The Top 250 Design Survey 2025: Designers from leading A&D firms weigh in on the state of the market, challenges, trends and favorite producers – Oct 2025
By Darius Helm
Throughout this year’s designer survey, the slowdown in the commercial market is reflected in a range of issues, from tighter budgets and shifts in segment growth to product trends and favored suppliers. But what hasn’t slowed at all is designers’ drive to elevate and enhance the built environment through the use of high-performance, high-design flooring products, with a continued emphasis on healthy, sustainable materials.
The commercial market has been under pressure to some degree since 2023, though it posted marginal gains in 2024. Some projects have been put on hold, from renovations to large-scale new construction jobs.
The American Institute of Architects’ monthly Billings Index (ABI), which reflects construction activity nine to 12 months down the road-and sometimes even further, depending on the size of the project-has reported scores below 50, indicating a decline in billings, for about three years. The index fell into negative territory in October of 2022, briefly moved slightly positive in March, May and June of 2023 (scores above 50), but has been in the red since August 2023 except for a brief bounce to 50.3 in October of last year. In other words, the ABI has been below 50 in 23 out of the last 24 months.
This year, only 14% of surveyed designers report that budgets are up, compared to 22% last year and 30% in 2023, while 50% say budgets are down, compared to 35% in 2024 and 2023-indicating that A&D work not only remains under pressure, but also is continuing to decline.
Sector overview
The corporate/workplace sector, which is the biggest commercial segment, has been floundering since the pandemic rewrote the rules, and that in large part has been responsible for the subpar commercial market.
Designers report that the corporate/workplace segment, while still holding back overall gains in the commercial sector, has been moving forward in fits and starts, but it’s technical sectors like medical and life sciences that have shown the strongest growth, along with K-12.
We asked designers about their most active segments over the last 18 months, and this time around, medical/acute care, which includes medical office buildings, showed the most growth and accounted for most of the new work. (Turn to page 59 for an indepth look at the acute care market.) K-12 is still strong, but signs point to a fall-off in its pace. Corporate looks about flat with the last couple of years but up hugely from 2022, where it only accounted for 5% of votes.
Multifamily projects, which are mostly new construction, have also tailed back, down for the third consecutive year. The Multifamily Market Survey, released by the National Association of Home Builders, indicated that the segment is showing signs of improving, but conditions are still subpar.
Senior living has been sluggish, designers report, while government work is fairly robust. Public space got a boost this year, in part due to houses of worship projects, which accounted for about 2.5% of total votes.
Designers were also surveyed on their largest projects in terms of square footage, and the difference between these two datasets can shed light on the scale of projects the market can support. For instance, K-12, while down in terms of overall market growth compared to last year, is up in large projects, which may indicate that major municipal bond-funded work has continued apace but smaller, deferrable projects have been pushed down the road.
In the corporate segment, Fortune 500 large projects are the strongest as they’ve been since 2020, while business with smaller corporations is about flat.
Medical/acute care is flat in large projects but up overall, which squares with previous reporting about clinics and medical office building projects outpacing large-scale hospital jobs.
On product specification
Typically, votes for style selection go up when the market is strong, and votes for quality go up when the market is weak. And while votes for style selection have fallen substantially from their recent 2023 high, the numbers fell this year. Muddying the waters is likely vote gains for confidence in the company. In the current market, with concerns about the tariffs and the flow of goods, there has been increased focus on the ability of manufacturers and suppliers to maintain their inventories-and there were already concerns about potential chemical toxicities in imported goods and the use of forced labor in Asia. So, more than ever, designers are taking a close look at their suppliers.
Votes for product performance, while down from 2024, are still up in recent years. Concerns about prices are rising, as well.
When it comes to what most influences product choice, the mill reps continue to have the most influence, even though votes for this group fell last year and have generally fallen over the last decade by close to 10%.
