Soundproof Flooring Materials: Which are the Best? (STC & IIC Compared)

Speaking of, each of these require a different type of underlayment, so pay attention to that when considering noise reduction. I shall list you the best acoustic underlayment materials and products I have found.

Types of Soundproof Flooring Materials

There are so many different materials which people use for soundproofing, and the choice depends on many factors.

Some people look for thermal insulation, some are looking for products which are effective in noise reduction and there are those who want to have both characteristics in one.

As soundproofing is my main concern, I shall list you few materials which are mainly used in floor soundproofing.

They are called resilient materials, and they do wonder with impact noise, such as footsteps, dragging furniture over the floor and drooped items. Here they are:

Cork

It has numerous positive characteristics, such as durability, appearance, and soundproofing properties. This combination puts it in the highest place when it comes to floor soundproofing. The most notable feature is certainly its sponginess.

The bark of a cork tree which grows in southern Europe is harvested every few years without damaging the tree. That makes cork eco-friendly and sustainable.

To point out how effective and the powerful cork is when it comes to soundproofing, I shall tell you that this is the material which recording companies use to eliminate background noise in studios.

Just so you know, you can use cork in many ways- as a floor, underneath it and as an accessory with sound dampening properties. Moreover, cork is cheap and effective.

Foam

It’s also a widely used material both for thermal and sound insulation as it is very effective and most affordable. Foam is a durable and lightweight material.

There are many different types of foam. If you want to get the best of them, I suggest you use foam in combination with some other materials, such as vinyl.

Even though it can be used as an underlayer, you will notice that more often people use it in form of floor mats, tiles and similar.

The most popular ones are interlocking foam tiles, which are installed within a few seconds.

Rubber

As a cost-effective solution, rubber is also a very popular material for floor soundproofing.

When you use it with ceramic tiles, for example, the rubber provides an excellent protection by reducing the tile breakage. It can also be used under hardwood and carpet.

This material is also highly durable and can be used as finished floor as well. It provides fantastic performance regarding noise control.

All the materials I mentioned here are very effective and affordable, which means you won’t have to spend a fortune in order to fix the problem of unwanted sounds.

As I said, what matters the most is that you precisely define noise type that bothers you and finds the material which is good for the occasion.

Moreover, mind how these materials for with different types of floors, as combining some of them which don’t go together won’t fix the problem.

Different methods of floor soundproofing

Even though you may think there are numerous products which can do the job, still there aren’t many which are indeed effective. Here are the most popular methods used for floor underlaying and sound dampening.

What to look for when soundproofing a floor?

Before the list comes, let’s take a look about three main parameters when soundproofing a floor. Here’s what you should look for, besides matching floor types and underlayment:

These parameters are of vital importance as they vary when different materials combine together.

When soundproofing floor, always have a wider picture. All the things are important, doors, windows, furniture, size and shape of the room, etc.

Top five soundproof flooring materials

Step by step, you are closer to finding the right solution for your problem with annoying sounds.

Now that you know what are the necessary factors to take into consideration when thinking about soundproofing floors, without further delay, here comes the list.

1) This Robert Super Felt Underlayment combines with laminate and engineered wood, providing cushioning over subfloors made of concrete and wood. With very good STC (66) as well as IIC (67), this one is a frequent choice by people dealing with unwanted sounds.

A bonus feature of this one is a film overlay which serves as a protection from moisture.

2) Another one from Roberts, this First Step Underlayment is an open-cell foam product, which allows the air to flow and circulate. That means no mold growth.

Like the previous one, this one has good STC (67) and IIC (68) values. You will get the best of it if you combine it with laminate or engineered wood planks.

3) With STC of 66 and IIC of 71, Quiet Walk Plus is also an excellent choice. It provides superior sound reduction as well as moisture protection. This one is environmentally safe, due to low chemical emission.

You can use it with laminate, luxury vinyl plank as well as on click-together floating engineered floors. Moreover, you can install it over wood and concrete subfloors.

