Can I plan laminate around a kitchen island?

Yes. Place the island on the plan and the layout runs around it. You see which boards meet the island, how they are notched, and the waste that the island adds to the job.

Should flooring go under a kitchen island?

Floating floors like laminate and click vinyl are usually laid around fixed islands, not under them, so the floor can still move. Drawing the island as an object plans it that way and leaves its area out of the pack count.

Can it handle round pillars or pipes?

Yes. Round objects can be drawn, and the boards that meet them are marked to scribe to fit, since a curve is best marked from the object itself.

How many objects can a room have?

Dozens if the room needs them: islands, pillars, hearths, built-in cupboards. Each one shapes the layout and the cut list.

Plan flooring around kitchen islands, pillars and hearths

An island, a pillar or a hearth in the middle of a floor is where a hand-planned layout falls apart. The rows have to pass on both sides and meet again with the joints still staggered, and every board that touches the object needs a notch or a cut.

In Floor Optimizer you draw those obstacles on your room plan and the layout works around them. Boards that meet an object are cut to fit, and each notch shows up in the cut list with its size and position.

Plan around your obstacles

Free to try. No account needed to start.

In short: Floor Optimizer is a flooring layout planner that lays flooring around kitchen islands, pillars, hearths and other fixed objects. It lays every board in your real room and gives you the waste, the packs to buy and a board-by-board cut list.

How it works in Floor Optimizer

Draw the room

Draw the outline to your measurements, or type its width and length.

Add the obstacles

Add kitchen islands, pillars, hearths, fitted units or anything else the floor stops at. Draw any straight-sided shape corner by corner, typing exact sizes if you want them, or drag out a round or oval one.

Run the layout

The boards run around every object with the joint rules still applied, and each notched board is listed in the cut list.

What it handles

Notches measured for you

A board that wraps a corner of an island gets a notch. The cut list gives its depth and position, ready to mark straight onto the board.

Joints stay staggered

Rows passing either side of an object still follow the minimum joint offset. The planner works to keep joints from lining up with the cut edges at the object, and warns you about any it cannot fix.

Round objects

Pillars, pipes and round features are supported. Pieces against a curve are marked "scribe to fit".

Fitted units left out of the area

Areas covered by objects are taken out of the floor, so you do not buy boards for the space under a fitted island.

What is Floor Optimizer?

Floor Optimizer is an online flooring layout planner for DIYers and flooring fitters. You draw your room or whole floor plan to your measurements, enter the boards you plan to buy and pick a laying pattern, and it places every board in your actual room shape. From that layout it works out the waste, the exact packs to buy and a board-by-board cut list, so the floor is planned before anything is bought or cut. It runs in the browser on a computer, tablet or phone.

What it is: A browser-based flooring layout planner, cut list generator and pack calculator in one.
Who it is for: Homeowners laying their own floor, and flooring fitters quoting and planning jobs.
Materials: Laminate, vinyl plank (LVT), engineered and solid wood, and other boards or tiles laid in rows or patterns.
Rooms: Any shape: rectangles, L-shapes, angled walls, bays, curves and obstacles, typed to the millimetre or 1/16 inch. A whole floor plan can be split into rooms by walls, joined by doorways.
Patterns: Straight lay, running bond, random stagger, strip plank, herringbone, chevron, basketweave and windmill.
What you get: The full layout, waste percentage, exact pack count and cost, a board-by-board cut list, and a printable PDF install pack (the full plan comes with an unlock or Pro).
Price: Free to try without an account, with the layout preview and a sample of the cut list. A one-time payment unlocks the full plan for a room; Floor Optimizer Pro is a monthly subscription for every room.

Frequently asked questions

Can I plan laminate around a kitchen island?: Yes. Place the island on the plan and the layout runs around it. You see which boards meet the island, how they are notched, and the waste that the island adds to the job.
Should flooring go under a kitchen island?: Floating floors like laminate and click vinyl are usually laid around fixed islands, not under them, so the floor can still move. Drawing the island as an object plans it that way and leaves its area out of the pack count.
Can it handle round pillars or pipes?: Yes. Round objects can be drawn, and the boards that meet them are marked to scribe to fit, since a curve is best marked from the object itself.
How many objects can a room have?: Dozens if the room needs them: islands, pillars, hearths, built-in cupboards. Each one shapes the layout and the cut list.