Polished concrete is a floor finish made by grinding a concrete slab with diamond abrasives until it is smooth and glossy. It uses the existing slab as the finished floor rather than adding a separate coating.
Polished concrete is a floor finish created by mechanically grinding a concrete slab with progressively finer diamond abrasives until it reaches a smooth, glossy surface. It can be left as an exposed aggregate look or ground shallow to keep the original surface cream intact.
How the Polishing Process Works
Contractors typically start with coarse metal bond diamonds to flatten the slab, then step through resin bond diamonds at finer grits, often applying a chemical densifier partway through to harden the surface. The final grit and choice of a gloss or matte sealer determine the finished sheen.
Polished Concrete vs. Coated Concrete Floors
Polished concrete uses the existing slab as the finished surface, while epoxy or polyaspartic coatings add a separate colored or decorative layer on top. Polished floors tend to cost less over time and never peel, but coatings offer more color and design options.
Practical Tips for Polishing Concrete
Test the slab’s hardness and aggregate exposure before committing to a grit sequence, and vacuum thoroughly between passes to avoid swirl marks from trapped grit. A quality densifier and multiple burnishing passes make the biggest difference in the final shine.
