Custom hardwood floor installation in Toronto and the GTA
What the substrate allows, what it costs, and the standard the finished floor is judged against — solid and engineered, including condominium slabs.
Solid and engineered hardwood laid by salaried craftsmen — straight-lay, herringbone, chevron and custom patterns.
Published price
New Hardwood Install
- Band
- $11.00–$18.00 per sq ft
- How it is set
- Fixed price in writing. It never moves after the free in-home estimate.
- What moves it
- Species, width, pattern, stairs and site condition — plus the commodity inputs tracked on what moves a hardwood quote.
The standard
How this work is judged
These are the Well-Installed Framework pillars this service is scored against. The framework is published, versioned and free to cite — use it on our quote, and on everyone else’s.
Moisture and acclimation
Wood exchanges moisture with the air continuously and moves as it does. This pillar establishes that the movement was measured and planned for before anything was fastened down.
Substrate and method
Installation method is determined by what the floor is going onto, not by preference, habit or price. This pillar establishes that the substrate decided the method.
Product specification
The correct product is the one that will still look and perform correctly in twenty years. This pillar establishes that the house specified the floor, not the budget.
The method
What the technique actually is
Nothing on this page asserts a technique that is not set out in full in a published paper. These are the sections that establish it.
Before you decide
The questions this service turns on
Each answer is the recommendation of a published decision guide, not a paragraph written for this page. Follow the link for the criteria behind it.
- Should I install solid or engineered hardwood in my Toronto home?
- Engineered is the correct specification for the majority of Toronto projects. We specify what the house can support, and we do not sell what will fail. Read the guide.
- Which hardwood installation method is correct for my subfloor?
- Match the method to the substrate and the product construction, in that order. A method chosen before the substrate has been identified is a guess with a delay built into it. Read the guide.
- How much does hardwood flooring cost in Toronto and the GTA?
- Use the published ranges to budget. Book the free in-home measure for the fixed written price. Compare quotes on scope completeness — machines, sequence, moisture protocol, warranties in writing — not on the headline number alone. Read the guide.
- Is white oak the right hardwood for a Toronto home?
- Default to white oak for contemporary Toronto work when oak is the design intent. Confirm construction (solid vs engineered) from the substrate, not from the species brochure. Match existing red oak with red oak rather than forcing a white-oak patch. Read the guide.
- Should I install herringbone, chevron or parquet in my Toronto home or condo?
- Choose the pattern for the room, then confirm the substrate method. Budget a real labour and waste premium. In condos, resolve slab moisture, acoustics and elevator logistics before ordering patterned material. Read the guide.
Vocabulary
Terms used on this page
- Acclimation
- The period during which flooring material equalises to the conditions of the room it will be installed in — a minimum of 72 hours, in the actual conditioned space.
- Moisture content
- The proportion of water in wood or in a subfloor, measured before installation and used to decide whether the two are compatible.
- Expansion gap
- Deliberate clearance left at walls and at every fixed object so the floor has somewhere to go when it expands.
- Subfloor
- What the finished floor is installed onto — plywood over joists, a concrete slab, or a radiant assembly — and the thing that determines the installation method.
Coverage
Where this service is delivered
Downtown Toronto · North York · Etobicoke · Scarborough · East York · York · Vaughan · Markham · Richmond Hill · Mississauga · Oakville · Brampton · Aurora · Newmarket · Pickering · Ajax · Rosedale · Forest Hill · Yorkville · Leaside · The Annex · High Park · Riverdale · Leslieville · The Beaches · Lawrence Park · Cabbagetown · Swansea · Davisville Village · Midtown Toronto · King West · Liberty Village
Every area above has its own page: the housing stock, the neighbourhoods and the constraint that is specific to it. See all service areas.