Laminate flooring - what is normal wear and tear?

[Lorelai Gilmore]

I installed new laminate flooring 4 years ago and it's now looking pretty rough (same tenants for those 4 years). I'm feeling that's not normal wear and tear. What are your experiences there?

[Christopher Phillips]

Originally posted by @Lorelai Gilmore:

I installed new laminate flooring 4 years ago and it's now looking pretty rough (same tenants for those 4 years). I'm feeling that's not normal wear and tear. What are your experiences there?

 Depends on the foot traffic, the quality of the flooring used, and how well it was installed.

The good flooring might last 15 years.

But, I usually see it looking pretty bad within a year or two because people buy the cheap stuff and do a crappy job of installing it themselves. It also doesn't handle high traffic and pets very well.