We analysed data from thousands of flooring searches to find out what Britain is planning to put on its floors. Here's what we found.

Showrooms show you what looks good. Search data shows you what people are buying. Those two things are not always the same.

We analysed UK search volume data across thousands of flooring keywords to find out which styles, colours, and finishes are genuinely driving purchasing decisions right now. The result is the Floor Giants UK Flooring Trends Report: an annual look at the most searched flooring trends in the country, ranked by real data.

The findings might surprise you.

Floor of the year: the luxe look (+6.4%)

The fastest-growing trend deserves its own moment before the top 10. The luxe and boutique hotel flooring aesthetic is the fastest-growing trend in the dataset, up 6.4% over the last 12 months to 48,420 monthly searches.

What's driving it is the gap between how premium flooring looks and what it costs. LVT and high-end laminate have made the boutique hotel finish genuinely accessible. Searches for luxury vinyl flooring, premium flooring and high-end finishes are all moving in the same direction. People have seen the look in hotels and restaurants, and they want it at home - and the products are there to deliver it.

"The quality of luxury vinyl has improved so dramatically that even trained eyes struggle to tell it apart from solid wood or stone. The boutique hotel finish is no longer reserved for boutique hotel budgets."

— Owen Chenery, Flooring Expert @ Floor Giants 

The top 10 most searched flooring styles and colours in the UK

The top 10 in detail

1. Herringbone

Searches a month: 202,380

202,380 monthly searches. That's herringbone. Not a type of wood, not a finish, not a colour. Just the way the floor is laid. And it's growing, up +5.8% year on year.

What makes herringbone so dominant is that it works in almost any material. Laminate, LVT, solid wood, engineered wood, porcelain tile. The pattern is the decision, not the product. That's what drives the search volume.

"Herringbone creates movement and depth that a straight plank simply can't achieve. It works in a £10 per m² laminate as well as a £100 per m² engineered oak - that's rare in a flooring style."

— Owen Chenery, Flooring Expert @ Floor Giants 

2. Natural and warm oak

Searches a month: 109,370

Oak is the most searched colour and finish in the dataset at 109,370 monthly searches. Light oak, natural oak, warm oak - the variations all point in the same direction. Britain wants warm, natural wood tones underfoot.

It's stable rather than surging, but the volume tells its own story. Oak flooring doesn't trend. It just endures. 

3. Parquet

Searches a month: 59,790

Parquet at #3 confirms what herringbone at #1 already suggested: pattern-led flooring is the defining story of this report. Two laying patterns in the top three, both with significant search volume, both growing steadily.

Parquet is often associated with period properties and traditional interiors, but search data shows it's being researched across a much wider range of contexts. Contemporary parquet in pale oak or grey tones is a growing search subset.

4. Luxe and boutique hotel look

Searches a month: 48,420

Already covered as floor of the year, but worth noting in context. Luxury flooring sits fourth overall, ahead of grey and white. People are not just searching for practical or affordable floors. They want floors that look expensive, and they're searching in volume for how to get there.

5. Grey flooring

Searches a month: 34,620

Grey is still #5 with 34,620 monthly searches, but is growing only 0.7%. That's the slowest rate among the top five trends. Grey flooring is not disappearing, but the data is consistent: warmer tones are gaining ground at grey's expense.

The grey floor that defined British interiors through the 2010s is still being searched, still being bought. It's just no longer accelerating.

6. Natural and biophilic

Searches a month: 24,330

Eco flooring, cork, bamboo and natural wood finishes together generate 24,330 monthly searches. The biophilic design movement, which brings natural materials and textures into the home, has a strong foothold in the flooring search.

Growth here is modest at +0.3%, but the volume is real, and the audience is distinct: buyers who prioritise material provenance and sustainability alongside aesthetics.

7. White flooring

Searches a month: 20,900

White flooring is a staple. 20,900 monthly searches, growing slowly at +0.9%. White laminate, white wood-effect vinyl, whitewashed oak, all consistent search terms across every season and every room context. A floor that never really goes out of fashion.

8. Concrete look

Searches a month: 20,760

Polished concrete and concrete-effect flooring sit eighth with 20,760 monthly searches. The industrial-meets-contemporary aesthetic has settled into a consistent niche. It works particularly well in open-plan spaces and kitchens where the cool, hard finish complements steel and stone surfaces.

Volume is stable rather than growing, which suggests the concrete look has found its audience without crossing into the mainstream.

9. Plank effect

Searches a month: 18,580

Plank effect flooring, specifically vinyl plank and wide-plank formats, is one of the genuinely growing trends in the top 10 at +2.5%. The preference for longer, wider boards is measurable in the data. Narrow strips are losing ground to formats that better replicate the look of solid wood.

Wide plank flooring searches are also up +1.6% independently, confirming the direction.

