Carpet Types and Their Uses

Ready to spruce up your home with a new carpet? Confused about what carpet’s right for what room? There are many different types and styles of carpet and sometimes it can be confusing telling them apart from each other.  It's not just about color or pattern!

Before shopping for a new carpet, it's important to consider how much traffic the carpet will be handling and how easy it will be to maintain. Consult this list of different types of carpet so you can select the best carpet for your home.

Carpet Type	Description	Use
Level Loop	A simple loop pile with tufts of equal height.	Great for high-traffic areas such as hallways, stairs, kitchens, family rooms, and kids' rooms.
Multilevel Loop	A loop pile with several levels of tufts forming a sculptured surface. Berbers made from wool or synthetic yarn are a type of multilevel loop.	Good for busy rooms. The sculpted surface gives it a more formal look than level loops. Flecked styles help hide dirt.
Random Shear	Also called tip shear. Features cut and uncut loops, creating a textured look.	Can be either formal or informal. Not for kitchens.
Cut Loop	Similar to random shear, except the cut and uncut loops are at varying heights.	The sculptured look suits informal dining or living rooms.
Saxony Plush	Dense, level-cut pile of one-half inch or less; closely packed yarn tufts.	Smooth and luxurious. Perfect for formal settings such as living rooms, dining rooms, and bedrooms.
Textured Plush	Level-cut pile with heights of more than one-half inch. Not as dense as saxony plush. (Remember shag carpeting?)	Not a good choice for stairs — a heel may catch in the long yarn. Use in any informal setting except the kitchen.
Frieze	Also called twist or trackless. Features curled or twisted tufts, with a texture that truly masks footprints.	Great for hallways, stairs, kids' rooms, and any informal setting.

Berber carpet is an increasingly popular modern style of carpet. This is a loop pile type, often with variations or flecks of color.  This style of carpet is best suited for high traffic areas, such as commercial carpet in offices.

We welcome your experiences with different types of carpets! Just leave a comment below.  Thank you.