The best acoustic underlays, compared.
Top pick: Royale Sonic Gold 5 mm Best value: Royale Acoustic Silver 3 mm – Lowest credible price per square metre among the 15 m² foil rolls, about £1.23 at about £18.50, with silver foil named. Updated October 2026.
Acoustic underlay in this UK set is the thin layer sold to go under floating wood or laminate. The ten amazon.co.uk listings are foam rolls with a gold or silver foil face, a pack of 5 mm XPS boards, and plain 2 mm white foam. You tell them apart by thickness, whether the bullets name a foil membrane, whether a decibel figure names a test, the square metres, and whether seam tape is a separate buy. A printed 23 dB or 24 dB is a product claim. It is not a pass of Approved Document E or the Scottish noise standard. Thickness, foil, coverage, and tape are set out in the [acoustic underlay buying guide](/hub/flooring/acoustic-underlay/sub/acoustic-underlay-buying-guide). Pages that ask about carpets do not answer. On concrete or screed, the general rule is a vapour-control layer, with a practical sd of at least 75 m, either in the underlay or as a film.
Acoustic underlay in this UK set is the thin layer sold to go under floating wood or laminate.
34 products checked · 62 hrs invested · +18,640 readers
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Personal buying guide
Question 1 of 2
What is under the new floor?
Royale’s Sonic Gold is a 5 mm foam roll, 1 m by 15 m, at £29.34, about £1.96 a square metre. It is 4.6 from 800 amazon.co.uk reviews, the largest count in this set. The bullets say high acoustic properties and do not print a decibel number or name a foil membrane. The page asks whether it can be used with underfloor heating and does not answer, and no tog sits in the spec block. One review states there is no adhesion and that the description does not claim any, so you should not expect a peel-and-stick face. Reviews mention sound isolation in ordinary language, which is not a test method. At 3 kg it matches the other 15 m² rolls of this thickness on the scales. It is the roll to open when you want the biggest review sample on a 5 mm foam and you already have a separate vapour barrier, and the wrong shortcut if you needed the listing itself to name gold foil and a dB figure.
Pros
Cons
Best for: You want the largest review sample on a 5 mm 15 m² foam and you already have a vapour barrier for a mineral floor.
Less suitable: You need the listing to name gold foil, a decibel figure, or a tog for underfloor heating.
Specifications
Common questions
Does the listing answer underfloor heating?
The page asks whether it can be used with underfloor heating and does not answer. No tog is in the spec block.
Is a decibel figure printed?
The bullets say high acoustic properties. They do not print a dB number. Reviews mention sound isolation; that is not a test method.
Does the page say the roll is adhesive?
The bullets do not say it is adhesive. One review states there is no adhesion and that the description does not claim any.
AcuStick’s silver roll is 3 mm, with a bullet that says 15 m², at £23.75, about £1.58 a square metre. It is 4.6 from 388 reviews, the largest sample among the 3 mm foil rolls. The bullets describe a silver foil damp-proof membrane for concrete or wooden subfloors under wood or laminate, and they do not print a dB number. Barrier Pro X tape is needed and not in the box. One review says they could hear the underlay after the flooring went down and removed it, while other reviews say it was easy to lay and did not tear. The material field says Aluminum. You pay more than the Royale and FloorPro silver rolls for a similar 3 mm foil spec and a larger review file. There is no tog, so the page does not show it as an underfloor-heating underlay.
Pros
Cons
Best for: You want the 3 mm silver roll with the largest review count in this set and you accept paying more per square metre than Royale or FloorPro.
Less suitable: You are buying on price per square metre, or you need a printed decibel figure before you order.
Specifications
Common questions
Does the listing give a decibel figure?
No. The bullets describe a 3 mm acoustic underlay with a silver foil membrane and do not print a dB number.
What did a reviewer do when it sounded wrong?
One review says they could hear the underlay after the flooring went down and removed it. Other reviews say it was easy to lay and did not tear.
Which subfloors are named?
Concrete or wooden based subfloors, under wood or laminate. The material field says Aluminum.