In recent years, votes have increased for design websites. Back in 2018, websites only made up 8% of the votes, and it’s been around 15% for the last few years, jumping to 21% this year, while votes for architect folders fell by half. Based in part on responses to the specification process wish list on page 48, this is more than trading analog for digital but also an embrace of new digital tools like visualizers.
Also, this year votes for peer recommendations were up to the highest point since 2014, as are votes for seeing product in person (trade shows), strongly suggesting a more cautious and thorough approach to the product vetting process.
Where designers lean on each other the most is when it comes to technical advice, with close to a third of designers voting for their peers, about on par with recent years. Mill reps only make it to third on this list, behind the internet, which has become a fundamental tool at this point.
Arguably, the group with the broadest knowledge is the contract dealers, though they’re rarely recognized for it. This year, votes were up for contract dealers over last year but still only account for 15% of total votes.
Following a downswing over the last five years, installation issues grew as the top problem this year, accounting for 40% of the votes, though it’s still below where it stood a decade ago. There are generally too many issues surrounding installation these days for it not to be the top problem, from compressed schedules to poor floor prep to aging installers.
Poor maintenance is typically second on the list, and it’s a sore point for designers because, while they see it as an essential process to maintain the look and performance of the interior, it’s not a process they control, and correct maintenance protocols are often not followed.
This year, votes are up for slow delivery, perhaps reflecting a slowdown at West Coast ports earlier this summer-activity has picked up since then.
When it comes to the specification process, surveyed designers weighed in on various ways they think the process can be improved. This year, as is often the case, issues with transparency around pricing was top of the list. It’s a constant frustration for designers, with the lack of transparency essentially preventing designers from comparison shopping, among other issues, and generally creating budget headaches.
As one designer put it, “I would make every single company organize their flooring into pricing categories on their websites. When I am able to select flooring based on price, everything tends to go smoother.”
On the positive side, designers are enthusiastic about and would like to see more of website tools like visualizers, which have proven hugely useful when working with clients. “It is often difficult to manage expectations of end users as they can’t visualize what the product will look like installed, especially large-scale patterns,” noted one respondent.
Designers also weighed in on sustainability issues involved in the specification process-including, again, transparency-and on installation issues ranging from concerns about qualified installers to more guidance on installation procedures.
Some designers noted challenges to communicating with manufacturers and several also contended that customer service has declined in recent years. One designer said, “It always comes down to the rep. If the rep is good, the process goes smoothly.”
Beyond the issues raised in the wish list, a handful of designers expressed frustration about contract dealers switching out the spec, a frustration that is generally more widely expressed, and a couple expressed that product lines being discontinued can throw a monkey wrench into longer-term projects.
On style & color
Floor Focus asked designers to weigh in on trends in color and design in flooring. Flooring is part of the organic whole of the interior design space that the designers conceive, and it often plays a central role as the foundation for the designed space. In some applications, that means a subdued background in a neutral palette for other more attention-getting interior elements or in others its role shifts from zone to zone, with different types of flooring guiding the mood of each space. And flooring is often the star of the show, mostly notably in hospitality design, and these types of designs often have the most vivid colorways.
In terms of neutrals, greys were the dominant hue for many years, going warmer more recently, but even if greys aren’t trending, they’re always in high demand in a range of settings, in large part because of how well they contrast against other colors. So, even in the long run, greys will remain relevant.
When designers were asked to weigh in on patterns, the bulk of respondents focused on organic patterns (for both carpet and hard surface flooring), many of which were described as having recognizable representations of nature. And many of those that pointed to abstract patterns tended to describe those patterns as leaning toward biophilia.
Also big this year are textile designs and other small-scale repetitive patterns, as opposed to more abstract geometrics.
Another clear trend this year is toward authenticity. It’s essentially a materiality focus that can mean authentic natural materials like wood, terrazzo and stone, the authenticity of exposing and using construction materials like concrete, and a “plastic for plastic’s sake” approach to resilient flooring that eschews hardwood mimicry for anything from textile designs to imaginative, abstract patterning.
