Comparisons
Interlocking tiles or roll matting
These are bought for different jobs and compared on price as if they were the same job. Sometimes roll matting genuinely is the right answer.
Last checked August 2026
The difference, in one table
| Roll matting | Interlocking kit | |
|---|---|---|
| What it is for | Covering an area or a walkway | Finishing one work position |
| Typical thickness | 3 to 12mm | 25mm |
| Edges | Cut edge unless you buy trim | Bevelled edging included |
| Sizing | Cut from a roll to any length | Three fixed sizes |
| Cost per square metre | Lower, often much lower | Higher, and that difference is mostly thickness and edging |
| Standing on it for a shift | Better than bare floor, not by much | What it is designed for |
| Handling | A roll is heavy and awkward, and it needs cutting | Tiles, laid by hand in about ten minutes |
When roll matting is the right buy
When you are covering ground rather than standing on it. A walkway, an area in front of a bank of machines that people cross, a workshop floor you want to protect or make less cold to walk on.
It is cheaper per square metre, it goes down fast, and for a job that is about area rather than about one person's feet it is the sensible answer. We are not going to tell you to buy a kit for that.
When it is not
When somebody stands in one spot for hours. Roll matting is typically 3 to 12mm, and thickness is what does the work for standing. There is a large practical difference between 6mm and 25mm underfoot and you can feel it immediately.
The other issue is edges. A cut edge from a roll will lift, curl and eventually catch a boot. Edging trim exists, and by the time you have bought it for a finished work position you have often closed most of the price gap.
How to compare the two honestly
Compare a finished position against a finished position. Roll matting at a work position means the matting, the trim for the open edges, the carriage on a heavy roll, and the time to cut it. A kit means one delivered number.
If after all that roll matting is still cheaper and the thickness suits the job, buy roll matting. It frequently is, for the right job.
Questions people ask
- Is roll matting anti-fatigue?
- Some of it is sold that way. At 3 to 12mm it does considerably less for standing than a 25mm deck does, whatever it says on the listing. Thickness is the number worth comparing.
- Can I cut a kit to fit?
- No, and you should not need to. The kit sizes exist to cover work positions with the right overhang, and the edging is moulded to fit the tiles.
- Which is better value?
- Roll matting per square metre, easily. A kit per finished work position, once you have added the trim, the carriage and the labour. It depends entirely on which of those two you are actually buying.