Few flooring patterns make a room feel as considered as a zigzag of wood. Walk into a period hallway laid in herringbone, or a kitchen-diner with a crisp chevron running towards the garden doors, and the floor stops being a background and becomes the feature. The two patterns look similar in photos, though, and the differences only become obvious once you are standing in the room with a saw in your hand. Here is how to tell them apart, which one suits your space, and how to plan the layout before you spend anything.
What is the difference between herringbone and chevron?
Herringbone uses rectangular blocks with square ends. Each block meets the next at a right angle, so the pattern steps sideways like a staircase. Look closely and you will see the end of one block butting into the side of the next.
Chevron uses planks with both ends cut at an angle, usually 45 degrees, sometimes 30 or 60. The ends meet in a clean point, so the floor reads as a continuous row of arrows rather than a stepped zigzag.
A quick way to remember it: herringbone is broken, chevron is pointed.
Which pattern suits your room?
Choose herringbone if:
- You want a classic, period feel that works in Victorian and Edwardian homes as well as modern ones.
- Your walls are not perfectly square. Most UK homes are a degree or two out, and the stepped edge of herringbone hides it well.
- It is your first patterned floor. The square ends make cutting more forgiving.
Choose chevron if:
- You want a sleeker, more contemporary look with strong direction.
- The room is long and you want to draw the eye towards a window, fireplace or garden door.
- You are happy to pay a little more for the material and the fitting.
In a narrow hallway, either pattern laid at 45 degrees to the walls makes the space feel wider. In a large open-plan room, chevron running down the length of the space creates a dramatic focal line.
How much extra flooring should you order?
This is where patterned floors catch people out. With a straight plank floor, adding 5 to 10 percent for cuts is usually enough. Patterned floors need far more, because every block that meets a wall is cut on an angle.
Typical guidance for a simple rectangular room is around 15 to 20 percent extra for herringbone and 20 to 25 percent for chevron. Rooms with alcoves, bay windows, a hearth or a doorway into another room push those figures higher. Chevron wastes more because its angled ends can only be used one way round, while a herringbone offcut with one square end can often be turned and reused elsewhere.
The trouble with a percentage is that it is an average, and your room is not average. A small room with lots of edges wastes far more than a large open one. The most reliable approach is to lay the pattern out on a plan of your actual room and count the planks, including the cut pieces, before you order. A free herringbone flooring calculator that draws your room and places every block will show you exactly how many you need, and where the awkward cuts will fall.
Plan the layout before the boxes arrive
A few decisions made on paper save hours on the floor:
- Find the centre line. Most herringbone and chevron floors start from a line down the middle of the room, not against a wall. That keeps the pattern symmetrical where people will actually see it.
- Check the edges. Shift the centre line a little to avoid thin slivers along the most visible wall or in the doorway. A 20mm strip of flooring under a door is very noticeable.
- Decide on a border. A border of straight planks around the edge frames the pattern and hides any wall that is out of true. It also makes the edge cuts simpler.
- Plan the doorways. Decide whether the pattern stops at a threshold strip or flows into the next room before you start, not halfway through.
- Leave the expansion gap. Wood and laminate floors need a gap of around 10mm at every wall and fixed point, which skirting or beading will cover.
Cost and difficulty at a glance
Chevron planks usually cost more per square metre than equivalent herringbone, because every end is machined to an angle. Fitters also tend to charge more for chevron, because the floor has to be set out very precisely for the points to line up, so it is worth pricing both patterns for your room before you set your budget.
For a confident DIYer, click herringbone in laminate or LVT is very achievable. Chevron is doable too, but it rewards patience and a careful set-out.
The bottom line
Herringbone is the forgiving, timeless choice and the better first pattern. Chevron is the sharper, more modern statement. Whichever you choose, the floor will only look as good as its planning: measure the room properly, work out where the pattern starts, and count the real number of planks your room needs before you buy. Get those three things right and the zigzag will look as though it was always meant to be there.
