Update 7/20/2016: Did you know that Pergo launched two new floors at Home Depot & Lowes? Check out the differences between Pergo Outlast + and Pergo Max Premier I have also added more content to this page to help you in your decision making.
Have you been shopping for new laminate floor and wondered what’s the difference between Pergo Max and Pergo XP? After visiting both big box home improvement stores I have some information to share.
Pergo Max
Overall our impression of Pergo Max was favorable. There was a color/finish we really liked. The installation cost though ultimately led us to another decision.
Retailer: Pergo Max is sold at Lowes
Attached underlayment
Lifetime limited residential wear warranty
Thickness: 8mm
Grade: AC3 What is AC rating?
Finishes/Colors: 24
Installation instructions (PDF)
Search Pergo Laminate flooring
Pergo Max Videos
Pergo Max Installation Video
Pergo XP
Overall our impression of Pergo XP was so-so. Although there are more choices in the Pergo XP line than the Pergo Max we didn’t see one that made a positive impression with us.
Retailer: Pergo XP is sold at Home Depot
Attached underlayment
Lifetime limited residential wear warranty
Thickness: 10mm
Grade: AC4 What is AC rating?
Finishes/Colors: 33
PergoExpressions Laminate in Jatoba
Pergo Accolade Laminate Flooring in Rustic Oak
Installation instructions (PDF)
Reviews of Pergo XP
Chris over at Random Thoughts shares his experiences with installing Pergo XP and includes a great list of tips in his post “Pergo XP (Highland Hickory)”
Pergo XP Videos
Pergo XP Installation Video
Shopping for Pergo Laminate Flooring
Search Pergo Laminate flooring
Want to see what floor we thought was better than Pergo XP and Pergo Max? Read Of Floors and Dust Bunnies
Update 7/20/2016: Did you know that Pergo launched two new floors at Home Depot & Lowes? Check out the differences between Pergo Outlast + and Pergo Max Premier
44 Responses
I searched the same question at Pergo and it seems that Pergomax is sold esclusively at Loews and PergoXP (extreme perform.) is sold exclusively at Home Depot. Both seem to be under the PermaMax trademark. Eachoof these stores carries different selections.
When was Pergo Max introduced. The condo we live in accecpted a technical data sheet from 2004 which I believe would not represent the true specs of a Pergo Max Vera Mahogany floor that our upstairs neighbors placed over 8′ concrete and the noise is unreal.
According to a quick search of the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office website it states that the trademark “Pergo Max” was first used in commerce 5/31/2011.
thickness: pergo xp = 10mm; pergo max = 8mm
in general, thicker = preferred, more value, stronger
Bob- Can you confirm the technical details for us? Is there a spec sheet somewhere?
Product Specification:
MANUFACTURER: Pergo XP
THICKNESS: 10mm + Premium Underlayment Attached
GRADE: AC3
WARRANTY: Lifetime Residential / 10yr Light Commercial
Product Specification:
MANUFACTURER: Pergo Max
THICKNESS: 8mm + Premium Underlayment Attached
GRADE: AC4
WARRANTY: Lifetime Residential / 5yr Light Commercial
Hey Rob! Can you please post or send me some emails of your new floor in your home. My husband and I have been searching for flooring for months and have narrowed it down to Pergo XP. I looked at the flooring you had chosen and found it on the internet for half the price of the Pergo XP. I would really appreciate your input! Thanks!
Hey Felica! Thanks for dropping by and for your comment. You can read about the floor we finally selected (back in 2010) over at this blog post. Price part of the our driver in our process. Funny enough, just today we were going over the choices for our next home. And for some final pictures of the install check here.
PLEASE help! We will have 2,000sf of wood laminate in our new build & need durability with dogs & must have a darker hand scraped finish: as of now have decided on PergoMax Handscraped Richland Hickory. Is this all it’s cracked up to be–has a 4AC but is only 8mil?? And is attached pad good enough? What else is comparable?? Thanks!!
Hi Brenda-
Thanks for your comment. I know AC4 is supposed to mean that the floor is hard. But, I’ve not had any direct experience with dogs and this PergoMax. Maybe someone else can comment here on there experience. Thanks.
Pergo XP highland hickory was installed last fall in our main floor. The stuff looks great and its bulletproof! Two dogs and no scratches! Fabulous!
