveness. It hides tiny flaws in the floor below better. Neither thickness hides dips or bumps.
- Longer planks. 1524mm against 1219mm, so fewer joins across a room.
- More colours. 10 against 6.
- Paperwork for strata. An acoustic engineer's report rates the 4.5mm plank NCC compliant and up to 4 stars in a building with a 180mm slab and a 50mm suspended ceiling, and up to 6 stars with an acoustic underlay and the right slab and ceiling.
What it doesn't get you:
- A longer life. The same 0.5mm wear layer, and the same lifetime warranty for homes and 15 years for businesses.
- Less noise for the people below. In impact sound tests, both score L'nT,w 52 over a 200mm concrete slab.
- Better water or slip resistance. Both are 100% water resistant and rated P3 for slip.
2.5mm vs 4.5mm vinyl planks side by side
Our two thicknesses differ in price, plank length, colours and paperwork. The rest is the same:
| Detail | 2.5mm planks | 4.5mm planks |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $22 a m² ($85.80 a box of 3.90 m²) | $35 a m² ($97.65 a box of 2.79 m²) |
| Plank size | 1219 x 229mm | 1524 x 228mm |
| Colours | 6 | 10 |
| Acoustic engineer's report | Not included | Up to 4 stars, or 6 with an acoustic underlay |
| The same on both | 0.5mm wear layer, glued down, P3 slip rating, L'nT,w 52 footstep sound over a 200mm slab, and a lifetime warranty for homes and 15 years for businesses. | |
Shop each range: Timberland 2.5mm vinyl planks and Timberland 4.5mm vinyl planks. Prefer a pattern? Herringbone vinyl is 4.5mm too, at $39.95 a m².
How much more does 4.5mm vinyl cost?
4.5mm planks cost $13 a m² more than 2.5mm: $35 against $22 at Hybrid Floors Australia. Here's what that adds up to in whole boxes, with 10% extra for cuts:
| Your floor | 2.5mm planks | 4.5mm planks | Upgrade |
|---|---|---|---|
| 12 m² kitchen | $343.20 | $488.25 | $145.05 |
| 25 m² living room | $686.40 | $976.50 | $290.10 |
| 50 m² open plan | $1,287.00 | $1,953.00 | $666.00 |
| 100 m² home | $2,488.20 | $3,906.00 | $1,417.80 |
Laying costs the same for both: $30 a m² in our instant quote. Not in these prices: adhesive, levelling compound, taking up the old floor, trims at the doorways, and delivery.
Check your floor before you choose
Both thicknesses are glued down, so both need a flat, smooth, dry floor. Thickness won't fix a bumpy one:
- Concrete slab. The installation manual asks for the floor to be prepared to AS 1884, the Australian standard for laying vinyl, because flaws can show through over time. New concrete needs at least 28 days to cure.
- The straightedge test. Lay a long, straight edge across the floor. A gap under it is a dip, and a rock is a bump: either one needs levelling compound first, whichever thickness you buy.
- Old tiles. Fill the grout lines with levelling compound and fix any loose tiles. The full method is in our guide to vinyl flooring over tiles.
- Timber floorboards. Screw down approved plywood first, as the board joins would show through.
- Height. The new floor sits 3.5 to 5.5mm higher with about 1mm of adhesive. Check your doors, the dishwasher space and the step to the next room.
Every step of the glue is in our glue-down vinyl guide.
Which colours come in each thickness?
Six colours come in 2.5mm and ten in 4.5mm, so the colour you love can decide it.
- 2.5mm: Coastal Blackbutt, Natural Blackbutt, Natural Oak, Riverside Spotted Gum, Weathered Oak, White Washed Oak.
- 4.5mm: Blackbutt, Coastal Blackbutt, Fraser, Grey River Pine, McKenzie, Misty Morning, Pale Blackbutt, Rainbow Beach, Spotted Gum, Weathered Oak.
Coastal Blackbutt and Weathered Oak come in both thicknesses: order a 2.5mm and a 4.5mm sample to feel the difference in the same colour.
Vinyl flooring thickness questions
Is 2.5mm vinyl flooring good?
Yes, on a flat floor. Our 2.5mm planks have the same 0.5mm wear layer, P3 slip rating and lifetime warranty for homes as our 4.5mm planks, for $22 a m². They're the smart buy for rentals, shops, laundries and floors over old tiles.
What is a good thickness for vinyl flooring?
For glue-down vinyl planks, 2.5mm to 4.5mm, with a 0.5mm wear layer on top. Pick 4.5mm for a family home or an apartment, and 2.5mm when price or height matters most.
Is thicker vinyl flooring better?
It feels better, but it doesn't last longer. The extra thickness is vinyl core, which adds body underfoot and hides tiny flaws in the floor below. The clear wear layer on top decides how long a floor lasts, and ours is 0.5mm on both thicknesses.
Does thicker vinyl reduce noise?
Not for the people below, in impact sound tests: our 2.5mm and 4.5mm planks both score L'nT,w 52 over a 200mm concrete slab. For an apartment, buy the 4.5mm: it comes with an acoustic engineer's report you can give your strata.
How thick is vinyl plank flooring?
Glue-down vinyl planks are usually 2mm to 5mm thick, and ours are 2.5mm or 4.5mm. Planks that click together and float are thicker: our hybrid is 6.5mm or 9.5mm with the underlay attached.
Is 7mm vinyl flooring good?
Planks that thick are usually hybrid flooring, a rigid plank that clicks together and floats. It suits a DIY job or a floor with small bumps. Ours is 6.5mm or 9.5mm, from $33.99 a m².
Updated November 2026 · Hybrid Floors Australia. Prices, box sizes, plank sizes and colours from our catalogue on 1 November 2026; wear layer, slip, sound and warranty from the Timberland spec sheets; the star ratings from the 4.5mm acoustic engineer's report; floor rules from the installation manual; laying from our instant quote.
