A diverse collection of durable carpet underlay
Our underlay will ensure your new flooring looks and feels its best and is as long-lasting, soft, warm, and comfortable as possible.
As one of the largest online suppliers, we offer underlay from a wide range of leading manufacturers, including Wilsons Underlays, Royale, Cloud 9, Duralay, and Tredaire, to name just a few. The Carpet Underlay Shop also stocks a vast range of carpet underlay accessories.
So, whether you’re looking for something super cosy and comfy to walk on or suitable for use with underfloor heating, we’ll have the ideal solution.
We currently have six different types of carpet underlay to choose from, including:
PU Foam Underlay
Our most popular type of carpet underlay is Polyurethane (PU) Foam Underlay. It’s luxurious and comfortable, yet lightweight and easy to handle, offering excellent cushioning to make carpets feel even softer underfoot.
If you want the best underlay thickness for PU foam, go for Plushwalk 12mm.
Wool Felt Underlay
Manufactured from 100% recycled material, Wool Felt Underlay is a traditional and eco-friendly carpet underlay, which offers excellent comfort and sound insulation to help make your home warmer and quieter.
Available in several thicknesses and tog ratings, wool felt is great for heat insulation.
Felt Crumb Underlay
Made from a combination of felt and rubber, Combination Felt Crumb Underlay combines the advantages of both materials, creating a carpet underlay with a five-star rating for thermal insulation and durability.
With a rubber base and wool fibre surface, felt crumb offers the best of both worlds.
Rubber Underlay
Available in waffled or flat profile, sponge rubber carpet underlay may seem a little old-fashioned, but Rubber Underlay is still popular. It remains a go-to option for its reliability in most rooms and on stairs.
Thicker underlays offer noise reduction, while thinner ones help with heat transfer.
Crumb Rubber Underlay
Ideal for areas that experience heavy footfall, particularly in commercial properties, long-lasting Crumb Rubber Underlay offers heavy-duty protection for your carpet, maximising its comfort and lifespan.
The crumb rubber is recycled from car tyres, making it environmentally friendly.
Double Stick Underlay
Perfect for sticking carpet securely in place, Double-Stick Underlay is recommended for commercial premises or anywhere with heavy foot traffic or even wheeled traffic to prevent movement and safety issues.
Its installation offers extra stability because it is adhered directly to the subfloor.
Order the right carpet underlay for your needs
The best underlay depends on the flooring type, where you intend to install it, and what you want it to achieve. Most are suitable for both commercial and domestic use, but be sure to check the product information and choose an underlay that meets your exact needs and performance requirements.
If you’d like to find out more about any of the brands or styles available, or need a little guidance on the best carpet underlay for your requirements, you’re always welcome to contact us.
We’re experts in all things underlay, and our team will be happy to offer tailored underlay advice if you call us on 0203 887 0994 or send an email to sales@carpet-underlay-shop.co.uk.
Frequently Asked Questions
When you buy new carpet underlay, it comes with a wide range of benefits.
Not only does it enhance the overall finish of your carpet, but it’s also an effective shock absorber – protecting your new flooring from daily wear and tear and helping to prolong its lifespan. This is particularly helpful in high-traffic areas.
By adding an extra layer between the carpet and subfloor, good quality underlay can also provide additional warmth and sound insulation – reducing noise by up to 30% and helping to lower energy bills.
It may feel like an optional extra or an unnecessary additional expense, but for most projects, it’s a highly worthwhile investment. Without underlay, you’re likely to notice a significant difference in the final look and feel of your new carpet.
When you invest in new flooring, you may be tempted to try to save money by leaving the existing underlay. This isn’t advisable, though, because if the old carpet was worn enough to need replacing, then the old underlay would be, too.
How long underlay lasts depends on the amount of wear and tear it experiences over time, but if the carpet underlay is old and worn, this will reduce the comfort and insulating properties of the new carpet.
To get the most out of your new flooring, you should invest in new underlay at the same time, for a more even wear rate.
Regarded as the industry's gold standard, Plushwalk 12mm is the best carpet underlay currently on the market. In fact, it was the winner of the ‘Underlays and Accessories’ category at the 2023 National Flooring Awards.
Made from unique ‘bounce back’ memory foam, this impressive underlay excels in comfort level, durability, and performance. Its 3.5 TOG rating offers excellent thermal insulation.
Better than standard PU foam, it also reduces impact and airborne noises by up to 49dB, demonstrates unrivalled compression recovery of up to 92%, and benefits from an integrated damp-proof membrane, which helps to protect against moisture damage and maximise the lifespan of your new carpet.
Available for just £6.99 per m2, it’s our top recommendation for most projects.
A detailed overview of Plushwalk 12mm can be found in our blog.
Planning to install new wood or laminate flooring instead of carpet? We also stock a wide range of laminate flooring underlay and vinyl flooring underlay options, as well as laminate underlay accessories for installation and maintenance.
It works the same way, installed over the subfloor with the new flooring fitted on top, but is available in different materials. As vinyl and laminate floors are thinner, it often features a foil layer to help reflect heat.
Be sure to check out our collection pages for more information on these products and advice on the best laminate underlay.
We supply a wide selection of underfloor heating underlay, which is specially designed to work with underfloor heating systems and maximise the transfer of heat through the flooring.
To ensure the warmth can spread effectively through the room, make sure you choose the right underfloor heating carpet underlay or underfloor heating laminate underlay for your heating system and flooring installation.
More details on the best materials, thicknesses, and tog ratings can be found on these collection pages.