Purchased pergo xp highland hickory last April…2500sf …we like it better than hardwood. It will not scratch with large dogs running on it; Clorox drips won’t fade it and it looks fantastic, plus it’s quiet! Got a special deal at HD…whole house install for $300.00 or some ridiculous low price…look for this sale in spring. Would not consider buying any other product and did not put any laminate in ” wet ” rooms ( tile only as we are a messy bunch :). We get many many compliments on this floor! Very pleased with our investment!
Laurie-
Thanks for sharing your experience with Pergo XP. When we did our laminate flooring we decided to tile “wet” rooms as well. The deal sounds like a great one. Did that price include moving furniture, removing carpet/tackstrip and installing new shoe moulding/quarter round?
decided on pergo max but am reconsidering because I have been told it’s noisy? Is this true?
Thanks for your comment. What kind of noise do you mean? Most noise it mitigated by the attached underlayment.
Unsure about what kind of noise since I haven’t heard it myself. Guy at Lowes says he’s heard complaints and Laurie that posted her comment here in Dec. comments on her happiness in the flooring “being quiet”. Lowes guy says its a chuckling sound when you walk on it? Says its pretty commonly known. Made me more confused. Have no idea what that would sound like.
For *most* laminate floors there is what is loosely termed a click. This applies more to shoes of the high heeled variety with a small surface area. It involves the upper layer of finish of the floor resonating through the flooring substrate, I believe. Thicker floors tend to exhibit less of this from my layman testing in the stores. Your mileage may vary.
Thanks for getting back so quickly. Tonight I talked w/friends n they said its called a click as you say. Don’t think I will like that so I’m glad I found out in time. But as Laurie mentioned the pergo xp is quiet so I’m gonna consider that one instead of the max. It is thicker. Thx for ur help!
Do not buy anything with Pergo product, i am still fighting with Lowes and Pergo company, read the complaints it is available on line and all problem, issue and complaints with Pergo are alike and I am a leaving example and I don’t you to go through with the problem we are having with. My floor already blistered or swelling like a month after it is installed by Lowes. It is a nightmare nobody can afford to replaced floor every six month.
Dear Gina, Currently having that same fight myself. In fact, I’m sending you this message while at Lowes on the latest round of our fight. Iwould love to communicate with you more to hear about your situation. Wendi
I am looking at Pergo Max but need to know how long a run I can do before transition is required. Want to go from my front door to my back door and the longest run will be 42 feet. Can I run the entire length with Pergo Max without having to put in transition. Get different answers from different installers.
5 years ago 2009, I bought Pergo laminate bridgeport for my slab house. Put it in every room. Bought at Home Depot. Did not have a name xp or max just pergo. A pad was put underneath. It did not have a pad backing. It was quiet and looked great. While we were away we had water damage in most of the house except the furthest . They were saved. 5 years later we could not find a Pergo to match. Bridgeport was discontinued. We needed an 8 mm that matched the floors that were able to be saved. Went to Lowes and they had a Pergo Max that was very close. Same installer put it down . With the same pad underneath. It is the same 8mm thickness but it clicks and snaps all over. The old pergo is still fine.Very annoying
I don’t envy you at all Al. If I were in your shoes… not sure what I would do. It’s a shame that vendors can’t keep something in their product line more than a few years.
Home depot measured and it comes to 6000.00 but the laminate I like is at lowes what do I do??
Go to Lowes.
Just perchased Pergo xp Liguria Slate without attached padding. Does it require a pad to be laid? One site says yes another no. Current laminate is on wooden floor
Thank you
Al Camisa
Al,
Thanks for dropping by Al. According to the Pergo XP Liguria Slate page on Home Depot “Can be installed over smooth, flat, dry surfaces: concrete, ceramic tile, vinyl and wood”. The Pergo Installation document on the Home Depot site recommends the use of underlayment. I would urge you call to Pergo 1-800-33-Pergo to determine the best installation for your product and situation.
Digital Dad’s claims are B.S. – Pergo MAX and Pergo XP are store brands and cheaply made to a price point; most XP is 10mm, most Max is 8mm
WARNING – before you buy a single box – open one carton & pull out a few boards – and NOTICE there is a distinct end-to-end warp; no way you can install this stuff FLAT; I have bought and returned 40 cartons of this XP junk in Jan 2015
and i unfortunately installed 120 sq ft of Max same month – read the other site reviews that say it sounds like walking on bubble-wrap – …. it does …
.
“emoze” not sure what claims you think I made in the original posted (dated 2012) or, in comments since. But, I have been nothing but, transparent in presenting the specs for Pergo and Pergo Max as well as providing a forum for buyers considering either flooring choice.