One designer noted that some “styles try to mimic natural stone instead of being innovative with the capabilities of the material.” Another asked, “How many versions of the same wood pattern can we have?”
And referencing the growing senior living segment, another designer said, “Not enough emphasis on patterns and colors for an aging population. Designers borrow from hospitality for age-restricted and independent living. Limited choices in assisted living, memory care and skilled nursing.”
In terms of looks, clean, stripped-down decors are still the bigger trend, leaning more toward cozy than cold, although several designers cited an increase in more dramatic hospitality looks, color drenching in rich hues, color and pattern contrasts, and some maximalist looks.
Eclectic looks are still trending, as well, often cobbling together different styles from different eras-Bauhaus curves, for instance, paired with intricate Bohemian patterns and handmade looks. And resimercial looks remain strong.
This year, 83% of surveyed designers say they’re getting what they want in style and color from carpet manufacturers, up from 69% from last year but on par with 2023 and 2022. And 76% are getting what they want in color and style from hard surface flooring, down marginally from last year but comparable to recent years.
Floor Focus asked those that voted in the negative to weigh in on what they want but are not currently getting enough of in both the carpet and hard surface categories.
Designers also reported on how all the different product categories and carpet yarn systems are performing, and this year shows signs of market saturation by some products and prominent gains by others. For instance, with every passing year, fewer designers cite gains in the use of carpet tile and flex LVT , which together make up the majority of the commercial floor space and still remain the hottest products in the market. This year, 47% of designers cited gains in flex LVT, and 36% cited gains in carpet tile; ten years ago, 77% cited gains in LVT, and 66% cited gains in carpet tile.
The big gainers this year are hardwood and area rugs, though it’s worth noting that 47% of respondents don’t even use hardwood and 33% don’t use area rugs. Sheet vinyl was also up, likely due to growth in the medical sectors.
In terms of finished concrete, this year is accounts for 18% of the floor space of surveyed designers, up from 16% last year. While some designers use it for the bulk of their flooring needs-up to 80% in one case-and 10% say it makes up half of their interior flooring, 11% don’t use it at all.
This year, 29% of respondents report seeing an increase in the use of concrete as a wear surface, about the same as last year and comparable to recent years. However, only 11% say that its use is decreasing, down from recent years, underscoring how there’s still growing demand for finished concrete.
On specifying green
This year, 76% say they’re satisfied with the selection of green flooring products on the market, about the same as last year and up marginally from recent years but down significantly from a decade ago, when 88% reported satisfaction with the offering. And 54% say they need better information on green products, also the same as last year and up a bit from a decade ago.
The biggest concerns are about vinyl flooring, in part because of its ubiquity-resilient flooring makes up 29% of commercial flooring sales and well over half of hard surface flooring sales. One respondent said, “I want more sustainable options in the resilient flooring industry. Many great products are out there but more are needed!”
There also remains a lot of skepticism about producers’ sustainability proclamations. One designer opined, “I think a lot of companies claim their products are green, but they are not much different from products in the last 20 to 30 years that are not green.”
And this year, there was more concern in general about the quality of material ingredients, with multiple designers referencing material toxicity and human health.
Floor Focus also asked designers to weigh in on green products that have especially impressed them in the last year. Interface, including its Nora rubber brand, was mentioned most often, followed by Shaw Contract. Patcraft, Mohawk, Milliken and Tarkett also received multiple mentions.
In terms of product, Interface’s carbon neutral carpet tile and CQuest backings garnered many citations, as did Kinetex by J+J Flooring and EF Contract. EcoWorx Resilient by both Shaw Contract and Patcraft was also referenced several times. And beyond flooring, a single item was mentioned: Hyphyn, a biodegradable vinyl used as a textile by firms including CF Stinson, Kravet Contract, Momentum, Arc-Com and Wolf Gordon.
Read the full report here.