Buying Guides · 6 min read

Amtico or Karndean Kitchen Flooring: Which Range Suits Your Kitchen?

Published 6 November 2026

Reviewed by our team, led by Adam Williams, Managing Director

Both Amtico and Karndean make excellent kitchen floors, so the real decision is which range rather than which brand. A busy family kitchen needs a thicker wear layer than a quiet galley. A long kitchen-diner looks best in a long plank. A quick refit over old tiles calls for a rigid-core click floor rather than glue-down. This guide matches each Amtico and Karndean range to the kind of kitchen it suits, covers the fitting details that matter around units and appliances and shows where our own GF LVT gives you the same specification for less.

In this article

What a Kitchen Floor Has to Put Up With
Every Amtico and Karndean Range for Kitchens
Matching the Range to Your Kitchen
Kitchen Fitting Details That Affect Your Choice
The GF Alternative for Kitchens
Compare Them in Our Showroom
Frequently Asked Questions

Try the Floor Finder Order Free Samples

Amtico or Karndean Kitchen Flooring: Which Range Suits Your Kitchen? – Grosvenor Flooring

Key Takeaways

For most kitchens, Amtico Spacia or Karndean Van Gogh at 0.55mm is the right balance of durability and cost.

For a very busy kitchen with dogs or young children, step up to Amtico Form or Karndean Art Select at 0.7mm, or Amtico Signature at 1.0mm.

Amtico First and Karndean Knight Tile at 0.3mm suit lighter-use kitchens best.

Karndean Rigid Core and Amtico Click Smart can go over a sound, flat existing floor, which shortens a kitchen refit.

GF Glue-Down LVT matches the 0.55mm and 0.7mm tiers and is priced openly online.

What a Kitchen Floor Has to Put Up With

No other room combines as many hazards. Water arrives from the sink, the dishwasher and the occasional leaking pipe. Pans, jars and knives get dropped. Bar stools and dining chairs are dragged back and forth many times a day. Grease travels on the soles of shoes into the rest of the house. In a modern extension, sunlight through bifold doors adds heat and fading. Any of the glue-down ranges below will cope with water, because the planks are bonded to the subfloor. The differences are in how well each range resists wear and which formats it offers.

Every Amtico and Karndean Range for Kitchens

For the full specification of each range, see our guides to Amtico Spacia, Amtico Form, Karndean Van Gogh and Karndean Art Select.

Range	Wear layer	Kitchen it suits	Formats	GF alternative
Amtico First	0.3mm	Light use, small households	Wood plank and parquet, stone tile	GF Glue-Down 0.55mm
Amtico Spacia	0.55mm	Most family kitchens	Wood plank and parquet, stone tiles up to 610 x 914mm	GF Glue-Down 0.55mm, GF by AW
Amtico Form	0.7mm	Busy kitchens wanting pattern	Plank, parquet, chevron, basket weave	GF Glue-Down 0.7mm
Amtico Signature	1.0mm	Statement kitchens and the heaviest wear	Wood, stone and bespoke laying patterns	GF Glue-Down 0.7mm
Amtico Click Smart	0.55mm	Quick refits over a flat floor	Click plank, parquet and stone tile	GF Click SPC
Karndean Knight Tile	0.3mm	Light use, small households	Plank, stone tile, herringbone	GF Glue-Down 0.55mm
Karndean Van Gogh	0.55mm	Most family kitchens and kitchen-diners	Long plank, stone tile, herringbone	GF Glue-Down 0.55mm, GF by AW
Karndean Art Select	0.7mm	Busy kitchens and design-led schemes	Long plank, stone tile, herringbone, parquet	GF Glue-Down 0.7mm
Karndean Rigid Core	0.3mm or 0.55mm	Quick refits over a flat floor	Click plank and stone tile, plus Van Gogh herringbone	GF Click SPC

Matching the Range to Your Kitchen

The busy family kitchen

If the kitchen is the hub of the house, where children do homework at the island and a dog skids in from the garden, choose 0.7mm. Karndean Art Select and Amtico Form are the two obvious picks. Amtico Signature goes further still with its 1.0mm wear layer if budget allows.

The open-plan kitchen-diner

One continuous floor across cooking, dining and sitting areas looks calmer than a change of material. Long planks suit the larger space. Karndean Van Gogh and Art Select both include planks around 1.4m long. Amtico Spacia offers 1.2m planks. Run them towards the main window or along the longest wall.

