Pergo vs TrafficMaster Laminate: Telling Old Floors Apart
Pergo vs TrafficMaster laminate comes down to brand origin, price tier and how much information is printed on the planks. Pergo is the Swedish brand that introduced laminate flooring and is now owned by Mohawk Industries, while TrafficMaster is The Home Depot’s in-house flooring label. Both were sold side by side at Home Depot for years, so many homes with an unknown laminate floor have one or the other.
This comparison explains how the two brands differ and how to tell which one is already installed before searching for replacement planks.
Brand background
Pergo grew out of Perstorp AB, a Swedish maker of decorative laminate panels for worktops and walls. During an internal brainstorming session called Idé-77 in 1977, the company proposed using its laminate as a floor covering. The first product, Perstorp Golv GL80, went on sale in Sweden in 1980. The name Pergo, a contraction of Perstorp and the Swedish word golv (floor), followed later in the decade. Mohawk Industries completed its purchase of Pergo in January 2013 for about $150 million, and the brand now sits within Mohawk’s Unilin flooring division.
TrafficMaster is a private label sold only through The Home Depot. Over the years it has covered carpet, carpet tile, sheet vinyl, vinyl plank and laminate. Shaw Industries is commonly named as a manufacturer of TrafficMaster products, although private-label flooring can be sourced from more than one factory over a product line’s life. TrafficMaster laminate was usually positioned as the entry-level choice in the store, below Pergo and other premium labels.
Pergo vs TrafficMaster laminate at a glance
| Feature | Pergo | TrafficMaster |
|---|---|---|
| Owner | Mohawk Industries (Unilin division) | The Home Depot (private label) |
| Origin | Perstorp AB, Sweden; laminate concept from 1977 | Home Depot store brand |
| Where sold | Home Depot and other retailers | Home Depot only |
| Typical price tier | Mid to upper range | Budget to entry level |
| Common product lines | XP, Outlast+, TimberCraft and others | Glueless laminate collections sold under color names |
How to tell which brand you have
The most reliable evidence is paper rather than the planks themselves. Leftover boxes in a garage or attic usually show the brand, the collection, the color name and a model number. Home Depot purchase history, either from an online account or a receipt lookup at the store, can also list the exact item.
Without a box, the back of a loose plank is the next place to check. Pergo planks often carry printed text or a logo on the backing layer, along with production codes. TrafficMaster laminate backs tend to show production codes with little or no branding. A plank can be removed from a closet or along a wall without disturbing the main floor, as described in our guide to reusing closet flooring planks.
Physical details help narrow the field further. Measure the plank’s thickness, width and length, note whether the edges are beveled, and look at the locking profile. Two floors with the same wood color but different thicknesses or click systems will not lock together, so these measurements matter more than the brand name when hunting for a match.
Finding replacement planks for each brand
Pergo collections tend to stay on the market longer and are well documented online, so a model number or color name often turns up on resale listings for years after the product leaves stores. TrafficMaster laminate colors were changed more often, and many are now discontinued with no direct successor. For those, searches on eBay, Facebook Marketplace, Craigslist and Habitat for Humanity ReStore locations are the usual route. Our page on finding discontinued TrafficMaster flooring lists search terms that work well, and the TrafficMaster laminate flooring overview covers individual color names.
When an exact match cannot be found, a contrasting plank used as a border, a transition strip at a doorway, or pulling planks from a closet to patch a more visible area are common workarounds. See looking for discontinued Home Depot flooring for requests posted by other readers.
Frequently asked questions
Is Pergo better than TrafficMaster laminate?
Pergo was generally sold as the higher-end option, with thicker planks and stronger wear ratings in many lines. Performance varies by collection, so the specifications on the box are a better guide than the brand alone.
Can Pergo and TrafficMaster planks be mixed in one floor?
Usually not. Different manufacturers use different locking profiles and thicknesses, so planks from the two brands rarely click together cleanly. Using a transition strip between rooms is the safer approach.
Who makes TrafficMaster laminate?
TrafficMaster is a Home Depot private label. Shaw Industries is often cited as a manufacturer, though the supplier for a given collection may differ.
