How much does wooden flooring cost in South Africa?
New engineered timber usually lands between R950 and R1,800 per m² installed, solid hardwood higher. Bringing an existing floor back to life by sanding and sealing costs a fraction of that.
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Published 2026 rates put engineered wood at roughly R950 to R1,800 per m² supplied and laid, and solid hardwood at R1,300 to R2,500 per m². If you already have timber underfoot, sanding and resealing it typically runs R230 to R450 per m², so restoring is often the cheaper route.
| What | Typical price | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Engineered wood, supplied and installed | R950–R1,800/m² | Thin-veneer boards are advertised from about R600 per m²; one supplier guide says real-oak quotes usually start near R1,300 per m² including VAT for a 10 mm board with a 2 mm oak layer. |
| Solid hardwood, supplied and installed | R1,300–R2,500/m² | Species and grade drive the spread. Parquet and rare timbers go above the top of this range. |
| Sanding and sealing an existing timber floor | R230–R450/m² | Sanding alone is quoted at about R160 to R300 per m², with sealing a further R60 to R120. Heavily damaged floors and premium finishes sit at the top. |
| Engineered oak boards, supply only | R800–R1,425/m² | Mainstream ranges. Wide-plank premium oak starts around R1,500 and can pass R2,000. |
| Installation labour only (engineered) | R340–R520/m² | From one 2026 supplier guide. General handymen advertise lower floating-floor rates, so compare what each price covers. |
| Staining before sealing | R50–R100/m² | |
| Removing the old floor covering | R30–R150/m² | Lifting carpet or a floating floor is about R30 to R60; scraping off glued flooring and adhesive is R60 to R150. |
| Subfloor preparation | R50–R150/m² |
Estimates only. These ranges come from published South African prices, listed under sources below, and were last checked on 28 October 2026. Your price depends on your site and the specification. Get quotes for an accurate price for your job.
Wood floor pricing splits into two very different jobs. Laying new boards means paying for timber, adhesive or underlay, labour and finishing, and the timber alone can be most of the bill. Restoring a floor you already own is mostly labour and machine time, so it costs a fraction of a new install per m².
The figures here come from South African price guides and supplier pages published in 2025 and 2026. Most don't say whether VAT is included, so treat them as a guide and confirm VAT on every quote. Where sources disagreed, we've shown the wider range and explained why.
What moves the price
Pushes the price up
- A thicker top veneer on engineered boards. A 4 mm or 6 mm wear layer costs more than 2 mm but can be sanded again later.
- Dense or imported species such as jarrah or ironbark, and higher grades with few knots.
- Parquet, herringbone or chevron patterns, which take far longer to lay than straight planks.
- Glue-down fitting over a screed that first needs grinding, levelling or a moisture barrier.
- On a restoration: deep scratches, cupped or loose boards, and old varnish that needs several sanding passes.
Brings the price down
- Choosing a rustic or lower grade, where knots and colour variation are part of the look.
- Floating an engineered floor over underlay on a flat, dry slab instead of gluing it.
- Plain straight-lay planks in rooms with few corners or door frames to cut around.
- Sanding and sealing the floor you have instead of replacing it, where the boards are sound.
- Lifting old carpet yourself before the installer arrives, if the quote lets you.
A 30 m² lounge: three ways to get a wood floor
Say your lounge is 30 m². Here is what each option costs using the ranges above. Your installer will add an allowance for offcuts, so the board quantity will be a little more than the floor area.
- Replacing a fitted carpet first adds 30 m² × R30 to R60, or R900 to R1,800.
- If the slab needs levelling, add 30 m² × R50 to R150, or R1,500 to R4,500.
- A stain colour on the restored floor adds 30 m² × R50 to R100, or R1,500 to R3,000.
| Option | Sum | Estimate |
|---|---|---|
| Sand and seal existing boards | 30 m² × R230 to R450 | R6,900 to R13,500 |
| New engineered floor | 30 m² × R950 to R1,800 | R28,500 to R54,000 |
| New solid hardwood | 30 m² × R1,300 to R2,500 | R39,000 to R75,000 |
Restoration or new boards?
