Underlayment is a thin material that goes on top of and completely covers your cement subfloor or your plywood subfloor so that the vinyl flooring you choose can easily lay on top of it. While some vinyl flooring products come with an attached underlayment or pad, others do not. If the product you choose doesn’t have an attached underlayment, you can almost always install directly over the subfloor without one, but this may result in an unsatisfactory experience. If you want to maximize softness, warmth, moisture protection, and noise reduction, then underlayment is key.

The most used types of underlayment for vinyl are cork, foam, felt, rubber, plywood, and OSB. The type of underlayment you should use depends on the subfloor and whether it’s concrete, plywood, or existing flooring material. For example, when installing over a concrete subfloor, a felt underlayment is the best choice as it does a fantastic job of insulating the flooring from the cold concrete.

In summary, whether or not you need underlayment for vinyl flooring depends on the product you choose and the subfloor you have. If the vinyl flooring product you choose does not have an attached underlayment, it is recommended to use underlayment to maximize softness, warmth, moisture protection, and noise reduction. The type of underlayment you should use depends on the subfloor and whether it’s concrete, plywood, or existing flooring material.