10. Dark wood

Searches a month: 8,330

Dark wood flooring, walnut, dark oak, and espresso finishes round out the top 10. Volume is modest compared to the leaders, but steady. The moody, dramatic floor has a loyal following, particularly in living rooms and bedrooms, where its darker palette creates a more considered, cocooning feel.

Flooring trends growing fast

Smaller in total volume, but moving faster than almost anything in the top 10:

  • Beige and warm neutrals (+4.9%): Low overall volume but the fastest-growing colour in the dataset. Sand tones, warm stone and cream flooring are accelerating in line with the broader shift away from cool grey.
  • Brown flooring (+3.5%): Mid-brown tones are growing steadily. Often overlooked in favour of oak or grey, brown flooring is quietly gaining ground as a warmer alternative.
  • Plank effect (+2.5%): Already in the top 10, but the growth trajectory is notable. Wide-plank formats are among the clearest directional trends in the dataset.
  • Chevron (+2.1%): The close relative of herringbone, growing steadily. The appetite for angled patterns extends well beyond herringbone alone.
  • Wide plank (+1.6%): Growing alongside plank effect. The preference for broader boards is consistent across material types and search terms.

Flooring going out of style

Only one trend in the dataset is in decline year on year.

  • Gloss finish (-0.4%): High-gloss and shiny flooring finishes are the only declining trend in the report. Matte, brushed, and textured alternatives are taking their place. Gloss had its moment. Matte and brushed finishes are what people are searching for now. 

What stood out most 

The single most striking finding in the dataset is the dominance of pattern-led flooring. Herringbone is #1. Parquet is #3. Chevron is growing at +2.1%. Together, these three laying patterns account for more combined search volume than any colour or finish category in the report.

Britain is not just choosing what their floor is made of. They're choosing how it's laid. The pattern has become as important as the product.

The warm tone shift

Grey dominated British flooring for the best part of a decade. The numbers suggest that dominance is ending - not with a crash, but with a quiet handover.

Natural and warm oak tops the colour chart at 109,370 searches a month. Beige and warm neutrals are growing at +4.9%, the fastest growth of any colour in the dataset. Brown flooring is up +3.5%. Grey, meanwhile, is still #5 overall but growing at just +0.7% - its slowest rate in years.

The direction is clear. Britain is choosing floors that feel warm rather than floors that look cool.

"Grey flooring was everywhere for a long time because it felt safe and neutral. What we're seeing now is people wanting warmth as well as neutrality - oak gives you both. It works with almost any wall colour, and it never dates."

— Owen Chenery, Flooring Expert @ Floor Giants 

What to watch in 2027

Three trends are positioned to break into the top 10 next year based on their current growth trajectories:

SPC flooring is the strongest candidate. With 10,530 monthly searches and growing at +7.67%, the fastest growth rate in the entire dataset, SPC (stone plastic composite) is the material story of the moment. Harder and more stable than standard LVT, it's gaining ground fast as awareness of the format grows. Search volume is on a trajectory that puts it inside the top 10 within the next 12 months.

The stone and marble effect is already there. At 8,160 monthly searches, it sits just below dark wood in the current rankings. It's not growing quickly, but it doesn't need to. One moderate uptick in search volume puts it inside the top 10. The appetite for stone-look flooring, driven largely by searches for bathroom and kitchen renovations, is real and consistent.

Chevron sits at 6,540 monthly searches and is growing at +2.1%. If herringbone is the dominant laying pattern of the current moment, chevron is its faster, sharper sibling. As herringbone becomes more mainstream, design-conscious buyers often move towards the less common alternative - and the search data shows that shift starting

About the UK Flooring Trends Report

The UK Floor Trends Report is published annually by Floor Giants using UK search volume data. All search volumes are based on the 12-month period ending at the time of publication. Last updated: June 2026.

Methodology

All data sourced from Ahrefs. UK search volumes reflect 12-month averages at the time of compilation. Year-on-year growth figures show the change between the current 12-month period and the previous one. Where keywords span multiple categories - for example, 'herringbone oak flooring', contributing to both herringbone and oak - they are counted in both. Category totals should be read independently rather than added together. 

Ready to bring 2026's biggest flooring trends into your home? Browse our ranges and find the right fit for your space:

Not sure where to start? Order free samples to see how your chosen floor looks at home, or find your nearest showroom to see our full range in person. 

About Owen Chenery, Flooring Expert @ Floor Giants

Owen Chenery is Director of Retail at Floor Giants and has spent over 30 years working in the flooring industry. He began his career in the warehouse, learning the trade from the ground up, before progressing through retail and sales roles with well-known flooring names such as Allied Carpets. His hands-on experience across both wholesale and retail gives him a practical understanding of what customers need, from choosing the right flooring to looking after it properly once it’s fitted.