When thinking of a man cave, most people go directly to the bar, entertainment center, and wall decor as starting points. What they all forget is that, like any project, you must start from the ground up. Man cave flooring options must be looked at prior to beginning anything- you need that flooring before you begin adding anything on top of it! If you are on a budget and want the plain flooring that already exists, so be it- but if you want something that will make your man cave something of legends, then lets take a look at the variety of options available for your man cave or man shed!
Wood or Snap Vinyl
Some of the most appealing flooring for any room let alone a man cave is hardwood or snap wood flooring. If you are looking for elegance, richness, and class, hardwood flooring can up your man cave to another level. Hardwood flooring lasts much long that any other style you may look at, so long as you keep it cleaned and polished.
This type of man cave flooring is perfect for any man- but if you are going for a basketball or hunting theme then this has to be your go to! Close your eyes and imagine stepping onto the court of your favorite basketball team- you look down at your sneakers and see the court that your favorite player plays on. Now open your eyes and picture this in your own man cave.
This fantasy can become a reality should you decide to go with hardwood or snap inserts. If you have a decent budget and a set taste, I recommend going with a nice hardwood finish that will last you as long as you deem necessary!
For those of us who want that same look at a fraction of the price, snap vinyl options are available in any color you can imagine. The benefits of these vinyl planks is that they can be inserted individually to fit any room shape without costing you thousands upon thousands of dollars. The only disadvantage of these vinyl inserts is that the life expectancy isn’t nearly as long as hardwood flooring. Replacing these vinyl inserts, however, is quick and easy and can be done numerous times before you reach the cost of the above mentioned hardwood floors. Unlike most flooring options, there is no glue down necessary to adhere them to the floor base- they simply snap right into one another.
If you are going to furnish the room with a great deal of wood pieces and want to the flooring to sway away from the same look, there are other options as well!
Rubber and Cork
So you have thought of options and decided you didn’t want the wood flooring- what is a better option? Whether you don’t want an abundance of wood or simply don’t like the look of it, rubber and cork flooring is an excellent secondary option. Most people don’t have the ability to convert a whole basement into a man cave, so the loud noises of you and your guests excitement may be heard throughout the house from your in-home man cave room.
To counter this noise, companies have begun making rubber and cork flooring that has a modern look with a lot of comfort. Cork flooring (as well as rubber) acts as a sponge not only for foot comfort, but for sound as well. The flooring absorbs the sound from your entertainment center as well as your guests and limits what is omitted outside of the room. Think of it this way- when you step on cork or rubber flooring, your foot leaves an imprint that slowly goes away as you step off it. This same process occurs in terms of sound- rather than sound bouncing right off it like hardwood flooring, it is absorbed and then slowly released. This allows you to have a little more privacy in your man cave without disrupting others in the house.
Outside of comfort and sound deterrence, rubber and cork flooring just looks perfect. Cork and rubber can be designed to match any design, color, or look that you can imagine. If you are a fan of marble, granite, or any other look, these flooring options have the ability to be colored into anything you can imagine. In addition to this, these types of flooring options are cost effective and ability to be glued down to the floor or snapped in.
Bamboo or Metal?
These are the yin and yang options in terms of flooring. If you are someone who leans hard to one end of the flooring 
spectrum or the other, these are your two most extremes.
Bamboo flooring is one of your most eco-friendly options, as the bamboo is made from grass and tightly compacted to create a harder floor then that of hardwood. Rather than having to worry about gluing down every aspect of the floor, bamboo can be snapped in place like the wood and vinyl options. This enables you to create any size flooring you want with the look you want, all while helping the environment along the way!
On the opposite end of the spectrum, metal flooring is not eco-friendly, but it gives you the more industrial look that will last for years to come. If you have a lot of wood or leather furniture, metal flooring can bring the room together as a means of “old meets new”. Metal floors are much easier to clean, as you can sweep, mop, or spray it down in little to no time! Adding a carpet on top of the flooring enables you to create any look possible without having to worry of the damage moving the furniture would do to it!
Now that metal is covered, lets look at some if it’s close counterparts…
Tile and Stone options
If you want a floor style that will match any man cave theme and any furniture or wall decor setup, tile and stone flooring is the way to go. Ceramic tiling and stone flooring can be made and stained to create a color to fit any theme. Both of these options are easily accessible and can match a rustic, modern, or industrial look for your man cave.
The only disadvantage of these options is the time and effort you must put in to keep the flooring clean. Ceramic tiling and stone flooring requires specific cleaners, as some products will alter the color and texture of the floor itself. For instance, if you were to use certain cleaning supplies on wax coated tiling, it may destroy the wax across the whole surface. The same can be said if you used the wrong chemicals on stone flooring, as the colors of the til may change drastically.
When choosing either of these options, you must be sure to read how to clean the floors and what chemicals can and cannot be used. If you are worried that time cleaning will be an issue versus the time you want to relax and host in your man cave, we do have two options left!
Carpet or Laminate?
Let’s end the man cave flooring debate with the most cost-efficient options that exist! You have money set aside for all 
your decor to make your theme pop out, but you don’t have all the funds to alter the flooring- in comes carpet, carpet tiles, and laminate.
Carpet options are pretty self explanatory- getting the padding thickness you want and the carpet style you want. With these options everywhere and anywhere, let’s delve more into the carpet tile inserts. Carpet tiles are very similar to carpet in terms of look, but they are far cheaper and easily replaceable. Your friends are over to watch the game and have some salsa and wings, but oh no- your buddy Frank (generic name I chose because my buddy Frank is guilty of this) drops his food on the floor. In terms of carpeting, you would need to clean this immediately and possibly tear up the whole carpet. With carpet tiles, you would simply need to pull up the carpet square that was stained and replace it with a new one for just a few dollars- quick, easy, and cost effective. Additionally, these carpet tiles fit right on tip of your existing flooring without you having to rip up what is already there.
If you are swaying away from the carpet look, laminate provides you a wood flooring look for a few dollars per square foot. Also, laminate can be purchased in bulk (buying per yard), which allows you to get the flooring you need at the cost of nearly nothing. Laminate can be colored and patterned to create the look and feel of whatever you envision. This enables you to match your man cave furniture and theme without putting you into debt!
Putting your first foot forward!
Whatever option you decide, your flooring must be chosen prior to the addition of decor. If you go for a permanent look, a cheaper option, or a sound/eco-friendly option- know that it will stand out and tie your room together in the way you drempt it. If these options must be put on the back burner, you can use your current flooring and expand over time- just know that some of these options (specifically the last section) can be done for $100-$200- penny change for the look you need!
If you have any preferences or have tried any of these options with success, feel free to leave a comment below!
I like the idea of snap vinyl that looks like wood. I also like that they can be easily inserted, it doesn’t need glue, they won’t cost me thousands of dollars and I can get it in any color I want. Actually, I can do that for any room in my house, not just a man cave. Thanks for posting this.
Anytime! Snap wood is perfect and can easily be replaced for a decent price. Bamboo is very similar but more eco-friendly and a mdium price range between snap wood and hardwood flooring