FloorPro’s silver roll is 3 mm, 1 m by 15 m, at £19.88, about £1.33 a square metre. It is 4.6 from 337 reviews. The bullets call it a silver foil damp-proof membrane for wood and laminate, and they say it suits concrete or wooden subfloors. One review says to lay the foil side down on concrete, which matches the usual foil-down practice on a mineral floor. No decibel figure is printed. A dimensions field of 10 × 10 × 10 mm does not describe a 15 m roll, so use the title for the size. Barrier Pro X tape is required and not in the box, and the material field says Aluminum. It sits just above the cheaper Royale silver on price, with a slightly larger review count and the same missing dB number.
Pros
Cons
Best for: You want a 3 mm foil roll for about 15 m² of wood or laminate, on concrete or wood, and you do not need a printed decibel number.
Less suitable: You want the cheapest 15 m² foil roll in this set, a printed dB figure, or seam tape already in the parcel.
Specifications
Common questions
Which subfloors does the listing name?
The bullets say it is for wood and laminate and is ideal on concrete or wooden subfloors. One review says to lay the foil side down on concrete.
What is the size?
The title says 15 m², 1 m by 15 m, and the thickness is 3 mm. A dimensions field of 10 x 10 x 10 mm does not describe that roll.
Is a sound figure printed?
No decibel figure is in the bullets. The star line is 4.6 from 337 reviews.
Royale’s white roll is 2 mm foam, 1 m by 15 m, at £12.99, about £0.87 a square metre. It is 4.6 from 329 reviews. The bullets do not mention foil or a damp-proof membrane, and the page asks whether it reduces noise without giving a number. Reviews call it cheap and easy under laminate. One says go gently because it can tear, and another says the bag arrived with a few holes and was still usable. On a timber subfloor that must breathe, a vapour barrier is the wrong extra layer, so plain foam can be the right piece if your plank maker allows 2 mm. On concrete or screed, the missing foil is the reason to choose a silver roll instead. The product-type field says RAW MATERIALS, which does not tell you whether a membrane is present, and at this price it is the cheap 15 m² option rather than the best value foil roll.
Pros
Cons
Best for: You are laying laminate or wood on a dry timber subfloor that should not get a vapour barrier, and 2 mm is what the plank sheet allows.
Less suitable: You are laying on concrete or screed and you need a foil membrane named on the page.
Specifications
Common questions
Does this roll include a foil membrane?
The bullets do not mention foil or a damp-proof membrane. Colour is white and the material field is foam.
Does the listing print a noise figure?
The page asks whether it reduces noise and does not answer with a number. The title uses the word acoustic.
What do reviews say about handling?
Reviews call it cheap and easy under laminate. One says go gently because it can tear. Another says the bag arrived with a few holes and was still usable.
Royale’s silver roll is 3 mm with a stated unit count of 15.0503 m², listed at £18.50, about £1.23 a square metre, the lowest price among the 15 m² foil rolls in this set. The star line is 4.6 from 290 reviews. The bullets say a silver foil waterproof membrane is installed and they do not print an sd value, so waterproof is the listing’s word, not a measured vapour resistance. They say to use Barrier Pro X tape on the seams and call that a warranty requirement; the tape is not stated as included. High sound reduction is claimed without a decibel number. Item weight is 2 kg. It is the best value here when you want a 3 mm foil roll for about 15 m² and you will buy the tape separately. Skip it if you need a printed dB figure or a 5 mm gold roll.
Pros
Cons
Best for: You want a 3 mm foil roll for about 15 m² of wood or laminate and you will buy Barrier Pro X tape as a separate item.
Less suitable: You need a printed decibel figure, a 5 mm gold roll, or a listing that includes the seam tape.
Specifications
Common questions
Does the listing call it waterproof?
The page asks. The bullets say a silver foil waterproof membrane is installed. They do not print an sd value.
Is the tape optional?
The bullets say to use Barrier Pro X tape to join the seams and call that a warranty requirement. The tape is not stated as included.
What sound figure is printed?
The bullets say high sound reduction and do not give a decibel number. The star line is 4.6 from 290 reviews.
