Regional flooring contractors like A Step Above operate differently than national chains, and the trade-offs cut both ways. A Step Above Flooring serves homeowners with installation-focused services across hardwood, LVP, laminate, tile, and carpet, often paired with their own curated product lines from major manufacturers like Mohawk, Shaw, and Mannington. This guide breaks down what to expect from their pricing, product selection, installation timeline, and warranty coverage so you can compare them honestly against Empire Today, Floor and Decor, or your local independent installer.
What A Step Above Flooring Offers
The company positions itself as a full-service residential and light-commercial flooring contractor. Most locations carry inventory from Mohawk RevWood, Shaw Floorte, Mannington Adura, COREtec Plus, and Pergo Outlast for laminate and rigid-core vinyl. Hardwood options typically include domestic oak and engineered planks from Bruce, Anderson, and Hartco.
Tile selections lean toward Marazzi and Daltile porcelain, with natural-stone options upgraded through special order. Carpet is usually anchored by Shaw Caress and Mohawk SmartStrand collections, both in the mid-tier $4 to $7 per square foot range installed.
Typical Pricing Compared to Competitors
A Step Above generally falls between Empire Today (high) and Floor and Decor (low) on installed pricing. For luxury vinyl plank with a 22-mil wear layer, expect $5.50 to $7.50 per square foot installed. Engineered hardwood from Bruce runs $8 to $12 per square foot installed. Laminate hovers in the $4 to $6.50 range.
- LVP installed: $5.50 to $7.50 per sq ft
- Laminate installed: $4 to $6.50 per sq ft
- Engineered hardwood installed: $8 to $12 per sq ft
- Porcelain tile installed: $9 to $14 per sq ft
- Carpet installed: $4 to $7 per sq ft including pad
These ranges reflect 2024 to 2025 pricing across multiple regional A Step Above locations. Add-ons like floor leveling ($1.50 to $3 per sq ft) and demo of existing flooring ($1.25 to $2 per sq ft) often push the all-in cost 15 to 25 percent above the base flooring quote.
Pros That Stand Out
The biggest advantage is in-home consultation. A Step Above typically sends a designer or estimator to your house with physical samples rather than asking you to drive to a showroom. The samples sit in your actual lighting next to your actual cabinets, which prevents the classic mistake of picking a floor that looks great in fluorescent retail light and terrible at home.
Installation crews are usually W-2 employees rather than 1099 subcontractors, which translates to better quality control. Subcontractor crews common at big-box installations rotate frequently, and the installer who started the job often is not the one who finished it. Continuity matters for tricky cuts at staircase risers, fireplace hearths, and floor transitions.
Cons to Weigh Carefully
Pricing is rarely the lowest in any local market. Independent installers buying flooring directly from a distributor like Floor and Decor or Worldwide Wholesale Floors will often beat A Step Above by 10 to 18 percent on materials and total project cost.
Product selection is curated, which means fewer specialty options. If you want a 9-inch wide white oak engineered plank in a wire-brushed finish from a boutique mill like Stuga or Hallmark, A Step Above may not stock it. You will need to either accept their stocked alternatives or special-order with longer lead times.
Installation Timeline Expectations
For a typical 1,500-square-foot LVP installation with demo of existing carpet, plan on 2 to 4 working days from start to finish. Hardwood projects requiring acclimation add 5 to 7 days because the planks must sit in the installation environment to stabilize before nail-down or glue-down installation.
Tile projects run 4 to 8 working days because of mortar and grout cure times. A Step Above generally provides a written schedule at contract signing with daily milestones, which lets homeowners plan around the disruption.
Warranty Coverage
Manufacturer warranties pass through directly to the homeowner. Mohawk RevWood carries a lifetime residential warranty, COREtec Plus has a lifetime residential and 10-year commercial warranty, and Shaw Floorte ranges from 15 years to lifetime depending on collection.
A Step Above typically adds a 1 to 2-year labor warranty on top of manufacturer coverage. Read the fine print because labor warranties usually exclude moisture-related issues (which require subfloor moisture testing documentation) and any installation over a substrate the installer flagged as marginal.
What Customers Report
Online review aggregates across Google, Yelp, and BBB show A Step Above locations averaging 4.0 to 4.6 stars depending on the specific market. Complaints cluster around scheduling delays, price increases mid-project (typically due to subfloor surprises), and sales pressure during in-home consultations.
Positive reviews repeatedly cite the quality of finish work, willingness to remediate small issues at the punch list, and the in-home design consultation. The pattern matches most regional flooring contractors in the mid-tier price range.
How to Negotiate the Best Deal
Always get 2 to 3 competing quotes before signing. Ask A Step Above to match or beat the lowest legitimate quote and they will often discount labor by 5 to 12 percent. Avoid scheduling during peak season (April through October in most markets) when crews are booked solid and pricing has no room to move.
Negotiate the trim package separately. T-moldings, reducers, stair nose, and threshold strips can add $400 to $1,200 to a project, and these markups are often where contractors recover discounts they gave on the flooring itself.
Alternatives Worth Considering
For comparison, get quotes from Lowes Pro Services, Home Depot installation, and at least one local independent contractor. The independent often wins on price, A Step Above often wins on warranty continuity and quality control, and the big-box options offer the most flexible financing.
For pure DIY shoppers, Floor and Decor and LL Flooring sell most of the same product lines A Step Above carries at material-only pricing 20 to 35 percent below installed quotes. The decision then becomes whether the labor savings justify the time and risk of self-installation. Choose A Step Above Flooring when you value installation expertise and white-glove project management more than rock-bottom pricing.
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