As your dedicated flooring partner, we're here to help you find flooring that's as good for the planet as it is for your home. Sustainable flooring has never looked better, and whether you're drawn to rapidly renewable materials, reclaimed resources, or recycled content, there are green options across every flooring category. Read on to explore what to know about sustainable flooring before you shop.
Not all eco-friendly flooring earns that label the same way. Some options, like bamboo and cork, are valued for how quickly they renew. Others, like reclaimed wood and recycled glass tile, get their green credentials from repurposing materials that already exist. And some, like linoleum, stand out for what they're made of: natural ingredients rather than synthetic ones. Understanding these differences helps you match the right material to your priorities, your space, and your budget.
Bamboo is one of the most renewable flooring materials available. Unlike traditional hardwood trees that take decades to mature, bamboo regrows to harvest ready size in just three to five years. It offers exotic hues and grains not found in domestic hardwood, and it's available in a range of finishes to fit any color scheme. It's also notably hard. Bamboo scores higher on the Janka hardness scale than many traditional hardwoods, making it a practical choice for high traffic areas.
Cork flooring is harvested from the bark of the cork oak tree. The tree itself is never cut down. The bark regenerates within three years, making cork one of the most genuinely renewable flooring options on the market. Some cork floors are even made using recycled wine corks, adding another layer of repurposed content. Beyond its eco credentials, cork offers practical benefits that are easy to overlook: it naturally insulates against temperature and sound, resists mold and mites, and improves indoor air quality by repelling common allergens.
Traditional hardwood lovers can still shop sustainably. Reclaimed wood repurposes timber from long since felled trees, bringing genuine character, sought after distressing, patina, and markings that newly milled wood simply can't replicate. It's authentic reclaimed style, not a recreation of it.
If you're shopping new wood floors, look for the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certification. FSC-certified styles confirm that the manufacturer adhered to responsible forest management standards, with higher social and environmental benchmarks than conventional timber sourcing. Look also for eco-friendly finishes and stains that keep VOC emissions low, which benefits both indoor air quality and the broader environment. For more on sustainable wood options, see our hardwood flooring types guide.
Recycled glass tile is a standout eco-friendly option for floors, kitchen backsplashes, and bathroom walls. Made from reclaimed sources including wine bottles and beer bottles, glass tile comes in a wide assortment of colors, patterns, and finishes. Glass is non-absorptive and easy to maintain, and its light reflecting properties brighten a room in a way ceramic tile can't match. At the end of its life, glass flooring can be recycled, making it one of the few flooring materials with a genuine circular story. Explore more options in our tile types guide.
Sustainable carpet has come a long way. Wool carpet remains the most naturally eco-friendly soft surface option. It's made from a renewable resource, biodegradable at end of life, and naturally flame resistant without chemical treatment. It can be dyed to any color and offers proven durability.
PET carpet, made from recycled plastic bottles, is the most popular recycled option, diverting millions of pounds of plastic from landfills. It's an economical choice well suited to kids' rooms, playrooms, and finished basements.
For a curated selection of eco-conscious carpet, look for the Green Select designation in our carpet catalog. Green Select products are made from materials that cause less harm to the environment, created with natural resources as well as eco-friendly synthetic materials, and available in an array of colors, styles, and textures.
Learn more about promoting a healthy home environment with hypoallergenic carpet.
Linoleum was the original water resistant surface and it's making a comeback for good reason. While vinyl is a synthetic product, linoleum is made from entirely natural materials: linseed oil, cork dust, tree resins, wood flour, pigments, and ground limestone. It's suitable for easy, quick installation and has long been a favorite of sustainability minded designers and architects pursuing environmental certifications. Modern printing advances have expanded the color and pattern range significantly, and updated sealers improve stain resistance, making linoleum a practical and genuinely green choice for environmentally conscious homes. For more options, see our waterproof flooring guide.
The materials underneath your feet do more than define a room's look, they shape the air your family breathes every day. We know these materials inside and out, from how they're sourced to how they perform in your home, and we're here to help you find the sustainable option that fits your space and your life. Don't wait to reach out today and find your perfect eco-friendly floor.
Cork and bamboo are consistently rated among the most environmentally friendly flooring options available. Both are harvested without cutting down trees and regrow within three to five years, making them genuinely renewable in a way most flooring materials aren't. Reclaimed wood and recycled glass tile are strong second tier options because they repurpose materials that already exist rather than consuming new resources. The most honest answer is that it depends on the full picture: production process, transportation, installation materials, and end of life recyclability all factor into a product's true environmental footprint.
Both have improved significantly at modern manufacturing standards, and neither is inherently toxic when produced responsibly. LVP (luxury vinyl plank) is made from PVC, which can contain plasticizers; laminate uses a wood composite core with a resin layer. If low VOC emissions are a priority, look for third party low VOC certification on whichever product you're considering. That matters more than the material category. Learn more in our laminate vs. vinyl flooring comparison.
Wool carpet is the most naturally sustainable option. It's made from a renewable resource, biodegradable, and naturally flame resistant without the chemical treatments required by synthetic alternatives. PET carpet, made from recycled plastic bottles, is the most popular recycled content option and keeps millions of pounds of plastic out of landfills each year. For a curated starting point, look for the Green Select designation when browsing carpet options.
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