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Concrete Finish Notes · Free estimate
Request free written estimates for polishing, staining, grinding or sealing
Use this page to describe your concrete floor project and receive written proposals from independent local professionals at no cost and with no obligation. The more precisely you describe the slab, what covers it now, the room's use and the finish you are considering, the more comparable the proposals will be. Photos of patches, cracks and edges help most.
What to include
- 01Square footage by room and how the rooms connect
- 02What covers the slab now and whether it is glued, painted, sealed or coated
- 03Slab age, type (basement, slab-on-grade, garage) and known past repairs
- 04Photos of cracks, patches, lips, low spots, stains and the edges at walls
- 05The finish you are considering: sheen level, exposure class, color, protection
- 06How the room will be used and any moisture history
- 07Equipment access, stairs, door widths and schedule constraints
A concrete floor estimate is only as good as the description it answers. A request that says 'polish my basement' produces four proposals for four different floors. A request that says '900 square feet, glued-down carpet over a 1962 slab, two visible cracks, considering CPC Level 2 Class A with a stain guard, photos attached' produces four proposals for the same floor, and those can be compared line by line.
This page lists what to include, explains what happens after you send it, and answers the questions homeowners ask about assessment visits, sample fees and timing. HomeGuide's 2–4 days for residential polishing is short, but scheduling a pro with the right equipment can take weeks in busy seasons, so send the request early. The same guide gives commercial jobs of 5,000 to 10,000 sq ft one to two weeks, and those tie up crews in busy seasons.
What should a concrete floor request include?
The area in square feet, by room if there are several, and whether the rooms connect. What is on the slab now: bare, painted, sealed, epoxy, tile, glued carpet, vinyl, or unknown. The slab's approximate age and whether it is a basement, slab-on-grade or garage; by our analysis of the federal government's 2024 household survey, 32.4% of homes sit over a slab, 29.5% over a basement and 42.9% have an attached garage. Known problems: cracks, lips, low spots, damp areas, oil stains, patches from previous work. How the room will be used, since a kitchen and a bedroom want different protection.
The finish you are considering, using the vocabulary from the service pages: sheen level, exposure class, color, guard. Access: stairs, door widths, whether a planetary grinder can get in. Timing and any constraints such as an occupied house or pets. And photos: the whole floor, each crack and patch, the edges at walls, and any area you are worried about. HomeGuide's small-job premium of $8–$15+ vs $3–$6 means area and access are the first things a pro will price.
- Square footage and layout, with room names
- Current covering and, if known, the adhesive or product under it
- Slab age, type and known repairs
- Cracks, lips, low spots, moisture and stains, each photographed
- Intended finish: level, class, color, protection
- Access route for equipment and any schedule constraints
What happens after you send the request?
Matched professionals who serve your area and offer the service receive the request and decide whether to respond. Those who do reply with a written proposal or a request for an assessment visit, which most polishing pros will want before pricing a slab with a history. You choose whom to answer. Nothing is scheduled and nothing is owed until you agree to it directly with a pro.
Expect the first replies within a few days and expect some pros to ask for a visit before quoting. That is a good sign for polishing: a pro who quotes a Level 3 Class B floor from photos alone has not tested the slab's hardness or seen the edges. Ask each responding pro what the assessment includes and whether there is a fee, and use the reviews guide to check their past work while you wait.
How do you get proposals that can be compared?
Send the same brief to every pro and ask each to price the same specification: the same level and class, the same removal, the same repairs, the same guard. Ask for line items rather than a single number, because Angi's $3–$12 per sq ft range is wide enough to hide almost anything, and its flooring guide runs from $2–$6/square foot for simple designs to $8–$15/square foot for advanced ones. Ask each to state the mock-up terms and what it costs if the full job does not proceed.