The stone-look kitchen

If you want the look of limestone or slate without cold feet or grout lines, Amtico Spacia has 35 stone designs including large 610 x 914mm tiles. Van Gogh and Art Select also include stone tiles. Our LVT colour guide helps with choosing a shade that works with your units.

The herringbone or patterned kitchen

Karndean Art Select and Van Gogh both offer herringbone. Amtico Form adds chevron and basket weave. Amtico Signature can be laid in almost any pattern, including borders and mixed designs, which our Amtico laying patterns guide explains.

The quick kitchen refit

If the existing floor is sound and flat, a click floor can save days of preparation. Karndean Knight Tile Rigid Core is 4.5mm and Van Gogh Rigid Core is 6.5mm. Amtico Click Smart is 6mm. Check the extra height against your dishwasher and plinths before deciding. Our comparisons of GF SPC and Karndean Rigid Core and GF SPC and Amtico Click Smart cover the click options in detail.

Kitchen Fitting Details That Affect Your Choice

Units first or floor first? Glue-down Amtico and Karndean are normally fitted after the units, up to the plinths, so you only pay for visible floor. If you plan to move the layout later, ask about running the floor under the units.

Islands and heavy appliances. A glue-down floor can sit under an island. A click floor must not be trapped under one, because it needs room to move.

Plinth and kickboard height. Thicker click floors raise the surface by several millimetres, which can affect plinths and integrated appliance doors.

Subfloor preparation. Glue-down floors need a smooth, level base. Old tiles are usually covered with a smoothing compound or removed first.

Maker requirements. Each maker sets its own installation conditions, including subfloor moisture limits. The fitters we use follow them on every job.

We supply and fit Amtico and Karndean across Altrincham, Manchester and Cheshire through a regular team of fitters we know and trust. We are a Retail Partner for both brands. Amtico and the Karndean glue-down ranges are priced by quote, so book a free home visit and we will measure and advise. For more on how buying works, see where to buy Amtico in Altrincham and where to buy Karndean in Altrincham.

The GF Alternative for Kitchens

If you like the Amtico or Karndean specification but not the price, our own GF range is built to the same tiers. GF Glue-Down LVT comes at 0.55mm or 0.7mm with a lifetime residential warranty. Its 0.7mm designs include herringbone and chevron such as Braithwaite Golden Oak Herringbone and Troutbeck Country Oak Chevron. At 0.55mm, Hawkshead Natural Oak and Scafell Limestone are popular kitchen choices. GF by Associated Weavers adds more 0.55mm glue-down planks and parquet. For a quick refit, GF Click SPC has a built-in underlay. GF floors can be bought online and GF samples are free. To find the GF design closest to a particular Amtico or Karndean floor, read our Amtico alternative and Karndean alternative guides or use our Floor Finder.

Compare Them in Our Showroom

Our 24/7 Altrincham Smart Showroom has Amtico, Karndean and GF laid side by side, so you can compare wear layers, textures and plank sizes underfoot. Request a door code online and visit when it suits you. Amtico and Karndean samples can be collected from the showroom.

Who leads our guides

Adam Williams

Managing Director, Grosvenor Flooring

Adam Williams is Managing Director of Grosvenor Flooring in Altrincham. He sets the standards our guides are written to and guides the team that reviews them, so the advice matches the floors we supply, the manufacturers' specifications and the way the fitters we work with install them.

More about Adam →

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Frequently Asked Questions

Is Amtico or Karndean better for a kitchen?

Neither brand is better overall. Compare ranges at the same wear layer: Spacia against Van Gogh at 0.55mm, or Form against Art Select at 0.7mm. Then choose the designs and formats you prefer.

Which Karndean range should I choose for my kitchen?

Van Gogh suits most kitchens. Art Select is the better choice for a very busy household. Knight Tile is best kept to kitchens with lighter use.

Which Amtico range should I choose for my kitchen?

Spacia covers most family kitchens. Form and Signature are the tougher options for heavy use or patterned floors.

Can Karndean or Amtico go over existing kitchen tiles?

Karndean Rigid Core and Amtico Click Smart can float over sound, flat tiles. Glue-down ranges need the tiles smoothed over or removed first.

Does the floor go under the kitchen units?

Glue-down LVT is usually fitted up to the plinths after the units are in. A click floor should never be trapped under units or an island.

Can I get the same specification for less?

Yes. GF Glue-Down LVT matches the 0.55mm and 0.7mm tiers with a lifetime residential warranty and is priced openly on our website.