Firstly, consider where the carpet is going and how much wear it will receive. Hallways, stairs, living rooms etc. will have much more ‘traffic’ than the spare bedroom and will benefits from a better quality, heavy duty, carpet in order for it to last a decent length of time.  A cheaper carpet may seem easier on the purse at the time, but in the longer term, you will find that it needs replacing much sooner than a better quality alternative.

If you have children and/or pets, a harder wearing carpet is also a better bet in areas they frequent due to the extra cleaning that may be needed.

The next consideration is the type of carpet you want. Woven or tufted are the two major ones made in the UK with woven being the harder wearing and premium of the two, but tufted being the most popular with householders. There are different varieties and styles available within these two main forms of carpet but just deciding on either woven or tufted will help eliminate some options.

If you go for tufted, you can get single, double or triple pile carpets. Single pile will wear fairly quickly with triple being the most hard wearing.

Another crucial decision is colour and whether to opt for plain or patterned.  It’s important to consider the room size and current or potential decoration. A small room is not suited to a bold pattern as you may find it 'shrinks' the room and pattered walls, no matter what the size of room, would benefit best of a plain carpet as a further pattern could well clash or detract from your wall design.

Neutral colours work well anywhere leaving you the freedom to 'lift' the room for coloured walls or decorations. The bonus with neutral colours is that they don’t date so you can easily keep up with the changing fashions or redecorate the room without the need to changed the carpet.

Don't forget the underlay! This will help to prolong the life of your carpet as well as making it nicer to walk on. Although this may seem like an expensive addition, it is a wise investment to ensure you get the maximum lifespan from your floor covering.

If you’re after new carpets then visit Benems Carpets and Flooring where their dedicated team of staff will be on hand to talk you through all of your flooring questions to find the perfect carpet (or wooden/laminate flooring) for you!