The AcuStick Sonic Gold is a 1 m by 15 m roll at a stated 5 mm, listed at £29.50 on amazon.co.uk, about £1.97 a square metre. The star line is 4.5 from 682 reviews, the largest sample among the gold-foil rolls whose size you can check against one ASIN. The bullets name a gold foil moisture barrier and sound absorption of 24 dB, and they tell you to join the seams with Barrier Pro X tape, which is not stated as included. That 24 dB line does not name ISLam, ΔLw or EN 16354, so it is a product claim, not a result for a flat under Approved Document E. One review of this 5 mm roll reports some board movement, which matches the risk that thick soft foam lets click joints work. Country of origin is given as the United Kingdom and the roll weighs 3 kg. It is the top pick in this set when you want a 15 m² gold-foil roll with a printed decibel claim, and a weaker choice if your plank maker caps the underlay at 3 mm or you need a tog for underfloor heating.
Pros
Cons
Best for: You are laying wood or laminate, your flooring allows 5 mm, and you want the 15 m² gold-foil roll that prints a 24 dB claim.
Less suitable: Your click system is limited to 3 mm, you need a stated tog for underfloor heating, or you expected seam tape in the box.
Specifications
Common questions
Does the listing say this can go under carpet?
The page asks and does not answer. The recommended-use line says sound insulation, heat insulation, and moisture protection for wood and laminate flooring.
What sound figure is printed?
The bullets say sound absorption of 24 dB. They do not name a test method. The star line is 4.5 from 682 reviews.
Is seam tape in the box?
The bullets say to use Barrier Pro X tape to join the seams. They do not say the tape is included.
The two-roll AcuStick title says 30 m² at £68.99, and both the pack count and the item count are set to 2. The star line is 4.5 from 682, and the saved review text matches the 15 m² ASIN, including a complaint that a roll was not 15 m², so those reviews are not a separate file for a 30 m² order. Item weight stays 3 kg, the same figure as the single 15 m² roll. The bullets still say 24 dB and a gold foil moisture barrier, and they name Barrier Pro X tape without saying it is in the box. Item length of 1,500 cm and width of 100 cm describe one 15 m length, not two. At £68.99 you pay more than twice the £29.50 single roll if a second roll is actually in the parcel, and the weight field does not confirm that. Order it only after the live page shows two distinct rolls and a weight that matches; otherwise buy two of the 15 m² listing.
Pros
Cons
Best for: You have checked the live amazon.co.uk page and you can see two rolls with a weight that is not the 3 kg of the single roll.
Less suitable: You want a second, independent set of 682 reviews, or a price per square metre you can trust from the fields on this page.
Specifications
Common questions
How many rolls does the listing say?
The title says 30 m² and two rolls. Number of packs and number of items are both 2. The item weight is 3 kg.
Are the reviews separate from the 15 m² roll?
The star line is 4.5 from 682, and the saved review text matches the 15 m² ASIN, including a complaint that a roll was not 15 m².
What sound figure is printed?
The bullets say 24 dB and a gold foil moisture barrier. No test method is named.
FloorPro’s pack is 21 XPS boards, each 590 mm by 790 mm, covering 9.79 m² at £24.77, about £2.53 a square metre. The star line is 4.5 from 336 reviews. The bullets say up to 2.2 tog and 23 dB. Interfloor’s hard-floor note treats under 0.4 tog as the ideal over wet underfloor heating and does not recommend an underlay on electric mats, so 2.2 tog is a high figure, not a heating approval. The page asks about moisture resistance and does not answer. One review says the boards break easily and that moisture through the laminate means replacing the laminate quickly. Barrier Pro X tape is advised and not included, and the country of origin is Germany. Use the boards when you want a 5 mm sheet you can cut into a small room and you are not trying to pass heat from pipes or a mat through the floor.
Pros
Cons
Best for: You want 5 mm boards for a small wood or laminate room and you do not need the underlay to pass heat from underfloor heating.
Less suitable: You have wet or electric underfloor heating, or you need one 15 m² roll with a foil line in the bullets.
Specifications
Common questions
Does the listing say it suits underfloor heating?
The page asks and does not answer. The thermal bullet says up to 2.2 tog.
Is it moisture resistant?
The page asks and does not answer. One review says the boards break easily and that moisture through the laminate means replacing the laminate quickly.
What is in the pack?
21 boards. The bullet size is 590 mm by 790 mm. Coverage is 9.79 m². Country of origin is Germany.