If there is solid timber or thick-veneer engineered wood under your carpet or old varnish, a restoration is almost always the better buy. One cost guide puts a typical 30 m² room of moderately worn hardwood at about R5,400 to R8,400, and smaller rooms of 15 to 25 m² at R2,500 to R6,000.
New boards make sense when the existing floor is laminate, tiles or concrete, when boards are rotten or badly damaged, or when an engineered floor has been sanded through its veneer. Ask a specialist to lift a skirting or a vent cover and check the board thickness before you decide.
Lines a fair quote should show
- Product name, species, grade, board thickness and wear-layer thickness.
- Area measured and the waste allowance added.
- Fitting method: floating, glued or nailed, and the underlay or adhesive used.
- Subfloor work: moisture testing, grinding, levelling or a damp barrier.
- Removal and disposal of the old floor covering.
- Finish: oil, lacquer or water-based sealer, and how many coats.
- Skirting, scotia, thresholds and stair nosings, priced separately.
- Whether VAT is included.
Costs that catch people out
On sanding jobs, some contractors charge a call-out fee. One guide quotes R400 to R800. Small rooms can carry a minimum charge, so ask if your 12 m² study will be billed at full rate.
On new installs, damp in a screed is the big unknown. If a moisture reading comes back high, you may pay for a barrier or wait while the slab dries. Furniture moving, door trimming and new skirting are often left off the first price.
Do prices differ by region?
One national cost guide gives slightly different sanding and sealing rates by province: about R180 to R320 per m² in Gauteng, R190 to R350 in the Western Cape and R180 to R300 in KwaZulu-Natal. That is a single source, so use it as a rough pointer rather than a rule.
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Compare up to 3 wooden flooring quotesWooden Flooring cost questions
Is engineered wood cheaper than solid wood?
Usually, yes. Installed engineered floors start around R950 per m² in 2026 guides, while solid hardwood starts nearer R1,300. The gap narrows with premium wide-plank engineered oak, which can cost more than a basic solid floor.
How much does it cost to sand and seal a wooden floor?
Expect roughly R230 to R450 per m² for sanding plus two or three coats of sealer. A 30 m² room in fair condition is often quoted between about R5,400 and R8,400. Badly damaged boards, gap filling, staining and specialist finishes push the price up, and a call-out fee may apply.
Can I buy the boards myself and pay only for fitting?
Many installers will fit supplied boards. One 2026 supplier guide puts labour-only engineered fitting at about R340 to R520 per m². Check who carries the risk if a batch is faulty, who orders the adhesive and underlay, and whether the installer will still guarantee the work.
Why do two wooden flooring quotes differ so much?
Usually because they price different things. One may include a thicker veneer, glue-down fitting, subfloor levelling and removal of the old floor, while another quotes boards and labour only. Line the quotes up item by item and compare the wear-layer thickness and finish before comparing totals.
Do wooden flooring prices include VAT?
Not always, and most published price guides don't say. One supplier guide states its R1,300 per m² starting figure for real oak includes VAT, but many contractor quotes are given excluding VAT. Always ask, because 15% on a R40,000 floor is R6,000.
Sources
- Flooring Costs in South Africa: 2026 Pricing Guide, Fonster, July 2026
- Engineered Wood Flooring Prices South Africa 2026 Guide, I.B.S Construction, September 2026
- What are floor sanding prices in South Africa?, Kandua, 2025/2026
- How Much Does Flooring Installation Cost in South Africa? (2026 Price Guide), Handld, July 2026
- Pricelist - prices 2026: Flooring, Procompare, 2026
- Wooden flooring installation cost in Johannesburg & Gauteng, Independent Handyman Services, 2026
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