9 Best Concrete Floor Finishes That Look High-End

Acid-Stained Concrete Floors

Concrete flooring is a great material for kitchens because you can make it impervious to water and most staining agents, making it very easy to maintain. Plus, the use of certain stains can give the floor a mottled appearance, which helps to hide dirt. In this example, the concrete kitchen floor has been stained with a mottled brown treatment.

There are several ways concrete can be colored, but one of the most visually interesting methods is to stain it using an acid product. In acid-staining, hydrochloric or phosphoric acid mixed with salts is applied to a hardened, cured concrete slab. The acid opens the pores in the concrete while the salts cause a chemical reaction, which leads to discoloration on the floor's surface.

The results vary based on the porosity of the concrete, the materials used in its mix, and the age of the slab. Thus, you'll end up with an interesting and unique floor that almost has a three-dimensional look due to the variation of color. It's best to pick a small, out-of-the-way portion of the floor as a test area before treating the entire surface. An acid-based stain is pricey and can cost around $25 per square foot.

Concrete Floors With Faux Grout Lines

Acid-stained concrete can often mimic the look of other flooring materials, especially marble with its similar color variation. And you can give the impression of a tile floor by adding faux grout lines to your concrete. The grout lines on this floor were created by etching the concrete after the staining process was complete.

These lines were formed in a simple grid pattern to look like large-scale tiles. But you can also use etching to create more intricate patterns on the surface of a concrete floor. There are many types of stencils and stamps suitable for concrete flooring to create a design that fits your style and space. You can expect to pay between $3 and $7 per square foot for this treatment. 

Stained and Polished Concrete Floors

Concrete is a common design element in many modern loft-style apartments. This one uses a stained and polished concrete floor, which contrasts with an unfinished concrete beam. It's an interplay of industrial and decorative elements that create dynamic tension and make the space visually appealing in a unique way.

To create polished concrete floors, the surface is ground down with progressively finer abrasive pads. You can achieve an extremely high-gloss, mirror-like finish if you go to the finest grit of pads. Or you can stop at any point during the process once the level of polish is right for you. The floor is then sealed to give it a protective sheen.

While a DIYer can rent the equipment to do this work, it is no easy feat. And without experience, it can be difficult to determine which grit of abrasive pads to use. For this reason, polishing concrete is typically best left to professionals who have both the tools and the expertise. The cost of polished concrete floors can range from $3 to $8 per square foot.

Dyed Concrete Floors

Concrete flooring can also be dyed to give it your preferred color. In this kitchen, the concrete floor has been dyed with a solid brown, water-based coloring agent. This has created a rich, smooth finish that is uniform across the entire floor. Unlike acid-staining, the dye does not cause a chemical reaction with the concrete. Instead, it simply penetrates the surface to add color. Therefore, the results are much more predictable than with acid-staining.

However, depending on the color you choose, sometimes a dyed concrete floor can be a little harsh because there isn't a lot of color variation to create softness and movement. So one excellent option to mute the floor a bit is to add a neutral area rug. This helps to create contrast and add a softer texture to the space. Plus, adding a rug to your concrete flooring is a good idea regardless of the finish you choose, as concrete tends to be rather hard and cold. Expect to pay between $3 and $15 per square foot to dye a concrete floor.

Epoxy Painted Concrete Floors

Epoxy treatments are often used to seal and repair a damaged concrete subfloor. Epoxy is the most durable concrete finish and can be poured into cracks and crevices to help level the surface. But epoxy also is available in a variety of colors, allowing you to create unique hues and designs on your floor so you can even make a concrete floor look pretty. Epoxy-painted concrete floors make it possible to achieve all the same effects you can create with ordinary paint.

Floor epoxy is essentially a form of paint in which two parts—a liquid catalyst and a liquid hardener—are combined before the paint is applied. Rather than drying as traditional paint does, the epoxy hardens due to a chemical reaction between the ingredients. The resulting surface is very glossy, hard, and durable, which is why it is used so often in high-traffic commercial applications. But it is also appropriate for the home. It's a simple process much like painting any surface. The most difficult part is typically laying out the pattern if you want something intricate with multiple colors, such as a checkerboard.

This concrete floor has been treated with epoxy coatings in a variety of bold colors. Rather than the concrete having a cold, industrial feel, the colors serve to create a vibrant modern design. The colors are even carried through to the walls and artwork in the space. This just goes to show how style-specific you can make a painted concrete floor work with other design elements in the room. Epoxy is extremely affordable and comes in kits that start at $0.50 per square foot.

Faux Wood Finish Concrete Floors

If you like the look of wood floors but prefer a more durable material like concrete, you can have the best of both worlds. A faux wood finish concrete floor mimics the look and feel of wood with the durability of concrete.

To achieve a faux wood finish, select the wood grain pattern of your choice and press it onto freshly poured concrete. Working quickly, imprint the pattern to run as naturally as possible as it does on a beam of wood. Once the pattern of the grain has been pressed into the concrete, choose your colors to dye or stain the concrete to look like wood (popular color choices are shades of brown and gray), and then seal the design when it is complete. A project like this would cost $2 to $4 per square foot if you did it yourself.

Concrete Floor Stamps

To achieve the look of stone or pavers without the price tag, stamping concrete will be your best bet. To stamp a concrete floor, you will need to choose a patterned stamp that is then pressed into wet concrete. This project can be highly customized with a large variety of colors and designs, making it a popular choice for homeowners who want a little something more than a smooth concrete finish.

A concrete floor takes about two days to complete and can be a DIY project if you're up for the challenge (hiring a pro will cost an average of $2,800). You'll need a few people on hand to help stamp before the concrete dries. Supplies are costly, but a stamped concrete floor will run you about $500 to $1,000.

Concrete Floor Stenciling

If you don't want to stamp on a design, but don't want a plain floor, there is a concrete floor finish that meets in the middle: stenciling. Concrete floor stenciling is easy to maintain and durable, and there are plenty of ways to achieve the look with metallic finishes, paints, and dyes.

Prepping and sealing the concrete is key to making the pattern last. Depending on the intricacy of the design, you can expect to pay between $9 and $20 per square foot for this concrete finish.

Microtopping Concrete Floor Finish

To give your existing concrete floor a refresh, try microtopping. The process of microtopping is when a thin overlay of cement is laid over your current concrete floor. This option is ideal for homeowners who have damaged or unappealing concrete. The finish can be stained and sealed like normal concrete. Thanks to polymers in the concrete finish, microtopping is also extremely durable. This treatment can cost around $3 to $7 per square foot.