In fact, among the comments (above) there are a few that are happy with their decision. Some, unfortunately have had a negative experience. Pergo is a mass produced product and I have no doubt that there are likely some quality issues among some runs of the products.
Put XP in a bedroom almost a year ago and so far no problems, no clicking. Looks great. It was installed over plywood floor after carpet was removed. I scratch tested XP, MAX (and COREtec) with a key and XP was the strongest surface by far.
Thanks for sharing your experience Paul.
We have highland hickory XP throughout our house. We put it in 3 years ago. I cut a section of it to expose a fresh raw edge and weighted it in a tub of water overnight. Very minimal swell after 24 hrs. We key tested it, was tough to scratch. with a 100 lb lab and a 35 lb beagle, theyve not put nail scratches in it yet.
Read on another site of water issues with Pergo XP because the connectors allow water to sit, even in areas where there isn’t normally water. (living rooms, bedrooms) Have you heard anything like this? Am trying to decide between XP and Max, have an option for each, and just don’t know which would suit us better. We have dogs and that means occasional wet when they come in out of rain or snow. Supposedly the Max has an option water barrier type thing but the XP doesn’t. On the other hand, quiet is very important. My last Pergo floor was just “Pergo” not a particular style, and it did have an underlayer for water. LOVED it for 8+ years with the first dog and all his wet.
I would refer to any installation documents on Pergo’s website with regards to wet area installation. The Pergo Gold underlayment appears to be only for preventing moisture from wicking from the subfloor into Pergo and providing sound absorption.
Did you know that Pergo launched two new floors at Home Depot & Lowes? Check out the differences between Pergo Outlast + and Pergo Max Premier
https://robainbinder.com/2016/07/pergo-outlast-vs-pergo-max-premiere-pergo-max-pergo-xp-whats-difference/
We have highland hickory and my husband installed it in the bottom floor if our 3,500 square foot house. We have four kids, two dogs and I run a preschool out of our home. I honestly can’t express how well it has held up. Our floor still look great after 10 years of traffic. We are in the process 10 years later of ripping up our carpet upstairs and replacing with pergo. I highly recommend this product.
Thanks for your comment Amy. That’s quite a testimonial! Good luck with the upstairs!
Never had anything besides tile/carpet in our homes. We did have a golden bamboo installed upstairs, in our son’s bonus room/bedroom. It was a good choice and has held up well. We are now replacing the carpet in our 3 bedrooms downstairs and have decided on not going with carpet again. After 10 years and a few dog “accidents”, we want to either go with a Pergo laminate or a dark bamboo. I like the look of the hand scrapped strand woven bamboo I saw at HD, but didn’t see anything even close to the dark, rich look of the bamboo. My husband & I will be installing it. Never have tackled anything like this, but have been very successful with numerous other DYI projects/home improvements throughout the years. Any suggestions on one over the other? Is the durability/installation comparable?
Martye-
Thanks for your comments. There are a lot of flooring types out there. They all have their own pluses and minuses. Your subfloor will help you determine the type of installation and product you choose. For example, some floor types are not recommended below grade/in a basement. In addition, some floors will do better in a wet area like in a kitchen, bathroom or, laundry area. I would say the installation is similar but, you would have to compare the installation instructions of each floor product you are considering to be 100% sure. As for durability? These are two different materials. Bamboo (depending on the product) is largely either solid bamboo all the way through or, it’s attached to a thin plywood base. Laminate (again, depending on the product) has a compressed wood base. Given, that you’ve had a good experience with bamboo you may want to look at what type you installed in the bonus room and see what type it is (e.g. is it a solid bamboo product or, attached to another type of wood) and if it’s appropriate to install in the rooms you are planning. There are some specialized tools for installing laminate floors, you can check them out here Good luck with your project!
I’m ready to remove carpet on first floor was looking at Pergo Max found a shade but after reading your posts Im confused as to what I should buy. Concerns: three dogs running in and out and one older dog that has an incontinent problem. I need a floor to withstand them and their issues. Any suggestions?
Patricia
If you like laminate flooring, you might check out Pergo Outlast+ with spill protect. If installed correctly, it might have the right combination of features for your situation. The tricky part of your situation is the incontinent dog. Laminate and liquids don’t get along that well. Pergo seems to be trying to address that with the Spill Protect. But, I have no direct experience with it. Again, if you go Pergo Outlast+ with spill protect route, read the installation instructions and interview the installers on how they will proceed. I have some information on it here.