When the proposals arrive, align them with the checklist on the polishing page or the relevant service page, and use the calculator as a sanity check. A proposal far below the range usually omits removal, edges or the mock-up; one far above usually includes an overlay or a higher level than you asked for. Both are worth a question, not a rejection.
What should you ask each professional before agreeing to anything?
Whether they carry liability and workers' compensation insurance and will show certificates. Whether they follow the CPC appearance and exposure charts and will take meter readings at closeout, the 3 tests per 1,000 sq ft the chart calls for. What share of their work is residential and whether you can see two finished home floors of similar age. How they control silica dust and dispose of slurry. What their edge method is and how close to walls the main grinder reaches.
And what they will not do. A pro who says the oil-stained corner will always be darker, that the crack across the doorway will reopen, or that the slab is too soft for Level 4, is giving you the information a sample would give you later. HomeGuide notes a stain guard costs $1 to $3 per square foot and is reapplied every two to five years; an honest pro helps you pick the finish you can keep up.
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What is on the slab right now?
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Questions about requesting an estimate
Do I have to know the CPC level before I ask for estimates?
No, but it helps. If you are unsure, say 'satin to polished, Level 2 or 3, salt-and-pepper exposure' and ask each pro to price both levels. The quiz on this site narrows the choice in a few minutes. Pros who work to the CPC charts will recognize the terms and price accordingly; those who do not may need a longer conversation.
Will a pro visit before giving a price?
For polishing, most will want to. Hardness, flatness, moisture and the condition under existing coverings cannot be judged from photos, and a visit avoids a proposal that changes once the carpet comes up. Some pros give a photo-based range first and confirm on site. Ask whether the visit carries a fee and what the assessment includes.
Is there a charge for the sample area?
Sometimes. A mock-up takes equipment and a few hours, and some pros charge for it if the full job does not proceed, typically a few hundred dollars, and credit it if it does. Others include it. Ask, and get the terms in writing before the mock-up is done. Paying for a sample that saves you from a floor you do not like is money well spent.
How far ahead should I request estimates?
Four to eight weeks before you want the work done is comfortable in most markets; longer in spring and early summer when garages and basements are being finished. The work itself takes days, but equipment schedules and the assessment and sample steps add lead time. If you are finishing a basement, involve the polishing pro before framing so edges and access are planned.
Can I request estimates for a floor that is still covered with carpet or tile?
Yes, and say so. Photograph any exposed concrete at closets, under registers or where a tack strip is visible, and describe the covering. Removal is priced separately and the pro will want to see the slab before committing to a finish. Expect a proposal with a removal line and a condition that the finish price depends on what the slab looks like once exposed.
What if I only want grinding or only sealing?
Request that service specifically and describe the follow-on finish, since grinding for a coating needs a different profile from grinding for a polish, and a sealer must suit what is on the floor. Not every polishing pro does stand-alone leveling, and not every sealing pro does grinding, so the matched professionals may differ from a polishing request.
Are my details shared with anyone other than matched professionals?
Your request goes to professionals matched to your area and service so they can respond. It is not sold to unrelated marketers, and you control which pros you continue with. If you prefer, you can request estimates from a small number of pros at a time rather than all matches.
Not sure which service? Start with a guide
Service guideConcrete PolishingConcrete polishing grinds an existing slab with progressively finer diamond abrasives, hardens it with a densifier and refines it to a specified sheen and aggregate exposure.
Service guideConcrete Staining & DyeingStaining and dyeing add color to a concrete slab by penetrating the surface rather than covering it, so the aggregate, patches and variation remain part of the look.
Service guideConcrete Grinding & LevelingGrinding uses coarse diamond tooling to remove coatings, adhesives, lips and high spots and to open a surface profile for whatever finish follows.
Service guideConcrete Sealing & ProtectionSealing and protection treatments defend a concrete floor against stains, moisture and wear, and they range from penetrating silicates and siloxanes that leave the look unchanged to film-forming acrylics, urethanes and epoxies that add gloss and a wear layer.