How much does epoxy resin flooring cost?
Epoxy resin is the floor for garages, workshops, units and anywhere that takes vehicles, forklifts or spilled oil. It is also the floor most often ruined by skipping preparation, so here is what a proper job costs and what you are paying for.
The short answer
Epoxy resin flooring supplied and applied is usually £90–£120 per square metre. That includes mechanically preparing the concrete, priming, the resin build coats and the finish, whether that is a plain colour, a flake system or an anti-slip topcoat.
A single-car garage of around 18 m² is therefore roughly £1,620–£2,160. Larger areas come down per square metre because the set-up cost is spread further.
What the preparation actually is
Concrete has a closed, dusty surface and often old paint or oil in it. Resin will not bond to that. So the slab is ground or shot-blasted back to clean, open concrete, cracks and pinholes are filled, and any oil contamination is treated before priming.
This is most of the labour on an epoxy job and it is the entire reason a proper floor lasts ten years while a tin of garage floor paint from a DIY shed peels off within a season.
What changes the price
- Condition of the concrete — old paint, oil staining and cracks all add preparation time
- Whether the slab has a working damp-proof membrane; if not, a damp-tolerant primer is needed
- Finish: plain colour, decorative flake, quartz or heavy-duty anti-slip
- Coating thickness, which is driven by the traffic — car, van, forklift or foot
- Line marking, bay markings and coved edges
- Area — bigger floors are cheaper per square metre
Epoxy versus garage floor paint
They are not the same product. Floor paint is a thin surface film that sits on top of the concrete. Epoxy is a two-part resin that chemically cures into a hard, bonded layer, typically many times thicker.
If your tyres are lifting the last coating off in patches, that is paint failing, not concrete failing. A prepared and primed resin floor does not do that.
How long it takes
A single garage is usually two days on site: grinding and priming on day one, build and finish coats on day two. You can walk on it after around 24 hours and drive on it after roughly seven days, because the resin keeps hardening after it feels dry.
Quick answers
- How much does epoxy resin flooring cost per square metre in the UK?
- Typically £90–£120 per square metre supplied and applied, including mechanical preparation, primer, resin build coats and the finish. Larger areas work out lower per square metre.
- How much does it cost to epoxy a single garage floor?
- A single-car garage of around 18 m² is roughly £1,620–£2,160 for a properly prepared and primed resin floor, depending on the finish and the condition of the existing concrete.
- Is epoxy flooring better than garage floor paint?
- Yes, and it is a different product. Floor paint is a thin film on the surface; epoxy is a two-part resin that bonds into prepared concrete and cures far thicker and harder. Paint commonly peels under tyres within a year or two, prepared epoxy does not.
- How long before I can drive on a new epoxy floor?
- Foot traffic after about 24 hours, vehicles after around seven days. The resin continues to harden after it feels dry to touch, and driving on it too early marks it permanently.
Want a straight answer for your own room? Call 07342 203294 or see our flooring prices and areas we cover.