Dips under your SPC, pooling water or tiles that stand proud? The difference between screed and self-levelling compound, what each finish needs, and what levelling costs.
A screed is the sand-and-cement layer laid over the structural slab to bring a floor to the right level and, in wet areas, to form the fall to the floor trap; self-levelling compound is a runny, polymer-modified cement poured in a thin layer to make an existing floor flat and smooth before a new finish goes down. Use screed to build up height or create falls, and self-levelling compound to flatten a sound floor for vinyl, SPC, laminate or large tiles. Neither fixes a floor that is cracked, hollow or damp underneath. Published Klang Valley figures for 2026 add roughly RM2 – RM6 per sq ft for levelling compound where a floor is uneven.
Wikipedia’s entry on screed notes that the word has three meanings on a building site: the straight board or aluminium tool used to level wet material, the guide strips it runs on, and the flattened material itself. It also records the UK sense most Malaysian contractors use: a layer of sand and cement, or other binders, laid on top of the structural concrete so that finishes can go on top.
In a Malaysian home, the screed is what sits between the concrete slab and your tiles. It sets the finished height, corrects a slab that is out of level, and in bathrooms, balconies and wet kitchens it is shaped to fall towards the floor trap. Our tiling contractor guide explains why substrate, screed and falls decide how a tiling job turns out.
Self-levelling compound (self-levelling concrete) is a polymer-modified cement that flows almost like a thick liquid. Wikipedia’s entry describes it as a high-flow material used to create a flat, smooth surface before floor coverings are installed, and notes it became more popular as floor coverings got thinner and tiles larger. It is spread with a gauge rake and smoothed, and it finds its own level.
The same entry separates two uses: an underlayment that smooths an existing floor before vinyl, timber, tile or carpet goes on top, and a topping that is itself the finished floor. It also gives the typical installation thickness as about 6 mm, with some products made for an average of only 3 mm. That is the key difference from screed: self-levelling compound flattens, it does not build up much height.
| Method | What it does | Use it for | Not for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sand-cement screed | Builds height, corrects level, forms falls | New floors, re-tiling after hacking, wet-area falls | A quick fix under thin flooring on a finished floor |
| Self-levelling compound | Flows into a thin, flat, smooth layer | Flattening a sound floor before vinyl, SPC, laminate or large tiles | Creating falls to a drain; filling deep holes |
| Patch levelling compound | Fills local dips; high spots ground down | Small areas under click flooring | A floor that is uneven everywhere |
Because self-levelling compound finds its own level, it cannot create the slope a bathroom floor needs to drain. Falls are formed in the screed below the waterproofing and tiles.
Our SPC flooring guide explains the drumming and loose-joint complaints that come from laying click flooring over a wavy screed; neither is a product fault.
| New finish | How flat it needs to be | Usual preparation |
|---|---|---|
| Vinyl / SPC click flooring | Very flat; it follows every dip | Self-levelling or patch levelling over sound tiles or screed |
| Laminate | Very flat and dry | Patch levelling; high spots ground down; moisture check |
| Large-format tiles | Flat, or lippage shows | Accurate screed, sometimes self-levelling first |
| Standard tiles | Level and, in wet areas, falling to the trap | Screed with falls, waterproofing, then tiles |
| Epoxy or resin coating | Sound and smooth; defects show through | Repair and smooth the base; self-levelling epoxy hides minor unevenness |
Our laminate installation guide describes checking the slab in several directions, filling local dips and grinding high spots. For resin floors in a toilet, see our epoxy flake vs re-tiling guide.
In wet areas the screed has a second job: the fall. Water on a bathroom or balcony floor must run to the floor trap, so the screed is shaped with a gentle slope towards it. Get it wrong and water pools in a corner or runs to the door. The waterproofing membrane goes over the screed and up the walls, and the tiles follow the same fall.
That is why re-levelling a bathroom floor almost always means hacking down to the slab, re-screeding, re-waterproofing and re-tiling; see our bathroom waterproofing guide for the membrane side.
A new sand-cement screed holds a lot of water and dries slowly, especially in Malaysian humidity. Laying a moisture-sensitive floor on a screed that is still wet is a classic cause of failure: the laminate guide makes the same point about slabs that have recently been screeded or had a leak.
Self-levelling compounds are formulated to be walked on and covered sooner, but the time depends entirely on the product and the thickness. Ask for the maker’s figures in writing, and for timber, laminate or SPC, ask whether the floor will be moisture-tested before the finish goes down.
Levelling only works on a sound base. A screed that sounds hollow has lost its bond with the slab; one that crumbles when scratched was mixed too lean or dried too fast. Pouring self-levelling compound over either just hides the problem until the new floor cracks or lifts. Hollow tiles are often a sign of the same thing; our popped and hollow floor tiles guide explains the tap test.
Every layer adds height. A new screed plus tiles on top of old tiles can leave doors that no longer open, a step at the front door or a lip where the new floor meets an old one. A thin self-levelling layer adds very little, which is one reason it is used under click flooring. Plan door trimming, threshold strips and the junction between rooms before the floor goes down.
These are indicative Klang Valley ranges for 2026 from our floor tile replacement cost guide:
| Item | Indicative price | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Levelling the substrate (levelling compound) | +RM2 – RM6 per sq ft | Only where the floor is uneven |
| Floor tile replacement (supply and lay) | RM12 – RM30 per sq ft | On a ready substrate |
| Hacking an existing tiled floor | RM1.50 – RM3 per sq ft | Including debris disposal |
| Vinyl / SPC flooring (installed) | RM6 – RM14 per sq ft | Lay-over alternative; no hacking if the floor is flat |
WhatsApp us your job details for a quote — we reply within the hour.
💬 WhatsApp for a quoteAn honest quotation writes levelling as a contingency with a unit rate, because the exposed substrate is rarely perfectly flat and its condition is only known once the old floor is lifted.
Levelling is part of flooring and bathroom work, and ClickBina handles whole-house refurbishment and coordinates the trades, so the screed, waterproofing and finish are done in the right order. WhatsApp us the room, the current floor, what you want to lay and what the problem is (dips, pooling water, hollow tiles). We reply within the hour. A site visit is RM150, waived if you go ahead, and the price we agree is a flat price with no hidden charges. See our renovation page.
How we estimated prices: every RM figure is quoted unchanged from the ClickBina floor tile replacement cost guide; they are typical Klang Valley market ranges for 2026, not fixed rates. Your floor is priced once it has been checked.
WhatsApp us your job details for a quote — we reply within the hour.
💬 WhatsApp for a quoteTell us what you need — we reply within the hour.