FloorPro Smoothfit is a 3 mm silver foil roll, 1 m by 7.5 m, at £16.50, about £2.20 a square metre. That rate is higher than the 15 m² silver rolls even though the sticker looks smaller. It is 4.4 from 54 reviews, and the saved file has nine review texts. Those mention laminate or wood, vinyl over tiles, cushion flooring in a bathroom, and a kitchen floor, with no repeated fault in that short file. The bullets name a silver foil damp-proof membrane and do not name seam tape or a decibel figure. Country of origin is the United Kingdom. It fits a small room or a leftover patch. For a full 15 m² you spend less per square metre on the longer silver rolls, and you still need to decide how you will close the seams, because this page does not name a tape.
Pros
Cons
Best for: You need about 7.5 m² of 3 mm silver foil underlay for a small room or a patch, and a short review file is enough.
Less suitable: You are covering a full 15 m², or you want a named tape and a printed sound figure on the same page.
Specifications
Common questions
How much floor does the title cover?
The title says 1 metre by 7.5 metres. Thickness in the bullet is 3 mm.
Does the listing mention seam tape?
No tape is named in the saved bullets.
What do the saved reviews use it under?
Nine reviews. They mention laminate or wood, vinyl over tiles, cushion flooring in a bathroom, and a kitchen floor. No repeated fault is in that short file.
The Smoothfit gold listing says 5 mm and 7.5 m² in the title, at £21.50, while the item thickness field says 0.01 metres. Both lines are on the page, so this comparison does not treat it as a settled 5 mm roll. It is 4.0 from 32 reviews, the weakest star line in the set. One review says laminate started to lift after one day and that the foam had filled with water, with no leak, and quotes wasted materials over £500. Another says it crackled underfoot and was removed. No decibel figure is printed, and the recommended-use line says thermal insulation and sound insulation without numbers. At about £2.87 a square metre it costs more per metre than the 15 m² gold rolls, and it carries both the thickness clash and the water report. Keep it in the table as a listing to read carefully, not as a like-for-like 5 mm alternative.
Pros
Cons
Best for: You only consider it after you have reconciled the 5 mm title with the 0.01 m thickness field on the live page.
Less suitable: You want one agreed thickness, a 15 m² gold roll, or a listing without a water-in-the-foam review.
Specifications
Common questions
Is the thickness 5 mm or 10 mm?
The title and a bullet say 5 mm. The item thickness field says 0.01 metres. Both are on the page. This comparison does not pick one.
What happened in the concrete-floor review?
One review says laminate started to lift after one day and that the foam had filled with water, with no leak, and quotes wasted materials over £500.
Does the listing print a decibel figure?
No. Recommended use says thermal insulation and sound insulation. One review says it crackled underfoot and was removed.
Ten amazon.co.uk listings were scored on 19 October 2026 from the review notes already in the display file. A score is not an Approved Document E result, an EN 16354 test, or a claim that one roll is the quietest underlay in the UK. The highest total is the top pick, once. Best value is the lowest credible price per square metre among the 15 m² foil rolls, once. The three weights below sum to 100.
Amazon evidence
40%Star rating scaled by review count on amazon.co.uk. A large sample that belongs to this ASIN outranks a higher star line with a thin file. The two AcuStick gold ASINs share one 4.5 from 682 file, so the two-roll title does not get a second evidence block. A water-in-foam report, a thickness clash, or a repeated tear comes off this block.
Stated limits
35%A thickness the title and the field agree on, a foil or membrane the bullets actually name, a sound line read as a claim rather than a room test, coverage you can measure, and a tape line that says whether the tape is in the box. A missing membrane, a 10 × 10 × 10 mm field on a 15 m roll, or 0.01 m against a 5 mm title costs points. A printed 23 dB or 24 dB is not extra credit for passing Part E.
Value
25%Shelf price in GBP divided by the stated area, only when that area is credible. The lowest sticker does not win when the bullets omit a membrane you would need on concrete. The two-roll title is not scored as £68.99 for a proven 30 m². The £12.99 white foam is cheaper per square metre and still misses best value, because the bullets do not name a membrane.
Start with the floor system, then the subfloor, then the thickness the plank maker allows. A foil line, a decibel claim, the square metres, and whether tape is in the box come after that. Prices below are amazon.co.uk shelf prices saved on 19 October 2026. A printed decibel figure is a product claim, not the result of the finished floor.
