These two get compared constantly because they look nearly identical in a showroom and behave completely differently in a house.
The difference that decides it
Laminate has wood in it. LVP does not.
Laminate is a compressed wood-fibre core with a photographic layer and a wear coat on top. Wood core means that if water gets past the seams and sits, the core swells. Swelling is permanent. It does not dry back flat, and the plank has to be replaced.
Luxury vinyl plank is PVC all the way through. It can sit in standing water and be fine. That single property is why LVP has taken over bathrooms, kitchens, laundry rooms and basements.
Side by side
| Luxury vinyl plank | Laminate | |
|---|---|---|
| Water | Waterproof | Water-resistant at best |
| Installed cost | $4 – $9 / sq ft | $3 – $7 / sq ft |
| Scratch resistance | Good | Better |
| Dent resistance | Softer, dents under heavy furniture | Harder |
| Underfoot | Softer, quieter, warmer | Harder, louder without underlayment |
| Looks like wood | Very good | Very good |
| Lifespan | 15 – 25 years | 15 – 25 years |
Which room gets which
Put LVP in bathrooms, kitchens, laundry rooms, basements, mudrooms, and anywhere a pet bowl lives. Also any slab-on-grade room where moisture can come up from below.
Laminate is fine in bedrooms, hallways, living rooms, dining rooms, and offices: dry rooms with foot traffic. It is harder than LVP, so it holds up better under chair legs and dog claws.
A common, sensible split: laminate through the dry living space, LVP in the wet rooms, with a transition strip where they meet. It costs less than LVP everywhere and performs better than laminate everywhere.
What actually goes wrong
With laminate, it is nearly always water: a dishwasher leak, a pet accident that sat overnight, or a bathroom install that should never have been laminate.
With LVP, it is nearly always the subfloor. LVP is thinner and more flexible than laminate, so it telegraphs whatever is underneath it. A dip in the subfloor becomes a visible dip in the floor. On an uneven subfloor, LVP needs levelling first, and that cost belongs in the quote rather than in a surprise.
Resale
Neither hurts resale the way worn carpet does. Neither adds value the way real hardwood does. Buyers today read both as normal, modern flooring, and no appraiser distinguishes between them.