4) Floor Muffler UltraSeal Underlayment is also a foam product but a closed cell polypropylene one. With very high STC (73) and IIC (74) values, this is an excellent choice for laminate and engineer wood products. This product provides excellent protection against moisture and mold.

Moreover, the VOC level is very low and you can recycle it 100%. It’s definitely a favorite choice by environmentally minded people.

The choice you will make depends on the type of the floor you have, the type of noise you want to dampen as well as your budget.

Have in mind that if you are looking for long-term solutions, it is better to invest a bit more money, because it will pay off later.

6 Tips for Floor Soundproofing Products

1. Use solid materials

For very loud and annoying sounds coming from the room under you, such as people's voices, it's best to use solid materials for sound insulation.

Oriented strand boards are the most common choice and the most suitable one for most situations.

They are quite inexpensive and easy to work with. Some of the other widely used materials in this category are Medium-density fiberboards and Cement boards.

I would recommend you to use damping compound in addition to any of these materials because you will improve sound reduction significantly if you do so.

You will achieve more by doing this than by adding multiple layers of boards.

It would be very useful for you to remember this when we start talking about all of the following options because this rule is applicable to pretty much all of them.

You will accomplish a higher level of sound insulation by adding multiple thinner layers of materials than adding fewer layers of flooring material that is very thick.

2. Put resilient materials

Resilient materials are the best choice for those of you who are having problems with impact noise such as footsteps or the sound of furniture being dragged on the floor.

Some of the materials that are the most suitable for this are rubber, foam, and fiber. There are many pads available for sale that are made of one of these materials or a combination of them.

You can put a resilient pad under your carpet for the best possible results. They are really not expensive and yet they are probably one of the best solutions for noise problems in this entire article.

For example, you could use a rubber mat. It’s really affordable and it will solve your problem immediately.

This rubber pad is likely one of the best possible solutions that I've come across. It's especially effective if you use it in a combination with a rug.

This product is described as very durable, strong and thick, which is exactly what you'll need if you want to prevent impact noise.

The customer reviews for this pad are almost completely positive, which means that buying it certainly won't be a mistake. You can get it for under $35, which is a rather small price for getting rid of noise if you ask me.

3. Stick to some damping materials

If you're having trouble with some kind of low-frequency noise such as music, for instance, then you should opt for damping materials.

The Green Glue Compound is definitely considered to be the best possible choice for this kind of a situation.

There is actually a huge number of lab tests that prove the effectiveness of Green Glue, which is why it's such a widely used soundproofing material. It's not too complicated to work with it.

All you need to do is apply it between two rigid panels and then screw those panels together. 

Remember the rule we talked about – it’s better to use multiple thinner layers of soundproofing material than to use fewer layers of very thick material.

You can get as many as six tubes of Green Glue Noiseproofing Compound on Amazon for the price of under $120.

Keep in mind the fact that Green Glue is only useful for blocking low-frequency sounds, but not very effective when it comes to sounds of other frequencies.

It’s quite easy to work with this glue, just make sure to apply it evenly over the boards and not apply too much of it at once.

You should also make sure not to inhale too much of it, since it’s rather toxic and harmful when inhaled, just like regular glue.

4. Finished flooring surfaces

There are only two options where these materials that are a realistic possibility – either your house doesn’t have floors yet and you plan on installing the best possible soundproof flooring or you plan on completely renovating your floors and investing a bunch of money into this project.

You can make your choice between hardwood, laminate, and tiles, depending on your preferences and your taste.

Laminate is probably the best choice among the three since there is practically no sound at all when you walk around on it, but it doesn't really look as good on the floor as hardwood does.

Tiles can be quite annoying, especially if you mind impact noise, which is certainly the loudest on tiles.

For example, this European-style carpet is obviously very thick and it’s clear from the look of it that it would do more than a decent job at soundproofing the floor.

If it seems like something that would match the look of your living room, click here to get it on Amazon. 

Still, since I believe that this carpet may seem a bit tacky to some of you, I made sure to find some simpler and more elegant options.

For instance, this Blue and Ivory Moroccan Ogee Plush Area Rug seems like a great choice if you want to improve the decor of your room a little bit and soundproof the floor at the same time.