Acoustic underlay here is the thin layer sold to go under floating wood or laminate. In this set that means a foam roll with a gold or silver foil face, a pack of 5 mm XPS boards, or plain 2 mm white foam. Titles say wood or laminate. Pages that ask about carpets do not answer. Carpet underlay is a different product. On concrete or screed, the EPLF general rule is a vapour-control layer, with a practical sd of at least 75 m, either in the underlay or as a film.
AcuStick gold prints 24 dB and FloorPro XPS prints 23 dB. Neither line names ISLam, ΔLw, or EN 16354. Approved Document E tests the built floor. SITMA notes that loose laminate underlay is not that test covering.
Several listings name Barrier Pro X tape and do not say it is in the box. Royale silver calls the tape a warranty requirement. Overlapping the foam and leaving the seams open are listed mistakes. Buy the tape as a separate item when the page does not include it.
Titles say wood or laminate. Pages that ask about carpet do not answer. On a wood-based subfloor, EPLF says do not add a vapour barrier. The foil rolls are the wrong extra layer there. The 2 mm white foam names no membrane.
Titles in this set say wood or laminate. A page that asks about carpet and does not answer is not carpet underlay. On concrete or screed, EPLF’s general rule is a vapour-control layer, with a practical sd of at least 75 m, in the underlay or as a film. On a wood-based subfloor they say do not add that barrier. Read the bullets, not the word acoustic. AcuStick gold, the two-roll title, and Smoothfit gold name gold foil. The three 15 m² silver rolls and Smoothfit 3 mm name silver foil.
These rolls are 2 mm, 3 mm, or 5 mm. Use the thickness the plank maker allows. Thick soft foam can let click joints move. One review of the 5 mm AcuStick roll reports some board movement. The Smoothfit gold title says 5 mm and the thickness field says 0.01 m, so that listing is not treated as a settled 5 mm roll. A 10 × 10 × 10 mm field on the FloorPro silver roll does not describe a 15 m roll. Sound lines are claims. AcuStick gold prints 24 dB and FloorPro XPS prints 23 dB.
Three typical situations, each with a recommendation from this comparison.
You want a foil roll for about 15 m² of wood or laminate, and you will buy seam tape as a separate item. The Royale silver roll is 3 mm at about £18.50, with a silver foil line and 4.6 from 290 reviews. It does not print a decibel number.
A roll does not satisfy a separating-floor test. England’s figures, as restated by East Lindsey, are for the built floor. If you still want the 15 m² gold roll that prints a 24 dB claim, the AcuStick Sonic Gold at about £29.50 is the top pick in this set. That 24 dB line names no test.
Thick insulation underlay is the wrong direction unless the system maker allows it. Only the XPS pack prints a tog, and that line is up to 2.2 tog. The 2 mm white foam is the thinnest roll here, at about £12.99, and it names no foil and no heat figure. None of these listings is shown as suitable for underfloor heating.
The top pick is the AcuStick Sonic Gold 5 mm roll, 15 m², at about £29.50. The bullets name gold foil and 24 dB, and 4.5 from 682 reviews is a file for that roll. Royale Sonic Gold has more reviews, 4.6 from 800, and loses the top pick because the bullets do not name a foil or a decibel number. The best value is Royale Acoustic Silver: about £18.50 for 15.0503 m² is about £1.23 per square metre, with a silver foil line and 4.6 from 290 reviews. The about £12.99 white foam is cheaper per square metre and still misses best value, because the bullets do not name a membrane. Neither badge is a lab result or a pass of Approved Document E.
Royale Acoustic Silver 3 mm
Lowest credible price per square metre among the 15 m² foil rolls, about £1.23 at about £18.50, with silver foil named.
Editorial
Peter F. is the editor for DIY & tools at productscompared.co.uk. Comparisons in this category are checked against amazon.co.uk listings, review evidence and public UK sources.
Guides on what to look for, how to use a product, and common mistakes.
Public UK and trade sources used for this comparison. Listing prices, stars, and review counts are from amazon.co.uk on 19 October 2026.
This page contains affiliate links to amazon.co.uk. If you buy through them, we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. Prices, stars, and review counts are the UK listing lines saved on 19 October 2026. We did not run a lab test.
